National Ability Center Year-Round Program Roundup

The NAC’s main campus at Quinn’s Junction, aka The Ranch, is surrounded by Round Valley’s trails and preserved land and provides a perfect platform for year-round recreation. The 26-acre Ranch facilities include an indoor Equestrian Center, The Lodge with 25 ADA-compliant guest rooms, and The Hub—which features an indoor rock climbing wall and pickleball courts. The Ranch is also home to the NAC’s outdoor archery range and High Ropes Challenge Course.

Additionally, the NAC operates several off-site facilities. The McGrath Mountain Center, a stunning ski/ride-in and -out building at Park City Mountain Resort, is fully ADA-accessible and serves as the home base for the NAC’s High Performance alpine team. The Mountain Center is also the gathering point for thousands of annual adaptive ski and snowboard lessons. The Camp Oakley yurt in the Uinta Mountains provides an ADA-accessible glamping experience that offers an occasion for deep nature immersion. The Moab Outpost functions as the launching point for rafting adventures, with exciting growth plans underway. “We have a couple of acres of land that we have been working with the city [Moab] to annex, and in the next few years, we hope to have a larger building that has principal lodging for our participants,” Brian informs. When the planned infrastructure at the Moab Outpost is completed, the programming will expand and increase the amount of rock climbing, mountain biking, and desert adventures. 

The broad range of facilities and locations enables the NAC to operate over 20 different types of programs. To gain a better understanding of all the NAC adventures, we discuss programs by season. While summer and winter may provide the most occasions for recreation, the NAC runs programming year-round, including a variety of indoor pursuits suitable for any weather. “One of our goals as an organization is to be able to offer programs any time of the year,” Brian states.

It’s no surprise that one of Park City’s favorite pastimes, mountain biking, is one of the most popular summer activities. “We're lucky to be right at the foot of the Round Valley Trail system, and we have miles and miles of amazing mountain bike trails from very beginner to intermediate and expert right at our back door.” Participants like Brian Cone give a perspective on why adaptive mountain biking is so popular. “The mobility the bikes provide for people who are otherwise mobility compromised is almost unparalleled… It levels the playing field, allowing me to expand the entire radius of where I get to live, play, and experience by a factor of 10,” he states.

One of the NAC’s most unique offerings is on the Jordanelle Reservoir. “We're one of the very few programs in the country that has the capability to run water sports,” Brian describes. “Our paddle sports are anything from canoeing to stand up paddle boarding to kayaking. We also have a boat where we teach people to water ski, wake surf, or wakeboard.”

The NAC has a long history of running rafting trips on the Green and Colorado Rivers in Moab. “We can do anything from a half-day float down the Fisher Tower section of the Moab Daily, up to a six-day trip down class five whitewater in Cataract Canyon . . . the variety of rapids differs on every stretch, so it can be a very beginner trip or an extreme adventure.” 

Rope-related warm-season adventures include outdoor rock climbing and the High Ropes Challenge Course. “Most of the outdoor climbing sessions are in Big Cottonwood,” Brian informs. “For our groups, the High Ropes Challenge Course is always a hit . . . it's a great get out of your comfort zone, team building type of activity.”

Park City is world-renowned for its alpine ski resorts, and the McGrath Mountain Center at Park City Mountain Resort enables every visitor to experience the town’s favorite form of recreation. An NAC employee and lifelong skier, Madison Baumann, who lost her vision due to a traumatic accident, describes the impact of skiing and riding with the NAC. “It's such a freeing experience because when you're out on the hill, everybody does the same thing. It doesn't matter how you're doing it. Everybody slides down snow.”

“Alpine and downhill are our biggest programs in the wintertime,” Brian says. “We do run a lot of programs out of our Ranch location. Right at our back door are the Round Valley trails where we do Nordic skiing, snowshoeing, and Fat Tire biking . . . the Mountain Trails Foundation grooms right to the Nordic shed. We also go to Soldier Hollow and White Pine for Nordic skiing.”

“Archery is one of the programs that can run if we don’t have too much snow on the ground. However, it's most popular in the fall, because it's easy to do in any weather,” Brian shares. “We also do a lot of cycling on the road, especially when it's not too hot in the fall. We ride out of here through Quinn’s Junction. We do a lot of rides on the Rail Trail and in Park City.”

The Equestrian Center is a state-of-the-art facility where people can try adaptive horseback riding or Equine Assisted Learning. “The equestrian program runs 12 months a year,” Brian informs. “We do mounted programs, where people can do adaptive horseback riding lessons, and we also do unmounted programs, which are typically in a group setting, and we call that Equine Assisted Learning. What's beautiful about our indoor arena is that there are big fans or heaters, so in the heat of summer or in the dead of winter, it's comfortable.”

The Hub is the newest building at The Ranch and includes an indoor rock climbing wall with 10 ropes/routes. “It's an amazing wall, because if someone has never climbed before, we've got some easier routes with some easier holds, that wall also has some inverted routes if someone progresses quickly or is an experienced climber… One of my favorite aspects of the climbing program is that it can be adapted to suit anyone. If there is someone who uses a wheelchair, we can fix up a mechanical advantage system.”

The Hub also includes a pickleball court, which has quickly become a favorite activity. “It is another program that we can do year-round. We have adaptations available for individuals who experience issues with grip strength… Or if they use a wheelchair, we have sport chairs.”

Reach out to the NAC for more information or to book activities, programs of lodging:

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