LUDLOW, Vt. -- When the sun sets in Ludlow, Vermont, you can still head uphill at Okemo Mountain Resort -- and apres-ski just got more interesting.
For those with a taste for adventure, Okemo offers the Snowcat Dining Adventure. Guests board a retro-fitted Snowcat that seats 12 and head to the mountain's Epic Restaurant, which 1,700 feet above sea level!
"Okemo has really embraced the adventure of dining and taking a Snowcat ride," said Jason Tostrup, the executive chef at Epic. "People who have never ridden in a snowcat before are just blown away by the experience of actually just getting to the restaurant."
The bright orange tank-like snowcat climbs up the slopes of Okemo at around 8 miles an hour, and 20 minutes later visitors head into the dining room of Epic, met by a roaring fire and white tablecloths.
David Barone, from Lexington, Massachusetts, said, "It was like being in a tank, I was just amazed at how vertical you get on the snow without slipping."
Once inside Epic, guests are seated for a five-course dinner with a menu that changes each weekend.
"A lot of our food on the mountain is sourced locally," Tostrup said. "It's simply plated and artfully produced."
When the dinner ends there is still more adventure after dessert: guests board the Snowcat once again and descend back down the snow-covered trails to Okemo's luxurious Jackson Gore Inn, the trip's takeoff and landing point.
"At the end of the day we want them to have a memory," Tostrup said. "It's an experience we want them to share with others."
Okemo's Snowcat Dinner Adventure costs $125 per person. It includes the five-course dinner and rides, and is offered every Saturday night from January 2 through March 5. A special Valentine's Day dinner has been added.
Reservations are required. To find out more click here.