Kinosoo Ridge Aerial Adventure Park

2020 – 2021 | Bonnyville, AB

The Municipal District of Bonnyville No. 87 (M.D. Bonnyville) decided to embark on an ambitious expansion of the Kinosoo Ridge Snow Resort to incorporate year-round amenities, including an exciting aerial adventure park. The aerial adventure park had been in the works since 2012 when a study was completed by Brent Harley and Associates to determine the feasibility of turning the resort into a year-round facility and this was the first step in realizing it. The park would draw local residents to the area throughout summer and act as a catalyst for ongoing engagement in further planned summer expansions.

In partnership with Legacy Tourism Group, McElhanney provided M.D. Bonnyville with engineering, design, and tourism planning services. McElhanney’s expertise providing full spectrum services to ski resorts including specialist design and certification of ski lifts, ziplines, summer coaster, and related site planning gave M.D. Bonnyville confidence in the trajectory and outcome of their project.

M.D. Bonnyville sidestepped the ecotourism trap of, “if we build it, they will come,” by relying on data-driven research from McElhanney’s partner, Legacy Tourism. This data dictated a park size design to meet existing demand while planning for a future phased expansion. Safety and approval requirements were met by working with McElhanney’s experienced mountain resort engineering team. McElhanney’s civil and landscape architecture team collaborated to prepare a design that responded to the requirements of the project including a lake viewpoint, trails, landscaping, and natural playground structures. Landscape treatments were combined with stormwater management utilizing Low Impact Development (LID) principles. This formed the basis for a stormwater management approach that maintained or closely replicated the pre-development hydrology of the site.

The end result was an aerial adventure spectacle overlooking Kinosoo Ridge’s resort and nearby lake. As tall as three double decker buses stacked one on top of the other, the Kinosoo Ridge Aerial Adventure Park has set its sights on a horizon of memory-making for summers to come.

Learn more about the Kinosoo Ridge Aerial Adventure Park here.

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