Skiing with a 3-yo!

While everyone is excited about spring, and leaves budding, and warm(er) weather… I’m over here writing about skiing, yes. I’m actually in Colorado as I begin to write this, and I think Dan told me that some of the ski resorts (oh, maybe in Utah) are still open. But I’m not here to ski – I’m here to meet my new baby niece! But I am going to write about skiing. (Note: I started this in mid April and didn’t finish til late May 🤦🏻‍♀️).

Because skiing was so fun this year! Actually, for me personally, it wasn’t amazing. I bruised my leg really bad my first day in Utah, which hurt and shook my confidence. BUT, Gabriel skied a ton, and loved it, which just made the whole season a blast. By the end of the season, he was basically as good as me.

But he didn’t start that way. Dan should be writing this post because he put in the lion’s share of the work. I don’t think he considered it work, though. As I wrote in a previous post, the foundation began to be laid when Gabriel was eight months old and Dan wore Gabriel in the Ergo while skiing through the neighborhood trails of our ski-in/ski-out rental in Big Sky. It continued the following winter when Gabriel was 1.5 and got to ‘ski’ on his toy Lucky Bums ‘First Tracks’ skis at Tahoe, and the next when Gabriel skied on the same skis at Snowshoe. Also, ski videos on YouTube of epic ski triumphs were part of his education as soon as screens were remotely allowed in our house.

My previous post about skiing was mostly about how WE got to ski despite having a child. This one’s about Gabriel skiing, because now we all ski together! Hooray.

Equipment

Skis and Boots: We bought Gabriel used skis and boots during the summer at the Baltimore Ski Warehouse. Dan did a lot of research, or at least a lot of perseverating, about whether to rent for the season, rent each time we went, rent in CO for the season, or buy. We decided to buy (used), and I think Dan decided it was worth it? I think so. I think Gabriel will be able to use at least the skis again next year, and it was just nice to have them and not worry about it.

Gabriel was just under 3.5 years when we bought them. I think his shoe size was a 9 or 10. He’s 36 lbs now and was about 40″ tall then. His skis are size 90 and the boots we got are size 11. I wanted to buy the boots a little big, but actually, Gabriel said the 9s and 10s he tried on were too tight, so I don’t know if they were actually too big. The boots probably won’t fit him still next year.

Dan also got a ski bag that holds two sets of skis.

Clothes: Last spring, when stores were having their sales, we (Dan) bought Gabriel a 4T Columbia snowsuit (bib and coat) and other ski equipment. This thing was AMAZING. Gabriel was not cold once. Dan also bought him a new, larger pair of the Snowstopper mittens. At some point we purchased a new pair of Smartwool ski socks. We have also had a Turtlefur balaclava for a couple winters now.

Other Equipment:

• Helmet and goggles: Dan also bought Gabriel a Smith Prospect Jr helmet and Smith Youth Rascal ski goggles in various sales around Memorial Day last year. The helmet has two stages. Stage 1 (which Gabriel is using now) is for head circumference 48-52cm. Stage 2 can be achieved by removing a liner from the helmet to increase the head circumference to 52-56cm.
• Liftie ski pass holder: because Gabriel was too short for the lift gates to scan his pass… this solved everything.
• Launchpad ski harness: This has one of those leashes, which we didn’t use, but importantly has a handle that makes pulling a kiddo up onto a chair lift or off the ground super easy.

Process

Process… you mean besides Dan taking him out on toy skis at every possible opportunity as soon as he could walk, watching countless ski videos, and talking about skiing all the time? Well, the first time we took Gabriel on real skis was in mid-December. We went to Eldora, which is a small resort in Colorado. It was quite cold and windy the day we went, and it started off not great. The magic carpet and bunny hill was A.L.L. the way on the other side of the resort from the main entrance, where we parked, and so we had to trudge in all our gear across the resort to get there. Gabriel trudged with us, carrying his skis for part of it, but by the time we got there, no one was happy. We could have parked closer to the magic carpet, but didn’t know that. We did a ‘run’ or two down the bunny hill with Gabriel holding Dan’s skis while he skied backwards before Gabriel started to melt down. I went and got the car and drove back over while Dan and Gabriel attempted one more ‘run.’ Then we took a very long break in the car, with snacks and cuddling. After that, we went back out for a couple bunny hill runs, and then drove back across the parking lot to get closer to the main lodge and had an extended lunch break.

Gabriel was still napping most days at that point, so we thought that might be the end of it. He’d be tired and cranky. But he rallied, and we made our way back toward the bunny hill. At some point, I think it was then, he said he wanted to go on the lift, so we took the lift up to a green run. He lost it and cried most of the way down, though I think I was able to calm him down by stopping and explaining to him that he was safe, we’d stay with him, and we’d get down slowly. But he picked up steam all afternoon and did the green run several more times and also the bunny hill a bunch. Mostly with Dan or me, and he couldn’t snow plow or stop himself yet, but baby steps. He had a lot of fun.

His next day or two out were with Dan at our nearby ski hills (Roundtop and Liberty), and he got better each time, learning to snow plow and stop.

Then we spent a week at Solitude for our annual ski trip with friends, and he skied 6 out of 7 days. Not full days, but some pretty full days and others at least half days. He got to ski a bit with our friends’ daughters who were 6, 6, and 8, all of whom had had lessons, and Gabriel wanted to keep up and be with the crew. He had a ton of fun with them. He also had fun with just me or just Dan, but I think the crew was most motivating. We tried to get him into the ski school, but the cutoff was age 4, and they were strict about it. By the end of the week, he was basically as good as me (not quite, but not too far), able to stop himself and do S curves.

Dan then took him one or two more times to local places to round out the season. Can’t wait for next year.

Pass

I really need Dan to write this section, because he again did all the work to figure out passes. This past season, Dan and I had Ikon passes, and I think Dan bought Epic day passes for the resorts around here in Maryland. He wasn’t sure if Gabriel needed an Ikon pass, but got one in case, and I think indeed it was needed. I think the Ikon pass for Gabriel was $100? For next year, we got Epic passes. Gabriel’s access is free, but he has an Epic pass from this year (with his age already verified) that he will use.

What’s Next

We’re really looking forward to next year. We’re planning to stay near Vail and ski at Vail and Beaver Creek. We might not need straight childcare any more… Gabriel will do ski school or ski with us. He’s already excited!

Skiing with Babies and Toddlers

We ski. Not as much as we’d like, but as much as we can.

The first trip Dan and I ever took together was to Breckenridge for a week of skiing, fourteen years ago. We were recent college graduates and rented a non-four-wheel-drive sedan that somehow made it through a snow storm, over the pass, without incident. It was a windy week, and I finally broke down and bought ski goggles at the top of the mountain, which I’d never owned. (I still didn’t have a helmet… these were not standard things that skiers had when I was growing up.) We stayed in a decently nice hotel. We bought beer for our stay, but didn’t have a fridge, so set it out on our balcony… where most of it burst after freezing in the frigid temperatures. And we were never really in the mood for the rest because the altitude made us feel not great.

That year, or maybe the next, Dan’s best friend, Dan, and I also took a trip to Vail, where Dan’s friend’s aunt had a house and was willing to host us. The three of us did this trip 2 or 3 times over the next few years, and Dan and his friend did it more times without me (I always say I was the third wheel on these trips anyway).

In 2014, Dan’s best friend, Dan, me, and four others rented a house for a week outside Park City, UT and spent the week skiing there. This kicked off an annual friends ski trip in which six of us from that 2014 trip continue to gather from around the country for a week of skiing each year, usually the week of Presidents Day in February. Each year, there are different additional people as well (two have gotten married, for example, and Dan and I now have a kid), but the six of us are core.

Dan and I have also taken day trips from Baltimore to ski in the mid-Atlantic and romantic weekends away to ski together in Utah. If I weren’t married to Dan, I definitely wouldn’t ski as much, but I had to accept early on that this was a non-negotiable, and I was either going to embrace it or be forever bitter that we aren’t using our precious vacation time each year to, say, go to Hawaii, or Peru, or France. I embraced it.

We’ve continued our annual friends ski trips since having Gabriel. In some ways they look different, but in the most important ways, they’re the same, or better. Here’s what we’ve done.

Trip #1: Big Sky, Montana (Gabriel: 8.5 months)

• Travel: We flew via connecting flight to Bozeman. We brought our Uppababy Vista stroller with Uppababy Mesa infant carseat. I brought the ergobaby carrier on the plan so Gabriel could relax and sleep in there. If I recall, this was the stage where he was not interested in being in the carrier at all, and though he couldn’t walk yet, he was super mobile and discontent to be in one place for an extended period. I think he probably napped at some point on the plane while in the carrier, but I don’t actually remember. I do remember setting him on the airport floor and letting him crawl along beside us as we walked down the hallway. Gross, maybe, but I cared more about him getting activity.
• Ski plan: Dan and I each skied 3 days on this trip. He would usually ski at least 1-2 more, but agreed to this plan without grumbling in order to increase my interest/willingness in attempting the ski-with-child endeavor in the first place, and to show that it could go well. I would usually maybe ski 1 more, but more likely spend a day hiking. For this trip, we each watched Gabriel alone (or with whatever friends weren’t skiing that day) for two days, and we skied some together the third day.
• Childcare: Big Sky had on-mountain daycare. Gabriel had never been to another daycare besides his normal one and had never even been baby-sat by a non-grandparent, so I didn’t want to try it for more than one day. It was also very expensive. Maybe as (more?) expensive as a lift ticket. It went fine. I stopped skiing mid-morning to breastfeed him in the daycare. I got to sit in a rocking chair in front of big windows with a view of the ski mountain. Not too shabby. He didn’t seem any worse for the wear after that day. One day after skiing, my childless male friend offered to watch Gabriel while I enjoyed the hot tub with his wife. His report was that Gabriel cried the whole time, but Gabriel didn’t seem any worse for the wear after that, either.
• Sleeping: Gabriel slept in his travel crib in our room overnight and for all naps (except the day he was at daycare). Having him in the same room as me means I don’t sleep as well.
• Feeding: Gabriel was having milk four times a day at this point, and I was breastfeeding 3 of those (morning, night, and mid-morning), and the other we were giving a bottle of formula. That continued. My first day of skiing, Dan planned to meet me with Gabriel at the base of the mountain so I could breastfeed him. He was very late, and when I called him, the connection was poor and he was clearly upset, so I ended up just driving back to the house we were renting. I found that Dan had backed into a snowbank when reversing down the steep driveway and had spent the last hour digging himself out. (Ridiculously, we had a rear-wheel-drive Tahoe that we’d rented. We wanted a 4WD – we had moved on from our frugal post-college days, but the rental agency was out. Who makes – and rents – a two wheel drive Tahoe anyway??) I took an unhappy Gabriel out of the carseat inside to feed him, then handed him back to Dan and went back to the ski mountain. Other than that, there were no fiascos. Dan met us at the mountain base the other morning I skied, without incident. And other than that, I was with Gabriel. No need to pump. Thank god. I did breastfeed him in an old school snowcoach tour vehicle in Yellowstone, though. That was cool.
• Ski/snow education: Gabriel got his first literal taste of snow on the porch of our home with me. I also took him for a short hike out behind the house where we stayed. Dan chose to not consult me on his decision to strap Gabriel to his chest and ski down the hills outside our rented house and then take the privately-operated neighborhood lift back up the hill, still with Gabriel on his chest.
• Other recreation: We took and old-school snow coach tour of Yellowstone, on which we saw Old Faithful, bison, and frozen waterfalls. Awesome.
• Key Clothes:
  • Patagonia capilene baselayer (size 6-12mo). Yep, seriously.
  • Columbia puffy suit (purchased used at a tot swap).
  • Balaclava ordered on Amazon and shipped from Latvia
  • Babiators sunglasses

Trip #2: Tahoe, California (20 months)

• Travel: We flew into Reno, NV and then drove to South Lake Tahoe. Gabriel had graduated from the infant car seat, so our entire travel routine had changed. We brought our new WAYB Pico travel carseat, which weighs like 8 lbs or something and folds up small-ish into a backpack carrier. We’d used it once, on our trip to Mexico the month before. I didn’t love the idea of having Gabriel forward-facing before he was two, but alas. He was still rear-facing in his cushy carseat at home. Also, this carseat can be used on airplanes, which we did on at least part of the flight. We also brought our gb Pockit travel stroller, I think, though I don’t actually remember for sure. I don’t think we brought the ergobaby or our hiking carrier or any sort of carrier. Gabriel was walking at this point, not far, but we definitely encouraged him to walk as much as he was willing.
• Ski plan: I again skied 3 days (my preferred amount), and Dan maybe skied four? I’m having trouble remembering. I didn’t feel deprived, and neither did he, in any case.
• Childcare: This time, we used the on-mountain daycare two days. It was so expensive. I can’t remember. Maybe $175/day or something crazy like that?? We obviously decided we were willing to spend our money on that, but man. I began daydreaming with other ski friends who had (or would soon have) children of their own that the following year we’d be able to get a baby sitter (or even two) to watch the kids at our rental house, which would be cheaper and more convenient. I think Gabriel seemed to like the daycare. If I recall, they actually took them out in the snow? I can’t remember what they did for food…
• Sleeping: Gabriel still slept in his travel crib (Guava Lotus), but this time in the bedroom’s walk in closet. I now refuse, if at all possible, to have him sleep in the same room as us, because I don’t sleep well. It worked great.
• Feeding: No longer really a thing. Gabriel ate what we ate. As I said, I can’t remember what the daycare rules were. They must have fed them. I don’t remember sending food…
• Ski/snow education: This was a SUPER fun trip. Dan had a season pass and so was able to use the gondola as much as he wanted. He took Gabriel on the gondola on his watch-Gabriel days. Before the trip, he’d bought Gabriel a pair of step-in Lucky Bums ‘First Tracks’ skis. I thought he was crazy to bring them with us, but they totally used them together and skied around the magic carpet. I took Gabriel sledding on my watch-Gabriel days. He had a blast. We used a saucer the rental house had provided. I have a great video of him even getting air on one bump, and loving it.
• Other recreation: I tried to go for a hike with Gabriel out the backyard. We went for a bit, but he wasn’t really having it and just wanted to go home or be carried, so it didn’t last for long.
• Other features of this trip: Two main things –
  • We got to see my friend from grad school and her husband, who lived in San Francisco but were also at Tahoe that week. I found out then that she was pregnant, and it was just awesome to hang out with her and congratulate her on that.
  • We went during MLK week in January. That was the week that news about the COVID-19 (before it was named that, I think) really started to hit. While on that trip, we heard about the number of cases in China doubling from 400 to 800 in a matter of a day or so. We talked about it a lot, it was a big news story, but I don’t think we could have imagined how our lives would soon change so much as a result of it.
• Key clothes:
  • REI 12-mo snow pants, purchased used at consignment store. They were huge, and he still wore them this season (2.5 years old)
  • Puffy jacket, purchased used from consignment store.
  • Hat from Amazon, gifted from a friend because it came in a pack of 3 and they only needed one (and G had recently lost his on a hike at Sherando Lake Campground)
  • BOGS Neo-classic boots, size 7.5, purchased used on eBay. These are amazing. And it was amazing we were able to find them used. Such was not the case this year, and we ended up paying full price for his current size (9). But there’s no going back. BOGS are the best.
  • SnowStoppers kids mittens, purchased new. Still used this year. They go all the way up the arm, under the coat sleeve, so the kiddo can’t pull them off. Amazing.

Trip #3 (planned, but not executed): Steamboat, CO

We didn’t actually take this trip. We planned it in August 2020 for February of 2021, with hope but also realism. On NYE 2020, I informed my husband that I wasn’t comfortable planning to go, and informed my friends (three different families) that we wouldn’t be. Had we gone, however, our plans included:

• Travel: we were going to fly directly to Steamboat (Hayden, actually), via… Denver?
• Ski plan: I was going to ski three days and maybe hike a day, and I think Dan was going to ski four? I think we were each going to take a Gabriel day, we were going to take a non-ski family day, and Dan and I were going to ski together a day…
• Childcare: One of the other families going was the same family we’d gone to Big Sky with two years before. They have twin five-year olds and a seven-year old. We arranged with Steamboat Babysitting Company to have a sitter stay with the kids. We tentatively reserved them for every day but one (our family day). They were flexible. The rate for four children was $39/hour.

Trip #3 (actual): Snowshoe, WV (2.75 years)

Instead of flying go Colorado to ski with our friends, we chose to drive to Snowshoe, WV, which has some of the better east coast skiing. We also considered Killington in Vermont, but the state’s COVID guidance was to quarantine for two weeks before or after arriving in the state. West Virginia’s COVID guidance was sort of ‘we’ve got a lot of space, y’all come!’

• Travel: We drove! So nothing really to report here. The actual driving time was about 5 hours, but it took us 8 total to drive down (had to detour to drop the dog off at Dan’s parents, had several car charging stops, lunch, had to buy Gabriel a coat because we forgot his, etc.). Gabriel’s attention span for TV has, for better or worse, improved dramatically, making long car rides easier. Unfortunately, his napping in cars is getting less good. We ordered takeout from a Chipotle and ate it in the car while charging it at a Tesla supercharger. We would prefer not to eat in the car and are looking forward to some day when we can eat in restaurants again. We did not bring a stroller on this trip at all.
• Ski plan: Dan and I each skied two days, each alone. Dan also bought a lift ticket for my second day of skiing because 1) ski tickets had to be reserved well in advance due to COVID restrictions, 2) Snowshoe has evening skiing, and he thought he might ski after me that day, and 3) He wanted to be able to take Gabriel (who was free) on lifts that day. And he did! Our last day, Friday, was a family day, and neither of us skied.
• Childcare: We had no childcare on this trip, which is why we each only skied two days. The other person spent the day with Gabriel. Snowshoe did have a daycare that was open, but they were pretty frank on their website that if you’re not comfortable with laxness about COVID precautions, they probably weren’t the right option for you. I also briefly looked for babysitters or nannies for the day, but couldn’t find any.
• Sleeping: We stayed in a two-bedroom ski-in, ski-out condo at the top of the Ballhooter lift (Snowshoe is weird…the village is at the top of the ski hills, instead of the bottom). So Gabriel had his own room. There was a bed, but he was still in a crib at home, so he slept in his Guava Lotus travel crib. (Side note: we have since removed the fourth wall of his crib at home. It’s going pretty wall. It’s been almost two weeks, and he’s rolled out maybe half the nights. He still waits for us to come get him in bed, though, and hasn’t wandered out at all… hooray! Not sure what this means about travel going forward. Maybe the travel crib has seen it’s last trip??) Gabriel slept pretty well, but especially on the last couple nights, woke up crying. He was homesick and missed our dog and cat and his bed and home.
• Feeding: We all got more treats than usual ;-). Hot chocolate. Waffles drizzled in chocolate. Apple cobbler. Yum.
• Ski/snow education: This. was. AWESOME. We brought Gabriel’s snap-in skis, and he and Dan actually went skiing together! (I took him out on both days I was with him, and he did a little, but didn’t have nearly as much fun as he did with Dan.) Dan took him on the magic carpet the first day they were together and just around. I met up with them and got to see him a little. The second day Dan had with him, they actually went on the bunny hill lift and then to the other area of Snowshoe (called Silver Creek) and did the magic carpet there and then a legit green run lift! Multiple times! Gabriel wasn’t skiing by himself really or anything (though did a little), but was super excited about the lifts. This was really cool.
• Other recreation: Also cool. My first day with Gabriel, we went to the tubing park at Silver Creek. Like skiing, you had to reserve tickets far in advance, which we did. It was snowing and beautiful when we went, and nicely protected from the wind. We’d read that they had a kiddie hill, so I thought that was what we’d do, but it turned out to be really lame. Even though Gabriel wasn’t 4 (technically the minimum age), they told me I could take him on the real tubing part if he wanted to. He said he did, so we tried it. I really thought he might freak out and regret it, but he loved it and wanted to go again and again and again. He went in his own tube (per the rules) and I held the rope from my lane. So that was great. On our family day (Friday), we did a sleigh ride in the morning, which was about 40 minutes. I thought it was super cool. Gabriel thought it was okay. And then the three of us tubed again in the afternoon. It was much more crowded that day (it was Friday, after all), and – ahem – I may have allowed Gabriel to fall out of his tube when it was my turn to go down with him. But Dan rolled out of his tube to rescue him (I kept going…. um), and Gabriel just wanted to go again, after a brief cry. What a trooper.
• Key clothes:
  • Still wearing the REI 12-mo pants. Definitely the last time. Too short.
  • Size 9 BOGS. Purchased new. Just the best.
  • Same SnowStoppers gloves.
  • We bought a $15 coat (shell + insulating layer) at Walmart on the ride down that worked great. The whole dont-wear-coats-in-carseats has resulted in us forgetting his coat on more than one occasion, including this one. Can’t go skiing without a coat. We called a few places in the Snowshoe Village to see if they had toddler coats, but sounded like slim pickings. It turned out one kids store had a coat for $140. Glad we stopped at Walmart.

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Next time, we’ll get him some goggles. And maybe some real boots and skis!

So that’s it!

Eating and Skiing in Park City

Dan and I had a romantical weekend in Park City, UT last weekend. Here’s what we ate:

• Handle. We ate here our first night. We shared four starters (beet salad, mushrooms, smoked trout, and buffalo cauliflower) and one entree (venison). They’re famous for their buffalo cauliflower, apparently, and it was good… but I could have taken or left it. It was probably good to have because Dan was hungry. But the beet salad (with a duck egg), mushrooms (with crusty bread slathered in some kind of fat), and smoked trout (with pepper jelly and ricotta cream) were really great. The venison was simplegreat but not the star. The service was pretty good (definitely acceptable but not impeccable), and the atmosphere was nice.
• Firewood. We ate here our second night in Park City. This restaurant has only been open for about 8 weeks, I believe, and you could tell. As I mentioned in my Charlottesville post, the entry process at restaurants can make or break the experience for me. When we arrived, there were several other groups in the entryway of this restaurant. It was unclear what they were all doing, but it seemed that one was waiting for a table, one was getting their coats hung up (nice touch – something I looked for and was missing at Handle). But the walkway to the host podium was clear, so I walked up to it, where the hostess was looking down at her iPad. And continued to look down, doing stuff. And continued. After a minute or so, she finally looked up and greeted me. Not. Cool. Then we had to ask to get our coats hung (the coat hang lady didn’t realize we were not part of another group or waiting for that, but that’s forgivable). Finally, we were seated. When our server walked up, he had a card in his hands, and he too, was looking down at it (I think reading from it, actually), as he approached our table, and he did not make eye contact for the first several seconds. He ended up being a fine server, though a little awkward. The food was really good, though. We split two starters (oak wood roasted acorn squash with baby greens, goat cheese and cardamom spiced pumpkin seeds – YUM!; and the applewood smoked burrata with beets and tarragon pesto) and each had a main (Dan had the rack of lamb with lentil ragout, and I had the berbere spiced duck). All very, very good. Especially that roasted acorn squash. God.
• Wasatch Brew Pub. Nothing special, just burgers and beer (my burger was pretty salty, actually). But the service was notable. Again, nothing special, very casual… but very well-timed, no awkwardness. It was in stark contrast to the evening before at Firewood. (We overheard that our server was also a server at a fancy restaurant, I believe at Deer Valley, so that might explain it.

We skied at Snowbird and Deer Valley. Snowbird was white out conditions – not my fave. Deer Valley started out with some windy, white out conditions, but the weather improved, and I had a really, really enjoyable day. I didn’t want it to be over! (Usually by 3 I’m ready to cuddle up with my book and a drink in the lodge, but not this day.)

Revelstoke

Six or so years ago, my husband and his best friend spent a day skiing with a classmate of my husband’s and her father. They raved about the skiing in this place called Revelstoke in British Columbia, Canada. I think it was a new resort at the time. (Wikipedia just told me it opened in December 2007.) My husband and his best friend have fantasized about skiing there ever since.

The two of them have been skiing together out west at least once a year (and usually more) for the past ten years. For the first six of those years, it was just the two of them and occasionally me and/or someone else who was available for a somewhat random ski hill meetup, like with Dan’s classmate. But for the past four years, it has been a bigger group/reunion, with a core group of six of us that all went to the same college, plus a few other friends or significant others each year. Four years ago, we rented a house outside Park City. I believe there were 7 of us that  year. The next year, we got a house (the best house ever) in Big Sky, Montana. We were… 12? that year. Again, friends from college, Atlanta, a friend of mine from Madison, and friends of friends. Last year was thrown together a little late – we were 8 staying in a not-as-great house in Salt Lake City and driving to ski resorts, but I had one of my favorite days skiing ever at Powder Mountain. And this year, finally, we made the trek to Revelstoke, Canada. This year there were 8 of us total.

It took 17 hours of traveling to get there, and 17 hours to get home yesterday. Both travel days, we had to wake up at 3 am local time. But it was worth it.

We got to see friends:

We met up with this guy in the Toronto airport.

Twinsies.

Dan in his element.

Photo bomb.

First day!

Posers.

I did not go here, but I love this picture.

Blue crew.

 

There were some amazing views of Revelstoke and the Columbia River:

 

And Lake Louise in Banff:

I didn’t take this picture. My friends, who flew into Calgary and drove to Revelstoke through Banff, took it on their way.

 

Plus I got to go for a short 3-mile hike, all by myself, fresh tracks, in Mount Revelstoke National Park (with snow up to my waist when I accidentally stepped off the path – the pictures don’t quite capture it):

 

And see wildlife. In the middle of the Trans-Canada Highway:

 

And eat good food. Some of which was only good-tasting if not good for me:

As far as eating goes, our MO has become a huge Costco shopping trip as soon as we arrive to purchase food for the week. Each person/couple takes a night to cook and populates a shared grocery shopping list in advance. We spend the last night (or in this case, two) eating leftovers. One or two people also take on sandwich-making duties each morning for everyone for on-mountain lunches. It works out great. Our Costco trip for 8 people this time for the week was under $500. That’s about $60/person for food for the week. Not bad. And everyone makes really good food. In the picture above, Dan is eating a taco filled with mole chicken we made together. For dinners, we ate:

• Saturday (arrival day): burgers and sausages, salad, and sweet potato fries
• Sunday: meatballs and pasta (atop kale for me)
• Monday: homemade pizza
• Tuesday: chicken in mole sauce, plus taco fixings
• Wednesday: tofu stir fry
• Thursday and Friday: leftovers

We did pretty well this time not wasting any food. In past years, we’ve eaten at least one dinner out. This time, we didn’t do any (though I did fill up on that poutine in the picture above on the last day at the Lake Louise ski resort), but we probably should have eaten out the last night. We were really scrounging. But we got back from Lake Louise late after a harrowing 3.5 hour drive through fog and snowy roads along the Trans-Canada Highway and then had to get up at 3 am the next morning to drive 2.5 hours more, so eating out wasn’t really in the cards.

I skied 4 days – 3 at Revelstoke and 1 at Lake Louise. Two friends and I (we are known as the ‘Blue Crew,’ but have sort of graduated to the ‘Blue-Black Crew’) took a private lesson on the second afternoon that was a lot of fun. I like doing stuff that challenges me (i.e., not just the blue groomers), but I like having my hand held when I do it.

Revelstoke was amazing. It has the longest vertical in North America (5,620 feet). The longest run (the green run that goes from the top all the way down) is 9.5 miles long. It was exhausting. We got a fair amount of snow mid-week and had a lot of powder on Wednesday, which was incredible. So fun. Longer lift lines, unfortunately, but worth it.

Lake Louise was okay. It was kind of icy in parts and had less varied/interesting terrain. The view across the valley of Lake Louise was incredible, though. Pictures don’t do any of this justice. And I was sort of cold that day and pretty tired from the week. I only skied about 3.5 hours. Then I went to the pub and drank a hot toddy and ate poutine.

I always try to hike at least one day while on these ski trips. I love hiking in the snow. I’ve been fortunate to find  hikes that are manageable without snow shoes. (Except for that time two years ago in Big Sky when Dan and another friend and I hiked six miles into a canyon and definitely should have had snow shoes.) This hike was easily accessible from town, didn’t feel too remote to make me feel nervous, and elevated my heart rate at times but didn’t leave me exhausted. It was a rest day, after all.

All in all, a very good trip. I’m very glad to be home, though, and back to my routine. Like  most Sundays, yesterday I grocery shopped and made lunch for the week. And I was back at CrossFit this morning at 5:30 am…