Day Five : Part Two - #Japow

Japan Powder - this is what we came for. It snowed all night last night and all day today and it is still snowing. I think they had about half a metre of fresh snow over night. As John says there are no friends on a powder day, so it was each to their own today. We did meet up at various points, at the bottom of chairlifts and even on the runs sometimes. And we had our usual lunchtime meeting place and time organised. Powder is fun, but it is really hard work.

Sheree, Casey and I stopped for a mid morning hot chocolate to rest our legs, Anthony joined us - John and Marnie refused to leave the powder until they had used up every bit of it! Marg had headed off to Hanazono for the morning and had a plan to meet us at lunchtime by coming across the top. The wind was so bad up high that she ended up catching the bus back to the Hirafu chairlift and meeting us that way. 

After lunch we went our separate ways, as it was still snowing we kept getting fresh snow. I explored some runs I hadn't been on before and found some nice places along the edges of the runs. After a few runs - I did my usual early afternoon finish and ran into Marg at the bus stop. We stopped off at the ski shop on the way home to change our skis over. I have some fatter powder skis to try out tomorrow and Marg has skis that she can get into without getting help. She was having lots of trouble with her bindings. John also changed his skis over as the powder skis he picked up this morning were too short and he had lots of trouble with them all day.

We are all very weary tonight - not sure how close to midnight we will get before we crash and burn. The young ones might have more hope than us. We are going out for tea and then not sure what we will do after that. 

Happy new year everyone - will be back in 2015

Day Five : Part One (things not to be forgotten)

There are many funny things that have happened (well they were funny at the time), that we decided we should list them so we don't forget ....

Casey asking in a restaurant ... Do you think we could order some food and drink? (Not sure what else she thought we were doing there)

Marg ... It's so cold all the unplucked hairs on my chin will have icicles on them.

Jeff the snowboard .... The ski place we hired our gear from puts a label on your skis/boards with your names on it. Sheree's snowboard had Jeff on it rather than Sheree. So John's Dad joke of the day - when Sheree falls over she just looks down at her board and says 'wake up Jeff'. 

Anthony spending hours on the phone setting up his PIN number - then promptly forgetting it. 

Stay tuned there are more to come - just have to remember them. 

Day Four : Venturing off piste

There was a little bit of fresh snow when we woke up this morning, however it snowed on and off all day. We headed of to explore Annupuri, the last of the four ski areas and arranged to meet Marg for lunch at 1.00. Getting to Annapuri involved riding a single person chair, we affectionately called the meat hook. Lucky there was a pole to hang on to as there was no safety bar. The sun came out for a short while during this ride and the view was spectacular. 

Sheree experienced what happens when you blindly follow the Edgar's, through gates and into the trees - her first experience off-piste. Neither her nor I overly enjoyed it, however we did make it to the bottom and were very happy to see the gondola. John, Marnie and Anthony headed back to do that run again and Casey, Sheree and I explored the rest of Annupuri. By this stage it was extremely foggy and we blindly followed Casey, hoping that we wouldn't lose her. We all agreed it would be a really nice place to ski when there was fresh powder, wide open runs and lots of open tree areas to duck in and out of. 

We ran into the others as we were heading back for lunch and met up with Marg for lunch. She had been exploring the Hirafu area again and had done quite a few runs. Only stopping when it got so foggy you couldn't see where you were going.

It was washing night, three loads later and our room is looking like a Chinese laundry. 

We had bought some frozen Gyoza at the Seicomart, so after Marnie googled how to cook them, her and John cooked up the best batch of Gyoza. It was so good they had to cook a second lot. We will be sourcing where to buy these back in Melbourne. A new family favourite.

Marg and I were very keen for a meal of veggies, so we went and bought a whole lot and cooked up a stir fry, the others wanted to try out the pizza place we can see out the bathroom window of our lodge. After we ate our veggies, we all headed out so the rest could eat pizza. It was a very nice place and we may well go back there again. 

It is still snowing so we are heading off to bed feeling very excited about the possibilities tomorrow might bring. 

Highlight of the day : definitely the Gyoza, closely followed by the many stacks we had off-piste.

Day Three : Time to explore

We headed out this morning with a plan to meet at lunch time, that way when we got separated we at least had a plan. Niseko is actually four different mountains. Yesterday we skied Grand Hirafu, which is the area closest to where we are staying. Today we decided to explore further afield and ski at Hanazono. Marg caught the bus there. The rest of us went up the gondola and skied across to Hanazono from the top of the mountain. We explored the runs over there, gradually losing the crowd on the way. This time John, Casey and Marnie, successfully ditched Sheree, Anthony and me (Margo) at various points in the morning. 

John, Casey and Marnie went tree skiing and through the gates into the ungroomed areas. I explored the red (blue) runs and the others did similar.

We all met up for lunch, so that plan worked and then headed out in various directions for the afternoon.  

Today's photo is Marg ringing the bells at Hanazono for good luck. You can see the view in the background, there were sunny patches on and off all day, which made it easier to see which way we were going.

There was even fresh snow that fell over lunch time, which made the snow up the top very pleasant for skiing. 

After lunch Sheree and Casey headed back to the tree runs, Marg explored Hanazono a bit more. John, Marnie, Anthony and I headed off to trek across to the third of the ski areas - Niseko Village. We found some lovely runs and of course unlike skiing in Vic, they are very long! So I caught a bus back from there - conserving my energy and my knees. Only one of the four ski areas left to explore. 

Highlight for toady for me, would have to be buying a real coffee at lunchtime. The first one I have had since we arrived - it tasted good.

Day Two : First day on the snow

Where to start .... We had a slow start to the day, hiring skis and queuing for tickets. We finally made it onto the gondola about 11.30. We did the first ski run together to get the lie of the land, interesting when we all ski and board and different levels. Proved to be very interesting when we actually managed to lose Sheree on the first run (or did she ditch us ... ). The only problem was we had lost her before we had actually worked out a plan for what to do if you get lost. 

So after a bit of searching with no luck, we decided the best thing to do was to just keep skiing. 

The mums in the group (marg & margo) did a small amount of worrying, even found out where ski patrol was and how to contact them, in case we wanted to check if she had been carted off the mountain in a stretcher. 

Sheree finally appeared again after lunch, as we were heading off to do more skiing. 

Not sure if there is a theme happening, however after lunch, the Edgar's did manage to lose the others we were skiing with, or did they chose to lose us? One does wonder? So it ended up being the four of us exploring the mountain together, and Marg, Sheree and Anthony off on their own. 

Once again the mums in the group, were happy to see everyone turn up safely back at Lodge Bamboo at the end of the day.

The view (when you could see was amazing), the day was reasonably clear most of the time, you could see where you were going. There was even snow at some stages. The snow was soft and forgiving - certainly not like victorian snow .... the locals tell us it was icy! They haven't seen icy! 

Highlight of the day : would have to be losing one of our group before we had even completed the first run. Good one Sheree!

Day One : Travelling (cars, planes and buses)

FWe arrived after a long day of travel, our flights went well, connections worked, no luggage lost and a nice cosy place to stay at the end of it. Lodge Bamboo - our home away from home for the next 11 days is very cosy, we are in the dormitory room and as long as we can all negotiate the stairs we should be fine. 

Last night we ventured out for tea, not realising that Saturday night in Grand Hirafu (Niseko) would be busy and all the restaurants would be full unless we had a reservation. Oops! Seven hungry people makes for challenging times negotiating what and how to eat. We ended up getting takeaway and shopping at the Seicomart for snacks and beer. We did find one very interesting potato chip snack that we won't be eating again. 

We all slept well (to varying degrees), I think related to how much sleep we had had on the planes and bus to get here. Currently eating breakfast, before we head out to hire skis and test out the mountain.

Update : we have decided we need to add a highlight of the day .... So the highlight for today has to be the octopus balls that Marnie and Sheree at for lunch at Sapporo airport. Possibly an acquired taste ....

Day Zero : At the airport

Sitting at the airport, with the crew - drinking a glass of wine. It was a very long day packing, taking down the Christmas decorations and twiddling our thumbs until it was time to go to the airport.
All feeling very excited and anticipating the powder and the adventures in Niseko. Hope the flight is uneventful and we all sleep! Probably wishful thinking re the sleeping.

I think this is called an ussie (as opposed to a selfie)

Following the Snow: Take Two ..... Japan here we come

I can't believe it's twelve months since we started this blog, it was great to spend some time today looking back over our adventures from 12 months ago. 

I decided it was time to start up the blog again as we get ready to head off to Niseko, Japan (on the island of Hokkaido) for 10 days and then Hong Kong on the way home for a few days of R&R (or maybe shopping). 

We leave very late on the evening of Boxing Day, fly to Tokoyo, catch a flight to Sapporo and then a bus to Niseko. We should be skiing on the 28th of December. John of course has been very busy watching the Niseko snow fall and forecast, we believe it has been the best start to the season for years, as you can imagine he is very excited. 

There are seven of us travelling together and we are sharing a nine-bed dormitory room at the Bamboo Lodge in Niseko. That might make for some interesting stories - I pity the two other people that have to share with us. John and I, our girls, Marnie's partner, our third daughter (school friend of Casey's) and a family friend - a very eclectic group that promises fun times and much laughter. 

Day 29 : Last ski day

Today was it, our last day skiing for these holidays. Early tomorrow morning we head to Denver to fly out to LA, and have been advised by locals to head off early as Sunday is the worst day on the road. Apparently it gets very busy because everyone is heading home from the ski hills.
John and I headed out about 10.00 (have worked out it can be very icy if you head out too early) and skied some warm up runs. We met up with the others about 11.30 and headed of on a tour of a mountain. Last day today, so did trees, moguls, black runs and even one run that combined all three. Figured that it was last day and as long as I could walk to get on a plane it was all good. Have found that my knee has got stronger and stronger.
Did our final scout of the local shops for things to bring home for the girls (their fave shampoo and conditioner is looking like a good option at the moment!). Casey and I have been communicating over facebook messenger in regards to buying her a ski jacket, we have finally narrowed it down to one but of course not one that we can find in Steamboat. So we might spend one of the hours we have to kill in Denver, looking one last time for 'the jacket'.
We are heading out to Martin and Alison's for tea tonight with them and Jan and Pete who are staying there. I have enjoyed having Alison to ski with the last few days, someone to follow when we don't want to do the yucky black runs!
This might be our last post until we are back in Aus, so thought it appropriate to share one more pic of John and I enjoying the local conditions.

Great day, great company and great skiing - I slipped on the deck at lunchtime and felt a twinge in my ankle - figured you can't possibly break anything inside a tightly done up ski boot!
It does hurt a bit once out of the boot - Margo's first question was - "is it your driving foot?" luckily it is the left one and I can still walk so all good - and we have ibuprofen so I can dose up on that!

Roads look fine for drive to Denver (no snow for 10 days so no issues)

HAPPY AUSTRALIA DAY - we are having an Australian theme at dinner tonite - see you all back home in Oz.....

Day 28 : The end is rapidly drawing closer

Hard to believe that our four weeks away has nearly come to an end. Even though we had our 10th day of blue skies and sunshine, it was very cold today, so we had a later start. Now we know where the sunny side of the mountain is, we headed straight there this morning. The runs this morning were very nice, snow that was not rock hard and icy.
We had arranged to meet the Dunleavys at 11.00 at Rendevous, or so we thought! We were there, had our usual hot chocolate and decided to keep skiing. Eventually we meet up with them for lunch on the deck at the Four Peaks, amazingly we have had the same table every day we have been there. It must have our name written on it. Though  I am no longer allowed to order the Asian Noodle soup bowl - according to John it takes far too long and he is not happy standing in a queue waiting, waiting!!
We did spend our third 'apres ski' evening in the Ptarmigan inn, one could become very used to this life!
They have night skiing here (just in case you haven't worn yourself out completely during the day). Not something we would choose to do - our legs and bodies are tired enough as is. It is nice watching out the window of the condo though. Tomorrow night will be our last pack up, before we head home. The downside of the great weather has been no fresh snow, the upside is, that there is no issues about driving to Denver on Sunday that will cause weather delays, though we have heard the traffic is really bad on Sunday's so it is important to leave early. Something we are very good at.

OK let's all understand the Asian Noodle bowl...........

There are 4 queues - I queue up to get Margo's Asian Noodle Bowl as I don't know what I want yet - read all the menus while waiting and decide on fish and chip or chicken pie.

Notice my queue is slow - I can explain exactly how to make Asian Noodle Bowl as they are made to order (STUPID for a fast food place with a big queue of people!!!!)

You take the order, put a frypan on the hob and turn it on, then splash in some oil from a "tomato sauce Squeeze bottle" then wait...... then you throw in a handful of the veggies and flip it a bit then wait...... then you add some pork belly, flip it a bit and wait....  then you put noodles in the noodle cooker and wait.....  then you add some more stuff to the frypan and flip it and then wait....... about now, you ask the next person in line "can  help you?" as it is impossible to cook more than 3 dishes at once.... Meanwhile, Peter , who started looking for lunch when I was in the queue has ordered his and Jan's lunch, had it plated up and delivered and has paid for it...... then you add some stock to the frypan and flip it a bit and wait....... Then you go looking for a bowl to serve it in - as you have been Sooooooo busy cooking 3 dishes you have not had any time until now...... Then you put the noodles in the bowl and empty the frypan on top (after it has boiled for 3 - 4 minutes - you don't want to serve it up cold!!!) and deliver it to the customer - who by now can't be bothered queuing for anything else as Peter and Jan have probably finished their lunch already so I grab a bag of potato chips.

OK it was really nice - and it was big so I got to eat the pork belly and finish off what Margo could not eat - but seriously in a "get 'em in and get 'em out quick fast food place, THIS IS NOT THE WAY TO PUT A DISH TOGETHER!!

I still reckon the Grand Targhee fox had something to do with this.............

Day 27 : Sunshine and good friends

Today was our second day in Steamboat. John and I set our on our own this morning and realised very quickly that there was a sunny side of the mountain and a shady side. The sunny side was definitely the place to be! The runs were quite crisp and icy on the shady side. We managed to navigate our way around, even making some things up when there was no visible map.
Minor drama today ... we were skiing down to a lift and I looked up to see John and another skier tangled in a sea of arms, legs and skis! The other guy had come rather fast around a corner into the lift line and just completely taken John out! It takes a lot to make John lose it - but today he lost it. John likened it to standing on a street corner and having someone rugby tackle you when you are completely unawares, so you cant even brace yourself for the impact! The other skier certainly copped a few choice words, John picked himself up, put his skis back on, made sure his bones all worked and we headed up the lift. He is a bit sore but all in one piece.
We met up with our Aus friends for lunch. You can't beat sitting out on the deck with blue skies and the sun shining and the most amazing views that make you feel like you are sitting on top of the world. I headed back to the condo after lunch, legs were tired, snow was icy and I was happy to let the others go and find all the yucky black runs I don't like. It was very pleasant sitting in the condo this afternoon with the sun streaming in the window, watching the world go by and catching up on a bit of work.

Not sure exactly what I said to the dickhead but he copped a mouthful and was lucky that was all he got!!! You don't expect to be take out when cruising along to the lift queue - I don't know if he was out of control or what but 50M from the lift line you should be just cruising along not taking others out from behind! Thought I would be sore tonite but I think I came out of it OK - had to get all the snow out of all the helmet vents so another good reason to wear a helmet when skiing - because of all the dickheads out there!

More sunshine today - although some fresh snow would be good but it doesn't look like we will get that and it will be sunshine until we fly home. Skied some bumps and tree runs this arvo with Jan and Peter and had great fun - sore knee is going OK I think it is either old age or arthritis ( is that basically the same thing?)  and if anything it is getting better the last few days - could be Ibuprofen doing that! Hooray for drugs!

Day 26 : Steamboat Springs

Went to sleep to the sound of humidifiers and woke to the sound of them too. Because the air is so dry at this altitude, unless you constantly have humidifiers going, you end up with very dry skin. But the ones in this condo are quite noisy.

We met up with Australian friends today who are also staying in Steamboat, they are staying with local friends. Today's skiing was certainly very different. Because we were skiing with a local, we had a tour of the mountain, but not having to stop and look at maps and discuss where you are going means I don't develop the same sense of the place and the layout. Hopefully we can do that tomorrow. It was also a fast ski day - keeping up with everyone else (which I can do) - means I don't get the same opportunities to stop and view the scenery and find my own rhythm. I also didn't get time to take any photos. We had another great day skiing and jan and I sat on the deck in the sunshine at one of the mountain lodges for an hour in the afternoon. We ended the day with drinks at one of the local watering holes. 

We had tea at their place tonight, about 15 mins out of Steamboat. Interesting finding a place on snowy mountain roads in the dark. Lucky we have a good GPS. We also rang when we got close and they flashed the lights so we could see which house to go too. Poor John had to drive so he was very sensible and only had a couple of drinks.

Day 25 : Snowmass to Steamboat

The view from our balcony -
if you look the other direction
you get to see the sunset over the mountains.

Today was our last travel day between ski resorts. It was a short trip - only 3 hours. However the trip was made slightly longer because we have had a slowly leaking tyre for a couple of weeks. We decided to call into the Enterprise office (car rental company) at Glenwood Springs to get the tyre checked out. Glenwood Springs is the town at the junction where the road from Aspen meets the I70 - the main road through to Denver. Of course the car rental offices were nowhere near the main shopping strip of Glenwood Springs. If they had been, the hour and a half that we had to wait for them to sort out what to do with the tyre would have been much more entertaining.
Eventually they replaced the tyre, because we had rented the car in Los Angeles, they had to get permission from the California office to replace the tyre!

We headed off again about 11.30 from Glenwood Springs, via Eagle where we stopped for lunch at a very nice cafe. John really wanted to stop at the Costco Food Court, but I wouldn't let him! Yes there is a Costco in Eagle, Colorado, I think it might just be bigger than the town of Eagle itself. There is an airport at Eagle, which is the closest airport to Vail, I think this is why there is a Costco there, people fly in, then go shopping at Costco before they head off to their condos.

We left the I70 not long after Eagle to drive north to Steamboat Springs. Once again the scenery was spectacular, with a lot of the drive across high open plains. This area was a bit more inhabited than other areas we have driven through, so as well as scenery we had lots of ranches to look at.

We had booked our place at Steamboat off the internet, and taken a punt that the ski-in ski-out location was really as good as it says. Looks like it will be; definitely it is ski-in at the end of the day. So much easier than having to carry your skis back after a long day of skiing, walking in ski boots. We think ski-out, may need a short walk before we can ski out - we can live with that. At least in the morning you are fresh and energetic.

Just listening to the weather - lots of snow on the east coast of US, but here it is just blue skies and sunshine. There is lots of snow on the ground but we would like a bit of fresh snow before we leave. Hoping that tomorrow night brings some snow.

Easy drive today and very scenic - lucky the second time we went to check on the car it was all happening (approvals obtained from LA) - Margo doesn't do waiting very well but leaves it up to me to get "American angry" which is my description of American's thumping the table and getting very loud to get their way (it is a very service oriented country!) Happily no one needed to get angry!

Just one example of the many signs we saw

All the way from Eagle we saw homemade roadside signs for a "cowboy outfitter shop" - git yer stetsons, git yer cowboy boots etc etc Lucky the road was not that remote or we would have had a "should have bought a squirrel" moment (ed - from the movie "Rat Race") - we went into the shop when we arrived - never seen so many cowdy hats and boots  - sneak look at the boots - $860 - Cowboys must be on a good wicket out here!!!

First words when we entered the condo were - we lucked out here!

It is an older set of condos but we don't care too much about that - it has a spa close, a ski locker on the ground floor - 20 meter walk from ski in and probably 100 meters (downhill!) to ski out - have to verify that tomorrow.

Day 24 : Last day at Snowmass

Today was our last day at Snowmass, so we made a point of doing some runs we hadn't done previously, this meant a couple of new lifts. One was the 'High Alpine' lift and a run from there, that we had planned to do yesterday afternoon before we ran out of legs. The other was the Poma lift up to the highest point on the mountain, there are many double black runs off the Poma and at the top of the run and also one nicely groomed gentle but very windy blue run back down the Cirque area. We had looked at this every day and not being a fan of Poma's (they can be hard work on the knees), I kept saying no - we don't need to do that.
Anyway sitting at lunch today, I just happened to overhear (as you do) the people at the next table talking about the view at the top, and how much it was worth doing. So this afternoon, I braved the Poma and we headed up to the top. The view from the top of both of these lifts was pretty spectacular, the photos don't do them justice.
Everyday at Snowmass they have the 'Noon Groom', this is a run that they don't open until lunchtime and if you are lucky enough to be there when it opens you get the luxury of fresh corduroy to ski on. It certainly has a different feel to the snow on runs that have had lots of skiers on them. We just happened to be lucky enough to be finishing our early lunch just near the 'Noon Groom' slope, so were almost first down the run.
We wore ourselves out again today and did a few runs that were good fun but hard work on the legs and knees. We had afternoon tea at the only eating place on the mountain that we hadn't been too before skiing from the top of Snowmass to the bottom for our final run of our six days here. We have been so lucky to have had blue skies and sunshine every day that we have been here, though so new snow would have been nice. We travel to Steamboat Springs tomorrow, our last place before we have to head home and back to reality. They are forecasting some snow on Thursday so we have our fingers crossed that there will be enough snow that we can finish our last few days with fresh snow.

Day 23 - It's all about the SuperBowl playoffs

A slow start to the day today, we headed out about 9.30 for another day's skiing at Snowmass. Today was all about the SuperBowl play offs. Denver Broncos were playing this afternoon and being a Colorado team there was an air of interest around the mountain. There were a few people out skiing in their Broncos tops this morning. I must say blue and orange are great team colours! It did seem that it was much quieter this afternoon on the slopes. Tonight we are sitting watching the San Francisco 49ers play the Seattle SeaHawks. I find myself cheering for the SeaHawks purely because I saw a story on the TV this morning about one of their players who is deaf. I know Casey, back in Melbourne is happy the Broncos won and will be barracking for them to win the SuperBowl.

Anyway back to today's skiing. We were interested to see if the snow conditions had deteriorated, given that it was nearly a week with no fresh snow. When I checked the grooming report this morning, I did notice that not as many runs as usual had been groomed. I was a bit peeved about that - but later on I did discover there was a very good reason for it. The groomed runs ended up being quite icy but the runs that hadn't being groomed were much nicer to ski on, softer and easier to control what you were doing. The downside of course is that ungroomed snow is harder on the legs. We didn't stop for morning tea because we started late, so skied till lunchtime. Most of that was ungroomed snow, moguls and tree skiing. All good fun!!  We did head off after lunch to ski an area we hadn't been to before but after a couple of detours on the way our legs said that's enough! We can't do any more moguls or heavy snow, time to go home.

So we headed down to Snowmass Mall - where we dropped our skis in for a tune, I bought a new ski jacket and we stopped and had a gluhwein. It was very pleasant sitting in the sun, watching the world go by and listening to the cheers as people watched 'the game' on TV at the bar across the way. Walking up the 100 or so stairs to get back to our condo was not quite so much fun.

The detours were my fault - where is Casey and her inbuilt GPS when you need her!!! The plus side is we did ski some very nice runs with a few bumps and trees and very nice scenery.

It was Margo's suggestion to ski the area we hadn't skied yet - so we have a rain-check and will do that tomorrow.

Margo's beloved Snowmass is not infallible - some runs were a bit icy - the plus side is that Margo is now keen to ski the bumps and tree runs as the snow there is heavier but not icy so easier to turn. Our skis suffered in Mammoth so given that there is more ice and our skis need a tune and wax, we have them in for a full tune overnight - this will help if it stays a bit icy - but if we just ski the bumps it won't matter (except we only last 1/2 the time due to knee/leg/hip/shoulder soreness.)

Broncos won, I was "rooting" for them but also have a soft spot for the 49ers - they lost so no problem now - go Broncos for the superbowl!! (plus I didn't like the body language of the 49ers coach so had already decided to drop them!!

Margo is the boss of posting pics - so you won't see them, but remember the day she took out the SLOW sign? We have been documenting the bruise development via a picture each night (after Margo announces - its bigger!!) - I must say it is an impressive bruise but you will all have to lobby Margo to get a look at it!!!

Just to prove John wrong - here it is!

Day 22 : Two mountains (three actually) and two rescues

Busy day today, we headed off to Aspen Highlands this morning. Aspen Ski Co is actually four mountains (Aspen, Aspen Highlands, Snowmass and Buttermilk). The one ticket does all four mountains and they are all connected by buses. So we caught the bus to Aspen Highlands this morning to check it out. Being the weekend we thought it might be a bit quieter than Snowmass. Whilst the days are fantastic - sunny, blue skies and just a bit warmer than zero, the downside of this is no fresh snow. So things are starting to get a bit solid packed and icy at times. After we skied the different areas in Aspen Highlands, we decided we would catch the bus to Buttermilk for the afternoon. As we were heading back to the base village we could hear these yells that sounded like they were coming from the trees on the side of the run. John saw a small child (about 5 probably) skis and legs either side of a tree with a couple of people looking at him but no one close enough to help. So he headed off up the slope and managed to ski up close enough to help the boy extricate himself from the tree. We helped him put his skis back on and worked out that he was with a ski school group, so headed off down the run to help him find the group. We had to laugh, when straight away the kid headed up back into the rough stuff off the edge of the run - obviously not at all phased by his experience. We found the group waiting around the next corner and delivered him safely back to his group.

We found the bus to Buttermilk and luckily for us arrived just in time to catch one without waiting to long. Next weekend at Buttermilk is the X games so they are building huge jumps. ski cross courses, snowmobile tracks etc, all of which John was very interested in seeing. We headed straight up the lift to the Cliff House for lunch, and once again sat outside and enjoyed the sunshine and the view. We could even look out and see the runs we had skied on in the morning at Aspen Highlands, and the view down the valley was amazing. We skied enough runs to check out Buttermilk, a much more sedate mountain than Aspen and Aspen Highlands. John rescued his second ski school kid for the day - this one was much simpler he had fallen over in the middle of the run and just needed help to get his stocks back and  himself organised so he could ski down to his instructor.

We caught the bus back to Snowmass (our third mountain for the day). We have worked out it is easier to walk to the slope from the bus stop, ski down to the lift, catch the lift up the mountain and ski down to the road that goes to our condo. This is much easier than the walk up the hill from the bus stop to the condo.

Not sure I have taken over the mantle of Super Powder Rescue Guy as there was no powder involved - maybe Ski School Backup Rescue Guy is more apt! Hopefully I will be able to avoid the little tackers in trouble from now on - one reason we moved to Buttermilk was all the kids at Aspen Highlands - never seen so many little skiers - more of them than adults I reckon - it was an exercise in balance getting two hot chocolates back to our table with them running everywhere with their trays and dollar bills to get their favourite snack!!

Margo is going ahead in leaps and bounds - she skied a black bump run today at Buttermilk!! - While Aspen has no green (beginner) runs, Buttermilk has no Double black (extreme  - regulator johnson in a blizzard runs - remember that one - I do) - so not sure how they rate the slopes - I think they put in a few token black runs so people think it has black terrain - but they were more like blue runs we had skied everywhere else - nevertheless, Margo has skied a black bump run (Javelin, look it up on the map)

Day 22 : Another day in Paradise (Snowmass)

Today's photos share the view from the spa, a view of the spa and the view in the spa. The spa is an essential part of a hard day's skiing. SO when we are staying somewhere that has a spa we make good use of it. This one is a good one; outside, reasonable close to our unit so we don't freeze on the way back in our towel and thongs, and semi natural surroundings. It is a very pleasant way to finish off the day.
We skied Snowmass again today - it is still my favourite place. We worked in the opposite direction to our first day and were lucky enough to get some almost untouched corduroy (freshly groomed runs) this morning. Very special! We ventured into the trees of Sneaky's run (I wonder if that's where the name comes from - sneaking into the trees) and even found a mogul run that wasn't to challenging. The first tree run, I was very aware that John was quite some way in front of me and if I did fall over I would have to rescue myself, so I was very careful. The tree runs were fun, though my knees can only do so much twisting and turning before they tell me it is time to stop and find a way back to the groomers!
John would really like to have been able to post a photo of me taking out the SLOW sign at the entrance to the Sheer Bliss lift, but I managed to get myself upright before he could get the camera out! Lucky! They really should space the signs and the entrance gates a bit further apart. I am developing quite a bruise though, compliments of landing on the  pole that holds the sign up. I am very glad they are made to give way when a solid object hits them or it might be a different story tonight.
The whole reason for putting the chicane in place with slow signs and the lift lines is to SLOW people down entering the lift line - now I didn't see Margo enter - I just turned around to see where she was and she had already taken out the slow sign and was lying on top of it! - I was too slow to get the camera out - bugger! All due to trying to get into the line with some  speed so you don't have to pole (everyone does it - more tree skiing will help Margo's technique)

Another great day at Snowmass - not sure if I am slowing down or Margo is speeding up but when I stop now she is a lot closer than earlier on in our trip. Found a great tree run and Margo followed me in and then we skied a bump run!!! This is not normal for Margo, her skiing has improved - probably also due to good snow and no crowds (and a new knee that can be trusted!)

Bluebird day and can wear my glasses with my new goggles - views are even better when in focus! Still working them out as if I ski too fast the wind makes my eyes water and the the glasses fog up and it is like Buller sunshine (FOG!) Hmmmm.... perhaps that has slowed me down and is why Margo is catching up!

After searching 4,327 ski shops we gave up on finding Marnie's specific colour helmet and goggles and ordered them online to be delivered to friends of Jan & Peter in Steamboat - with some luck they may even be delivered before we get there!! Probably only need to visit 400 more ski shops to find the jacket for Casey that we took a picture of early days.......

Day 21 : Aspen

So today we went to Aspen. Can now say I have been there and done that, but not sure I will go back in a hurry. We had a great day again, blue sky, sunshine and lots to see and ski. There were some nice runs and we enjoyed our day but it was not a mountain that suited me. It is a mountain were the rule is to ski as fast as you can to get from top to bottom, me on the other hand likes to preserve my knees and my body and take my time. This meant I was out of sync with anyone else who was on the run.
It was nice once again to be able to sit outside and eat our lunch, made the most of our time in the sun and checked out the interesting ski outfits that paraded past including sparkle helmets and colour coordinated pants, jacket, helmet and google strap.
We caught the bus there and back today, so took the boot bag and wore our comfortable shoes rather than our ski boots. The plan was to change back into our shoes after skiing and go shopping. Which we did - sort of! Rapidly decided that maybe these were not our sort of shops. So had a quick look around before we caught the bus back to Snowmass and our condo.
One of the things you still have to do when you are travelling is the laundry. We generally try and avoid the dryers as they take ages, cost heaps and fill our clothes full of static electricity. This means we have become very creative when drying clothes. Hence tonight's photo - the Chinese Laundry in our kitchen. We worked out if we cranked up the heating this became the warmest room in the condo. Can you see the ski stock between the two chairs doubling as a clothes line? You may also notice the antler light feature in the background. Of course we had to open the windows in the lounge area so we didn't expire from the heat. Probably shouldn't complain - that's how everyone back home is currently feeling anyway.

Not a lot to add - the ski runs at Aspen all seem to be across the fall line so one quick turn and one slow turn - hard to get a rhythm and it is nowhere as big as I would have thought. Go Pro has a lot to answer for - every second person was going as fast as they possibly could with someone following them filming them on a Go Pro - then they swap - so no wonder they are always going flat out. Saw a lot of people posing with no helmet or hat etc and a styled hairdoo - kept thinking they were probably some minor celeb trying to be noticed but obviously so minor that I didn't know them!! - luckily Margo liked all the blue runs at Snowmass and that is where we booked our condo. So I too can say been to Aspen, done that, but not that impressed - perhaps if I shopped at Gucci or those other designer shops I would be in heaven - but I didn't even go into one of them!

Day 20 : A magic day

Today was one out of the box, a perfect skiing day for me. Blue skies, sunshine, great runs and easy skiing. We skied more than we have skied all trip, because we could clearly see the snow, we skied faster, did more runs and were in no hurry to stop for morning tea or lunch. Though by this afternoon our legs were certainly feeling it. Snowmass just has so many runs that are fun to ski, wide open spaces, lots of groomers and rolling hills that just make it fun to ski. I am not sure I will ever leave!
They even have a noon groom here ( a run that is groomed at noon - so you can get fresh corduroy even if you are not up with the birds!) We arrived a bit after noon to discover that everyone had tracked out the corduroy before us. No matter it was still great fun to ski! While we were waiting in the lift queue to head up to the 'noon groom' run, they had an avalanche rescue dog getting on the lift, with his handlers of course. He had his own unique way of getting on the lift, they had to slow the ligt down for him so he could jump on, he did have a bit of trouble getting his back legs up, but managed it very well in the end.
I think this just might be my favourite Ski mountain ever! Though I have to ski it on a bad day to be sure!

Margo may well be looking for jobs here - all the planets aligned and it was her perfect day!!

Eggs for breakfast, short walk to the run, ski down to ticket office, pick up our 2 free tickets and off we go!

Every run was groomed, bluebird sunshine and no queues - I ski ahead, stop and wait for Margo and then MAKE SURE she is ready to continue on (so I don't get accused of having a rest and she doesn't get one) - a few times today Margo was heading off "come on, what are you waiting for" Don't think I have seen so many smiles!!! Quick morning tea and then back out and short lunch and back out.
Back to the condo when worn out (short walk) then some shopping - new goggles for me!!! (and I can wear my glasses under them) then back to the condo and a spa - again, Margo's sort of Spa, not too hot and good jets. Shower and then a gourmet dinner (well spag bol but I cooked) and Margo's new fave red - Smoking Loon -  Pinot Noir (I had to drink the new red and let her have the last of the Smoking Loon from last night)
We are going to ski Aspen tomorrow - if Margo had her way we would keep skiing Snowmass and forget the rest, but with 4 mountains we have to try them out!!!

Despite the way John makes it sound - it is not all about me! He had a pretty good day too!

Day 19 : Another travel day

Today was another day of travel - 6 1/2 hours from Salt Lake City in Utah to Aspen/Snowmass in Colorado. It was a beautiful day for a drive, the sun was shining and the skies were clear. You will see from the photos that the contrails of the planes flying across the US were also clear. At times it was impossible to count how many we could see. The scenery was amazing, and luckily kept changing or it would have become very boring.
Most of Utah that we drove through, seemed to be uninhabited, just rocky canyons and snow covered high plains. The rock formations were interesting and always different, at times there were very clearly defined layers and it was very easy to see how earth's natural forces have shaped this landscape. The further we travelled into Colorado the more the landscape changed and the more signs of habitation and land use.
We are staying in Snowmass for a week, and have lucked into an apartment about 50 metre walk from the slopes. Snowmass looks like my sort of mountain - I think  am going to enjoy our time here. Aspen is about 8 miles away so we will make use of the shuttle buses to ski and visit there.

Arrived, dropped our luggage, went shopping and as we returned to the car with the view of Snowmass in front of us, I could see Margo licking her lips This is Margo's sort of mountain!! Then we get the forecast and it will be bluebird and sunny for a week!! - Margo is pouring over the maps and the local papers working out how to attack the mountain!!!!
Drive was easy - couldn't believe the news on TV showing the Eisenhower Tunnel (further on the road to Denver) bumper to bumper due to snow on the approaches - seems the storm we had yesterday (remember Regulator Johnson?) has slowly moved to Colorado and we followed behind it in the good weather!

Snowmass looks like it is very well laid out - once we have worked out the lay of the land and the village we will then venture to the 3 other mountain areas that are on the same lift ticket (Aspen, Aspen Highlands and Buttermilk) if I can pry Margo away from Snowmass! - the X games are on here next week so we may see some crazy people doing crazy stuff - I will just say to them Pfffft try skiing Regulator Johnson in a blizzard!!!

Day 18 : Snowbird

Just your usual skiing day, set off this morning to catch the bus up Little Cottonwood Canyon again (as we cant drive because we don't have snow tires or chains), We headed to Snowbird today, and boy was it snowing when we arrived! We had to duck inside until the lifts started or we would have been buried in snow. There had been lots of snow overnight, so the runs whilst groomed underneath, had lots of fresh snow. This made for a fun day, but very tired legs at the end of the day as we had to work hard to ski through all the pow! We headed up to the top of the mountain on the Aerial Tram after morning tea ... I was a bit concerned when the sign at the front of the queue (mind you we had been on the queue for 15 mins by then) said for Advanced and Expert skiers only. Decided whilst I could never claim to be an expert, I could maybe claim to be advanced. What the sign should have said was for "Antarctic Explorers only', as they would be the only people who may just have enjoyed the conditions. The wind was so strong I was actually blown backwards, and of course visibility was limited. After throwing a threw choice words in John's direction (Im not actually sure why it was his fault) we made it down to a level that was more to my liking. I did have to employ the 'Margo' sideslip at one stage to extricate myself from the top of the mountain. It is a long way from top to bottom, so when we finally reached the bottom it was lunch time. After lunch we went our own ways, as John was keen to explore some areas higher up and after the morning's experience, I decided he was quite welcome to do that but I was not joining him. I did a few gentler runs and then went in to wait for John.
When he did arrive he tells me he was very lucky to survive! Apparently 'Regulator Johnson' was nowhere near as much fun as it was when he and Casey skied it repeatedly two years ago. He also needed to deploy the 'Margo/ sideslip to get safely down the mountain.
We move on again tomorrow and are driving to Aspen/Snowmass, another 6-7 hour drive. The weather conditions look great for driving and this will be more new country for us to investigate.

Reg u bloody lator johnson!!!!!! I had fond memories from a couple of years ago so was keen to ski it again - went up Gad2 lift and skied Gadzooks run and it was great - fresh powder and bumps and forgiving - went back up and found the traverse to Little Cloud lift was closed due to avalanche issues so had to ski all the way to the bottom - Gadzooks again :-)) and then back up Gadzoom lift and over to and up Little Cloud lift - should have pulled out when the lifty at the bottom was telling someone it was not nice up there and advising how to traverse around to get somewhere nicer - the total lack of any other skiers should have been a hint also! But this was Regulator Johnson my fave snowbird run!! Up I went - it got cloudier and cloudier - at the top a GALE. Lucky I knew the traverse as there was no way I could see it - skied across in gale force wind by braille and the traverse had a wind blown cornice on the downhill side that made it more like a bobsled run - so I can't see and I know there is a cliff on my left and I can't do anything but get faster in the bobsled traverse so I just hang on.....
It spits me out and I can see a fence - recognise that this is the traverse down from the aerial tram so I am at the top of the run - would not have know it but for the fence (did I mention the total lack of anyone else....)
Still can't see anything and the only salvation is that I have skied it before and loved it so I am not launching off an unknown cliff or anything ... I hope!! (geez I wish Casey and her inbuilt GPS was here)
Off I go - and the gale winds have blown all the snow off and it is solid ICE - I immediately deploy the Margo sideslip manoeuvre (lucky I didn't hear the choice words Margo threw my way earlier on the tram traverse as it was too windy - but I am sure I let a few choicer ones go!)
So I do long traverses with braille turns at the ends, no need to worry about getting off piste as the gale has scoured all the snow away - can't stop as when I do I don't know which way is up and fall over in slow motion. SUDDENLY there is another person in the fog!!!! BEWDY - I just have to wait for him to ski off and follow him down and it will let me know how the slope runs - mexican standoff - no idea how long he has been there but he seems to be waiting for me to ski off so he can follow - bugger. Grit my teeth and head off - a few more turns and I see more people struggling, I pass them and can see a bit more and see the fence where the run goes left and head down - snow turns good and I can see and I can ski again - get to the clearing for a rest and feel happy that the other three lost souls have followed me and won't die on the slopes tonite waiting for someone to follow! Head off to the Mid Gad lodge and Greet Margo with a kiss and a hug and "I am alive!" Next time Margo says "you go and ski some black runs" I will make sure it is clear and sunny!!!!

PS ... Some might say it was Karma!

A special post : Happy Birthday Pam

Dear Pam, We wish you a very Happy 80th Birthday. Sorry we are not there to have a celebratory drink with you.
Have a great day and we look forward to dinner somewhere when we are back

(click on the arrow to play the video)

Love John and Margo

Day 17 : Salt Lake City

The weather forecast for the mountains was not so good today - poor visibility, high winds and frigid temperatures (colder than usual). So we decided not to head up to Alta/Snowbird to ski, but wait until Monday when the weather would be better, there should be fresh snow and less crowds.
Instead we did some driving around Salt Lake City and discovered in the process that it is very quiet on a Sunday. I wanted to see the Salt Lake up close, so we drove out to the Great Salt Lake Marina, one of the areas where the road goes close to the lake. It is obviously a fairly deserted place in winter and we were hoping that the guys out duck shooting didn't shoot in the direction of the road we were driving on. The Salt Lake is enormous, incredibly flat and goes for a long way, you cannot actually see the other side.

Day 16 : Sunshine at Alta

We started off the day today in beautiful sunshine, skies were blue, snow was white and visibility was fantastic. If did cloud over a bit this afternoon. despite the great weather, we had to catch the bus up the mountain because our rental car does not have snow tyres or chains. So that added some time to our trip. We drove to a park and ride and then caught the bus - because our park and ride was the last one before the bus headed up the mountain it was rather full before it got to us - so it was standing room only. I discovered it is quite a challenge to keep your footing on a bus that is driving up a mountain, especially when you cant see out the windows to predict the corners. I should have taken the offer of a seat when it was made - oh well you live and learn. Needless to say we needed a rest when we reached Alta, our legs were exhausted. I was soon to discover that I was going to be even more exhausted!!
We headed off up the lifts to the sound of avalanche bombs echoing around the valley, some of them were very loud. Our first real run of the day (not counting the green runs as we worked out which lifts were open), I misjudged the groomed area and somehow managed to end up in knee deep powder without realising, never a good idea! Lost a ski, face planted and made a huge bathtub dint in the snow. Took me some time to find my missing ski, that was buried in the snow, clear the snow from my googles and get my skis back on. It was very nice of John to side step back up the slope to help rescue me! Where is Casey when you need her - that is usually her job.

I find that I am skiing a little bit "safer" without Super Powder Rescue Girl (Casey) bringing up the rear. I know if I take a fall I will have to climb back up and find my skis myself - while it took Margo a long time to gather up all her gear, I was so happy to see her floundering around in the deep snow as it meant no additional knee injuries! No idea why she ventured "off piste" thought the new goggles and glasses combination meant she could see now (must admit the light was very flat and it was hard to see the edge of the groomed run.
Now need to go and look up pier to pub results to see if Marg beat Bill or if his new go fast wetsuit did the trick.

Day 15 : Over halfway

Today was a travel day, we left Grand Targhee this morning, after John removed 10 inches or more of snow off the car. Grand Targhee was pumping this morning, every one was turning up to make the most of the 10 inches of snow they had overnight. At 9.15 when we left, the carpark was full and there was a steady stream of cars coming up the Ski Hill Rd as we drove down. The snow ploughs had been busy and the road was cleared and relatively easy driving according to John. Our biggest problem was that the windscreen washer water had frozen (this happened when we were in Jackson and despite topping up with winter fluid it hadn't thawed out). This meant that we could not clean the windscreen, an issue when trucks passed and threw up road grime. We had two stops on the way to Idaho Falls to tip washer fluid from the bottle we bought in Jackson on to the windscreen so we could clean it and the driver (ed: thats me - John) could see what he was doing. We stopped at Idaho Falls for lunch and there was great elation when we returned to the car, tested the wipers and discovered that the washer fluid had finally thawed out. John made great use of this between Idaho Falls and Salt Lake City.
Today's photo is for Casey and Marnie. Malad is a special place in Edgar Family history, none of us will ever forget our visit to the 'Dude Ranch Cafe'. However this time we resisted the urge to call in to Malad for a repeat visit.
We are safely tucked up in a cute little studio apartment in Salt Lake City, after a visit to Trader Joe's to stock up on Cookie Butter for C & M and to Sports Authority to buy a knee brace so I don't have to keep taping my knee. My skin is starting to object to the daily taping. Fingers crossed the brace does its job, though my knee is much improved so shouldn't be an issue. We look like we might have hit the jackpot tomorrow - lots of fresh snow today and sunshine tomorrow - just a shame we might have to put up with weekend crowds.
Drive was relatively easy - I hate it when I have cars behind me and I think I am slowing them down but the roads were OK and once you start to trust them it is all good. This time we had no snow on the windscreen issues - but road grime made it hard to see so I was very happy when the washer fluid started to work again - it now has industrial strength Arctic washer fluid so we should be ok now. What of the fox you ask? well he didn't have another go at the icepack but I reckon he peed on our window as it was frozen solid shut and wouldn't open - lucky he was not smart enough to pee on the other window so we got that open and retrieved the ice pack with a stock again - he was a worthy adversary and I will miss him.....

Day 14 : Snow, snow and more snow

The saga of the fox continues, he had another go at the icepack overnight, and John had to use the ski stock again to retrieve the it. The fox had obviously got wise and discarded the icepack (in the protective ziplock bag now) before he chewed any more holes, must have recognised that distinctive blue colour. We are keen to see whether he comes back for another go tonight.
We woke up to find that it was snowing, this continued all day today (John has a marker stick outside our window that he is using as a snow gauge - he has been taking photos periodically to keep an eye on where the snow is up to, there has certainly been a fair amount today). we headed out this morning and caught the best part of the day between about 9.00 - 10.00. After that it got very windy and foggy, even worse than yesterday. We tried every lift to try and find an area that wasn't like being in Antarctica, with no luck. The top two thirds of most runs where blowing a gale, had snow that sand blasted your face and limited visibility! Someone's idea of fun, but not necessarily mine. However the snow itself was pretty good, lots of fresh snow on the runs. We once again hot the beginners area, which had a lot going for it ... visibility, limited wind, great snow and fun tree skiing.
It was the perfect gluhwein day, a perfect lunchtime drink. Once again we enjoyed crowd watching and found much to entertain us.

I reckon the fox is out there watching each morning to see how far I can reach - I bet it will be a bit further away tomorrow - just out of stock reach - doesn't matter I have skis that are longer so bad luck Mr fox, you can't outsmart me.
Great snow today but weather not so good - the beginner area is good fun - they have tree runs and banked runs (like a skierX course) and even ungroomed bits that had nearly knee deep powder! Gluhwein at lunch was great and we finally had "tater tots".
One memory of previous trips revived - they have ads on TV here for prescription drugs that spend 20 seconds telling you how great they are and then 40 seconds with warnings of serious and other possible side effects and telling you to go straight to a doctor if you have any of them - by the time they finish there is no way you would want to take any of them!!

Day 13 : Almost Perfect

Today was almost perfect, all it needed was blue skies and sunshine. However, that was not going to happen. It 'puked' snow on and off all day, which made for great skiing when we could see. This morning was great, a bit cloudy (sometimes almost reminiscent of Buller sunshine) up on top but the further down the slope we skied the clearer the skies. The snow was soft, forgiving and constantly falling. Found a new favourite run 'Chief Joseph Bowl' - the lower half of this run was a natural half pipe and was so much fun to ski! After lunch the fog had rolled in even more and it was very hard to ski because everything was white and you couldn't see which way was up. So we came back down to the  beginner area (which is one of the best beginner areas in any ski resort I have seen) and had some fun skiing in the trees.

I have been regularly icing my knee, and because we have no refrigerator in our room we have been putting the ice pack in the snow outside our window. This has been working very successfully until this morning, when I went to get the ice pack and it had moved quite some distance and was unreachable out the window. We had to use a stock to get it back! Yes, an animal (fox we suspect) had decided it might be food and tried to eat it. I'm just glad the same animal didn't try to getting the open window during the night. We repaired it the best we could and will keep using it until we get somewhere to buy a new one. 

Margo for the Olympics!!!! I did a Marnie and disappeared into the trees for a bit and then margo says "that is so much fun!"  -  in the natural half pipe - then later on in the tree runs ( in the beginner area) but still tricky when your skis are three times longer than kids skis and turn slower and all this with a dicky knee! 

Hopefully maintenance have fixed our room thermostat and we don't need the window open tonite so I don't have to fight off the fox - he probably has a guts ache after sampling the ice pack - just hope he doesn't bring his grizzly bear mate back for revenge.

Great skiing and the forecast is for snow snow and more snow. Heard a guy talking about a rock drop off today in the grocery shop - I will need to keep " Olympic" Margo away from that, or she will start practising aerials!!!!

Day 12 : Grand Targhee

A great day ... you know you are are at a ski resort that values skiers and skiing when the first 'lifty' for the morning is female, similar age to us and has one arm in a sling (I'm sure it was a skiing accident). Set the tone for the day right there! At least I could ski, even if I did have enough tape on my knee to sink a ship.
Grand Targhee is one of those places that is a bit out of the way and very much a ski hill for the locals, the dedicated, the aged and people who just like to ski! We didn't queue for a lift all day and on many occasions were the only ones on the run. In fact it was quite annoying when someone else dared to drop in on your run. My knee held up okay, so that was a bonus. When you stop for morning tea it is entertaining to watch all the locals, who obviously have their tables, know everyone and are there for a chat as much as a ski. Many people just leave their belongings on a hook or under a table in the eating area and trust that they will still be there when they come back. A real family skiing area. Apart from all of that, it is just a really nice place to ski. The snow was good, the skies were clear till lunch time and then it snowed all afternoon.
We had a spa this afternoon, in the open air with the snow falling, always special. Then went out to the local Trap Bar, where they had open mic (don't worry, we didn't sing) till 6.00. By 6.30 we had eaten tea and were back home ready for a good night's sleep. Lots of skiing to be had tomorrow, hopefully on fresh snow.

Got to go up the lift that wasn't open last time we were here - opens up lots of area - only 3 main lifts but heaps of places to ski - did a few runs after Margo called it a day - thought about a repeat of a tree run I did with Casey and Marnie but remembered how long they were stuck under a tree - they came out laughing but on my own it wouldn't be the same.
Spa was hot but the jets were grass - no power at all. Margo can't walk very fast but can still ski so all good - anyone wanting a stock market tip - buy into companies selling strapping tape for knees - Margo will ensure a positive share price!

Day 11 : Moving on ...

Today we left Jackson Hole and travelled to Grand Targhee. It is only an hour's drive, but for John it means driving over the Teton Pass again. This can be a challenging drive, with steep grades, challenging weather and lots of snow, winds and ice. However, today the sun was shining, the sky was blue and the road was clear, so it was a lovely day for a drive. Of course clear skies meant the weather was cold! When we were shopping in Jackson this morning it was -20 degrees fahrenheit (-29 celsius). Many of the locals drive to various places along the Teton Pass to ski, they park, hike and ski the hills. We saw a couple of people hiking back up the road with their skis, lots of cars parked and lots of ski tracks through the hills. Some places we passed though, were pristine; snow covered, no tracks and green pines - beautiful. We arrived in Targhee and could see the Grand Tetons (three mountain peaks) as we were driving up the road. Last time we were here it was to foggy to see them. Hoping that tomorrow it is clear and we will be able to get a great view from the top of the mountain. Grand Targhee is much quieter and smaller than many of the other places we have visited. There are only a small number of places to stay on the mountain, lodging options are limited and really only one place to eat. But it is very peaceful and beautiful and we are looking forward to our four days here. We basically have a hotel room, with no fridge, but we can open the window and use the snow outside to store icepacks or collect ice for our esky and ice bucket. We have some plastic bowls we scrounged from a previous hotel and cereal for breakfast, but will have to buy all other meals. When we arrived our room was like a sauna, when we finally found the heating control we turned it right down but have had to have the window open to keep the room cool enough even though it is something like -10 degrees outside.
Even on a sunny clear day the Teton pass is still not to be messed with - locals have 4WD and/or snow tyres - our Californian rental has neither and we found today that the wiper washer water is frozen!! We put some of the cold temp stuff in (that is standard around these parts) but it has not yet started working - we may need to pour hot water over the lines and storage tank to get it working - or wait for a day when it is above zero. Mountain looked great today as we arrived - we were here 2 years ago but it was cloudy the whole time and we didn't see any of it. Shopping was successful - new pair of tracky dacks - Casey and Marnie have drilled into me to NEVER buy the ones with elastic around the ankles - so many shops and all had elastic until today!!! Did get out of Jackson without one shoe shop stop - told you there were none in town!

Day 10 : Day 2 at Jackson Hole

A much windier day today which meant it was colder and during the morning the visibility wasn't great. But we still managed to wear ourselves out skiing. The runs are very long which means lots of stops going from top to bottom. I managed to miss my footing going in for morning tea (something to do with having fogged up goggles and glasses) and bent my knee further than it wanted to go Not the reco one but my other one. Skied alright for the rest of the day but have been busy icing it tonight and hoping it is just a small sprain. Time will tell. We have had a good two days here, with small amounts of fresh snow each day to keep the runs nice, though some get a bit icy In patches in the afternoon. We have a rest day tomorrow, checking out the town of Jackson (did someone say shopping?) and then driving to Grand Targhee, where we stay for four nights. 

Tried out Margo's over the glasses goggles today - it is great to be able to see better but after half a run my eyes watered from the wind/ cold and then iced up my glasses so that was that, I think I need goggles with less vents so no wind gets in (as I ski so fast!!!) but that may defeat the purpose and they thn fog up. Just googled Jackson shops - as luck would have it NO SHOE SHOPS ;-)) you luck out sometimes (hard to try on shoes when you are nursing a sore knee anyway!) There is always a way!

Day 9 : Jackson Hole = tired legs

All the driving over the last few days was worth it. We skied Jackson Hole today and tested out our legs much more than our couple of days at Mammoth. There had been a few inches of fresh snow overnight, so the runs all had a dusting of new snow. This morning was sunny and clear, it started snowing about lunch time, but visibility was still reasonable. I tested out my new OTG goggles (over the glasses) and loved being able to see where I was going, read the maps, the signs, the lunch menu and see what I was eating. The googles-glasses combination was very comfortable and I wont be going back to skiing without glasses. Though being able to see everything clearly, I think, means I have a new appreciation for how steep some of the slopes are.

Could still do with more snow but much better here than Mammoth. Legs got a good workout - hope they get ski fit soon...

Lucky we are skiing somewhere Margo has skied before - now that she can see the slope she can see how steep they are - so I keep telling her that she has skied them before when she couldn't see and loved them so should be easier now that she can see!!!

Day 8 : More Driving.......

Another big day of driving, from Elko in Nevada to Jackson Hole in Wyoming. First we headed North to Idaho and then drove East across Idaho to Pocatello. Once we hit Pocatello we had to head north again to Idaho Falls. We planned to stop for lunch at Pocatello, but somehow we missed the only turn off the freeway to food, and realised to late that we had missed all food stops. We ended up at a truck stop a few miles further on, with burgers and chips for lunch. We had a huge meal of vegies for tea tonight to compensate. We drove through some very inhospitable country again today before we got to Idaho, where the land is obviously more conducive to farming. Once we hit Idaho Falls it was time to head east again and navigate the two mountain passes that take us to Jackson Hole. You can see from the pics that the further we travelled today, the snowier the landscape became. The Teton Pass that brings us into Jackson is quite steep both up and down, I think John was pleased there was a truck and a number of cars in front of us on the way down, so it was very slow and safe. Our condo in Aspens, just out of Jackson Hole ski resort is really nice and will be a very cosy place to stay. Looking forward to a days skiing tomorrow, the terrain will be a bit more challenging than Mammoth, so will test my knee out again.
I'm sure John will tell you about my early rise this morning ... so I will leave that to him!
Early start!!!!! - Hair dryer wakes me up - 5:15 AM - backtrack for context, the night before Margo said that clock is wrong (in our room) and it was! So I look up and Margo says  "good morning, rise and shine I have had my shower and it's nearly 7 AM" and I say "no it isn't" and Margo says "OH SHIT I can't believe I did that!"
So I tried to sleep for another hour or so while Margo searched the internet - at least she managed to find more info on the mountain passes we had to drive and all was OK.
Our car has satellite radio!! No idea how they make money as there are no ads at all!! we found the sixties on six yesterday (OK by accident, we didn't know it was satellite until later) and found the seventies on seven today - basically non stop hits all day and no adds or any interruptions - even a Loggins and Messina song today!!!!!!!!!! and no matter how far you drive it doesn't fade and you don't need to retune - how cool (yes Casey and Marnie it also tells you the song and the artist!) - I wonder if the rental company will send us a bill later on for using it....

Day 7 : Driving

Not much to report today, we left Mammoth about 9.00 am and arrived in Elko in The middle of Nevada about 4.00 pm. Most of the day was driving, we stopped at a Maccas this morning for coffee, then at the Lazy K campground in Lovelock to eat our sandwiches for lunch, and that was about it. We had expected Nevada to be very flat with a straight road throughout he middle of it, wasn't quite as we expected. There were lots of straight roads, but they were through wide flat valleys surrounded by chains of low hills and sometimes higher mountains.  It ended up being an interesting drive, because the scenery kept changing, though there was little evidence of human habitation through much of the area we drove, occasional pockets of farming and areas of mining. Lots of salt flats and at one stage we wondered why there were rows upon rows of pyramid shaped bunkers made of earth. Discovered that is the US Army armaments storage facility. Another long drive tomorrow, hoping the weather is as kind to us tomorrow, as we have a couple of mountain passes to navigate. Lucky we are not experiencing the storms they are on the east coast!
Not a lot to add - (that will give away the change of authors!)
We both needed a loo stop in Fallon and drove around town looking for a public loo - still don't know if they have them but ended up in a pharmacy (supermarket size) and found one, this may be a tactic we use in future. We were stopped in the Main Street at a red light when this air raid (very very VERY loud) siren went off - we looked everywhere to see what it was and where the state militia were rolling out from - no one else cared and it looked like a 12 midday test/normal event - jeez, don't they know nervous Aussies on the wrong side of the road are in town!!!
Interesting info - Margo counted 13 airplane con trails at once today without looking out my side of the car! It seems we are at the middle of the aircraft routes as well as the middle of USA.

Day 6 : New Year's Day

We decided against skiing today, weather was warm, snow was slushy and we would have had to pay for a ticket. Went shopping instead, I finally bought a pair of goggles that go over my glasses. Keen to try them out and see if  being able to see properly makes any difference to my skiing. It will certainly help me come lunch time when I can see what to order and what I am eating.
John had great fun lighting a fire last night as part of our New Year's Eve celebrations, we could also see the mammoth village fireworks from our window. We watched the ball drop in Times Square of the TV, saw the fireworks and decided that was good enough to call it NYE ( at 9.00pm) - it had been a big days skiing.
We head off early tomorrow morning for our two day drive to Jackson Hole. They have been getting snow! We drive through Nevada, Idaho and into Wyoming, staying at Elko tomorrow night.

Day 5 : New Year's Eve

New Years Eve here today, and all our friends and family back home have already finished celebrating and are dealing with the hangovers. We headed out to ski again today, knee held up well, so I have almost stopped worrying ... almost! This afternoon was a bit like skiing at Buller, man made slushy snow but there were some good runs this morning. 

We had 'pho' for lunch, which was chock full of healthy vegies and very yum. You can see the view from the balcony on our condo - we are only a short walk from the lift (though coming back at the end of the day it seems longer). There was even three flakes of snow that fell this morning.

Actually did a black run today - didn't think there was enough snow for a black run to be open but we found one - by accident - Margo pulls up to a stop and says "John this is a black run!" but it was an very easy black run and it was all good.