Saturday 03-12-16

Decision was easy. The weekend forecast is for more continued mild temps and EVEN a chance of RAIN. We may get a change over to light snow but no more than 1 inch. I went down to the path to the lake and found it almost completely clear of snow. It is now used by runners and people on bikes. Even the lake is clear of snow with a lot of melting going on. The first 5-10 feet is mostly water and even the kite boarders are having a rough time getting onto the lake. So we will be leaving Sunday morning and hoping to arrive home on Wednesday. I will try and keep the updates going til Wednesday if I have Internet access. It has been a good winter with a lot of good skiing.

Friday 03-11-16

Decision Day 2016 - Should I stay or Should I go. Met my friends for the FIRST Chair this morning. And while we skied only groomed trails, by 10am the snow was already soft and the trails became very slippery. At the bottom of several runs, many bare spots were starting to show. Even the Giant Snow Castle was starting to melt. Temps, the past few days reached into the high 40s and low 50s. According to the weather reports, the next snow/cold weather is next Tuesday. With Spring Break really starting next week, we are thinking about leaving on Sunday. Temp at 5:30pm is 47 degrees.

Thursday 03-10-16

Today it was ALL about the First Chair. It was a beautiful morning and we decided that we would go for it. We arrived at 8am, and went directly to the lift. While there was about 6 people in front of us, our friend John reserved he first chair for us. We took some pictures to prove we were there. Once up the lifts, we skied down River Run where you get a bird-eyed view of the town below. Not many people were skiing  this run and we didn't see any of the Spring Breakers. We did about 7 runs and called it a day. I guess this is what skiing is all about. Hope tomorrow is another Blue Bird day and I will try again for the first chair.

Wednesday 03-09-16

The morning started out cold but sunny. Temp was 5 degrees at 8am. But by 10:30am, the clouds moved in and the wind picked up. We skied Copper Mtn and the conditions were good. The bus driver told us that the Spring Breakers from Texas, Montana and Nebraska were starting to show up. But we weren't able to see them on the trails. Maybe they were still checking in. The only evidence of them were the trail of skies just left in the way of the skiers going to the lifts. Skiing down the trail - Ten Mile, there is a cutoff for back packers making there way to the cabins about 4 miles in. It is a long slow walk. In the afternoon, the snow clouds move in and a VERY LIGHT snow started to fall. This is the last chance for snow until next week. In the meantime, the temps on the mountain will reach into the high 40s and low 50s. Temps in Denver will be in the high 60s and low 70s. Tomorrow will be another great skiing day.

Tuesday 03-08-16

What a difference a day makes. This morning we had about 2 inches of fresh power on the ground with the ski areas reporting 4-8 inches of snow. The early morning temps were in the mid teens and the sun was out in full force. We went to Copper Mtn and the conditions were great. While we were told that the Spring Breakers from Texas were here, we didn't find them on the slopes. Many of the trails were un-groomed so we skied thru power. We met some of Kathy's friends from Pt Pleasant NJ and skied with them for a while. We skied til 2pm and called it a day. We are going to a new Happy Hour place in Frisco - The Tavern West, on Main St. Always happy to try out a new place.

Monday 03-07-16

The day started under partly cloudy skies and with the hope that we would be able to catch the first chair again. However, I found that Glenna's friends car ha a flat tire. So at 7:15am, I used my air pump to raise the pressure and quickly get the car to a gas station to have it taken care of. Once that was under control, we still ha a chance for first hair, but at Keystone, I had forgotten my ski boots and ha to return home to get them. Coming back to Keystone it started to SNOW and the roads became very slippery. Once arriving back again to Keystone, I slipped on the snow covered ICE and fell on my knee. I was still determined to go skiing but the snow increased in intensity and the wind picked up. So after a few runs, I was tired, wet and sore and called it a day. Hope everything is better tomorrow. The only good thing was happy hour at the Dam Brewery

Sunday 03-06-16

The morning started off partly sunny and by lunch time the clouds moved in but no rain or snow. Temps rose into the low 40s. No skiing today but I went ice fishing on the lake. My friend Mike has an auger and I watched him drill 2 holes down 25 inches before we hit clear water. We then used dried shrimp as bait and casted down to the bottom of the lake - 80 feet down. Not having any luck after 2-3 hours, we called it a day. The only fun we had was watching the dogs run around. Maybe we should have had the dogs jump into the hole and they could have caught some fish. At the end of the day, we went to Bakers Bar which was celebrating their first anniversary for drinks and then to the Blue Bruce for more cocktails and food. Maybe it will be snowing tomorrow morning.

Saturday 03-05-16

It was a partly sunny morning with temps in the low 20s. We have a friend from Park City staying with us and she wanted to ski .After breakfast we took her to A-Basin which has the best snow and less crowds to ski. She really enjoyed herself. We picked her up around 2:30pm and then headed to Copper Mtn for music and cocktails. However, the BIG news was - Peyton Manning has RETIRED. The story started to come out around dinner time, and EVERYONE was talking about it in the restaurants. I am sure this is not a story that will go away soon. The forecast now calls for light snow Sunday night and Monday.

Friday 03-04-16

Another day of mild temps and with that I decided to meet my friends for the first chair at Keystone. The secret of getting this first chair is to be in line about 30 minutes before the lifts start running, which is about 8am. The area around the lift is totally groomed which is what you will see once you start your runs for the day. You are able to get in about 6-7 runs on totally groomed trails. I see why many people come out this early. By 10:30am, you are all finished and the Friday crowds start to appear and scrape off the removing snow. In the afternoon, temps rose into the high 40s. and the snow becomes like ROOTBEER. Saturday and Sunday the temps will reach into the low 50s. 

Thursday 03-03-16

Weather is back to normal. The day started with clear skies an mild temps. By 9am, it was in the mid 30s. By the end of the day, it reached 49 degrees. We went to Copper and for the first hour it was like skiing on ice. As the temp started to climb, the snow softened up. The trails were empty because many of the skiers were in long lift lines caused by problems with the lifts. If you weren't on line, it was great having the trails to yourselves. Tomorrow begins the weekend, so we will see what the morning brings.

Wednesday 03-02-16

Not sure what happened with the weather report, but with the temp at 37 degrees at 7am this morning, all of a sudden, storm clouds moved in and it snowed for 4 hours. The snow accumulated 4 inches in those 4 hours. And as quickly as the storm moved in, by 11:15am, it was over and the sun returned. We debated if we wanted to go to Copper and get first tracks, but the wind started blowing at 50 MPH. While we had our skis' in the car, we just went to JJ's to listen to Moe Dixon. The wind continued into the evening hours. Not sure how much snow will be left on the trails by tomorrow. No additional snows are forecasted thru Monday.

Tuesday 03-01-16

Not much of a snowstorm. The best totals I can find was 1 inch of new snow at Copper. We went there to ski and found the conditions just a little better than Keystone yesterday. The conditions were variable at best. The day was overcast until about 2pm when the sun came out and the temps warmed up very quickly. With no new snow in the forecast, conditions will NOT be getting any better. However today was a recovery day after my big birthday party last night at the Dam Brewery. I want to thank Sally, my photographer, for the great pictures she took, and to Pat who got me such a beautiful cake with 17 candles. It was a GREAT PARTY.