Steamboat Springs, 2016
Sunday, February 14
We drove from home to Steamboat Springs, CO. Since this is winter, we were a little concerned about one portion of the drive - over Rabbit Ears Pass. The pass was open, barely. I'm glad Carl was driving for this portion of the trip, as the road was just tracks through the snow. The snow had been plowed, but the pavement wasn't really visible. And visibility wasn't that great.
It could have been worse.
We made it to Steamboat Springs safely. Although I wondered at one point if we'd have problems. The exit off the highway to get to our rented condo was very icy. Carl just managed to stop at the stop sign at the bottom of the hill!!!
Despite studying the maps and the directions we were given, we managed to miss one of the turns getting to the condo office, so we had to go around the one way loop a second time. But we did get checked in.
Then we had to follow the even more convoluted driving directions to get to the parking garage for Bronze Tree, our home for this week.
We were soon parked and started unloading the car. The car would remain in its parking spot for the rest of the week....
It's a nice condo - too many chairs around the table, but that's okay.
We walked down to the Village to pick up the lift tickets and snowboarding school pass, for dinner and to watch the torchlight parade and fireworks. Very interesting show!
Then we walked back to the condo and konked out for the night.
Monday, February 15
After breakfast, Carl and Kelly got suited up for their day on the snow. She has a snowboarding lesson and he's going to check out his legs to see if they remember how to ski...
I stayed out of their way...
While they were off playing on the mountain, I rested, then walked around the condo, exploring the premises, taking my camera with me. I spotted this stack of skis just outside the locker area around lunch time. Looks like a group took a lunch break and stood their equipment in the snowbank!
They both had a good time. I forget where we went for dinner that night, but we probably took the free shuttle down to the Village and back. That shuttle came in handy. Much easier to call for a lift than to negotiate the snow covered narrow roads!
Tuesday, February 16
When we opened the drapes this morning, we spotted a hot air balloon drifting over the valley. Kelly and I both grabbed cameras...
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The two of them are planning on skiing/boarding together today. So, they went off and did their thing.
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The photo on the left shows Kelly warming up in the school area. The center photo shows the view going up in the gondola this afternoon. The photo on the right shows the start of one of the easier runs half way up the mountain.
While they were having fun, I walked down to the Village, camera in hand, to see what I could see.
The photo on the left shows that someone just can't read - they left their skis propped against the wall right next to a sign saying don't lean skis against this wall....
The photo on the right is one of the many sculptures that dot the village area. This one was at the base of the ski school area.
The photo on the left shows the base of the mountain from a non-skier's point of view. The ski lift on the left is called Preview. It's a slower speed lift that serves the school area and gives beginners a taste of the intricacies of getting on and off the chair lifts. The one in the center is called the Christie Express, has seating for up to six riders at a time and is the main chairlift for getting to the middle of the mountain, where other lifts can take people higher.
The photo on the right shows Carl and Kelly all geared up. They were taking a bio break at the base of the mountain and noticed me passing along on the walkway just above where they were standing, so they posed.
That afternoon, the clouds finally parted and the blue skies came out.
These photos show the view of the ski area we got from the balcony of our condo.
Wednesday, February 17
We all took the shuttle to the Village this morning and I rode up on the gondola with them.
The photo on the left shows me at the top of the gondola. The center photo shows some of the ski runs higher up the mountain and one of the on-mountain restaurants. The photo on the right shows Carl and Kelly discussing their plans for this morning.
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Carl took this photo of Kelly as she snowboarded past him on one of the runs.
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After they took off to ride, I climbed the stairs in the building at the top of the gondola lift. It contained a snack bar and a couple of restaurants, including a rooftop eating area, where I took the three photos above. The photo on the left shows a sign at the edge of this rooftop eating area. The center photo shows the view down the valley, looking along the side of the gondola. The photo on the right shows a leafless tree and its shadow at the edge of one of the ski runs.
The photo on the left above was also taken from my rooftop perch. It shows some skiers and snowboarders on one of the runs. The other two photos were taken as I rode the gondola back to the Village. The center photo shows a lone skier on the run that followed the gondola path. The photo on the right shows some of the many condos, including the one we stayed in.
After a while, I rode the gondola back down and had lunch in the Village and walked back to the condo.
Thursday, February 18
Today's big adventure for Kelly and Carl was trying out the quarter-pipe. I knew about when they would be there, so I was ready at the base to shoot some long shots back up the pipe.
The photo on the left shows Carl skiing down the quarterpipe.
The photo on the right shows Carl taking pictures of Kelly's first ride down the quarterpipe. The point and shoot he was using was having trouble figuring out what to focus on, so, unfortunately, none of his shots came out.
By late afternoon, the wind had picked up and the gondola and some of the lifts were shut down for safety reasons. We had planned on riding the gondola up and eating at Four Points this evening, but that was cancelled due to the weather.
In fact, it was snowing so badly that we had a pizza delivered and ate in the condo....
Friday, February 19
Time to pack up and load the car for our return trip home, which was very uneventful. Last night's snow had stopped and the roads had all been plowed. No slick spots on the drive home.