Thursday
Rachael and Madison flew first-class, using Jeff’s frequent flyer miles, from Pittsburgh to Denver on Thursday, April 30, 2011. At the same time, Jeff was in the air, flying from Newark, NJ. They met up without incident in the B Concourse of the Denver International Airport, and quickly headed out to rent a 4-wheel drive Yukon and head west.
The drive turned out to be not so easy. Loveland Pass was a mess, with avalanche controls shutting down traffic for almost an hour. The 2-hour expected drive took about 4 hours. But, we will made it in time to hit the slopes!
We started skiing at 2pm in Arrowhead Village, taking advantage of Dial-A-Ride to get to the slopes quickly. We ended up skiing over 10,000 vertical feet, including Arrowhead Village, Bachelor’s Gulch, and Beaver Creek. We ended the day with a great meal at Blue Moose Pizza. It was a beautiful, sunny day at Beaver Creek, while the passes were nasty, wet and snowy.
After finishing skiing, we walked over to the park in Edwards. The ski was amazing, with the red of the sun tinting the entire valley a surreal color.
Sunset from Edwards over Vail
Friday
We got up and headed out to Walmart to buy food for breakfast. I cooked chorizo and eggs and made breakfast fajitas. It was good and hit the spot.
Today, we took our time, and didn’t get started skiing until almost 1130am. This time, we simply drove up to Arrowhead Village, since no one was here. We got over 14,000 vertical feet in by skiing Arrowhead, Bachelor’s Gulch and all over Beaver Creek. There was never a single wait in a lift line – quite a bit different than over Christmas, eh?
Girls at Arrowhead
The sun was incredible and the sky was a perfect blue. Although the morning started overcast, the sun broke through before we ever hit the lifts, and we all got sun burnt.
We ate a great lunch in the open-air bar at Red Tail Camp. We ate Epic Burgers and enjoyed the heat of the sun and the incredible brightness of the snow and sky.
Red Tail Camp
Eventually, the hot sun prevailed and the snow got sticky. It is amazing, flying down in a tucked position, and all of a sudden – STOPPPP. You almost fly out of your skies in an end-o. It actually hurts your legs quite a bit. So, once this happened, we stopped skiing and headed back down.
Saturday
Ok – this was the perfect day. We started skiing at 930am, and got over 10,000 vertical feet in in just about 8 runs, all at Arrowhead Village on Little Brave. It was the weather that made today perfect – the temperature at the bottom of Arrowhead was 73F by noon. It was incredible – who’s ever heard of skiing in 70 degree temps? Incredible.
Rachael and Madison Top
We took a break around noon, and ate at the base of Arrowhead Village. The girls went out for another run after lunch, while I watched their coats. The snow had turned sticky, and that was the end of our skiing today.
Jeff Arrowhead
However, we had an action packed afternoon and evening. First, we sat outside on the deck overlooking the Eagle River and read books and enjoyed the heat. Next, we walked over to the Edward’s Park again, and watched soccer games. Finally, we went to the Country Club of the Rockies and had an amazing dinner. Then, we shopped in Beaver Creek Village.
Ski House Exterior
Arrowhead Village 73F
