2010-2011 Ski Season
California and Colorado
January 16 - 24, 2011: Heavenly, California Skiing
Julia and I took our first trip of the 2010-2011 ski
season in January. Julia was working in 2010 so it was our first
opportunity. Last season we swore we would not pre-book ski vacations.
Lots of blue sky.
Every ski trip we took, last season, we seemed to arrive just after all the snow
had turned to ice. So this season our plan was to chase the powder. However,
this first expedition was the exception to our newfound rule as we were so
skiing deprived.
And of course when we arrived at Heavenly we were greeted
by very icy conditions.
Lots of ice.
Heavenly had received lots and lots of snow at the
beginning of the 2010-2011 ski season, but when we got there it hadn"t
snowed for a while and every run had been melted and refrozen as ice. We
made the best of the tough conditions and managed to have lots of fun. They
say if you can ski on ice you can ski anything.
Heavenly
January 30 - February 2, 2011: Skiing at Heavenly again
This trip we made sure we arrived during the first
snowfall in weeks. And our evil plan paid off as Heavenly was covered in a
new soft layer of powder snow.
A happy skier surounded by new snow.
Julia got to use her newly acquired skills
and confidence with skiing on the soft stuff and she fell in love with it.
As we skied down a run on the Nevada side of the mountain, Julia experienced
the floating sensation that comes when the stars align when skiing on soft
powder snow. The only way to explain it is to compare it with gliding
silently through the air like a bird. Unfortunately, the new snow was so
thin it did not take long before it scraped off and the nasty ice presented
again. Still we had a much better experience on this trip.
February 7 - 11, 2011: Breckenridge, Colorado Skiing
Our never-ending quest for the fresh soft fluffy stuff
had us fly from California to Colorado for a week of skiing at the
Breckenridge ski resort.
New snow.
As we arrived on the Sunday, a snowstorm was in
full swing over the Rocky Mountains. The drive from Denver Airport to
Breckenridge was difficult, but well worth our trouble.
The next day the
mountain was ankle deep in fresh new powder snow. Of course, there is always
a price to pay when chasing powder, the cost to us this trip was freezing
Antarctic temperatures.
Black Diamond Girl.
During the day, wind chills had the temperature drop
as low as -20F! The upside to this is that the new snow stayed soft and dry
for the entire week we skied there. Breckenridge has to be my favorite place
to ski. It has long, wide, piste, off-piste, trees, and challenging runs
suitable for every skiing need. Julia had another breakthrough moment on
this trip; she skied mainly Black Diamond runs and told me she enjoyed them
more than the Blue runs she had become so accustomed too. It had to happen.
Now she is truly a Black Diamond Girl.
Breckenridge