I flew down to Albuquerque to visit my friend Tully, who lives there, and also met up with Chris from Portland, ME. We’re all college buddies from Denison University! We spent the week skiing at Taos Ski Valley and Ski Santa Fe. The day at Taos turned out very nice, even though there were winter storm warnings with 50+ mph winds. But I didn’t capture enough images! We were having too much fun. There were runs where we were the only people on the slope.
Next was Ski Santa Fe. I was very excited to try one of New Mexico’s less famous ski areas and I was very impressed for a whole host of reasons. First, there is a free shuttle from downtown Santa Fe and they give passengers a $5 token to spend at the resort!
Next, it’s got over 1,700ft vertical and a lot of challenge! The summit is over 12,000ft! So the snow is dry! And on top of that, I had a private lesson for $200. I know that’s a lot, but it’s actually a bargain compared to Mt. Bachelor $399 or Taos $599! I had it scheduled for myself. But “Spooky,” our 76-year old coach, let my friend Chris join in! We were interested in getting the most out of the new carving skis. Also we spoke to a group of instructors at the cafeteria early in the morning, and later in the day, they saw us on the ski slopes and checked in on us! We felt very welcome.
Spooky 1st skied at Suicide Six in Vermont. Then moved to Aspen when he was 8. He also was director of the ski school at Wolf Creek Ski Area in Colorado! We learned a lot. The wind was non existent and the snow was soft. The skies were broody with occasional sun highlighting the snowy trees!
Cabin Fever Chronicles - Getting Outdoors with Rod 