My 2023 January and February Ski Trip-Adventure!

 

On Tuesday, January 17, 2023 I drove away from Sun Valley with the idea that I would go on a three to four day solo ski trip to Ogden and then Park City, Utah.  The reason I was going was because I needed to leave my Sun Valley cabin-condo for a new floor to be installed due to a faulty bidet that flooded my condo on Monday, January 2nd. 

Well, it turned out that I was away from Sun Valley way longer because of a delay in getting the floor delivered and also because the original contractor, Erik Jensen, of Bigwood Property Services originally gave me incorrect information on the timing of the repair/project.  I was gone for a month!

But…wow…did I have a wonderful ski trip thanks to the Ikon Base Pass that was included with my Sun Valley ski pass!

Here’s the story of my ski adventure!

After I left Sun Valley at noon on Tuesday, January 17, I spent the night at a Best Western in Brigham City, Utah.  The next morning I headed for Snow Basin ski area that is very near Ogden.  It was kind of a cloudy day at Snow Basin, so I didn’t know that the visibility wasn’t that good at the top.  My first run was fine, but after I went up a second time on the other gondola (I think it was called the Strawberry Gondola), I really could not see anything.  I skied a bit in almost blind conditions and asked a random skier if I could ski with her.  Athena was wonderful and not only did she guide me down the mountain, but we took a break together at Earl’s Lodge and went back up together and skied down again in better visibility conditions before saying our good byes at the end of the day.

Athena is the random skier I met at Snow Basin that guided me down the mountain in blind fog type conditions…thank you Athena!

I left Snow Basin around 3:30 pm and headed towards Park City.  I’d been invited by Lexi Rohner to stay with her family at their Park City home.  Lexi and I have known one another online through figure skating for years and years, so I was excited to spend time with her and her family.  We’d had a rather cool encounter when we ran into one another when she was in the elevator in Sun Valley during the summer of 2022 when she stayed next door  to my cabin-condo in Elkhorn.  And…the next day, I accidentally met her parents in the Starbucks in Ketchum when her mother thought our dog was so cute!

Back to my travels:  I arrived in Park City just before dark and so I went to Whole Foods Market there for a light dinner before heading to Lexi’s home since I didn’t want to impose on them.  When I left Whole Foods it was dark, but I arrived at Lexi’s house okay.  Her son helped me with my luggage and I settled into their basement guest room.  Lexi and I had a wonderful conversation after she had an online meeting and she suggested I leave early for Deer Valley.

The next morning I woke at 5 am and left her house a little after 7 am excited to ski Deer Valley! Lexi was correct: the traffic in Park City is really busy on a weekday morning, but I arrived at the Deer Valley Resort a little after 8 am and got a great parking place.  It took a bit to get ready and I headed for the slopes….

Then the bummer of all bummers happened:  I went to the ticket window to check the status of my Ikon Pass and guess what?  I have an Ikon Base Pass, not a regular or Ikon Base Plus pass and it doesn’t work at Deer Valley!  I found out I could purchase a “discount” ticket for $149 by using one of my daughter Annabelle’s Ikon Pass buddy pass discounts, but why would I want to pay $149 when I can ski free at other Ikon destinations?

So…I called my husband to help me decide how to proceed. I considered cross country skiing at the Nordic center in Park City and stopped there briefly, but as we talked, we decided it was best I head to Steamboat!  Dan said it was only a five hour drive, so I headed back to Lexi’s house and packed up my stuff.  Lexi’s husband Preston helped me load the car and I said thank you and left their house at about 10:45 am.

The drive to Steamboat was nice, but we soon realized I wasn’t going to make it to Steamboat before dark, so I headed for Craig, Colorado.  When I arrived, I went straight to the Best Western, but they were booked, so I went across the street to Quality Inn and got a room.  I even had dinner delivered which was good.

Unfortunately the room was freezing, so around 11:30 pm I called the hotel front desk and they moved me to a warmer room.  It was scary being alone at what felt like a creepy deserted hotel at that hour to move, but once I was settled in a warmer room I got to bed excited about skiing in Steamboat.

I left Craig fairly early, got gas, and drove another hour to Steamboat.  It was confusing to figure out the parking in such a big resort, but I finally figured it out and paid the $50 for parking.  (Yes!  $50!).  Then…I headed to the gondola and I just couldn’t believe how crowded it was.

But…the skiing and the people in Steamboat were totally incredible and I loved every minute of it!  I even did a black run!  I enjoyed the long green catwalk that extended for about three and a half miles to the base at the end of the day.  It was such a long catwalk actually that I was kind of cold when I got back to my car.

Steamboat!

After packing up and getting my skis back on the top of my car in the ski rack, I headed to Kremmling, Colorado where I had a hotel reservation.  I arrived at Kremmling just at it got dark. Once settled, I had to go out again to get myself some dinner since there were no food deliveries in such a small town.  I first went to the local market which was really “kind of sad” since the town was so small, but the local Mexican restaurant was highly recommended, so I got some take out Mexican food and headed back to my hotel.  Kremmling seemed like one of those towns you just usually drive though.  The hotel was OK, but didn’t even have a table for me to eat on, so I ate on the floor since eating in bed is not my thing.

The next morning I headed to Copper Mountain.  The drive was beautiful and it took maybe an hour and a half for me to get in Silverthorne, but…then…just as I left Frisco, the traffic became bumper to bumper and hardly moved.  It took about an another hour to get to Copper!

Cooper Mountain!

But…once I got parked and on the slopes, I was so happy.  Again, the lift lines were crowded, but still skiing in Copper was fun, but cold.  I left Copper around 3 or 3:30 pm and headed to Boulder where I was going to meet up with my daughter Annabelle and her boyfriend Ben.  I’d reserved two nights at a hotel in Boulder..  

Again…horrible traffic!  The road leading into the Eisenhower tunnel was at a standstill!  It took me three hours to get to Evergreen where I had dinner and recuperated from the long drive and horrible traffic.  After dinner, I went to the Walmart in Evergreen to get a few things I needed while I was waiting for my daughter Annabelle and her boyfriend Ben who decided to come “rescue me” in Evergreen.

They arrived around 7:40 pm and Annabelle drove me to the hotel we’d reserved in Boulder and Ben drove our other car back to Boulder.

It seemed once I was with Annabelle I began to relax.  We happily checked into our hotel and enjoyed a good night sleep and watched a bit of the Harry and Meghan Netflix series.

The next morning we got ready to ski at Eldora ski area near Boulder.  After a excellent bagel breakfast at Moe’s bagels, Annabelle drove to Boulder.  We got a great parking spot near the Nordic Center and I headed to the lifts, while Annabelle met Ben who had her skis in our other car.

Eldora was really crowded, but was great fun.  I had to wait a while to meet Annabelle and Ben at the top of one of the lifts on the easier side of the mountain, but our whole time skiing there was just great.  Ben skis faster than me, so we lost him some of the time, but still, wow it was nice to ski with them.  

Eldora Ski Area 

Eldora Ski Area with my daughter Annabelle

Annabelle at Eldora

Annabelle and Ben at Eldora  1/22/2023

We took a nice lunch break and skied a bit more and then Annabelle and I finally decided to stop skiing around 3ish and Ben and their housemate Michelle skied until the mountain closed.

Eldora Ski Area!

When we got back to the hotel, we both took some time to just rest and then we met Ben at a local Chinese restaurant.  Wow…we all had worked up appetites!

Then, after we got back to the hotel, Annabelle and I just enjoyed watching TV together and visiting with our family over Facebook Messenger.

I decided not to stay until check out time at that hotel, the Millennium Harvest House Hotel, since it was quite dumpy and run down, so we checked out around 8:30 in the morning and Annabelle and I had another bagel breakfast at Moe’s Bagels before I dropped her off at the University of Colorado Boulder campus.  I then drove to Colorado Springs and even ran the Monday morning Zoom meeting my husband and I run together for Temple Israel Long Beach on the road!

It was a long drive (almost three hours).  When I got to the Springs, I made a couple stops:  One to pick up  a parking pass for our Colorado Springs condo and two at two different Safeway grocery stories to buy some things I can only get at Safeway that I like to eat.  I’d pre-ordered most of my food from Walmart.com, so I knew in advance I had groceries waiting for me at my house.

I finally think I arrived at my Colorado Springs house at 1:30 pm.  I was really exhausted, so I took my time putting groceries away and unloading my car.  I was just so delighted to drive right into our attached garage and not have to go out in the cold to unload the car! 

Unfortunately, I had to do some snow snow shoveling around 4 pm since the sidewalk in front of my house was convered with snow.  It was really cold, but still, I looked at it as getting some good exercise!

After dinner and a good rest, I unloaded more my car and watched TV and went to bed.  I was so happy to be home.

The next day, Tuesday, February 24, I went to the Woodmoor Nordic Center in Monument, Colorado after I picked up my favorite muffins at Wooglins Deli while listening to Temple Shalom in Colorado Springs Torah Study with Rabbi Jay via Zoom. 

After a relaxing breakfast of my muffin and decaf coffee, I headed for the Nordic Center which was only about 25 minutes away.  

The conditions at the Woodmoor Country’s Club’s Nordic Center were wonderful!  I skied about every trail including all the black trails!  I was so hungry by the time I was done skiing around 4 pm that all I could think about was food, but I headed home and made my dinner even though I considered eating out.  

Country Club of Woodmoor Nordic Center

Once I got home and had dinner, I began packing my downhill ski stuff for the next day of skiing.  My friend Maureen had invited me to go with her to Loveland ski area on Wednesday.  

I arrived at Maureen’s home just a bit after 7 am on Wednesday morning 2/25/23 and loaded my things into Maureen’s amazing car and off we went to Loveland!

The drive to Loveland took about three hours, so we didn’t arrive until a little after 10 am.  Maureen needed a tea and warm up break, so we didn’t get ready to ski right away.

We had kind of a cool encounter during our tea break:  I noticed a young couple and and their little toddler. The little girl, two and a half year old Elizabeth, was just so cute and I made some friendly comments about how precious she looked.  Then I noticed that the woman was wearing a jacket that said something about skating and when I asked if Sara and Sacha were skaters, it turned out they were coaches at the same rink in Denver that my brother and his wife coach at!

Encounter With Fellow Skaters Sara and Sacha and little Elizabeth at Loveland Ski Area 1/25/2023

Then, Maureen and I went back to the car and got ready to ski.  It was so, so cold, that after our first run, since the lift stopped so much, I had to warm up in the lodge because my hands were so cold.  We then took the took the shuttle to the regular side of  Loveland Ski Area since we were skiing in Loveland Valley  and the lift we were on for our first run seemed to be faulty.

Loveland Ski Area

Maureen and I had a nice time skiing in Loveland and then took the shuttle back to where her car was at Loveland Valley and headed home.  It was a wonderful drive and Maureen even treated me to dinner before I headed to my house.

The day I met my dear friend Larisa at the new ice rink at Colorado College and we skated together. 

Jo Ann and Larisa skating together at Colorado College’s new ic rink 1/26/23

Then, late in the afternoon, I picked my husband Dan up at the Colorado Springs airport.  He’d flown in from Long Beach since all the driving I had done was “just about killing me” and also, we had not seen one another except for 10 days in November since he’d been helping take care of his 98 year old mother in Long Beach.  It was time for us to be together, but also the plan was for him to drive me back to Sun Valley, Idaho in what we thought would be a few days.  Little did we know then Erik was not anywhere done with our floor repair in Sun Valley.

On Friday, January 27, Dan and I drove to Denver in the morning and met my daughter Annabelle and also our dear friends Paul and Judy for lunch at the Bagel Deli and then Annabelle and I and Dan headed to the Big Bear Ice Arena.  Annabelle and I scootered at a nearby park and then we skated together at Big Bear.  Annabelle also had a choreography lesson with coach Cody.  It was good to see my coaching friend Jill at Big Bear.

Scootering near Big Bear Ice Arena 1/27/23

Big Bear Ice Arena 1/27/23

We went home to Colorado Springs after skating but we stopped at a Panera Bread on Hampden near I-25 first for coffee and tea so we could visit with Annabelle a bit more.  Dan had not seen her since early June so we needed that time together.  

On the drive home we logged into Zoom to Temple Beit Torah in Colorado Springs’ Shabbat service and when we got home we had a nice Shabbat dinner together.

Saturday January 28 was a big snow day in Colorado, so we stayed warm at home in Colorado Springs, but on Sunday, January 29, I went cross country skiing on our street. 

Then, on Monday, January 30, Dan and I did some snow shoveling!

On Tuesday, January 31, I was so happy the weather warmed up and went skating at Colorado College again.

Then on Wednesday, February 1, after getting my hair done, I went to the Country Club of Woodmoor’s Nordic Center again for more cross country skiing.  Since I got a late start (started at 2:30 pm), I only did the blue and green trails.

Woodmoor Nordic Center Again!

Then on Thursday, February 2, we woke up early and Dan drove me to Winter Park!  I’d never skied at Winter Park during Peak season so I was excited.  The last time I’d skied Winter Park was on May 12, 2021 when I broke my ankle there Telemark skiing, so I needed to get Winter Park “out of my system.”

Winter Park!

My expectations were met for sure!  I thought skiing at Winter Park was the best skiing ever!  What even made it more fun is some random people I met from Oklahoma invited me to ski with them.  Chris Middick and his friends Duane and Sam Mitchell sort of adopted me into their skiing group, so I just sort of followed them around!  What was so cool was that Chris is from the same area where my mother in law grew up in Oklahoma and one of Chris’s family members is buried in the Mountain Park, Oklahoma Cemetary where my husband Dan’s grandmother and grandfather and aunts and uncles and cousins are buried.   Chris still has some family in the area and lives and works nearby in Frederick near Snyder.  Duane and Sam are farmers.

With Chris, Duane, and Sam 

When we finally took a break, we met a man named Bob Terry sitting near us who had a lot in common with Duane and Sam, but also was an ice skating fan.  He even wanted a photo with of us together. He said I was the most well known skater he’d ever met!

Jo Ann and Bob Terry

After my new friends departed, I skied back to the Mary Jane Winter Park base.  It was really getting cold, but I enjoyed the run down.  The main part of Winter Park is much busier, so we like parking on the Mary Jane side since the parking is free and the restrooms are close to where we park.  

After we packed up the car we decided, spur of the moment, to head to Boulder and eat dinner out with Annabelle.  We didn’t know it, but it was Vegan Buffett Night at Tsing Tao Chinese restaurant on Broadway in Boulder!  To put a long story short, I had worked up quite an appetite from skiing in Winter Park and wow, was the food amazing!!!  Annabelle met us there and Ben came just a bit later.  We all sure loved the food!  I think it was the best chinese meal I’ve ever had.

Jo Ann and Dan at Tsing Tao Vegan Buffet

The next day all I could think about was skiing again, so we didn’t even unpack the car since we decided to go to Eldora Ski Area near Boulder on Saturday so we could combine skiing with seeing Annabelle again.

So…on Friday, Dan and I put our mountain scooters on the other car’s bike rack and when to Cheyenne Mountain State Park to hike-scooter.  Sadly, the trails at the state park were very muddy, but since we’d gone to so much trouble to get the scooters on the car, we decided to hike up the main road with the scooters and just scooter down.  Dan almost made it to the top, but I went all the way up and met him as I was scootering down and we scootered back to the car together.

It was fun scootering on those mountain scooters, but if I’d had electric scooters, it sure would have been easier.

In the evening, Dan and I went to Temple Shalom’s Shabbat service.  We had a light dinner before we went to the services, but when we got home we did have some challah, grape juice, and fruit.

The next morning, Saturday, we got up early and drove to Eldora ski area in Boulder.  I skied alone since Annabelle had to work and Ben was skiing at Copper Mountain with friends.  I had a really cool encounter that day on the chair lift with Lev Meiri, a Colorado College student and son of a female rabbi from North Carolina who I met on one of the easier lifts.  Lev and I even skied a run or two together.  He even knew Dan Brink, a Colorado College professor who I taught skating too!

We left Eldora around 3 pm since it was quite windy.  I enjoyed skiing on many different runs and was in a great mood when we drove down Boulder Canyon.

Visiting Annabelle in Boulder

We went to Annabelle’s house when we got to Boulder and Dan got to see her house and I even got to play Annabelle’s piano!  Then, off we went to the incredible Tsing Tao restaurant!  The buffet is only on Thursday and Monday evenings, but still, we had an incredible vegan chinese meal!  After hugging Annabelle good bye we went back to Colorado Springs so happy.

We didn’t even unpack the car when we got home since the next day we woke up early and went to Copper Mountain!  

Copper Mountain Again!

This time, Copper Mountain was warmer than when I was there two weeks before and I had a much better time.  It was also less crowded.  Maybe Sunday skiing is always less crowded than Saturday skiing?  Nevertheless, I had a blast and even skied a black and tried the Poma surface at the top, but didn’t quite make it to the top of it but on a surface lift that doesn’t matter, and skied trees!  I also enjoyed easier beginner part of Copper very much.  I even skied down the famous SuperPipe!  All the runs there are just so wide that the blues runs were very easy for me. I met a lot of nice people on the lifts too.

We drove what we call “the back way” home to Colorado Springs to avoid that “horrible Eisenhower Tunnel” and stopped at a vegan restaurant called Ferns in Cascade before going home.  It was so good!  We both had “hamburgers” and mine had “cheese on it!”  The “creamy” tomato bisque soup was marvelous too.

Skiing seemed to be inside my being as the week progressed.  I HAD to get on the slopes again!  

We had something rather exciting happen on Monday, February 6, 2023;  Dan’s first ever roommate Rocky Johnson and his wife Barbara Hair Johnson, who were married just a week before me and Dan, happened to be coming to Colorado Springs!  We drove all the way to Divide which is about an hour away to see them, but it was a wonderful encounter.  We actually had not seen them since their wedding day on March 31, 1979, but we once saw Rocky in about 1983 when he was selling vacuum cleaners and the only way he could see us was to give us a demonstration.

On Tuesday, I skated again with my friend Larisa at Colorado College, but on Wednesday we woke up at 3:30 am so we could make the 3.75 hour drive to Taos Ski Area in New Mexico.  I’ve always wanted to ski Taos for over 40 years.

Taos!

There was an ice rink at Taos!

All I can say is “Wow!  What a day!”  Skiing in Taos was so wonderful.  The place was not crowded, the people were nice, and the terrain was spacious and incredible.  There was an outdoor ice rink too.  At the end of the day, Dan and I sat by the fire pit and visited with people that were skiing or just enjoying Taos.  The whole place felt like a mini Vail and had a European mountain resort feel.

The drive home was long, so we stopped for dinner in Walsenburg at a very nice local Mexican restaurant.  I had worked up an appetite again from all that skiing.

On Thursday morning, I skated at Colorado College again.  Larisa did not join me, but I had a nice time skating in my figure and hockey skates.  I even seem to be getting my sit spin back!  I did one without falling down, but it didn’t get on film…

On Friday 2/10, I went to the 2023 Four Continents Figure Skating Championships which was right by my house.  It was so wonderful seeing top level pair skaters and ice dancers compete.  I also had so much fun reuniting with various skating friends including my skating partner Richard Griffin and my coach Doreen Denny.

We did not go to Shabbat services that Friday night since Rocky and Barbara were coming to our house to spend the night.  Once they arrived, we continued talking and sharing our lives and memories.

The next morning we went out to breakfast with Rocky and Barbara and took them to the Colorado Springs airport to get a rental car for their drive back to their home in Marble Falls, Texas, but unfortunately since they only had a debit card, they couldn’t get a car rental.  But…the friends they helped move from Marble Falls to Florissant, Colorado were eventually able to get them a car rental. 

Once they left, we had about an hour break before our friends Paul and Judy Steiner arrived.  We were all going to see the Pairs Free Skate at Four Continents together that afternoon and then have dinner at our house.  I wanted to ride my scooter to the arena, so I got on my scooter about an hour before the event.  I rode my scooter there the day before and enjoyed that so much I had to do it again!

Telemark Skiing in Monarch!

The next morning, we woke up early again and Dan drove me to Monarch which is what we call the “Colorado Springs locals ski area” even though it is two and a half hours away.  It was really a nice drive and we arrived at Monarch just before 9 am.  It was a Telemark Day in Monarch, so I was able to take the free complimentary lesson and also feel comfortable again skiing in my Telemark skis.  I broke my ankle Telemark skiing on May 12, 2021, so going to the Telemark day was necessary for me.  I really did learn a lot in the very, very good lesson.  After the lesson, I practiced what I learned after taking a nice lunch break with my husband Dan at the main lodge.  Around 2:45-3 pm, I put on my regular Alpine skis and skied the rest of the day in my Alpine skis and had such a nice time!  The blue runs that used to be difficult for me at Monarch are now quite easy.

We went straight back to Colorado Springs instead of going out to dinner since it is a shorter drive home to the Springs than from other ski areas and enjoyed eating some of the food we had at home.

On Monday morning, I woke up early and skated at Colorado College with my friend Larisa at 8:30 am.  After skating until about 9:45 am in both my figure and hockey skates, I went home to run the Zoom meeting my husband and I run together for Temple Israel Long Beach.  I was definitely on a “skiing high” and really wanted to get back to the slopes, but I was going to have to wait.  That afternoon, we headed to Boulder to see my daughter Annabelle and her boyfriend Ben.  We scootered a bit around the Pearl Street Mall and had another wonderful vegan Chinese buffet dinner with Annabelle and her boyfriend Ben at Tsing Tao in Boulder.

Then…on Tuesday morning I skated again at Colorado College (Larisa could not come) and then went to Temple Shalom in Colorado Springs’ Torah Study with Rabbi Jay.  When we got home we began to prepare for the huge snow storm that was due to hit Colorado Springs late Tuesday night and continue all through Wednesday night.

We also took advantage of the warmer weather on Tuesday and got our car packed for our upcoming trip back to Sun Valley  We knew there would be more luggage to add to the car, but at least we were most of the way packed.

And…wow…was the a BIG STORM on Wednesday!  It never seemed to stop snowing.  Businesses were closed.  There was just so much snow!

The next day, Thursday 2/16/2023, we packed up our car preparing for my next ski adventure at Ski Cooper in Leadville, but first, we had to shovel all the snow that had accumulated on our driveway and sidewalk.  It was such a beautiful morning it was actually fun to shovel snow!

Then, we finished packing up the car and headed towards Leadville, but first, we met my friend Larisa who gave me a Vera Bradley bag!  My husband Dan also got a thing to hang his iPhone around his neck.  It was really exciting once we actually got on the road!

It’s over three hours to Leadville from Colorado Springs.  We’d reserved a cabin for one night at the Mountain Peaks motel in Leadville.  I would have reserved the cabin for more than one night, but they did not have an opening, so we decided I would ski at Ski Cooper on Friday and then we’d head to Fruita, Colorado just west of Grand Junction and spend the night there.

Our cabin in Leadville was darling!  We even had a full sized refrigerator and two bedrooms!  We ate out at a fabulous vegan restaurant called The Golden Burro.  Both of us just loved it!  We shared a latke and vegan corned beef plate and also a vegetable plate.  I had French onion soup and Dan had tomato soup.

Jo Ann, Dan, and Maureen Weaver at tbe Tennessee  Pass Nordic Center at Ski Cooper - Maureen was quite “happy” since she drank three Tipsy Telemarker drinks before 12 noon!

I’d originally purchased one of Ski Cooper’s $30 Thursdays day passes for Thursday 2/16, but it was so cold on Thursday, that my friend Maureen suggested I ski at Ski Cooper on Friday instead.  Her suggestion was so good since my day at Ski Cooper was absolutely wonderful!  I skied the entire day and even got on the lift at 3:58 pm for one last run before the lift closed at 4 pm!  At lunch time, I went to look for Maureen at the Nordic Center cafe and ate outside looking at a beautiful view with my husband Dan.  Eventually, I found Maureen and thanked her again and visited with her a bit and headed back up the mountain.  

Going Through Leprechaun Lane at Ski Cooper

After skiing we headed to Fruita, but on the way there stopped in Glenwood Springs and went to one of the best Chinese restaurants ever for dinner!  China Town in Glenwood Springs I highly recommended.  The service was great and so was the food.  

We arrived in Fruita fairly late at night where we had a reservation at the Balanced Rock Motel.  It was such a nice and easy place to spend the night since we could park right in front of our room.  

The next morning, Saturday 2/18, we headed towards Ogden, but decided to stop at Sundance Nordic Ski area near Provo so I could go cross country skiing.  And…wow…did I love cross country skiing there!  We arrived there rather late since Dan made a wrong turn, so I only got to Nordic ski for a little over and hour and a half, but it was beautiful weather and so wonderful.  I hiked up several really nicely groomed trails and skied down.

Sundance Nordic Center near Provo, Utah

After Nordic skiing, we headed to Mark of the Beastro vegan restaurant in downtown Salt Lake City.  It was challenging to park there, but once we found a parking spot, going there was so worth it!  I had a salad topped with “fried chicken” and Dan had Buffalo “chicken” wrap and some sort of smothered fries.  I made the mistake of eating some of Dan’s food and wow was it SPICEY!

After dinner we headed to Sleep Inn in Ogden where we also had an advance reservation.

Then on Sunday morning 2/19/23, the day before President’s Day, we headed towards Snow Basin.  I believe Snow Basin was more crowed than ever, but still, I had the best day of skiing!  I skied everywhere and even skied on black runs, moguls, trees, and enjoyed so many blue and green runs too.  I made a young friend near the Strawberry Gondola named Isabel who I hope to see again.

My new friend Isabel at Snow Basin

Snowbasin!

Dan and I left SnowBasin around 4:30 pm and began our four and a half hour drive to Sun Valley.  It was such a beautiful evening and I was so pumped after such a great day of skiing.  We stopped at The Wayside Cafe near Burley, a 24 hour diner, for a wonderful diner and then drove another two hours to Sun Valley and arrived around 10:30 or 11 pm.

I am finishing up this blog post summary just after my husband Dan is drove me back to Sun Valley.  It is Monday, February 20, 2023, Presidents Day.  I left a month ago thinking I’d be gone for four days since Erik Jensen, the water restoration emergency contractor said it would take that long.  My floor is finally finished since I hired my usual contractor, Fabian Leon and his workers, to get the job done since dealing with Erik had not worked as planned.   

I had not planned to be away from Sun Valley for so long, but it was actually an absolutely wonderful ski month thanks to my Sun Valley pass that includes Snow Basin and also the Ikon Base Pass!  I got to ski places I’d never been to before, including Steamboat, Taos, and Winter Park in peak season!  I made new friends, and I got to spend time with my husband Dan.  What could be better?

My named is Jo Ann Schneider Farris and I SKI!