Tday in Steamboat Springs with a stop at Loveland Ski area

Well, its been a while since I updated this particular site. Should be back on track now. Thanksgiving did not start off with much, but by the time we were leaving Steamboat , there was plenty of snow for all. Started the long weekend out with a morning at Loveland Ski area and a pot luck turkey lunch in the patrol room. Greg and Nathalie were nice enough to keep us company and wait for us on the slopes! Amy baked a pumpkin pie that was a big hit since everyone else brought store bought desserts. Then it was off to Steamboat Springs for our annual pilgrimage. This is where we find out how long its been since we were on the cross country skis and how those hip flexors are really doing!! It started snowing Thursday night and did not stop--with a record 48 inches total falling on Loveland ski area by Sunday and I think around 24 in Steamboat. Not bad at all--here are a few pics of the adventure. We skied about 16 miles of Alpine and then about 20 miles of Cross Country. You can click above for a slide show or a few are below with captions.

Here is the Loveland elevation profile for the 3 hours of skiing--only about 8K but we had fun! We used our Rando gear here to have as an option for some BC laps at Rabbit Ears or North Routt--lighter ski gear but it does the job. I was too scared to test out my new twin tips that I finally got mounted up--nice fat powder skis for the hut trips and Indian Peak adventures. Maybe next weekend!

Amy enjoying the day during our first water break.

Breaking trail above and below.

West Summit Loop

Amy was just ahead of me in this meadow and the trees dwarfing her were just amazing. This was the West Summit Loops--some good downhill in the middle and trail breaking almost all the way!

Our basic setup--Fisher 220cm E99's BCX with metal edges.

Another shot on the second day getting hammered by the snow.

Amy testing the snow quality

Us coming around a corner at Bruce's Loop on Rabbit Ears Pass

Here is an image of the Bruce's Loops

A quick return to the car for a little water after some laps on Bruce's trails. On the way home we did drive over Cameron Pass and through Fort Collins. Only took 5 hours with the heavy snow over the pass and a 45 minute stop at 3 margaritas near the end. We heard later that I-70 was shut down around 4:30pm and lasted for 5 hours. Some folks never got home that night. So glad we took the alternate route. Visibility on the Cameron pass was only 30 feet for several miles over the 10K pass but that was the hardest part. We may use that route more now.