Last minute trip to Vail

Vail is the resort I want to hate and there are some things about it that I do. Yet, the terrain is just too damn good to completely shun it from my life. I hadn't planned on visiting Vail, especially after the PR rep from Keystone kinda screwed me over, but I had to see what all the hype was about.

I'll start off by saying that the parking situation was terrible. We happened to find the small amount of free parking during the week but had to take a bus that only runs every half hour, which is pretty inconvenient. Then the price of the lift ticket alone is absolutely absurd. I love snowboarding and Vail does have a lot to offer, but $97 for a one day lift ticket? That is a lot of money, especially for a place that can afford to charge a lot less. It doesn't help that they charge $25 for parking if you don't happen to find one of the few free spots hidden around the village.

After driving around in confusion for 30 minutes and waiting another 20 for the bus we finally got on the mountain and it didn't take long to see what makes Vail so popular. The grooming was great, the views from all over the mountain were incredible and the sheer size of the resort(3,450 ft vertical drop, 5,289 acres, 34 lifts and 193 trails), the variety and the quality of the terrain was overwhelming. The overall vibe of the resort I wasn't crazy about, but I definitely had a great time riding around, enjoying the scenery and drooling at the number of possibilities that 5,289 acres can offer. I left the mountain feeling satisfied and wanting to return. But I feel it's the type of place to go when you can afford to stay in the village, pay for the lift tickets, experience what the village has to offer and have the convenience of not worrying about parking. That said, here are a few photos from the day:

Backside of Vail

Blue Sky Basin powder day

Blue Sky Basin at Vail

Tomorrow morning at 4am I leave the comfort of a warm bed, a hot tub, a strangely smart dog and a couple of great people that made me feel at home for 11 days. All for the back of my van. But it's okay because I'm going to Crested Butte, which I have been looking forward to for years. More on that soon..

Photo of the Day

Winter Park cliffs

Last day at Winter Park

My last day at Winter Park I finally found some sun, and it was perfect. It was the kind of day you want to live every day. Where everything seems to rub you the right way. Sunny and warm with 8 inches of fresh. Then it began snowing around 2pm, but no wind, and still a little sun seeping through, so it was just great.

I even got to drive in the snow on the way back to Denver, which I love to do. I really enjoy driving in the snow. I find it very peaceful, but fun. It's a challenge, something else to know how to do.

Anyway, great day overall. Here are a few photos

View of Mary Jane

Surefoot Colorado Ski Cup


Rainbow rail in the Railyard terrain park


Railyard terrain park


Winter Park

Tomorrow is my last day in Denver and then I head down to Crested Butte. There is supposed to be a storm coming in tomorrow so hopefully I'll have another powder day at CB.

Photo of the Day

Some Winter Park powder

Winter Park's trees were the best I've had so far this season.
Mike jumping a little tree

Photo of the Day

Powder day at Winter Park. Nothing too crazy but just enough snow to make it fun, about 6-8 inches I believe. Mike jumping some cliffs in the Mary Jane trees.

Photo(s) of the Day

Mike near Loveland Pass with Arapahoe Basin and Keystone in the background

Copper Mountain Catalyst Terrain Park

Photo of the Day

It seems I have limited time on the computer, which makes sense considering I'm technically living out of my van. I don't always have time to type out a full post to give what I did during the day any justice. So I will start to at least post a photo a day. Which I will call: "Photo of the Day"(that makes sense) until I can think of something better. For the first post I will post 3 photos to make up for the the last 2 days of not posting anything.

Hiking near Conifer

Breckenridge (lacking some snow up top, but I'll let it slide, I guess)

Superpipe at Copper Mountain

Red Rocks - Denver

After 25 hours and about 1,900 miles of driving I pulled in to Denver at 1am without any real problems. I'll be staying with a friend here for about a week and a half while I visit a few closer resorts (Keystone, Breckenridge, Copper Mountain, Arapahoe Basin and Winter Park).

My first full day here and we went hiking at Red Rocks and checked out the amphitheater. It was just the edge of Colorado wilderness but I was immediately reminded that I really need to live somewhere beautiful and outdoorsy. New York City and the surrounding area is great, but Colorado and westward is nature done right.

Mike, his dog Nikita and I hiked around for a few hours and made a few friends who showed us an area that was basically a bunch of enormous boulders piled up making a series of caves, paths and tunnels. It was awesome to hike around but it got a little intense and Nikita had some trouble getting to some places. I have to say, I've never seen a dog do some of the things she did. She is definitely the most adventurous, capable and obedient dog I've ever seen. Climbing and jumping boulders that the average person would think twice about.

After exploring the caves we went to the amphitheater which is one of the cooler concert venues I've ever seen. I regret not going to Bisco Inferno there last June, but there will be other shows.

Now for some photos:

Mike climbing around

Nikita

The caves and new friends

Mike and Nikita in the caves

Me, taking a break, perhaps looking for God


The pile of boulders we were in

Red Rocks

Hiking

Red Rocks Amphitheater

The Free Jam Society

Seats

Red Rocks

Today I'm heading into the mountains to do some more hiking, shooting photos and shooting guns (for the first time). As long as there are no accidents or incidents I'll be posting on that soon. Tomorrow I'll be at Keystone and Breckenridge to finally get some snowboarding in.

Heading West

I'm finally about to get on the road for my 3 month road trip to Lake Tahoe, CA and back. It has been a hectic past few weeks, especially today. No matter how much I thought I planned ahead it is still stressful when you are trying to pack your life into a small van and making sure you have anything and everything you may need. There are always more things you think of and more things to do. I am finally close to leaving though.

Right now I'm waiting for my hard drives to finish transfer files from one another. Then I am out. Hoping to make it to Indianapolis tonight via route 70, but we will see. In a perfect world I will make it to Keystone, CO by Sunday. I will do my best to update this as often as I can from the road.

For now I'm going to decompress and try to relax a little before getting on my way. More on everything soon.