Rocky Mountain Love

I am writing about our ski vacation today. Why might you ask instead of Friday? Well, my trip for work got canceled due to the airport where I was flying to getting closed from the weird winter weather. I made it to Dallas, where I turned around and flew home. Now I have time!

Michael and I went skiing last week. It was a week away from Mason, a week of fun relaxation and skiing! I think it is very important for parents (or anyone) to take a week or weekend away from your children and reconnect with your spouse. We knew we wanted to go skiing, we have been to Crested Butte before if you want to read up on that here. I think this was my 5th trip to the area. I love Crested Butte. The town is great, the lines are short, and the locals make it fun!

We flew out on Saturday, and we got upgraded! It was great and I always fly American Airlines and it was a newer plane. They had monitors at every seat to watch TV shows and movies. Michael and I watched separate movies and both enjoyed the movies that were still in the theaters. Lunch, a movie and a few cocktails later we landed at the Gunnison airport.

I played Battleship on the screen after I finished my movie. We were staying at the Lodge at Mountaineer Square. I have not stayed here before. We have stayed in houses and at the Elevation. Here are a few comments I have on the hotel. It was nice. Every room is like your typical hotel room. I actually didn’t take any pictures of the room. It was nice, but I was not super impressed. We had a wonderful view of the slope and had a fridge in the room. That was basically the highlight of the room. When we arrived we popped over to the Avalanche for some dinner. It is on the mountain and it is a great place to go for casual dining and a quick lunch off the slopes.

View from the room. Sunday morning I woke up excited and ready to get going. We grabbed some breakfast and coffee at Camp 4 Coffee, then ran to pick up our skis. I always go with the demo skis or at the lowest performance skis. We have our own ski boots, but I really like the skis I was using this trip. I went with a little shorter ski, since I have a bad knee it makes me stay in control more. We were waiting in line for the lift when it opened. It was the perfect day to ski. Sunny and in the 20s. I was in heaven. Look how beautiful this mountain is.My ski hubby.I have a picture from two years ago and those peaks had no snow on them.So cold!

Michael is planning out our afternoon at the bottom of Paradise, where we also grabbed some lunch. Doesn’t he look so cute with his beany and studying that map. I usually don’t look at the maps, except at the top before I head down so I don’t end up going down a Double Black Diamond.

We were really lucky while there that the entire mountain was open!!! Last time we went was 2 years ago (right before I got pregnant) and they had no snow except for what they had made. It was scary, which is why we wore helmets last time and did not this time. I am bad. I was raised not wearing a helmet skiing. I don’t ski crazy fast or go down blacks or higher. No need to risk it, but the no helmet is a choice I made this trip. I told Michael our next ski trip will be with Mason, who will wear a helmet. This means we will probably wear a helmet.

Each day while we skied the weather was sunny. On Tuesday, it was 2 degrees in the morning when we went up the lift. COLD COLD COLD!!! Thank goodness my family has collected over the years lots of cold weather ski gear. We were very careful with our skin. Sunblock and lips balm and on Tuesday we kept our face covered with a gator. 

View of Banana Peak.Taking a drink break before going hard.Taking a relaxing break.The views are amazing.Long day done. The after ski attire look. On the last day, we were covered to keep warm. If you are going to Crested Butte or looking for a great place to ski go to CB. For dinner on Sunday, we went down to good ole Donita’s. It was good. When we got there we order a margarita and it really was STRONG. Not the greatest taste. I think Michael and I both drank about two sips. We shared fajitas and they were good. Monday, I texted a family friend, who I have skied with most of my life and they go to CB a lot more than me, and we asked him where to go eat. I have been to a lot of different restaurants but I wanted something new and good. He suggested Bacchanale. It was so good. By far the best meal we had the whole time. They have a “build your own bruschetta” and it was yummy!! We sat next to another couple who had a toddler and began chatting. They made the night funnier. The last night we found the greatest surprise of the trip. We went into this place call the Sweet Spot on the square. We wanted something sweet. I was expecting to see a cute little candy shop or bakery. It was so much fun! They had an arcade, bar, and candy galore. I took some pictures because it was a super fun location and setting.