Winter is Coming

Chloe
Aug 25, 2019
9 min read

Updated: Aug 29, 2019

I love winter and contrary to popular belief; it is one of the best seasons. Growing up in Syracuse, NY (the snowiest city in the country) you learn to embrace it, especially if you have a love for winter sports. My love for skiing started at a young age because I was fortunate enough to spend every Christmas Break, Winter Break and winter weekend in Stratton, VT. I wouldn't say I'm the best skier around, but I've attempted a jump or two and only sometimes landed on blocks of ice (ouch).

Although I love skiing on the East Coast, I always wanted to make it out West and ski on real powder. The past few years I've had the opportunity to visit some beautiful mountains. Every time I visit a new one, I want to move there immediately and hey, maybe someday I will. It's just so cozy and the views are truly breathtaking - take a look below at some of my favorite spots, maybe you'll head there next!

Lake Tahoe

I love to plan trips and after researching for weeks an "affordable" ski vacation, Lake Tahoe was the clear winner. I am always on the hunt for a good deal and when I discovered Expedia's 5-day vacation package for $550 (hotel and flight included) I knew it was the perfect fit. Only a week before the trip did I realize I was staying at a different hotel (oops) but it turned out okay because there were better reviews and it was nicer. It was also a record year for snow, Tahoe accumulated up to 20 feet! Just two weeks before departure, the park announced the road closure from Sacramento to Tahoe, and there's only one-way in... needless to say I was stressed. Luckily the road opened just in time for arrival. Entering Sacramento, it was 66 and sunny and only in California can you end up in a blizzard 2 hours later. I also needed to use the bathroom SO bad but clearly you can't pull over in a white out with 20 feet of snow on each side of the narrow mountain road (tmi sorry). But I did make it to the hotel in case you were wondering.

The hotel was only a 5 minute walk to the Gondola at Heavenly and for someone who lugged ski gear across the US, this was more than ideal. At Heavenly the Gondola actually brings you to the base of the mountain, something I'd never seen before on the East Coast. I guess that goes to show how enormous these mountains are. The first ride up was unreal, I finally got a clear view of the lake and was so overwhelmed that I was really there, experiencing this. Check out the picture below to see exactly what I'm talking about.

In addition to Heavenly, there are 14 other mountains surrounding Lake Tahoe. After skiing Heavenly for two days and finally adjusting to the altitude, it was time for an early morning at Squaw Valley. Well, what I thought was early... I had purchased tickets for Squaw Valley well in advance (cheaper but still $100+) thinking there wouldn't be an issue. I thought I'd park the car and have a day! Upon arrival, the workers said, "no parking left, you have to leave and turn around." I was heartbroken, I'd traveled 3,000 miles to ski Squaw and because there wasn't a place for the car I had to leave?? No way!

Thankfully a nice woman had asked if I needed a spot and to follow her. Thank god because Squaw is probably my favorite mountain. Not only is it an Olympic Village but it's all open-faced skiing - you could see skiers and snowboarders gliding down the mountain from so far away. When I dropped my pole from the chair lift to snack on a granola bar, it was easy to spot because there weren't many trees separating the trails.

I also tried snowmobiling for the first time and would definitely recommend checking it out. Since there was so much snow that year you could literally ride anywhere, although I was on a guided tour, I did see some crazy riders pulling wheelies (not sure what you call them lifting the front in snowmobile world?).

The food in Tahoe was nothing to write home about but there were a couple spots where you can enjoy a cold beer and pizza for Après Ski. I definitely wouldn't recommend Kalani's for sushi, it was probably the worst meal in history but the experience is one of my favorite memories. But, if you are hungry on the drive up from Sacramento or on you way back, there's an In-N-Out Burger. It's so good and was worth being late to the airport on the way back!

Road Trip

This is one of my favorites, I'd never done a real road trip before and driving through the backroads of Colorado, Idaho and Wyoming you truly do witness a different world. When I first started this blog I wrote about my time in Denver but never about the rest of the trip. I was supposed to but ya know, got busy.

After spending a few days in Denver, Arapahoe Basin was first on the list. As excited as I was, driving up the windy mountain road (with no guard rails) made me a little nausea. If you have a fear of heights, I would suggest closing your eyes for this one. The drive was worth it though, a lot of trails weren't open due to lack of snow but the local’s vibe made up for that. You can always tell it's a locals spot when the bar at the base of the mountain has beer mugs hanging off the ceiling with designated names #apresskianyone.

In my attempt to save some money and take 2 hours off the drive up to Jackson Hole, I booked a hotel in Kremmling, Colorado, population 1,400. It was the most terrifying and hysterical nights of my life, all at a small cost of $45 (nightly rates have now gone up to $65 FYI). Hotel Eastin, what a place. To my credit, it did have 4.5 stars on Expedia. Right next door there was one single bar, as soon as I walked in everyone stared and I felt so out of place, especially in my Canada Goose, facepalm. After dinner and a beer at the Rocky Mountain Bar and Grill, it was time for bed, at 7 pm... The other hotel guests were some odd characters and going to bed with the door locked seemed like the best decision. The bedroom didn't even have a bathroom, it was rough but so worth the experience. Finally, 5am rolls around and I've never driven so fast from somewhere in my life. There wasn't any cell service, so by the time my parents heard from me, 24 hours later, they were relieved. Below are the two largest buildings in Kremmling... Lol.

There were still two more stops on the Rocky Mountain Road Trip, next, The Teets (Jackson Hole). If you ever have a chance to visit this majestic town, go. Not only is skiing a huge attraction for Jackson but their summer activities might even outshine the skiing, so said the locals. At this point Jackson Hole had been my most challenging mountain. As a first timer, I had no idea what to expect when I got to the top of the mountain after getting of the Tram and boy was I in for it... it was a white out and -5 degrees and the snow was up to my hips. I'm a short girl and that was lot of snow to push through your first time up. Thankfully I had on bright yellow snow pants and could be easily spotted. Also, the lift tickets were SO expensive, I think it was $180 for the day, but thanks to my resourcefulness and ability to talk to anyone, I found out the guy at the ticket booth was from Boston and used to ski at Stratton regularly. After convincing him that I had a seasons pass for Stratton but didn't have it on me he gave me the pass discount, and I think he even gave me a bit more, 2 tickets for the price of $140 #gome.

There is a ton of good food in Jackson, the first stop was Moe's BBQ where I downed a mudslide topped with 151 (I survived don't worry). There was also a great pizza joint, Hand Fire Pizza. The building was an old fire station and you could see the wood burning stove all the way from the front of the bar. While enjoying a couple of pizza's I had the chance to speak with some people living in Jackson. They both worked at hotels so weren't natives, but they did share that the housing market is so competitive that many of them live in motels. One guy told me his entire room flooded and ruined all his things. Even so, they were so appreciative of their time in Jackson, as employees of The Four Seasons they could get up and move to Hawaii or Paris and work there, and they did. Obviously, I was a little envious.

As for place to stay, I found the trendiest motel, Mountain Modern Motel. This might be one of my favorite hotels on any ski trip. This boutique motel is located right in downtown Jackson and a 5-minute walk to all that downtown has to offer. I felt like I was in a modern log cabin with all the amenities one could need on a ski vacation. It also may have been because Hotel Eastin was such a let down... Check out some pictures below.

The end of the trip was nearing, and the last stop was Salt Lake City, which I had very high hopes for. During this entire trip I was also interviewing for a new job. I had to interview in the parking lot of the hotel in the Jeep because check out already happened and I needed wifi. Then they asked me to be on video, so I crawled over to the passenger seat and prayed they wouldn't notice, but they did but thankfully I put on some makeup that day which I don't usually do on a ski day!

Post interview, I headed to Salt Lake City and drove through Idaho, which I never thought I would do. It was so peaceful and really beautiful. I can still remember taking the turn to the windiest and iciest road I've been on.

The first spot on my list was the Red Iguana, I promise it's the best Mexican food and the restaurant is so authentic. In SLC a drink cannot be placed in front of you until there is food on the table, free chips and 5 different mole sauces, count me in! If you are ever in SLC this is a must try, there is usually a line, but I promise it's worth the wait.

Day two on Salt Lake I was so ready to get on the slopes, I had all my gear on and was so excited walking up to Snowbird. Unfortunately, due to the lack of snow there were only 5 trails open and a week beforehand someone fell and broke their tailbone on rocks, not ideal. As you can imagine this was a huge bummer but at least I got my money back for the tickets.

Although I was sad about coming all this way to not ski, I was so excited to spend the day in Park City. This is my favorite ski town of all time; I have this dream to move there and open up my own boutique shop or workout studio (should probably like working out though) and to live in the mountains and revel in the view on my deck. The homes there are beautiful, I even had a chance to stay in one because a friend was spending time there with his family, hot tub included!

I didn't get my days at Alta or Snowbird, but I was able to ski Park City, they had a bit more snow. This is also an Olympic Mountain, so I got to check another off my list! All in all, this trip will always be one of my favorites, I saw a different side of what America is and I will always appreciate that.

Salt Lake City

I know I've already talked about SLC but because it ranked so highly on the list, a second trip was well worth it. Even if it took over 24 hours to get there and JetBlue finding a plane from thin air to fly its angry customers to their final destination.

This time I was able to ski Snowbird and Alta, but I favored Alta. I think it's because there were more trails and it was a less steep. Skiing these mountains is a workout, I highly suggest working on your thigh muscles before every trip... lol. One of the coolest parts was them blasting the snow with avalanche control machines, the first blast I heard scared the crap out of me because I was not expecting it, might've even fell over... I don't think anyone saw though??

I remember waiting in line at Snowbird, with so much excitement. They shove about 70 people on to one tram at a time and your ride up into the sky taking in a view that goes on for miles. After getting off the tram I look down to a vertical open-faced trail (the only way to get down), I think I should stop taking the Tram up on my first runs, maybe give myself a minute to warm up? I made it down though, and although it took me a little longer, I tried it a couple more times!

I grew up night skiing in high school on Friday nights and was so excited to head up to Brighton to experience it again after 10 years. I absolutely loved it, I think I was more fearless and would jump off things because I couldn't actually see where I'd land (not sure if that's good or bad) but it was exhilarating and a great way to start the trip. This is also a snowboarder’s mountain, if you're a snowboarder you'd love this spot. I think less than half the mountain was open so I would love to go back one day and check out all the trails.