RJ Free Solo

At the top of the double black hills, we found a good rock face (15-20 ft) that RJ enjoyed scaling.

On the way down we decided to hike down "Bold Decision" ... turns out this was a "Dumb Decision" as Sara slipped and fell.

Whitetail Hike

We socially distanced ourselves by going on a 4 hour hike around Whitetail. Our route map is below.

Although a 4-hour hike seems long (well it was because my ankle has a slight sprain), we took 4 snack stops and did a lot of other shenanigans so the mileage was minimal.

• Rest stop 1 involved some water and pretzels. We utilized the random bench that we saw everytime we rode the EZ Rider Quad
• The Hole. We were hiking along and Julia went ahead. She got all excited and started talking about a hole in the snow. Yawn. Finally we caught up to her. Turns out it wasn't such a yawn ... see pics below.
• The wrench. Julia also gets credit for finding a 2 foot super heavy wrench. I guess this was used by the mountain crew to connect water lines to the snow machines. We picked it up so we could return it. We also found some ski poles and some bullet shells. Later Julia and RJ found over a dollar worth of change. We need to get a metal detector for next week.
• Rest stop 2 was brief after some we performed many 'challenges' by hiking off ski trail. There was the rock challenge, the water challenge, the green algae challenge, the log challenge, the pricker bush challenge, and the badger jump challenge (RJ make this up for jumping rocks).
• Rest stop 3 involved pretzels, a banana, and a long discussion about which rock made a better bed and couch.
• Rest stop 4 was our reward at the top. We looked over the other side of the mountain, ate Girl Scout cookies, and scaled a rock wall (see pics below).
• The trip down was relatively quick. We found a good stream (RJ almost got wet) and walked back and forth like skiers in order to slow ourselves down on the black diamond trail.

The Hole

  

The rock wall

Last Ski Day at Whitetail

We prepared for one last ski session. The night before, it was doubtful whether the slopes would actually open.

Somehow the grooming crew was able to scrape up enough snow for a final ski day. Temps dipped below freezing overnight, so the melt stopped for one last morning/day.

Sara, Julia, and Sadona ride the lift for an early morning ski. Then pause for a top of hill photo op.
  
Julia and Sadona were supposed to ski right past me ... but didn't get very close.

Towards the end of the day, things were more of a mud puddle.

RJ did the mud ski, but didn't hit the water with enough speed.

Weekend in Whitetail

We had a fun and action packed trip to Whitetail. Guests included the 4 Grays and Pilar & Javier. Arrived on Friday night, stayed up late. Skied from 8:30am - 9:30pm on Saturday, stayed up late. Went tubing on Sunday.

The Boys

The Girls

The whole gang

And some other random photos.

  

While riding the Northern Lights chairlift, things always seem to come to a grinding halt as we are passing our house. As you can see, it was ski-in (sort of) and hike-out.

Ski Weekend at Whitetail

On New Year's Day we headed to Whitetail for the kids first attempt at skiing. Shockingly there was pretty good snow on 4-5 trails despite temps in the 50's.

Day 1:
After receiving a lot of flak for not arriving at 11pm on New Year's Eve, Doug decided that we would get the 4pm - 10pm ski pass.

At 3:59:50, skiing began with 'lessons' for RJ. By the end of the day, RJ was skiing greens with more confidence than merited. Next Julia received 'lessons' and encouragement. By the end of the day Julia was riding the magic carpet and holding onto my poles to go down greens.

Why you should not push your luck.

• RJ convinced me to ski a blue with moguls. After getting 20% down and realizing that we bit off more than we could chew, a ski patrol hero carried RJ down the slope and let him ski the last 30% by himself.
• Julia and Doug started going faster on greens. Julia turned into me to stop while we were holding onto the same poles. I fell on her head. Sara had to come comfort her.

Day 2:
We convinced the kids to go to ski school/camp to learn what to really do. Great choice! In addition to learning proper technique, the kids got a snack with juice and goodies. Sara and Doug skied wide open, freshly groomed trails in warm weather while the kids learned.

Towards the end of day two Julia was able to turn and aim towards my ski poles near the magic carpet.

After the ski lesson, RJ was declared a skiing savant by the instructors. During the second class session they moved him to a different group which featured an actual race down a green trail.

After class I took this video:

Day 3:
Rain. No skiing.

Day 4:
RJ's buddy Emmett joined the fun for day 4. After rain the day before and 50 degree temps, the trails were starting to show some wear, but we skied all day anyway. By the end of the day, everybody was exhausted. RJ put himself to bed at 10pm - which seems to have become the standard bedtime at the ski house.

Julia and Sara skiing a green trail.

RJ became a bit crazy. Skiing near the edge and looking for trouble became part of the norm. Quick turns after exiting ski lifts gave RJ the opportunity to jump down short cliffs. I need to make note of directions to the nearest hospital.

Ski House at Whitetail

On Dec 6 we closed on our ski house at Whitetail resort. Our first two weekends consisted of a lot of cleaning and some repairs, but we had some fun too!

On the first day we hiked up the mountain. On the first night they started making snow ...

The next weekend, the green slope in front of our house had about 18 inches of snow in spots ... perfect for snowballs and sledding.

  

After the first weekend, we successfully got the place ready by ...

• Removing 10 years of grease and grime from the kitchen.
• Setting up TVs and Internet - first Roku experience
• Repairing toilet that wouldn't stop running
• Replacing 10 light bulbs
• Attaching lights to actual switches
• Replacing front door lock with programmable keypad
• Adding floor mat to ski closet
• Caulking bathrooms
• Cleaning up after the kids