Aspen Colorado Skiing & Snowboarding Spas The Rockies: Aspen Colorado Skiing & Snowboarding Spas The Rockies
by maribeth
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Skiing and Spa Going: Part Two in Aspen
Pond Skimming at Aspen Highlands
Some nights ago I tuned into some pond skimming from Mammoth. I took a double take since we are almost in summer. Then I remembered that Mammoth Mountain doesn’t typically close until mid June; I also realized that I had switched on to RSN, or Resort Sports Network, a local’s favorite here in T-ride, a cable station that can satisfy a sports enthusiast’s hankering for outdoor adventure with the push of a button. The show that followed tracked some of the world’s most harrowing expeditions at both the North and South Poles. The channel was all about snow, risk taking and fun. And here it is mid June. Boy, do I love living in a ski town.
Pond skimming. The words themselves conjure up a variety of curious images. But I’m talking about some of the best end-of-season fun that can be had on skis and boards. I witnessed some impressive pond skimming late April of this year, the last weekend at Aspen Highlands. Crazy kids young and old challenged themselves and wooed the crowd by plunging from atop the hill onto a manmade pond hoping they had gauged their speed and balance enough to carry them across the water. Plouf! Inevitably a few unlucky souls didn’t quite make it. The audience howled.
I’ve since carefully stowed my skis away but thoughts of skiing and the upcoming ski season aren’t too far out of mind. The season ended on a particularly sweet note, so I can’t help looking forward to what next season will bring.
It has become a tradition of mine to ski Aspen once Telluride closes and I willingly obliged to this rite of spring again this year. I actually had been staying in Aspen a good part of off-season with my dad, so it was a given that I’d close the season much as I had in the past, especially since the Highlands opened for an additional two weekends. (Let’s hope they’ll do it again next year.) This year though I was going to be with Steve, my sweetie, and I knew that our last day would mark the end of a very full ski season spent as much happily together as apart. My brother, David, and his wife, Geri, also planned to join us, so it seemed we’d all strike a celebratory chord together throughout our last turns.
Colorado Hotels & Lodging Restaurants Romance & Relationships Skiing & Snowboarding Spas The Rockies: Colorado Hotels & Lodging Music & Dance Restaurants Skiing & Snowboarding Spas The Rockies
by maribeth
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Skiing and Spa Going: Part One in Vail, Colorado
Après Ski Necessities at Vail Plaza Hotel & Club
What? Don’t tell me you’re tired of hearing about skiing. While most die-hard skiers are still plowing through mashed potatoes and corn snow at ski areas such as A-Basin in Colorado and Mammoth Mountain in California, most of us ardent ski buffs have finally resigned ourselves to hanging up our skis for the season. But smart travelers should begin contemplating next season.
If any of you out there (devoted readers, for example) have been waiting with bated breath to read about my weekend with Steve (see Weekend Expectations blog below), I can tell you our time together scored exceedingly high marks. We, in fact, spent two weekends in a row together in April experiencing end-of-ski-season bliss. Plus we learned that spring is a great time to ski and spa go without dealing with the crowds. Bargains are excellent during this time as well. (The same, of course, holds true for early season in November and the first half of December.)
Vail and Its Fairytale-Like Village
We zipped off to Vail after Telluride officially closed to experience the fun and fanfare of their closing weekend. A spring storm dumped impressive amounts of snow on the mountain beginning the Thursday before. Had it not been for Steve nursing an extremely sore back (from apparently having skied too hard the previous weekend in T-ride which had also benefited from an outstanding snowfall at its closing), I would have feared more powder day problems. Instead we carried on like two lovers on a weekend getaway where skiing and mountain fun entered into only part of the equation (wink, wink).
I had only been to Vail once before many years ago for my PSIA (Professional Ski Instructor of America) certification, so this time I was eager to discover it for real. Steve gladly toured me around Vail’s renowned back bowls and I was thrilled to find myself cruising on black terrain considerably softer than what we have in T-ride. (Of course I love our steeps but they do require more effort.) After just a few hours of skiing, however, Steve declared that his back had had enough. That was fine with me since by then I felt as though I had a good grasp of the mountain and looked forward to the day when I could return and really wear myself out at this world renowned resort.
This left us with time to explore Vail Village, a pedestrian-friendly assemblage of shops, restaurants, bars and places of lodging that truly made us feel like we were on vacation. One might look at this Bavarian-inspired hamlet as hokey (I have in the past), but it really does transport you to a faraway land and we jumped on for the ride. Steve, with his family ties to the Italian Alps, pointed out how authentic these alpine chalets really were in their construction and interpretation. This enchanted me even more, so I suggested we stop for a coffee and a strudel at Hotel-Gastof Gramshammer, one of the more charming wooden establishments in the area, founded in 1965 by Austrians Sheika and Pepi Gramshammer.
It was a good choice. We sat at their German beer garden terrace and then later discovered that this classic alpine establishment also housed two other restaurants, a particularly animated bar and hotel rooms above. I wasn’t sure whether I was more wooed by its charm or Steve’s attentiveness.
Art & Culture Colorado Denver Hotels & Lodging Restaurants Travel: Art & Culture Colorado Denver Hotels & Lodging Restaurants Travel
by maribeth
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Viva Italia, Viva Italian Americans, Viva la Dolce Vita in Denver
The Sweet Life: Italian Style
Clemente. My name ends with a vowel, just like Delgato, Cardaluccio, pizza. When my grandparents emigrated from Italy our name was actually spelled Clementi. They Americanized it somewhat with an “e.” Even Frankie Valli once contemplated making his stage name Vally with a “y.” But he opted to be a good ‘ole Jersey Boy and settled on Valli and in so doing preserved more of his Italian heritage.
Jersey Boys: Italian American Guys
My dad is a Frankie, too. Not from Jersey but from Troy, New York. Close enough. Recently the music of the Jersey Boys helped him to reconnect with his roots. I spent a lot of time back east this past summer helping my father get through a difficult passage in his life and every step of the way we were serenaded by the melodious and memorable sounds of Frankie Valli and the Four Seasons. We became Jersey Boys addicts. My dad had seen this explosive Broadway show that recounts the story of four Italian American guys and their rise to fame last spring. Their hits from “Sherry” to “Oh, What a Night” to “My Eyes Adored You” to “Can’t Take My Eyes Off of You” and more buoyed him up to a place of joy he had not known in quite some time. Through this music, I could tell my dad was retracing part of his own story. And I was right there with him, rediscovering a sound and a slice of Italian American culture I had not paid much attention to in quite some time.
Colorado Skiing & Snowboarding Telluride: Colorado Ski School Skiing & Snowboarding Telluride
by maribeth
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Family Fun Facilitators
Breaking for a Photo with Lisa, Noah and Sage in Front of a Mountain Lodge Cabin
“So what do you like best about skiing?” I asked eight-year old Patrick on one of our many chairlift rides together. There was a long pause during which time I anticipated the usual response, the one I receive most from kids—something along the line of loving to zip down the slopes really fast. Patrick gazed out at the snow covered panorama that glittered with white diamonds before us on that chilly, yet sunny, morning.
“I like the views of the mountains,” he finally replied. “It’s so beautiful,” he added with all the wonder of having just opened a prettily wrapped Christmas present and finding a treasure inside. “Back in D.C. where we live there are cars all over the place,” he added. “It’s so busy. Here it’s beautiful and quiet.”
I pondered his answer as we sailed over the slopes dotted with skiers of varying ability levels, largely vacationers that all totaled resulted in record-breaking numbers for the mountain this past holiday season. “It is lovely here, isn’t it?” I replied, thinking about how the awe-inspiring grandeur of our jagged peaks escapes no one, not even children that are typically focused on the thrill of bombing down the hill more than absorbing the beauty of the surrounding area.
It was day eleven of my fifteen-day stint of ski instructing and with each client, big and small, I always found new inspiration, a fresh take on how to help everyone maximize their mountain experience. I was on private lessons throughout this period, assignments that allowed me to more fully connect with my students which in turn created bonds that brought us all closer together, parents included.
Sure skiing improved and we even broke through barriers such as being able to carefully work our way down steeper terrain without succumbing to a total meltdown. (Cheering about those achievements together afterward was always the best!) But more importantly, relationships were forged; everyone had more fun, a not-so negligent happening that produced a more positive time on the slopes and memories that would surely last a lifetime.
Some of my most vivid memories involve family ski vacations and I know that that’s the case for most of the people that chose to brave the cold and snow, the often tedious adjustments of clothing and gear and challenges such as trying to get your skis into a perfect parallel on a blue run when it feels safer to revert back to a power wedge. Running about on a sandy beach—clad in nothing but a bathing suit—is far less daunting, yet certainly less rewarding.
I like doing what most ski instructors do best here in Telluride: working with adults and children as a sort of family fun facilitator. And in doing this, we take on a variety of roles at different times including coach, mountain adventure leader, big buddy and even surrogate mom, to name a few. As an enthusiastic instructor, I introduce silly chairlift games, orchestrate drills such as skiing on one ski (to better feel the weight on the outside ski) or just simply cruise down the trail, setting the pace with a variety of turn shapes for all to follow.
Colorado Skiing & Snowboarding Telluride: Colorado Ski School Skiing & Snowboarding Telluride
by maribeth
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Training and Turns
Telluride Ski and Snowboard Instructors at Morning Lineup Before the Sun Even Hits "The Beach"
It’s almost midnight and I’m trying to wrap up a few loose ends in my writer’s world so that I can devote the majority of my energy to my ski instructor life—at least for the next two weeks. As of tomorrow, I’ll be on the mountain some fifteen days in a row. Typical ski instructor schedule around the holidays as a great influx of visitors and second-home owners are debarking this weekend and next. Those that are super organized have already done all of their Christmas preparations and such; others, like myself, rely primarily on the mountain for invoking great festive spirit.
Charting the Course for Future Mountain Adventures with Clients
We’ve all been working hard these past few weeks to improve our turns and also to perfect our teaching and communication skills. This has been achieved throughout a variety of workshops, orientations and training sessions both on snow and off; all has been carried out in an effort to ready ourselves for our clients and guests, young and old, first timers as well as well versed ski and snowboard enthusiasts. Probably what resonated the most for me was the importance of the emotional connection we create with our clients or students. (That comes more naturally to me than skiing the steeps!)
And the mountain has cooperated heartily. Snow fell twenty inches within twenty-four hours this past week, bringing snow totals for the month of December up to 69 inches. All lifts are open and the trails are cushioned with downy packed powder throughout.
My laundry is done, my little apartment is super clean and tidy and there’s a stock of EmergenC in the cupboard, chicken soup in the freezer and a huge bag of crunchies for my kitties in the closet. There’s not much more I can do to be entirely ready to spend a string of long, cold days on the mountain. And I can’t wait. I often say that becoming a ski instructor is the best thing I ever did for my writing career. It gets me out of my own often squirrel-ly way and allows me to interact with all kinds of people in a place I love dearly doing something that is incredibly fun. Telluride Ski and Snowboard School is one big family. The mountain, in fact, is one huge tribe. I look forward to providing updates about our gang throughout the season.
Spreading Rainbows and Sunshine: The Most Important Part of Our Job
Thank you to Deb Willits for the photos. She is most certainly one of the best Professional Ski Instructor of America (PSIA) trainers in the country and Telluride is lucky to have her.
The Mountain Awaits You
Colorado Mountain Living Skiing & Snowboarding Telluride: Colorado Mountain Living Skiing & Snowboarding Telluride
by maribeth
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Winter in Telluride: Loving the Snow
San Sophia Ridge
O.K., the calendar might not say that it’s officially winter, but it has been feeling pretty wintery here since the big storm blew in on Thanksgiving. It’s lovely to see Telluride blanketed in white, and there’s no doubt now that the mountain and the town will be wearing its snowy mantle all the way through spring. The ski area opened on Thursday and I finally pulled myself away from my desk yesterday to do my first turns of the season. Oh, what joy! I feel so fortunate to live here and to be able to tap into the mountain’s restorative powers on a whim.
For me, poet Rosemerry Wahtola Trommer, a local, has beautifully captured the spirit of winter in Telluride in the below poem.
if you listen
the snow falls with
no sound
standing outside
in its silence
you find yourself
listening
to listening
but oh,
this snow knows symphony
its score is written on
every mountain, every tree
each rooftop, each street
as each snowflake falls
a silent beat
a voiceless song
composed by sky
performed by icicle,
avalanche,
slush and ski
if you listen
you’ll hear it echoing
the snow is silent
and still
it sings
Thank you to Rosemerry for such inspirational words and vivid imagery. I encourage you to learn more about her work at www.wordwoman.com.
Colorado Hotels & Lodging Skiing & Snowboarding Telluride The Rockies: Colorado Hotels & Lodging Skiing & Snowboarding Telluride The Rockies
by maribeth
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Togethering in the Rockies
Mountain Lodge at Telluride: A Great Place for Spending Time Together
Togethering. Certainly there was a lot of that this past weekend. Thanksgiving kicks off the season—especially here in the Rockies—when friends and family gather in houses, condos and cabins to share their vacation time together.
Togethering is the term coined not too long ago by travel agents and other travel industry experts to refer to the tendency of vacationing together as a family unit, often with extended family members and/or relations from previous marriages. “This coming together of combined families and friends has been more of a trend the past few years,” says Steve Togni, General Manager of Mountain Lodge at Telluride, a handsome property skirted with ten well-appointed slopeside cabins and an alluring lineup of condos, all perfect for families looking to settle into the mountains for an extended stay. “It has become less about skiing,” Steve adds. “It’s more about shopping, spa going, dining and just being in the mountains. I would describe these stays more as winter vacations rather than ski vacations. There’s definitely more of it going on in the winter than in the summer.”
A lot of people choose to rent large homes out West and many families return to the same house year after year. Clearly there’s beauty in having your own special hideaway without being encumbered by the expense and hassle of owning it yourself. “We have people coming back to the same property year after year,” says Maité Daguerre, Director of Operations at Elevation Vacations, a company that specializes in luxury rentals in Telluride. “People love the personal touch and great service we provide,” Maité continues. “It’s all about relationships. When someone checks in to a big luxury home—or even a small guest cottage—we meet them at the door, show them how to use the stereo, help them out however possible.”
I’ve togethered a number of times with my family in Aspen where my parents have a large condo. It’s always different there than being reunited at other locales; it seems the mountain and the lively town of Aspen provide the foundation for all. Both, of course, are good to escape to when the togethering element becomes a bit too much. My favorite times togethering in Aspen have been when it has just been my dad and me. Can togethering be about only two people?
When our family isn’t occupying our condo, it’s rented out and managed by Frias Properties of Aspen, the biggest rental company in Aspen that offers a variety of lodging possibilities in Aspen and Snowmass. “Our bookings are looking good for the season,” says co-owner Chuck Frias. “The international guests will be down from the Australian and Brazilian markets and also from Europe since the euro is weaker than it was last year, but we’re pricing more aggressively to make up the difference.”
A Family that Skis Together Stays Together
Unless you’ve been squirreled away the past few weeks, you know that the travel bargains are better than ever, so this is the time to take advantage of savings of up to thirty percent off on lodging and some airfares. Certainly if people are considering travel, they’re going to put a premium on time with their families. Folks will still want to get together and often it’s easiest to meet in a fun destination in the Rockies when families are spread out between Denver, Phoenix and New York.
Word has been that the outlook is more tenuous for Steamboat Springs this season, but the Sheraton Steamboat Resort isn’t complaining. They’re set to reopen December 4 after a $20 million renovation and bookings are full. The makeover transformed this fine Starwood property from a 350-room hotel to a 200-plus establishment composed of a good number of luxury condos. They offer several different possibilities for families looking to find a living situation that meets their taste and budgetary needs. Their two- to three- bedroom villas are more high-end, but all are ski in/ski out and freshly decorated in their new modern mountain look.
Trapper’s Cabin at Beaver Creek
You can find all kinds of lodging options throughout the Rockies for your togethering. No matter what the price tag, you’re sure to save some on dining expenses if you make use of the glorious kitchen facilities that appear to be at the heart of the accommodations best suited for families.
But what about those truly extraordinary reunions such as a very special wedding anniversary or a landmark birthday when money is no object? The gem in the RockResorts crown is most definitely Trapper’s Cabin, a magnificent four-bedroom, four-bath hideaway in Beaver Creek that sleeps up to ten people. Renovations on Trapper’s Cabin were completed last winter and the amenities such as a sleek professional kitchen and a game room complete with a pool table, poker table and large flat screen T.V. are enough to keep the whole gang happy for days.
The Tempter House in Telluride
There’s no fear whatsoever of catching cabin fever at the Tempter House, the Hope diamond of high-end lodging in the Rockies, situated right here in Telluride, perched at 12,200 feet at nearly the summit of Telluride Ski Resort. The Tempter House is one of the most secluded and romantic destinations you will encounter with 360-degree panoramic views that will make you feel like you’re floating on a mountaintop cloud. A couple’s massage or private catered dinner can be arranged or you can just relax with a glass of wine in front of the master bedroom’s wood burning fireplace and focus on your hunny. This must be why it’s referred to as the Tempter House! (Actually the name is inspired from Temptation Chute, a gnarly couloir that plunges down the mountainside on the out-of-bounds side of the house.) The Tempter House is, however, totally ski in/ski out. Many more glorious amenities are also offered. Expect to pay about $5,000. a night. Now that’s what I call topnotch togethering.
Great Views to Wake Up to at the Tempter House
Mountain Lodge Telluride, 866-368-6867 or 970-369-5000, www.mountainlodgetelluride.com
Elevation Vacations, 888-728-8160 and 970-728-8160, www.elevationvacations.com
Frias Properties of Aspen, 800-633-0336 and 970-920-2000, www.friasproperties.com
Sheraton Steamboat Resort, 866-716-8134 and 970-879-2220, www.sheraton.com/steamboat
Trapper’s Cabin, 970-754-5788, www.trapperscabincolorado.com
Tempter House, 866-888-7197, www.tellurideskiresort.com/TellSki/info/tempter-house
Special Travel Tips for Telluride and Steamboat Springs
There are many great deals for kids to fly for free to Telluride and Steamboat. Click on the below links to find out more.
Colorado Mountain Living Shopping Skiing & Snowboarding Telluride: Colorado Mountain Living Shopping Skiing & Snowboarding Telluride
by maribeth
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Getting Ready for Ski Season: Part Two
I grumbled as I pushed past cartons stacked as high as the ceiling to access the last of the plastic containers filled with my winter clothes. Now what the heck am I still doing with all this? I thought. I eyed one box in particular marked “silver punch bowl, serving trays and flower holders.” These grand accoutrements—along with my super fine porcelain demi-tasse cups and flouncy dining room chair covers—bore little resemblance to my current life. I should sell these and the odd pieces of furniture that are also blocking my path on eBay. Especially now that times are so tough. I eyeballed them alluringly, briefly contemplating opening a box or two to remove a few cherished items such as my silver candlesticks and fancy candy dishes. What’s the point? I knew I couldn’t shoehorn another thing into my little apartment. Instead I just grabbed my skis and boots (alpine and nordic) and snowshoes and closed the door on this storage area filled largely with remnants of my past life.
And in doing so, I entered my second phase of readying myself for ski season. Thank goodness this changing out of closets and gear only takes place twice a year. Back home I shuffled my affairs about, grateful that mountain living required me to keep a sizable collection of hats, mittens and winter jackets in my closets year-round since even in June the thermometer can easily dip to freezing on especially clear nights. I carefully counted out my ski socks, making sure that I had enough to cover me for at least eight days, knowing full well that once the mountain gets busy I wouldn’t want to be forced to do laundry in the evening to assure myself nice clean socks. (As a rookie ski instructor, I made the mistake of thinking I could get two days out of a pair of socks by draping them in my locker every other night. That was a mindless mistake that created an unspeakable issue I never imagined I was capable of contracting!)
This Year’s Lineup at Paragon
Next stop to the ski shop. Paragon on main street is my favorite. I have bought all of my gear from them and they have been super efficient about keeping my skis in good shape. I dropped them off for a tune and knew that they’d grind them on their state-of-the-art tuner and then wax them so that my skis would be prepped to glide and perform at their optimal level. “Ski tuning is not just for racers,” Peter, the store manager tells me. “You have to take care of them, get rid of the scratches, gouges and oxidation so they can better accept the wax and provide you with a superior ski experience. We’ll make sure your edges are sharpened, too, my sweet Bessie.” (Peter and I have quite the history together, but now is not the time to stray from my storyline.)
