USA 2007 - PART 5

Friday April 6th - The Back Bowls

Barely able to sleep I was still dozing in bed when dad appeared at the door at 8am. In a bit of a humour and not really feeling like skiing I was pretty much thinking of giving Vail(3450ft, 5289a, $85) a miss and leaving them to it. I said my goodbyes and lay down on my bed for an hour. Feeling awful I got my ski gear together and headed to Safeway for some drugs to see me through the day. Deciding that it was a nice day and I had never been to Vail I made my way to the resort and parked in the underground parking in Vail Village for the day. Although expensive I was able to stroll to the Vista Bahn Express and in minutes I was at a scrum of a couple hundred people deciding whether to use the Mountaintop or Wildwood lifts to the summit. One thing for certain was that I was heading into the back bowls and away from this nonsense.

I skirted into the queue for the singles on Wildwood and waited my turn. Eventually I found a triple to join and off I went. Catching that I had a Scottish accent the lady next to me asked where I came from and I could see she was also Scottish. Glancing at the names that they had on the tips of their skis I could see that I was on the lift with Marilyn, Monty and Janice who were in the same group as my dad and brother!

After wishing them well I reckoned on finding dad and Matt in the back bowls somewhere so I skied some lovely powder with only a few other people in sight down to the base of the High Noon lift. I could have skied here all day but after keeping an eye out I failed to see the guys so decided to head to the Sun Up lift and drop into the next bowl. The skiing down to the Orient Express lift was nice on the fringes and I reckoned on finding dad and Matt on the terrain off the Skyline Express. Much to my surprise I stopped for two minutes at the side of a cat track as Matt whizzed past closely followed by dad. Joining them on the lift I was beginning to feel a lot better and we had a couple of laps up to the Belle Camp before taking a look in for lunch. Absolutely packed so we figured it was best to ski down and head to the Two Elk Lodge for lunch.

Unable to get a seat inside we had to sit outside in what was beginning to become quite a bit cooler an afternoon. Waiting for the boys to get the food I took in the lovely surroundings. On his return Matt described the queues and the organisation of them as 'hell on earth'. The burger, fries and a randomly selected drink was average at best but did a job.

Finishing our day with a couple runs in the back bowls before a winding cat track back to the base. The amount of people in such a small part of the mountain was frightening and I can only imagine that there are quite a few accidents at the end of each day as everyone fights for their space.

Saying our goodbyes I found my car in the underground car park at Vail Village and headed back down to Frisco where I jumped onto the free internet PC to check my emails and the like.

Wheezing a little we had a few beers in the bar before dad and Matt headed to the Safeway supermarket next door for some fried chicken, corn dogs, potato wedges which we washed down with a few beers before an early night. Having struggled to get any sleep the night before I did not take long to drift off although the realisation was beginning to hit home that I only had a couple of days skiing left for the season.

Saturday April 7th - You Can Always Find Powder

The 8am knock at the door brought bad news, Matt was not feeling very well at all. I was getting the blame for his condition but for me he had all the classic symptoms of altitude sickness.

After getting Matt some medication and getting their gear off the Grampian Tours minibus dad and I decided to follow his group for a day at Keystone(3128ft, 3148a, $81). I'd skied here last winter with my friend Mike Richards and although I had only skied the mountain once, Mike had given me enough of a tour and spoken at length on various areas of the mountain that I felt I knew where we should head for some decent skiing.

As it was late season we had to start from the River Run gondola and then ski down to the Santiago Express. The skiing on this part of the mountain at 10am was somewhere between awful and terrible and I was beginning to think Keystone would be a bad choice. Perfectly groomed icy hard pack with 1-2" of fresh on top was virtually impossible to get an edge into. Not nice at all so we headed into the Outback.

We skied most of the trails to the right of the lift and found some pretty good skiing. Dad stuck mainly to the groomers and I skirted in and out of the trees. In places I was finding 6" of powder but it was difficult to judge what your next turn would bring. A pretty good test of ability and technique.

By 1pm and with snow flurries we decided to make our way home. Deciding against a trip on the cat I took dad out into trees in North Bowl and it was to be the best skiing on the mountain. Although dad was out of his comfort zone I think he enjoyed being totally away from the crowds and at times I was hitting pockets of 12" and more of fresh, soft powder. I can see now why Mike loves skiing in trees as much as he does.

Heading back to the base we bumped into a couple of the people in the guys tour before finishing off with a blast down to the River Run base in thick, heavy snowfall. Things were starting to look interesting for my final days skiing in Colorado and quite possibly my final day of this trip.

Heading back to the ranch we grabbed a few beers in the bar and watched a bit of the US Masters. The forecast for tomorrow looked very good indeed although I had heard that so many times over the last few weeks that I drifted off to sleep simply hoping that the snow gods would deliver.

Sunday April 8th - Save The Best For Last

Matt was feeling a good bit better and my hope that their tour would be heading to Loveland(2410ft, 1365a) was also confirmed. I followed their minibus up I-70 in thick snow. Pulling off the interstate I saw a 4x4 sitting in a bizarre place. Clearly it had slid off the road but it was sitting pointing skywards with its front four feet up in the air. Pulling into the parking lot I was glad to be here and the snow was coming thick and hard!

Grabbing my ticket($40) we headed in for a quick hot chocolate before hitting the reported 9" of fresh.

Making our way to lift 2 the high altitude took its toll on Matt when his nose started pouring with blood. Hardly a day for standing about dad and Matt decided to head back inside until it stopped. With 9" fresh to play in and my final day of the season there was no chance of me heading inside so I jumped on the quiet lift and made my way up over to lifts 4 and 8 where I would spend the rest of the day.

The skiing was absolutely sensational with turns in 12-24" of fresh, dry, sieved flour with the only downside being pretty poor visibility and a fairly low snow pack that meant a few scrapes on rocks beneath. There were no queues at lift 8 but everyone was desperate to get on the lift so I was happy to share with a woman from Denver.

Chatting about where I was from and what she had skied I was happy enough when she asked if I fancied skiing a run or two with her. Happy to ski anything I followed her on about 6 runs off the right of the lift. Skiing hard and fast we did not stop except on the lift where we chatted about the local resorts and the reasons she and I both liked Loveland along with tales of my travels. One question I struggled to answer was which month is best to visit Scotland!

At 2pm my companion called it a day and I decided to ski a few more laps and then down to the base area to see if dad and Matt were around. To get there I started a traverse back towards chair 4 and then on towards the base area. Bouncing my turns nicely I was in the zone with no tracks in sight. Crash, bang, wallop and I was on my arse! Totally buried in snow I had double ejected, lost both poles and also ripped my ticket and zip off my trousers. It was like the scene from a plane crash as I surveyed the scene and tried to work out how on earth I'd landed in the dirt. I think the crater said everything!

Heading up chair 2 I saw my dad skiing alone so I shouted that I would catch him up. Turned out that Matt had skied a couple of runs and went back to Frisco with a group that had not even bothered to ski at all! Dad had managed to ensure that the driver of his van and a few others would be skiing and was having fun skiing Firecut. He was also claiming to have saved a young damsel in distress when a girl clearly out of her depth and in terrible visibility was left stuck high up the mountain unable to move due to fear. He skied to the patrol hut and got them into action. Loveland is not a place for beginners on a day like today.

Leaving dad to have a couple more runs before his 4pm lift my legs were done so I loaded up the car and headed back to Frisco knowing that I had left the best til last. Great company, fabulous snow, deserted lifts and probably one of the top 10 days I have ever had on snow. Loveland always delivers and everything I have seen and read suggests that it is overlooked compared to its more illustrious neighbours.

Back at the ranch I checked on Matt who said he was feeling better before I started to pack my bags up for a whole day of driving northwest in the morning. Dad and Matt had a pizza night with their crew so I watched a bit of TV before hitting the bar at around 8pm. Sitting with my beer I chuckled away at the stories from some of the locals and visitors and found it interesting that quite a few people had not enjoyed their skiing today. Best day in four weeks!

Matt was not feeling great and headed to bed after a few bites of pizza and I was joined in the bar by my dad for a couple of pints before he headed to his bed. I stayed for a couple more and got chatting to the barman, a local ski instructor and a local. We laughed at the instructors tales of trying to coach rich kids who really were not that good but forced into it by parents. We bought a few Jagermeisters and by midnight it was time to call it a day.

Monday April 9th - The Long Road Home

I was hopeful of making good progress north but with 920 miles in front of me I knew it was a big drive and with the car packed up and ready to go I said my goodbyes at around 8.30am and hit the road with yet another beautiful day in store.

The road down to Denver was clear and I knew if I could get through the city easily enough then it should be plain sailing. The smog over Denver was quite noticeable and the difference between an hour up the road in the mountains was pretty sad to see and at the same time fairly remarkable. Reminded me a bit of Scotland in that it only takes an hour from the cities to the beautiful scenery and mountains that seem worlds apart.

I knew the road from a previous trip when I drove south from Billings in 2006. It's a fairly bland drive with little stunning scenery other than distant mountain ranges. I stopped in Douglas for some gas and a coffee and felt I was making good progress. On the road again I had a couple of CD's and the radio for company and by late afternoon I was back into Montana and heading north to Billings. One thing that I noticed was that there seemed to be a lot more snow on the roadside than I witnessed last winter despite the recent warm weather.

By 6pm I was in Bozeman and stopped for some gas before heading to the local Taco Bell for some takeaway. With another 2 hours in front of me I kept going and eventually I pulled into the familiar surroundings of the Sky Motel in Drummond.

I felt like an explorer returning to his village and I was pleased to see Bill who had his normal warm welcome for me. After a quick chat I threw my gear into my room and joined Bill and Kathy for a few beers and a catch up of where I'd been and what they had been up to. Kathy was keen for Bill to show me the local area in the morning and I was delighted to accept the offer.

Bill and I decided to take a look down to the Canyon Bar for a yarn with Mike Coyle and had a few beers before we made our way back to the motel and I headed to bed for a much needed sleep.

Tuesday April 10th - Rock Creek

After sorting out my gear, notes, trail maps, receipts and the like I grabbed a coffee in the office before heading to my room for a bit to pack and watch the news. Bill had been having problems with the new satellite TV in my room so I left them to it for a while. Turns out the cable was not quite right at the end and they got it sorted quickly enough.

At around 10.30 I wondered into the office and through the back to see what Bill and Kathy and my three new friends, Kenny, Tank and Lady were saying to it. Kenny was checking the latest news in the paper and Bill was checking his emails. After a bit of chat Bill and I decided that we would try and drive through Rock Creek which is a rough road through wonderful scenery between Philipsburg and around 10 miles east of Missoula.

Packing the cameras and a few beers in the ice box we were soon on our way to Philipsburg and Bill was able to tell me much about the surrounding area and the wildlife that can be seen. Bears, deer, sheep, moose and many types of birds to mention just a few.

We stopped in the Sunshine Station at the turnoff for Philipsburg and grabbed a seat in the bar for a quick beer and a bite to eat. I shouted a couple of burgers to set myself and Bill up for the afternoon. Nice place and I could see myself just passing my time away in a place like this. There is just something about Montana that I love above all places in the USA and I just can't describe why. The nearest I can think is to say if you had no money or a million in the bank that you would still have the same fun and still meet the same wonderful people and be treated the same.

Bill picked up his forms for game licenses that he will be allowed to shoot for the year. I was surprised at just how strict it seemed to be regarding quotas although in reality I guess you could easily shoot a few more deer and not report them.

Heading through Philipsburg Bill took a turn up towards the courthouse. 'Have you seen the noose?' No was my response and he pointed up to the first floor window where you could clearly see the noose that was apparently used to hang people many years ago. On the road again we headed into Rock Creek and we drove past some pretty impressive scenery including some huge ranches. Bill pointed out that some pretty rich people owned the local ranches and that a few people were lucky enough to work for them. The further into the creek we went the further we went from civilisation and the scenery became amazing. Clinging to the side of the hills the road twisted alongside the river and I laughed when Bill said that in the summer months it's a popular route for the girls with fancy cars and they fly around the roads. This was a bumpy road and only room for one car at a time!

Bill noticed a flock of Longhorn sheep high on the mountain so we stopped and got the binoculars out. Bill counted the numbers and felt that it was a pretty substantial flock and dug a photo out of a Longhorn ram that his friend had shot the previous year. It was massive!

On we went past a huge fire damaged forest and Bill explained that they had had a lot of problems controlling it due to the winds and the remote location. We also passed a number of small fishing cottages that had been renovated to be rented out. Pretty sure the cost would have been pretty steep but I marvelled at the superb location and cost would have become irrelevant. We stopped at a magnificent wire bridge and took a couple of pictures

A few stops and a couple cold tins later and we were back onto something resembling a road! Heading back down to I-90 Bill pointed out an area that a businessman had bought with a plan to build houses. It had been rejected as a number of people staying further up the road had complained. We failed to see the logic!

We had planned to be back much earlier and it was around 4pm when we pulled into the motel. Kathy and I had decided we would head down to the Canyon Bar for a beer and a few games of pool on our return and had even got her cue looked out. Kathy used to play in a woman's pool league but had not played much recently so I fancied my chances! We played about 9 games and I came out the narrow winner before we headed back up to the motel for French Dips.

I had to admit to Bill and Kathy that I had no idea what I was going to be getting for my dinner but having enjoyed all my other meals I was pretty sure that I would enjoy it. A finger roll toasted with cheese and filled with cooked, thinly sliced roast beef with a bowl of juice to dip my sandwich into served alongside a baked potato. Very enjoyable and it was nice to spend a little time with Bill, Kathy and Kenny before heading to my room at around 9pm to get my case packed and head for an early night before the big day ahead.

Wednesday April 11th - The Final Day

After a good nights sleep I awoke early and grabbed a coffee in the office before catching up with the morning news on the TV. Packing the car I wondered into the office and through the back to say my goodbyes to Bill and Kathy. It was nice to see Kenny there too and say goodbye to my new friend. It's always sad to say goodbye to Drummond but I know that I will be back.

On the road again for the final time I made my way down to Missoula having enjoyed a fantastic trip. With an hour to spare I stopped at the Wye West casino bar for a couple of beers before dropping the car at the airport. Checking my bags in for the three flights home I got chatting to the Northwest airlines lady who was interested to know my thoughts of Colorado as she hopes to head there in the future.

My first flight of the day to Minneapolis was a short 2 1/2 hour flight and I had a beer and some Pringles to pass the time as I sat back in the half empty flight and began to contemplate how good a trip I'd had and think about all the new places I had skied. Before long we were landing in a very much colder Minneapolis which had a covering of snow which was quite ironic considering how warm it had been out west for most of the last month.

I headed into The Lodge, which is a bar with seating for around a dozen people, and it was nice to see the usual barman who always makes me laugh with his sharp tongue and comments that quite often goes right over the heads of the customers. Sitting down to a pint of locally brewed Red Lager I was contemplating another when the plane started boarding very early. One thing that I noticed is that they have given up on the pointless procedure of queuing up to hand in your VISA waiver and then again an hour later to board the plane.

I had picked the seat right at the very back of the plane and sitting next to me was a strange older woman wearing what appeared to be a Paddington the bear style hat as she furiously wrote notes in a notepad. She kept herself to herself and that's all I ever want on a flight home.

Flying through the night is always boring and this flight was no different. The films were yet again not worth getting the headphones out for and I settled on a couple beers and a couple glasses of wine to pass the time before arriving early on Thursday morning in Amsterdam. Filling in time I headed for a few beers to finish the trip before my early afternoon flight up to Aberdeen and the realisation that although it was a holiday weekend I was back to house building and work.

Overall I had an amazing trip. I skied 26 resorts in 6 states, 18 of which I had not skied before, drove 6722 miles, saw some of the countries most historic monuments and met up with some old and new friends.

Special thanks to Bill and Kathy in Drummond for not only a clean, comfortable room but also for making my stay with them special by feeding me, keeping me watered and entertaining me on my two stays. Can't wait til 2008!

Also to the various people that I shared chairs with, skied with and chatted to along the way. It makes the trip so much better.

The skiing overall was mixed with very warm weather throughout most of the trip but seeing the terrain down in Arizona and New Mexico make me determined to have another visit sometime in the future. I'm already thinking ahead to next year although plans never really come together until the early part of the year. Until then, happy skiing and boarding.

This article was written by Quintin Chalmers, a 30-year-old skier from Aberdeen in the north of
Scotland. Quintin has skied at over 50 North American resorts and is in the process of setting up
www.offthebeatenpath.co.uk designed to help like minded people find the best turns in some of the
more unusual resorts in western USA. He has over 20 years skiing experience and enjoys nothing
more than seeing new places that many people write off as being not worth the hassle.