After many years we finally organized a ski trip to Colorado. Being Swiss, I started skiing when I was three. We used to spend every winter weekend and vacations on the slopes. When I turned seventeen I started giving ski lessons. That was a great way to earn money as a student. Besides Switzerland and the United States, I have also skied in Austria, Italy and France.
We rented a car from Denver airport. It took us a few hours to reach Vail and finally Beaver Creek. We stayed in the town of Avon, which was very convenient. It had a lot of shops and restaurants. The bus stop to the slopes was across our resort. We were in Beaver Creek in less than 10 minutes.
We rented our ski equipment in advance. That gave us a good discount and the rental company had a location inside of our hotel. That was very convenient. One drawback with Colorado is the cost of the ski passes. It's ridiculous. The day pass costs almost double than in the best European ski resorts.
We started each day in Beaver Creek and some of the slopes we skied were Centennial Express, Birds of Prey, Grouse Mountain, Strawberry Park and Cinch. We had lunch in Bachelor Gulch and in Arrowhead Village.
One of the highlights of our trip was to watch the parade of the Legendary 10th Mountain Division performing for Legacy Day in Vail. These veterans started at least 62 ski areas in the USA. Skiers dressed in traditional 10th Mountain Division Ski Trooper uniforms perform a Torchlight Ski Down to the base of Gondola One, and then a parade of military veterans, also in uniform, march from Gondola One down Bridge Street. They have this parade a few times each winter.
We really enjoyed the week we spent in Colorado. We are planning on going back next year to discover another resort area, maybe Breckenridge.
Comments