Ski Trip to Vail, CO

As members of the Reno Ski and Recreation Club, DW and I participated in a club trip to Vail, Colorado for a week of skiing and recreation (duh), from the 3rd to the 7th of March 2014.

Actually, I shouldn’t say “duh”, because I’m not sure if I’ve published on this blog yet that I relented to learn to ski this season, so I can ski with DW and the rest of the recreational skiers.

Anyway, we arrived by air at Denver early afternoon on Sunday the 2nd, and along with about a dozen others took the club-arranged transportation to our hotel, the Vail Cascade Resort. It’s a not-overly-fancy-but-nice-enough property, with beautiful old (or old-looking) furniture in the lobby and main desk, and a nice little sunken bar behind a huge double-sided (gas) fireplace. But the real attraction, and the reason the trip coordinator chose the place, is the Ski Concierge right next to Chair Lift #20 (Cascade). It was so nice not having to shlep equipment either down the hall or out along the building to get to a lift, or a bus to the lifts.

Oddly enough, I have no photos of the hotel, but you can follow the link above where there are plenty. In fact, we didn’t even take pictures on Monday, as we had to go from the bottom of the west end of the ski area all the way to the top near the east end, to be at Two Elk Lodge™ for lunch. (You can see a trail map at Vail’s site linked above, if you desire.) Since I’m just a beginner, we had to take some catwalks (which I figured out refer to the snow cat grooming machines), but we got there a half-hour ahead of the others. In fact, a couple of them remarked how surprised they were to see me there!

On Tuesday, we decided to ski around the Game Creek Bowl area, which is on the west peak. Vail (and Beaver Creek) are somewhat unusual in that they have relatively easy runs near the top of the mountain; most resorts don’t use the ridges, and instead bring runs down the steep face, making them more difficult. Game Creek Bowl has a number of runs marked blue (medium difficulty), but a couple of fairly long green (easier) runs around the outside of the bowl. One of them, the only way out of the bowl, is called Eagle’s Nest Ridge. It’s very easy, being nearly flat in one long stretch leading down to the Eagle’s Nest Lodge. I stopped and had DW take a couple of pictures, one off each side of the ridge.

(As always, click to view larger.)

That evening, we went with a couple of friends from the club to explore Lionshead Village, a smaller village on the west between our hotel and the main Vail Village. We found a liquor store, a crowded little BBQ restaurant that serves what’s on the menu until they run out, and Albert Einstein, just chillin’:

Monica adores Al.

On Wednesday, most of the trip-goers went over to Beaver Creek (about ½ hour away) for the day. As one of our bus-mates said, Beaver Creek–a Vail resort–has to be just a bit better, because it isn’t Vail. Also, it’s the farthest resort away from Denver. Well, it was great! DW and I headed up to the easier runs near the top of the main lift. The views were spectacular.

DW about to get her camera out

I actually got a little over-confident right away, and fell part way down. There is a technique for getting up that I could never quite do in Tahoe, but I made it work this time! DW got photos of the process. Here are the beginning and the end.




We skied the easy runs for the better part of the day. We took a break around 2:30 after having skied down to the ski school area, where the children ride a gondola to after mastering the basics at the bottom. Here’s a panoramic photo from the deck:

Late that afternoon, we met our fellow clubbers at the Beaver Creek Chophouse and C Bar, outside. It was such a nice day, we all stayed outside.

This pic got tweeted.

Some of the group stayed to eat there, but some of us were ready to hit the shower. Six of us went for pizza, to the Blue Moose Pizza in Lionshead, right next to the skating rink. Since the previous day had been Mardi Gras, the Moose had been celebrating, and was covered with beads.

When we got there, and yet when we left, there was a broom hockey game going on on the rink.

The next two days, DW and I skied the Mid-Vail™ area. There is one green run and a whole series of blue runs there. DW and I had been to Kirkwood on Presidents’ Day, and we skied a blue run a few times there, so we decided to do these. They were a lot of fun! Except for the one called “Whistle Pig”–it had a bunch of little moguls! We got most of the way through them (slowly), and I saw a cut-off back to a smoother run we had done before, so we took that. Here's what one of them looked like:

Actually, that may have been the access run along the ridge. Anyway, on Thursday night we attended a group dinner in Vail Village, and on the way out we stopped to take photos of this sculpture and lighted tree.




 On Friday we went back to the same runs to ski, but snow had been falling since about midnight and was still falling, and the smooth runs of the day before were starting to get bumpy. I was actually having fun learning to handle the snow, but it did make us tired quickly. We skied about 2½ or 3 hours, and had had enough. We made it back to the main village and rode the bus back to the hotel, where we had some hot cocoa and a nap.

We really enjoyed the trip and being able to ski every day for a week. We did some checking into individual trips, and the group really got a great deal, so we were pleased. The organizer did a fabulous job, and if he ever puts together another trip, we’ll be the first ones to sign up!

Marlette Lake

On Saturday the 12th of October, the group that went to Winnemucca Lake (plus or minus a few members) met and carpooled to Spooner Lake (Nevada) State Park, to hike the 4½ miles to Marlette Lake, a reservoir a few hundred feet above Lake Tahoe.

The first almost-a-mile of the hike is along the locally-famed North Canyon Road, known for its many cabins and its access to the wilderness area along Tahoe’s east shore. After this distance, we reached the marked trailhead for the hiking trail that was completed only a few years ago.

Half the group is waiting for the other half. Again.

After the group leader took a group picture, we started up the trail. We quickly became spread out. Joe and my own DW were out in front, with me a few hundred yards behind them, and the next fastest group–including a young woman about 25 years my junior–probably about the same distance behind me.

The hike to Marlette Lake is nearly all uphill, with a couple of sets of switchbacks. Not terribly steep, but mostly constant. About ⅔ of the way there, the trail reaches the top of a rise with a somewhat expansive view of the valley and road below.



Approaching the apex;
note the stump.

There’s that stump,
with the canyon below.

The trail continues to climb, and soon I was entering elevations where the early-season snowfall of the previous week was not yet completely evaporated:

Shortly after that, there was snow actually ON the trail!

OK, maybe there wasn’t much snow on the trail, but I did see a bit more before reaching the summit, where the trail starts back down toward North Canyon Road and the lake.

At one point, the hiking trail comes within a few yards of the road, and an access trail–fit for bikers as well as hikers, that leads to the trailhead off of NV SH 28–crosses both. Because this was only the second time I’d been on this trail, and I had no other hikers to guide me, I mistakenly took the access trail down to the road. Since I knew the road led to the lake, by the time I realized my mistake I decided it wasn’t worth the effort to go back and regain the hiking trail. Besides, only the road had views like this:

When I reached Marlette Lake, the north wind had come up, and was quite chilly after blowing across the water. I made my way to a pile of rocks where I expected to find DW and Joe, and I was not disappointed. I was surprised, however, when they told me I was only about ten minutes behind them! I did not expect to have moved so quickly.

We ate lunch there, hounded by this chipmunk:

It was very aggressive, and even climbed on DW’s lap when she wasn’t looking, trying to get a nut from the snack-size bag she had there. Startled, she moved the bag away, and this cute little fellow bit her! Not hard enough to draw blood, thank goodness. No rabies shots for her.

Finally, we had had enough of the wind and rodent harassment, so shortly after the rest of the group arrived, the three of us decided to leave, and take the road back to Spooner Lake. On the way out, I noticed this plea for people fishing there to complete an “Angler Survery”:

Your tax dollars (and donations) at work.

The walk back was pleasant enough, especially after we had crested the summit again and were somewhat protected from the chilly north wind. We discussed all sorts of things, from politics to pop music, from advertising to Zurich (Joe had recently been to Switzerland, although he spent most of his time in the area near Locarno). We made it back home just in time to cook supper! I think we had chili, to warm up from being outdoors all day.

Winnemucca Lake

On Saturday, 27 July, we joined our friend Joe and a different group he hikes with for a hike to Winnemucca Lake, in California just off Kit Carson Pass. We met at a shopping center near the south end of Reno, and carpooled to the trailhead. There is a new segment of freeway, opened just this past spring, that makes the trip to and through Carson City nearly non-stop. I don’t mean to bore people; it’s just that this was a pretty big event around here.

Anyway, for those unfamiliar with this part of the Sierra Nevada, Carson Pass is on CA SH 88 about 6 miles west of its intersection with SH 89 going north to Tahoe (Luther Pass), or about 16 miles west of the CA-NV state line south of Minden, NV. Kirkwood ski resort is only about 4 miles west of the pass. The new freeway makes the trip quicker than ever, and soon we were pulling into the parking area at the pass’s summit.

The trail starts south, sloping slightly upward into the forest. At one point, there is a tree whose trunk is twisted about 4' above the ground, which with the help of a rock placed there by the trail-builders makes it a wonderful seat for a photo opportunity. Too bad I don’t have any photos there I’m willing to post. But here is a nice photo of the trail in the trees.

You may recognize Joe's wide-brim hat.

After about ¾ mile (I guess), the trail emerges onto a grassy, rolling hillside.

Soon there is a minor trail that goes left, over a rise, past a small body of water called Frog Lake, leading to a rocky crag that overlooks the infamous Red Lake–infamous because the waters are currently a vibrant emerald green due to the algae. It may not show up well in the photo; you’ll just have to come see it in person.

Approaching Frog Lake

Panoramic view of Red Lake

Back down to the main trail, and on to the south and west we went. Soon we were on the side of a ridge looking west toward the beautiful and popular Caples Lake.

Caples Lake

A bit further on

It wasn’t much farther now! We had passed the rounded peak known as the Elephant’s Back, and the wildflowers were maybe not at their peak, but certainly putting up a good display.

Lilies of the Field

Elephant’s Back and some flowers

Past the ridge and over a small hill, and we were at our destination: Winnemucca Lake!

Uh-huh.

Yeah, it was kind of anti-climactic, especially since the sky had clouded over a little, dulling the first impression. However, while we were there I took a panoramic photo of the entire lake, and DW was moving around as I got to the end. I thought it made for an interesting effect:

See, I told you there were more pictures than last post! Three more, nearly a 50% increase.

Relay Peak via Mount Rose and the TRT

On Saturday, 20 July, a somewhat larger group of us hiked another part of the Tahoe Rim Trail (TRT), this time North from the Mount Rose Summit trailhead. The trail goes up somewhat steeply from the highway along the side of the southernmost peak of Mount Rose–at least, logic tells me that the Mount Rose Highway touches Mount Rose.

We had a largish group of about a dozen people, most of whom were just introduced to each other at the trailhead, and we got separated fairly quickly. I spent a fair amount of time talking with some people who I thought were part of our group, but were actually part of another largish group that started at about the same time. Oh, well. More new friends!

Our group coalesced again at the base of a waterfall–scratch that: the waterfall. It is the only one on the Mount Rose Trail, and is a destination for some, and a waypoint for others. This is because from that point, the TRT turns west, and the Mount Rose Trail continues north and east on its climb to the summit.

Oops, I stand corrected. This trail map at the Tahoe Rim Trail Association site says that part of the trail climbs Tamarack Peak. It also says it’s about 2½ miles to the waterfall.

The hike leader Dave had been working over the past two (or three) summers on a new section of trail that climbed through the forest on the south side of the fall, replacing the old trail that climbed the rocky, bare slope on the north side. So he was sort of showing off his work a little, and he certainly had reason to be proud. The trail consists of several switchbacks through the forest and brush, with a couple of small rocky sections. It’s much more pleasant than the old trail, and much less prone to erosion (which was probably the main motivation for it).

Unfortunately, I have no pictures because I was mainly trying to keep up a pace so as not to be the last one through. I guess I did pretty well, because I even stopped for water once, and was still in the first half of the group to reach our second waypoint, which was where the TRT crosses the dirt access road to the radio relay towers on Relay Peak. (Hmm, I wonder what that peak was called before the radio towers were installed?) This map tells me that was another 0.7 miles, for a total of 3.2 miles so far.

The rest of the first half

Joe likes his sun protection.

Everyone made it! …this far.

Besides, I’ve already shared a couple of photos of that trail on this post, from a hike we did in 2011.











From this point, it was only another mile-and-a-half to the top of Relay Peak–if you take the boring road. No, you want the nice trail cut through the forest! It only adds another half-mile!

Well, we actually stopped for lunch about a tenth of a mile short of the peak, on top of the ridge called (unassumingly enough) Relay Ridge. From it, we had extensive views of the east shore of Lake Tahoe to the south, of course, but also Washoe Valley, and to the north the Truckee, CA area, including Donner Lake and the three reservoirs of Prosser, Boca, and Stampede.

W view; Truckee over that ridge

N view; Oregon over there somewhere

Panoramic view of the north side of the ridge

Panoramic view of the south side, from Washoe Valley to Kingsbury

After lunch, a few of the group wanted to continue on to the peak, but most of us relied on the hike leader’s opinion that the view wasn’t any better there than where we were, and we headed back down the way we came. There are some ups and downs, but it’s mostly down. This time, DW and Joe nearly broke records getting back to the parking lot, and I was blissfully alone on the trail for most of the return trip.

The next weekend, we did a hike with yet another group, this time to the south of Lake Tahoe. That post will have more pictures than this one. Don’t miss it!