stormy sunday

 When H went back up to Alta Sunday morning, he took the 6:30 bus again.  The bus was five minutes late but he managed to get a seat, for which he was grateful: he heard over the radio that the next bus was full to bursting, SRO.  The mountains hadn't really gotten any overnight snow but the clouds were very low and it was spitting snow off and on all day, again not amounting to a whole lot but making visibility awful - skiing in the actual clouds makes flat light like we'd had the day before seem clear and bright.  It got colder as the day wore on and the snow held up.

#iykyk

(and if you don't know, Alta is east of Snowbird)

Meanwhile, down in the valley, Milton and I timed our morning walk just right to avoid the rain, which picked up just as we headed off for a post-walk Costco run.  On the way home, I swung by a little local coffee drive-thru and Milton got his very first drive-thru biscuit, which was very exciting.  The rest of our day, while it rained off and on, involved lots of laundry, getting caught up on posting here, chocolate chip cookies, homemade vegetable soup and red lentil soup and a leek and potato frittata for dinner.  I didn't quite get around to vacuuming but a girl can only do so much.

stormy saturday

 While we were down in Moab, northern Utah got a very nice storm: Alta ended up with 87" out of that storm cycle alone.  They also got avalanches, closed canyon roads and an interlodge, but the new snow was both needed and welcomed.  A friend of mine went boarding at Brighton on Saturday and reported that it was fantastic riding ... and I'm glad he had such a good day because then on Monday, he went boarding at Brighton and ended up both dislocating AND fracturing his shoulder.  Season over - at least he went out with good conditions.

By the time we got up there, on the weekend after the long holiday weekend, it was just in time for a smaller refresher system to move in.  I studied the weekend forecast closely and determined that Saturday was the better day for me: windy but warmer, with the snow not starting until around 2 p.m.  It was windy and warm all right - starting at 30 F at the base when we started and warming to around 37 F - but the snow started at 10 a.m. and kept going all day.  It didn't amount to a whole lot, just enough to make things soft again, but you could also tell how much the big storm had helped cover things.  H declared it the best conditions of the season (so far).

I know we have a lot of photos just like

this but I really like this one

We took an earlier bus up (6:30) and it wasn't crowded at all.  We hung out in GMD reading and then retired to the basement locker room to put on our boots.  We alternated going through the singles lines and the main corrals at the various lifts, depending on what the lines looked like.  After getting out of the Wildcat base area, we went straight to the Supreme lift and did several runs there.  We switched to Sugarloaf where the lines were much shorter; the strong, chilly wind on the ride up explained why there were so few people there.  After that one ride up, we went back to Collins and stayed there most of the day (unusual for me): the lines weren't terrible - despite all the dingdongs ducking the ropes and cutting us off in the singles line - the runs are longer and the snow was really quite good.

We had planned our layers based on it not snowing until 2 p.m., and the fact that it started in the morning instead had us damp and starting to get chilled by 1 p.m.  No worries: we hopped on the 1:39 bus and headed home, where Milton was glad to see us.

long weekend things

 Well, gosh, that week got away from me, didn't it?  

We went to the desert (Moab, of course) for the long Martin Luther King, Jr. holiday weekend.  I managed to pack in enough hours at work through the week that I only need to bring a couple of hours of work home with me to take Friday "off."  That meant we could go down Thursday, giving us a whole extra day there.  

Friday we intended to go to Salt Flats Recreation Area but our season pass had expired, so we did an out-and-back along the Pipedream trail instead.  We started at the Jackson Street entry, and Milton and H did some trail running while I, trying to manage a tweaked knee, just hiked.  When we were in the sun, it was pretty pleasant (30s F) but in the shade - and there is a lot of shade on that trail this time of year, once you get close to noontime - it was chilly.

Canyon views

On Saturday, we three went out to Seven Mile Canyon to take a short hike in the north fork.  This section of the canyon comes right up under the Monitor and Merrimac buttes and it looks like you can get up there by ascending the rock levels towards the start of the hike.  We didn't do that but I have it in mind for later in the spring.  We were the only ones there, aside from some birds, and it is just so nice to find places in Moab where you can be out on your own, not too far from town.  We do see people in this little canyon in the spring/summer/fall, but that January day, it was ours alone.

My guys

Sunday H wanted to trail run again - and Milton was up for anything - so we just went to Moab Brand Trails.  We all set out on Lazy-EZ and the two of them ran ahead, then turned around and met back up with me, stumping along per usual.  There were about nine other vehicles in the parking lot when we had gotten there but we only saw one MTBer and one trail runner, so again it was like having our own private trails.  Milton did scare up a desert cottontail towards the end of our hike; that bunny easily outsmarted him by diving into some rocks.  Exciting nonetheless!

we each do our part

 After over a week of poor air quality, we had a series of small storms roll through northern Utah, beginning Thursday evening (1/4/24).  These storms brought some much needed snow - as of Sunday evening, Alta had received eleven inches (not spectacular, but welcomed nonetheless) - and much colder temperatures.  Like, Alta's highs for the weekend did not go above 15 F.  That is too cold for me, even with heated socks.

H, who doesn't get cold as quickly as I do, skied both days.  On Saturday, his usual bus was SRO and he heard over the bus's radio that the bus behind them left a whole bunch of wannabe skiers at the bus stop, unable to load them on the crowded bus.  On Sunday, he took an early bus (6:30 a.m. omigosh), which didn't leave the park and ride until 6:50 a.m. and then got stuck in the "red snake" of traffic on the way up.  He was glad that he'd made the effort for the early bus, however, since UDOT tweeted out that vehicles were struggling to get up the canyon due to the snowy conditions.

The snow was good, the lift lines were shorter (due to it not being vacation week and also COLD and snowy) and he got hailed by a local whilst reading in the Goldminer's Daughter lodge prior to the lifts opening.  He did get cold, though, his feet especially.

Down in the valley, Milton and I had our own fun.  On Saturday, we walked for an hour and then shoveled, the dog "helping" me by standing in my way every chance he got.  Once indoors, I did two loads of laundry (including putting them away!), changed the sheets, made both chocolate chip and oatmeal-raisin cookies, as well as lentils for the week ahead and a really, really good lentil bolognese sauce for pasta dinner.  

Sunday was colder and snowier.  We walked for an hour and shoveled for an hour, helped out immensely by our neighbor who graciously ran his snowblower down our sidewalk frontage.  Then I made six quarts of homemade veggie broth for the freezer, cleaned out a closet, caught up with an old friend on the phone and successfully made an actual loaf of bread, with yeast and all.  Very exciting.  Dinner was a new recipe: tofu giniling, a Filipino-style picadillo with carrots, raisins, green olives and potatoes.

ski days (second part)

Saturday was partly/mostly cloudy, with a 20% chance of snow and a spectacular sunrise.  Milton and I stayed home (walked, made chocolate chip cookies, "egg" squares for breakfast sandwiches, soup, etc.).  H got a seat on the bus (what the heck?) and at 9:13 a.m. texted me that it was 35 F at the base of Alta.  Now, I like it warm but that it way too warm for Alta at this time of year and what little snow there is will NOT last long at those temperatures.  H skied until 1:30 and then caught the bus home.

On Sunday, I went too.  We got seats on the bus, and trucked right on up there to Goldminer's Daughter.  It wasn't too crowded so we just grabbed a couple of seats and read our books until it was time to get on the chair.  It was a gorgeous day, warming into the 30s with clear, bright, blue skies and no wind.  It was definitely skiing firm and as the crowds grew - the lift lines popped up around 10:30 but were never horrific - I was nervous because I haven't had my skis tuned in two (or more) years.  I had no edges whatsoever which wasn't an issue for the first three runs, but after that the high traffic areas got skied off and I was skidding a bit.  With how busy it got, I was worried that I wouldn't be able to stop suddenly or avoid someone if necessary.  Anxiety aside, I felt much better than I had on my first day on the hill: stronger legs, better hydration.  When we quit around 1:30 p.m., we thought to get a New Year's Eve celebratory beer - the GMD patio was packed, however, and the beer lines were longer than the lift lines.  We caught the bus instead and descended into the crappy valley air.

Trying everything to get a storm 

so the air will clear out

I had selected New Year's Eve to ski over New Year's Day because Monday was supposed to be colder.  I blew it, though, because (1) Monday was a carbon copy of Sunday - sunny, clear, 30s - and (2) there were way fewer people.  H skied right onto the lift all day!  (That would have eased my mind quite a lot as regards my dull edges.)  No new snow so the conditions were duplicated as well.  On the plus side, the other GMD basement locker owners are beginning to recognize H and introduce themselves, so potential new friends are in the offing.

ski days (first part)

H takes the week off between Christmas and New Year's to ski.  It's often a zoo up there, with lots of tourists and families here for a ski vacation.  This year is looking very different from last year, however.  This week last year had storm after storm moving in, making it difficult to even get up to the ski resorts.  This year?  So far you don't really need snow tires to get up there.  (Yes, you do.  Be safe.  And you'll need parking reservations if you drive yourself.)

On Wednesday, it was a bluebird day, in the 20s but chilly in the shade.  The morning ski bus was standing room only but not sardine-packed.  There was no one at Goldminer's Daughter so H just stayed there until the lifts opened.  He scored one mustache compliment from a skier services dude - not as fun as from a telemark girl, but still.  It wasn't busy at all until 11:30 a.m., and then there were plenty of lift line shenanigans.  He skied until 1:30 and then caught the bus home.

People.  If you are in the singles line, do NOT expect to ride with your spouse/buddies/young child.  If you want to ride with them, stay in the main corral.  Jeesh.

Thursday was a carbon copy of Wednesday but with slightly more people.  No new snow.  He skied until 1:30 and then caught the bus home.

Friday was another bluebird - no new snow, although Snowbird's snow guns were running - and it was very busy with long lift lines.  H skied until 1:30 and then caught the bus home.

still christmas

 The Saturday before Christmas in Moab it rained pretty much all morning (the northern Utah mountains got a little bit of snow).  Knowing from the forecast that it was going to rain on Saturday, did we bring our raincoats?  No, we did not because we are silly people who do not think you need raincoats in the desert.  Instead, we did crossword puzzles and Sudokus and Wordles and read until finally, finally!, it stopped raining and we could do a town walk.  That evening, we met our friends Chris and Felicia at Woody's for a drink; we've known Chris for some years now but it was really great to finally meet Felicia.  She was fun!  We also got a chance to catch up with our neighbor Amelia and her dog Moscow before they headed off south.

In the shade on the saddle

Christmas Eve morning was clearing and colder, just right for some hiking/trail running.  We three drove down to the Hidden Valley trailhead, where H then ran home (4 miles) via the Pipedream trail.  Milton was very concerned that H wasn't going the way we were, so I kept him on the leash as we started up the Hidden Valley climb.  

La Sals view

When H was no longer in sight, M stopped searching for him so I was able to let him off the leash.  As I was stuffing the leash into my pack, a trail runner was coming down the trail towards us.  It was one of my little brother's best friends, Ephraim, whose partner has family in Moab.  We talked for some time and E took a selfie of us to send to my brother.  After that, M and I continued our climb up and walked through the valley portion to the saddle, where the trail continues down towards the Moab Rim.  Although it was right around noon, the sun was low enough in the sky, and behind the red rock cliffs, that the valley was mostly in shadow - it was cold!  I had at least thought to bring another layer and I was happy to put it on.

Christmas morning

Christmas Day was absolutely gorgeous: bright sun, blue sky and 17 F when we got up.  We let it warm up just a bit and then went up to Sand Flats Recreation Area for a hike/run on the Slickrock Practice Loop.  H and Milton, running, did the loop twice+ and A, walking, did it once.  There were just a handful of other vehicles and most people out on the rock were hiking like us, although there were a couple of hardy MTBers giving it a go.

Family photo

The only bar in town open on Christmas Day is Josie Wyatt's (at the Hoodoo Hotel) so that's where we went.  Our favorite bartender was there and, after just a little while, a whole bunch of locals showed up.  Everybody likes a $2 PBR on Christmas, apparently.  We had dinner at home - chile colorado - and to all, it was a good night.

actual hny but also pre-xmas

 Happy New Year to you all!  May our 2024 be healthy, happy and peaceful - more of all of that for everyone.  Plus good nights' sleeps.

But first!  We spent the long Christmas weekend in Moab, driving down in the middle of the day the Thursday before.  The sun was just setting and we didn't really have neough time to "do" anything, so instead we settled Milton on the bed and took a forty minute town walk.  We were lucky enough to run into our favorite bartender as she was leaving work; we walked with her for a couple blocks, then turned and headed home.  

Friday was chilly in the morning but warmed to pleasant (high 30s/low 40s) in the sun.  It was partly cloudy so it was nice that it had warmed as much as it had.  H wanted to do some trail running - he's recently gotten back into running: since it hasn't snowed much, running enables him to exercise outside instead of on his trainer in the basement - so we headed to MOAB Brand Trails.  There were a few vehicles there and we saw a handful of people: a couple MTBers, a couple trail runners, a couple hikers.

That's more "cloudy" than "partly cloudy," sky-wise

All told, we were out for about an hour, and H and Milton did an out-and-back on their run so they could rejoin me.  We just did the Lazy-EZ loop, which we've ridden a lot but I don't know that I've ever walked the whole thing.  Aside from the portions where I have to hike my bike.

We went home, got cleaned up and walked to Josie Wyatt's for a Christmas Eve Eve beer.  It was quiet and the draft PBRs were, as always $2.00.