Why we like Salida!

I'll be the first to admit it, we've been a bit hermitlike since we've been in Salida. Not that that's a problem at all, just a bit out of character for me. This past week I feel like things are starting to change out here. For example, on Thursday night Monarch Mountain put on a season kick-off for employees and community members. There was a history presentation by a professor from Western State University. He gave a cool history of skiing and ski area development in Colorado, including a fun slide show. The thing that impressed us was that people in this valley take pride in the fact that they have the oldest ski mountain in Colorado. Monarch's slogan is "Unspoiled since 1939".

To back up a bit. We spent a few days down in Albuquerque for Thanksgiving. We celebrated Thanksgiving day over at Cousin Rob's house. There were aunts and uncles and cousins and spouses. It was really fun, it felt just like the family holidays I remember growing up. The following day we had another Thanksgiving dinner with our immediate family at Tom and Angie's house. That was also really fun, I think we all ate ourselves into a serious food coma. Here's a fun picture of Jacob at his new house with a New Mexico snowman! Not a bad view of the Sandia Mountains.

On Tuesday of this week I started training for my 'second' job. Some of you might think I'm nuts, and I probably am, that I took a job as a snowmobile guide. Yes that's right, maybe I just miss coming home smelling like exhaust after a long night of grooming ski trails. So Tuesday and Wednesday were spent riding around on snowmobiles, learning the local trails, and having some fun along the way. It might be fun to work some at this job, but I have a feeling that once the skiing gets good, I will not want to spend my off time burning through more than my fair share of fossil fuels.

On Thursday I started my 'real' job. Monarch Mountain was scheduled to open on Friday, so I spent the day with a small crew getting the two lifts that were going to open ready to go. It was fun to get to know a few folks who also do these jobs so they have the privilege of skiing, a lot.

Friday was the big opening day! It started out in a bit of a frenzy, working out all of the bugs as any ski area has to do. It was mostly season pass holders out skiing that day, and I realized one thing about this group of people. They love Monarch and the lifties too! Skiers would talk to me like I had known them for years, some people even handed out goodies to the lift operators. It is fun to be a part of that energy. The day went well, I didn't crush any skiers trying to get on the lift. I was looking forward to skiing a bunch on Saturday, then my boss called and asked me to work on Saturday. Hey, it will be a long ski season, and money is money, I went to work.

Saturday we were scheduled to open Panorama Lift. Panorama might still be the only lift in the country that ends on the Continental Divide. I took a couple of pics from the top of the lift, I think on a clear day you might be able to see Utah. The day was another success and even better, no one called me to work on Sunday, sounds like a ski day.

Saturday evening we headed to the Salida Cafe to see our friend from Superior play some music. James Moors plays at Lutsen Resort quite a bit, but I had never really heard any of his songs from start to finish, so it was nice to see some live music, especially someone we know. The Salida Cafe puts a lot of effort into the arts, I'm sure we'll spend quite a few nights there during the winter.

Why we like Salida....On Sunday we headed up to the Mountain to get some turns in. It was what we call blue bird. We skied for a couple of hours, got familiar with the mountain, got a sun tan, and most importantly ended the day with a strong cup of coffee on the deck of the chalet. Some would think that was a good way to spend a day, which it is, but the day was only 1/2 over and it was in the 50's down in Salida. I loaded up my mountain bike and did a couple hour ride. It was more than I was expecting, the first 5 miles were uphill, taking an hour. I had anticipated an easy ride back down the mountain, but was surprised to find a trail that was quite rough, steep, loose and almost scary. I played it pretty conservative since Mica was out running and would have no idea where to start looking for me if I didn't show up by dark. Turns out she had a good run and I had a good ride. That's why we like Salida!