by Judy Bracken, Newsletter Editor
There were five of us Nisei renegades who chose to attend the Far West Ski Association sponsored ski week to Snowmass/Aspen this year. The group nearly took over the resort condos with about 300 FWSA members, including 70 or so from the Bay Area Council, so quite a few familiar faces if one has attended other FWSA events.
Similar to the Steamboat area, for most days we enjoyed brilliant blue skies with snow-top covered 14,000 foot Rocky Mountain peaks as far as the eye could see. One difference is that we did have fresh powder, albeit just 4-6 inches, but enough to make the heart leap and the skis sing over the velvety smooth light snow. The snow cover was not the usual 8-10 feet known in Colorado, but there was enough coverage and cold air to keep the snow crisp and squeaky. Grooming was exceptional. While we spent most of our time at the 3,132 acres of Snowmass resort, days were spent at the smaller Aspen and Aspen Highlands Resorts as well. Our guide at Aspen Highlands described the 1000 step hike up a knife-edge ridge at 12,000 feet to the Highland Bowl, a magnificent bowl filled with double black powdery runs. He said it was a feat not to miss if possible, however none of our group found it possible!
One day we woke to a frosty -19 degrees. Many took that day off, but the die hard skiers piled on our extra layers and braved the cold. This was the kind of day to take several warm-up stops in the many lodges around the mountain, and two or more hikes to the five mile Long Shot run from top to bottom. It might have made it to 7 or 8 degrees that day. As with last year’s FWSA trip, the only group gathering was the outdoor picnic at the Spider Sabich picnic area. We were given debit and gift cards to use in lieu of the group dinners. They did hold the council races this year, and I believe the Bay Area Council won the most points.
All in all, while we missed our fellow NSC members at Steamboat, it was a wonderful trip to another part of Colorado.
