I woke at 6:30am to bask in our first full day of marriage. I wasted little time exercising and readying for the daily run. Tommy was already up tending to the coffee maker. There was a steady rain coming down in the city and lots of snow in the mountains. In fact, the television revealed that we could expect about two feet of snow through Sunday on the mountain. Wow!
Just like the day before, Mary Ann was up early and in a very pleasant mood. I guess we have to give credit to Bob! :) I left for my run just after 7:00am. Not only was it raining but there was a chilly, stiff breeze blowing in my face as I descended towards the river. Thankfully, the rain never got too heavy. I ran to my usual turn around point (Ilchee).
I was back before 8:00am. I was very wet from the constant light rain. The first thing I did was return to my jammies and then threw my damp running clothes into the dryer. Once again, the team pulled together another family style breakfast complete with sausage, home fries, scrambled eggs, and toast.
In between showers, we packed and loaded the cars for the ski trip. We would be gone for 2.5 days so we had to take quite a bit of food and clothing. And while we’d be driving the rented minivan to Tom Shepherd’s we wouldn’t be taking it to the mountain. Instead, we planned to take the two CRV’s up. Because of this, we were mindful of over packing. Mindy and I consolidated our gear to one big suit case, as did Bob & Mary Ann. However, I had a couple of “carry-on” bags too (one for running clothes and another for my laptop, book, and camera). While we had hoped to be on the road well before 10am, we didn’t leave Glenn’s until 10:15am. The good news was that Tom’s house was on the way to the mountain.
We arrived at Tom’s by 10:40 and wasted little time in transitioning our gear from the minivan into his vehicle. We were on our way to Mt Hood by 10:45am. Mindy and I rode with Tom S. Tommy, Bob, & Mary Ann rode with Glenn. The drive was delightful – no problems.
Just as I had predicted, the beautiful green mountain vista turned to a winter wonderland just as we rounded a corner shy of Government Camp – around an elevation of 3500’. And as we entered Government Camp, the snow was coming down hard. It was clear now why chains were mandatory. We stopped at the Lodge at Government Camp (where we’d be staying) and chained up. We asked inside the general store where the lodge office was. Just as I thought, it’s in the main lodge located in the ski park. So, if we wanted to seek and early check-in we’d have to drive up to the ski park. The Government Camp ski village is a lot prettier than I remember it. It’s grown a lot since the last time we were through, too. After chaining up, we headed up the winding six mile road to the ski park. The snow came down even heavier as we ascended higher. The winding road up the mountain resembles a mouse maize with towering walls of snow on each side – at places reaching over ten feet high.
Finally at the ski park, Tom dropped me at the door of the historic Timberline Lodge where I entered seeking an early check-in. The young lady at the desk stated that our room wasn’t ready yet, but to check back around 3pm – the regular check-in time. We bagged the idea of checking in early and instead proceeded to get skiing! We’d simply leave all of our overnight gear in the cars while we skied. As it often does, the snow was draped over the towering roof of both the main & day lodge making for a beautiful picture. Folks often can’t believe it when I tell them that the snow gets up to 20’ feet deep up here, but it does.
We quickly oriented ourselves and began the process of obtaining our ski rentals and lift tickets. We wisely did a two day rental package saving ourselves about $9 each. Too, we got our daily lift tickets for $28 each in lieu of the usual $47 since we were lodge guests. For Mindy and I, the total cost of skiing Timberline was $47 a day each – not too bad at all. It’s more costly to ski Mad River back home. As it often does, it took awhile for everyone to get mountain ready, but by 1:30 we were ready to hit the slopes.
We ventured out into the heavy snow gathering atop the lower mountain slopes. There we huddled one last time and agreed on a meeting time in the very likely event we get separated. All of us agreed to do the green trail down the mountain first. Mindy, having skied only two other times, struggled to find her ski legs. She fell a number times on the initial descent. But, after falling three or ten times, she finally got her ski legs and managed to make it to the bottom.
We skied the same green trail a handful of times. But, because it connects with many intermediate (blue) trails, I was able to test my skills a little too. We got in a number of runs before our first beer break. It should be noted that the conditions weren’t the best, especially for novice skiers. The snow came down hard and harder, and there were several periods of almost total white-out conditions. But hanging out on the lower mountain below the timberline made it relatively easy to navigate. The upside to the wintry conditions was the beautiful powder.
At 4pm we made our way to the day lodge for some food and brew. Everyone was psyched about the skiing and the cool winter storm we found ourselves in. There’s something cozy about heavy snow, good friends, family, and beer. Some of us enjoyed a bowl of chowder while the rest enjoyed chili. And if memory serves me, I think we drank three or four pitchers of beer. By 5pm we dawned our ski gear for another few hours on the mountain. However, Mindy and Tommy called it a day, happy with what they had already accomplished on the slopes. Mindy agreed to check-in to our condo over at the main lodge.
We took several of the more challenging lower mountain trails during phase two. It was exhilarating! Visibility was better as darkness fell, too. The lighting helps define the contour of the slopes better than during daylight. We skied until 7:30pm when the rest of us agreed to call it a night and go find Tommy, Mindy, and Mary Ann. We converged at the day lodge where we were quickly united with the entire team. We loaded our gear into the CRV’s and headed down the mountain to our condo.
Finally at the condo we stowed all of our ski gear in the provided storage closet conveniently placed in the covered parking. We each grabbed a handful of bags and gear and rode the elevator to our condo. – unit #1. Just as the pictures inferred, the condo was finely appointed and plenty big enough for the seven of us. There were 3 bedrooms plus a huge loft that doubled as a fourth bedroom. There were two large full baths, granite counter tops, a gas fireplace, and stainless steel appliances. The livingroom had 20 foot ceilings with huge window overlooking the village, mountains, and the ski resort across the street. All very nice! We marveled at the adult sized icicles hanging from the roof of our veranda. After a short break, Mindy went to bed. All the boys decided to take a walk to the local brew pub – Mt Hood Brewery. Mary Ann decided to stay back and read, relax, and enjoy the warmth of the fire.
We set out on foot, leaving the CRV’s behind. After all, we were certain the pub was just around the bend. Unfortunately, the bend turned out to be about 1 mile, and it was still snowing fairly heavily. Lucky for us, the temperature wasn’t bitter cold. Once we arrived at the brewery we were told by the staff that they’d just closed. Damn! That was along walk for nothing. Back up the slight hill towards the condo. We ended up at Ratskeller’s, a rather youthful bar-restaurant. They had live entertainment and quite a large crowd. We didn’t have a problem finding a table but did have a little trouble getting the attention of a waitress/waiter. But just before giving up we finally garnered a couple pitchers of beer. Tommy went to kitchen and ordered us a $25 pizza. I was crashing fast! I was very tired and falling asleep as I sipped my beer. I managed to wake for pizza but continued to battle the sleepies throughout. Around midnight we headed back to the condo. Unbeknownst to me, Tommy, Glenn, & Tom decided to carry on with the partying. They headed to Charlies, the pub directly across from our condo, for more fun. Bob and I called it a night.
I went directly to bed where I must have fallen asleep as soon as my head hit the pillow.
Just like the day before, Mary Ann was up early and in a very pleasant mood. I guess we have to give credit to Bob! :) I left for my run just after 7:00am. Not only was it raining but there was a chilly, stiff breeze blowing in my face as I descended towards the river. Thankfully, the rain never got too heavy. I ran to my usual turn around point (Ilchee).
I was back before 8:00am. I was very wet from the constant light rain. The first thing I did was return to my jammies and then threw my damp running clothes into the dryer. Once again, the team pulled together another family style breakfast complete with sausage, home fries, scrambled eggs, and toast.
In between showers, we packed and loaded the cars for the ski trip. We would be gone for 2.5 days so we had to take quite a bit of food and clothing. And while we’d be driving the rented minivan to Tom Shepherd’s we wouldn’t be taking it to the mountain. Instead, we planned to take the two CRV’s up. Because of this, we were mindful of over packing. Mindy and I consolidated our gear to one big suit case, as did Bob & Mary Ann. However, I had a couple of “carry-on” bags too (one for running clothes and another for my laptop, book, and camera). While we had hoped to be on the road well before 10am, we didn’t leave Glenn’s until 10:15am. The good news was that Tom’s house was on the way to the mountain.
We arrived at Tom’s by 10:40 and wasted little time in transitioning our gear from the minivan into his vehicle. We were on our way to Mt Hood by 10:45am. Mindy and I rode with Tom S. Tommy, Bob, & Mary Ann rode with Glenn. The drive was delightful – no problems.
Just as I had predicted, the beautiful green mountain vista turned to a winter wonderland just as we rounded a corner shy of Government Camp – around an elevation of 3500’. And as we entered Government Camp, the snow was coming down hard. It was clear now why chains were mandatory. We stopped at the Lodge at Government Camp (where we’d be staying) and chained up. We asked inside the general store where the lodge office was. Just as I thought, it’s in the main lodge located in the ski park. So, if we wanted to seek and early check-in we’d have to drive up to the ski park. The Government Camp ski village is a lot prettier than I remember it. It’s grown a lot since the last time we were through, too. After chaining up, we headed up the winding six mile road to the ski park. The snow came down even heavier as we ascended higher. The winding road up the mountain resembles a mouse maize with towering walls of snow on each side – at places reaching over ten feet high.
Finally at the ski park, Tom dropped me at the door of the historic Timberline Lodge where I entered seeking an early check-in. The young lady at the desk stated that our room wasn’t ready yet, but to check back around 3pm – the regular check-in time. We bagged the idea of checking in early and instead proceeded to get skiing! We’d simply leave all of our overnight gear in the cars while we skied. As it often does, the snow was draped over the towering roof of both the main & day lodge making for a beautiful picture. Folks often can’t believe it when I tell them that the snow gets up to 20’ feet deep up here, but it does.
We quickly oriented ourselves and began the process of obtaining our ski rentals and lift tickets. We wisely did a two day rental package saving ourselves about $9 each. Too, we got our daily lift tickets for $28 each in lieu of the usual $47 since we were lodge guests. For Mindy and I, the total cost of skiing Timberline was $47 a day each – not too bad at all. It’s more costly to ski Mad River back home. As it often does, it took awhile for everyone to get mountain ready, but by 1:30 we were ready to hit the slopes.
We ventured out into the heavy snow gathering atop the lower mountain slopes. There we huddled one last time and agreed on a meeting time in the very likely event we get separated. All of us agreed to do the green trail down the mountain first. Mindy, having skied only two other times, struggled to find her ski legs. She fell a number times on the initial descent. But, after falling three or ten times, she finally got her ski legs and managed to make it to the bottom.
We skied the same green trail a handful of times. But, because it connects with many intermediate (blue) trails, I was able to test my skills a little too. We got in a number of runs before our first beer break. It should be noted that the conditions weren’t the best, especially for novice skiers. The snow came down hard and harder, and there were several periods of almost total white-out conditions. But hanging out on the lower mountain below the timberline made it relatively easy to navigate. The upside to the wintry conditions was the beautiful powder.
At 4pm we made our way to the day lodge for some food and brew. Everyone was psyched about the skiing and the cool winter storm we found ourselves in. There’s something cozy about heavy snow, good friends, family, and beer. Some of us enjoyed a bowl of chowder while the rest enjoyed chili. And if memory serves me, I think we drank three or four pitchers of beer. By 5pm we dawned our ski gear for another few hours on the mountain. However, Mindy and Tommy called it a day, happy with what they had already accomplished on the slopes. Mindy agreed to check-in to our condo over at the main lodge.
We took several of the more challenging lower mountain trails during phase two. It was exhilarating! Visibility was better as darkness fell, too. The lighting helps define the contour of the slopes better than during daylight. We skied until 7:30pm when the rest of us agreed to call it a night and go find Tommy, Mindy, and Mary Ann. We converged at the day lodge where we were quickly united with the entire team. We loaded our gear into the CRV’s and headed down the mountain to our condo.
Finally at the condo we stowed all of our ski gear in the provided storage closet conveniently placed in the covered parking. We each grabbed a handful of bags and gear and rode the elevator to our condo. – unit #1. Just as the pictures inferred, the condo was finely appointed and plenty big enough for the seven of us. There were 3 bedrooms plus a huge loft that doubled as a fourth bedroom. There were two large full baths, granite counter tops, a gas fireplace, and stainless steel appliances. The livingroom had 20 foot ceilings with huge window overlooking the village, mountains, and the ski resort across the street. All very nice! We marveled at the adult sized icicles hanging from the roof of our veranda. After a short break, Mindy went to bed. All the boys decided to take a walk to the local brew pub – Mt Hood Brewery. Mary Ann decided to stay back and read, relax, and enjoy the warmth of the fire.
We set out on foot, leaving the CRV’s behind. After all, we were certain the pub was just around the bend. Unfortunately, the bend turned out to be about 1 mile, and it was still snowing fairly heavily. Lucky for us, the temperature wasn’t bitter cold. Once we arrived at the brewery we were told by the staff that they’d just closed. Damn! That was along walk for nothing. Back up the slight hill towards the condo. We ended up at Ratskeller’s, a rather youthful bar-restaurant. They had live entertainment and quite a large crowd. We didn’t have a problem finding a table but did have a little trouble getting the attention of a waitress/waiter. But just before giving up we finally garnered a couple pitchers of beer. Tommy went to kitchen and ordered us a $25 pizza. I was crashing fast! I was very tired and falling asleep as I sipped my beer. I managed to wake for pizza but continued to battle the sleepies throughout. Around midnight we headed back to the condo. Unbeknownst to me, Tommy, Glenn, & Tom decided to carry on with the partying. They headed to Charlies, the pub directly across from our condo, for more fun. Bob and I called it a night.
I went directly to bed where I must have fallen asleep as soon as my head hit the pillow.
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