Hap, Hap, Happy in Holiday Valley - Rain on Arrival but Big Snow Comin'

My goal was to be up by 630am and then all of us on the road by 9am. However, my timeline was based on the notion that we would be skiing by 4pm after checking in our room. But the HV forecast was calling for rain through 9pm that night but then changing to snow during the overnight. Skiing Sunday, it seemed was out of the question. After thinking it through, I decided to stay on course and move forward with the original plan despite the somewhat disappointing forecast.

I enjoyed coffee and just a little internet before setting out on a run. I also took Mindy a cup of coffee. I checked on Bella, too. She was already up, wide-eyed and dressed. In fact, when I heard a noise middle of the night, I checked on her then, too. It was around 430am. She was up watching TV and playing in her room. She was stoked!

As luck would have it, it was raining lightly here in town too. My Sunday run would be in the rain, which isn't that big of deal, but instead just a minor hindrance. I ran three miles in my back-up running shoes so to keep my newest running shoes dry. Worked out pretty well all things considered. Didn't step in any big puddles.

Back at home Mindy was already out of the shower. I was most pleased to discover that. By then it was nearing 8am. I put everything for our trip by the front door before heading up for a shower. I was ready to go by 815am and so was Mindy. All we really had to do was load the Pilot and get the kids moving. As for Bella, that wasn't an issue at all. She was up and ready. Stoked, even! Jacob was still a little groggy and cranky. He refused to eat anything too which makes things even worse. Mindy insisted he help me load the Pilot.

We couldn't have timed the loading any worse - pouring rain. It was coming down at a decent clip. I was good n' soaked by the time it was all said and done. Managed to get everything in while still maintaining a view out the back. We toyed with the idea of a stop at First Watch and then driving straight in. But the kids couldn't agree, so I made a parental decision. We would eat breakfast at home and then stop for Lunch off 271 like many other times. Jacob still refused to eat eggs and brisket. Boy was it good!

All in all, I was pleased with our departure. We were on the road by 910am. We got to the end of our street when Mindy panicked and said she forgot her phone. We turned around and headed back only to find it in her jacket pocket. ::) We didn't get another 1/32 mile down the road before Jacob through a hissy fit with the new iPhone car charger I bought him for Xmas. He couldn't get it to work in the rear 12v outlet and rather than ask for help he threw in on the floor and called in junk. Yes, that pissed me off. I gave him an earful for being disrespectful and seemingly unappreciative. I asked Mindy to get it from him and prove that it worked up front. Sure enough. Operator error. Worked fine.

On the road. It rained fairly hard all the way around 270 and up 71 to 271. The rain finally slowed to a sprinkle near Canton. According to the radar, Mindy predicted we'd hit it again, however before leaving Ohio. With the new 70 mph speed limit on most of 71N, we made excellent time .I made it a point not to gander at the odometer even once until we arrived at our lunch destination - the Macedonia Wendy's as promised. Jacob was the only one that wanted food. Mindy and I each got a cup of coffee. I was still full from our brisket omelet.

The entrance back onto 217 N was closed so we had to back track a little. Not too big a deal. Just a mile or two out of our way. Soon we were back on the road for HV. Like most other HV trips, the rest of the drive ( 190 miles) goes pretty fast. That's probably due to the fact that it's broken down into much smaller segments (271- about 20 miles, I-90 through Ohio - about 80 miles, 30 more miles to Erie, 5 miles to I-86, 25 miles to Lake Chautauqua, 40 miles to Salamanca Casino, HV). For the first time ever, we stopped at the rest area that overlooks Lake Chautauqua just east of Jamestown. Despite the ugly weather (37 rain) it is stunningly beautiful. Are a quick pee we were back on the road for the last leg of our trip. We made it to HV just ahead of 3pm and were actually in our room by 307pm. For the first time ever, we had a room that wasn't liftview. I was a tad bummed but as it turned out, it was too big a deal at all. Not much further to walk to the lift - just across the small parking lot.

Lots of people skiing despite the rain. We, however, opted not do any evening skiing. Why get our gear all wet, especially when it was forecasted to snow starting later that night and then be cold and snowy for the rest of the week. Instead, we relaxed in the room watching NFL football and napping. Made plans to do dinner at EBC, one of our favorite places in Ellicottville. Must've been near 7pm when we headed there. As expected, parking was at a premium, but we found a spot in a little known ancillary lot back behind the place. The kids whined when they told Mindy it might be 1-1.5 hours. Instead of handing out pagers, they send a text now. Cool. We bellied up to the bar to have a beer. If I have one complaint about EBC, it's the arrogance of the bartenders. More often than not they walk by you many times before offering help, and even when they're seemingly not busy. Yes, it irritates me.

As I expected, we were texted for our table just shy of waiting 40 minutes. And to soothe the kids wait, Mindy gave them a little cash so they could run down to the local Ellicottville Chocolatier for some candy. They returned happy.
Sat in the new indoor section. Nice! Ordered a 2nd beer - an Obsession IPA. Decent. The bartender comp'd us a couple of their ever-popular blueberry pales. Not sure why it's so popular.

I ordered a burger while Jacob went with their brisket. Mindy and Bella each had steak, I think. Our meal was even better than I expected. Plan to go back with David & Anita later in the week - probably New Year's Night. Headed back to the Inn near 9pm where I was quickly in bed and asleep. Skiing in the morning!!