2021 Ski Telluride Colorado
(3/21/2022)
2021 Ski Telluride Colorado(3/21/2022)
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On 3/21/2022 a few friends resumed our annual ski trip after a two year hiatus due to the Coronavirus COVID-19 Apocolypse of 2020 Here is who showed up: 1. Brady Nilsen, 2. Karl Dohan, 3. Tamara Dohan, 4. Lance Waring, 5. Lise Waring, 6. Brian Wohletz, 7. Kathleen Dohan, 8. Mike Chow, 9. Doug Fults, 10. Lora Fults, 11. Michael Hunter, 12. Anne Goodrich, 13. Katherine Chung, and 14. Brian Wilson (me). Some pictures are seen below, make sure you click on any picture for the highest quality version.
This trip (with this group of friends) is an annual trip we have taken for 25 years. Each year we decide a new location and all meet there. Here is the list of locations and the dates we skied there.
The first picture below is a short 21 second video taken from our vacation rental deck at 7am. The rental is at 10,050 feet elevation, and sits inside the ski area so you can see a ski chair lift passing by quite close. Click here for the highest quality original.
Leaving Austin Texas in one of the best ski cars in the world: a Smartcar. Seen below packed ready to go to the airport with skis:
A view through the passenger side door of how the skis fit.
A few minutes later in our reserved parking in the "Red Zone" at Austin's Airport: AUS Austin-Bergstrom International Airport
A picture below of our flight info.
Aboard United Airlines, they tossed each of us a "All-in-one Snack Bag". Seriously, both a tiny water and pretzels in the same bag.
A picture mid-flight out the window.
As the sun sets we're over the middle of Colorado.
When we switched airplanes at Denver International Airport (DEN) I thought they had left my bag behind because I'm tracking it with an Apple AirTag. It was a false alarm, the bags all came with us.
Below is a text message we got from the first people who arrived in the VRBO. Notice the group of "10 people" on the text message at the top?
And we arrive! Below is a picture of me (Brian Wilson) and Doug Fults in the VRBO. Here is a link online: https://www.vrbo.com/1836536 and the address was: 137 Sundance Ln, Telluride, CO 81435
This is a good time to mention that I have been skiing by these big log homes for 23 years and always wanted to stay in one. I wrote this web page in 1999 about it: https://www.ski-epic.com/telluride_logcabins.html
The next morning I woke up early to meet the breakfast caterer and took some pictures from where we were staying.
Since I had a raging headache, and I couldn't sleep well, I checked the "compass" app in my iPhone, and it said the rental house was at 10,080 feet, see screenshot below. This might have been a tactical error. Airplane pilots must use oxygen at anything over 10,000 feet, and we're just a bunch of middle aged idiots come up from sea level into this.
In the picture below, I'm standing on the walkway on the second floor overlooking the great room out towards Telluride ski hill.
Same picture location as the one above, but with the "chandelier" turned on.
The caterer showed up at 7am to prepare breakfast for us. She is: Angelee Aurillo (to the right in the photo below):
I stepped out onto the deck of our rental log cabin and took the panorama below on March 19th, at 7am.
The picture below is taken from inside the log cabin we are staying in, but you can see the windows and the deck to the far left.
Another panorama at 9am when the lifts started. Remember you can click on any picture for a gigantic version.
Doug Fults created a path to "ski in, ski out" of our VRBO. I did not take the picture below, but here he is atop his creation.
Here is a map of how to "ski-in, ski-out" of 137 Sundance Ln, Telluride, CO. Click on the map below to see a bigger version.
Here is a video showing how to ski-in and ski-out of 137 Sundance Ln,
Telluride, Colorado.
Click
here for the highest quality version.
Because I still didn't feel awesome from the altitude, I did not ski the first day. Instead, Katherine and I took a gondola ride into Mountain Village.
Below is the main plaza at what is called "Mountain Village Station". It is between two gondolas, one has access closer to our rental home, and one goes from here over and down to the main town of Telluride. Katherine and I ate lunch here.
Ok, so after lunch and a beer at high elevation (alcohol has an exaggerated affect at altitude) I managed to get on the incorrect gondola. (sigh) Honestly, I do know my way around. The good news is it is a gorgeous ride down to the main town of Telluride which you can see in the picture below as we descend.
This is "Telluride Station" and Katherine convinced me to have a drink at "Oak" (also known as "Camel's Garden"). In 1999 I used to get a beer at the end of the day here and watch the dogs play together, so I really love this spot.
Mask mandates have been lifted in all 50 states at this time, but for some reason masks are "required" on the gondolas in Telluride. I'm not sure why. In the picture below you see the sign "Masks Required". Enforcement was very lax though, about 1/4th of the people don't wear masks on the gondola.
Back in the rental home, from left to right that is Lise Waring, Mike Chow, and Brady Nilsen. Mike skied this day, Brady just arrived.
On the far right in black Katherine Chung is talking with Tamara (seen between Brady and Mike).
Kathleen Dohan and brother Karl Dohan.
Lance Waring and wife Laura Colbert dropped by with their daughter Willa. I was excited to see them.
Tamara Dohan (far left) talking with Lora Fults (center) and Katherine Chung (right).
Tamara on left, Doug Fults facing away, Kathleen Dohan, Brian Wohletz up against the window (facing the camera).
Doug Fults, Kathleen Dohan, Brian Wohletz talking during apres ski.
Anne Goodrich (far left) and Michael Hunter (facing away from camera) arrived late the previous night. Here we are congregating for breakfast the second day of March 20th.
Below Brady Nilsen, Tamara Dohan, and Karl Dohan get ready to ski out of the rental home. This involves a short 30 yard walk to the place Doug created a path.
Here we are at the location 30 yards away from the rental house on "Doug's Ski Out Path" he created. From this little rise, you can clip on your skis and glide down onto a groomed ski run.
Brian Wilson (me) on left taking a selfie with Brady Nilsen. We were lab partners in college in the Engineering Physics program at Oregon State University. We graduated together in 1990, which was 32 years ago.
We are riding on "Chair 10" aka "Sunshine Chair" aka "Real Estate Chair". This is the chair lift that goes DIRECTLY by the home we rented. I took too many photos as we went by, but here it is. Notice our ski tips in the picture at the bottom.
A picture of the VRBO at: 137 Sundance Ln, Mountain Village, Colorado. Click here for a Google map locating the house: https://goo.gl/maps/PTb5Wzaf23PMx7zw9
Another picture of the home we rented. Notice you can see our chair lift we are sitting on in the lower right corner of the photo.
Another picture as we pass by the rental home. Yes, I know, I took too many photos of it. That's the driveway in the foreground, not a public road.
Final picture of our rental log cabin from the chair lift, I promise.
I took this picture of my thumb (the large black shadow in upper left). But it shows the public road passing below the chair lift. The property we rented is off to the right of us.
And... we're skiing! From left to right: Tamara, Brady, Lora, Doug, and Karl.
Tamara, Lora, and Doug. If you look JUST PAST the right of Lora's helmet you can see Telluride airport (TEX) in the background.
We stopped for lunch at "Alpino Vino", which used to be a private home belonging to Eric Trommer.
Below is a picture of the front door of the restaurant Alpino Vino in Telluride. This restaurant is at elevation 11,966 feet. There is some info here: https://tellurideskiresort.com/dine/#Alpino%20Vino
Doug, Lora, and Tamara sitting down at lunch.
In the picture below, I was taking pictures of my champagne bubbles but caught Tamara in the background and I like the photo. :-)
Mike Chow ordering lunch at Alpino Vino at almost 12,000 feet elevation.
In the picture below I'm on the right taking a selfie. Karl is on the left ordering, and you can see summit of Gold Hill behind me reaching 12,720 feet elevation.
Brady Nilsen and Doug Fults at lunch at Alpino Vino.
Michael Hunter and Anne Goodrich at lunch at Alpino Vino.
The food and company was quite good. It was also very expensive. :-) But for food delivered to 12,000 feet elevation I'm going to forgive them for charging top dollar.
Mike and Karl. Karl is attempting to meet up with Lise Waring to ski with her, and he's text messaging Lise here.
From left to right: Doug, Lora, Tamara, Karl, Mike, Lise, Brady. They are the top of chair 9 in Telluride. Of this crowd, Lise Waring lived in Telluride for 20 years, and has probably skied 2,000+ ski days on this mountain, and passed by this spot around 15,000 times.
A picture of Tamara and Telluride Airport (you can see the runway). Some people don't enjoy the airport, but I think it's fun to fly in and out of. There have been no fatalities on commercial flights into TEX, and only a couple of deaths of private pilots. The only deaths I know of were 2 people when a small aircraft (Make: Vans, Model/Series: RV4 NO SERIES, registration: N87LW) had some problem or pilot error on approach. You can read some information here: http://www.kathrynsreport.com/2020/11/vans-rv-4-fatal-accident-occurred.html
After skiing, I took a shower and as I was coming down I took this picture from above. In the lower right corner Lise is braiding Willa's hair.
Lise braiding Willa's hair.
In the picture below, Lise is braiding Willa's hair.
A panorama of the skiers catching up apres ski. Use your scrollbar from left to right. Also, remember you can click on these images to get larger versions more zoomed in.
This is Sunday night, March 20th, we went to to Allred's Restaurant. This is fun because it's a gondola ride up to Allreds, there is literally no way to drive a car there.
I took a screen shot of the "Compass App" on my iPhone to show Allred's is at 10,510 foot elevation.
The next morning it began snowing as we left. In the picture below you can see my skis and bag on the front porch as I wait for the SUV and driver to take us to Montrose for our flights home.
Just as we depart I snapped this picture of our driver and view out the front windshield of the snow falling.
In the picture below, Karl (in red) and Tamara (wearing black mask) check their skis in.
I didn't take this photo, I think Karl snapped this photo of Tamara giving a thumbs up as they board the airplane in Montrose.
Later on Katherine and my flight home, I took this low light photo through the airplane window. Bye bye Telluride, see you next year.
All done! That's it!
This is not for you! Stop reading! I'm old, I forget things.
Click here for a year where I list the things to bring on a ski trip.
Also consider: Oxygen supply.
All done.