Tahoe Ski Trip

When we first found out we were moving to the Bay Area, Jonathan was stoked about being within driving range of the skiing around Lake Tahoe. Since we moved here in the month of March and were without our things for 9 weeks, we weren’t able to go up that first season. Our second winter we went up with some friends, but because of the California-wide drought the snow was pretty pitiful. 

A lonely patch of snow....

No jacket, hat or mittens required at Northstar last January.

When El Nino started bringing some rain/snow our way this winter we were determined to take advantage.  We booked a 2 bedroom townhouse at the Northstar resort for 3 nights. Our plan was to drive up Thursday, put Forest in “camp” on Friday while we skied and then spend Saturday playing in the snow with him before driving back Sunday afternoon. There had just been a fresh dumping of snow on the day before we arrived so Thursday afternoon we got settled, picked up our ski gear and then just let Forest tromp around in the snow. 

Forest was stoked to pull our ski equipment through The Village. No free loading like the other toddlers we saw hitching  rides in their parents' wagon.

He loved it! His favorite thing was making snow balls and then smashing them into himself. I don’t think he quite got the concept of a snowball fight but he was having a blast either way. 

On Friday morning we dropped him off at ‘Minor’s Camp’ which is childcare for kiddos age 2-6 whose parents are off doing adult things. I was a little nervous that it would be packed and Forest would be freaked to be away from us for 4 hours, but there ended up only being 3 other kids there (all 2 years old) and he had a blast! He didn’t want to leave and asked to go back the next day. The first thing he said (with a huge grin on his face) when I picked him up was ‘I had apple juice!’. 

Jonathan and I had a mostly good time skiing. He was nice enough to stay with me on the beginner/intermediate slopes during the morning before heading off to do some more advanced skiing in the afternoon while I picked Forest up and put him down for his nap. 

The only snafu was when we got on the wrong lift and there were only blues and blacks the whole way down. I knew I had the skill level to navigate it but didn’t have the confidence or control to really enjoy myself. We asked a ski instructor what the easiest way down was and he pointed the way. The good thing was there were hardly any people on it so I didn’t feel like such a loser by doing my wide S’es all the way down the mountain. 

I would stop and let little groups past and wait for a clearing to make my way little by little down the slopes. Nothing makes me more nervous than a ton of people whizzing by me! Jonathan was very patient and encouraging and would go ahead of me making S’es so that I could just focus on the path and pace he was setting. I breathed a huge sigh of relief when I managed to make it successfully down with all my bones and my marriage still intact. 

I was tired and stressed though so insisted we do one big green slope as my final run of the day. Ironically, I totally busted my butt on the beginner slope after successfully navigating a ‘more difficult’ run. I think what is tough about beginner slopes is that they are so packed with people who don’t know what they’re doing and others that are flying by and have no business being on a beginner slope. One guy came zooming right beside me and it scared the bejeezus out of me so I panicked and wiped out. 

The same thing happened in France a few years back. I would fall when I felt like other people got too close to me. If I had the whole mountain to myself I’d be golden! I’m glad we picked skiing on Friday vs Saturday though because the slopes were so packed on Saturday with Bay Area people flocking up for the weekend to enjoy the fresh snow. 

Instead on Saturday we just had a leisurely morning of grabbing coffee and playing in the snow at The Village before heading to King’s Beach to see Lake Tahoe. 

Even though we had been to the Tahoe area twice before, we had never actually seen the Lake itself. It was beautiful. Duh. 

Pictures could never do it justice. Forest wanted to dive right in and wasn’t afraid at all of the frigid water. 

This kid is part fish and is drawn to water by some mysterious magnetic force. I was amazed by how clear the water was, and the mountainous backdrop was dramatic and serene. 

We enjoyed a pizza lunch with a great view of the lake before heading home for the little tyke’s nap time. 

Once he was up we just walked out our front door for some sledding and snow play. Jon took Forest sledding while I took a few (ok, 300) pictures.

After about an hour or so of vigorous snow play we started walking back to our townhouse to warm up when Forest spotted some older kids tubing down a much bigger hill. He just stood there in awe staring at them and kept sadly muttering to himself ‘ Not yours. Not yours.’, which is like an internal dialogue he says to himself to stop himself from snatching toys from other kids. 

Look at that pitiful pout!

The kiddos were super sweet though and invited him to take a turn down the hill so he went down (and up!) the big hill twice before calling it a day. 

On Sunday morning we attempted to take the gondola up to the Ritz for a special breakfast but the line was crazy long (like 100 people in front of us) and it was pretty icy and Forest was being a 2 year old so instead we just decided to drive into Truckee and grab a bite at a diner there. From there we drove home and Forest shocked us by napping 1.5 hours! He usually won’t nap longer than 30 minutes in the car so we were pleasantly surprised. In fact we almost ran out of gas because Jon kept thinking ‘well he will wake up any second now and then we can stop for gas...’. 

It was a successful and very family friendly vacation. We are planning on doing a ski trip every year if we are able to just because its nice to have some adult time while the kiddo is entertained. Next year he will be old enough for ski school which I know he will love. I was (barely) pregnant with him when we did our ski trip in France and loved seeing all the itty bitty kids flying down the mountain on their skis. I can’t believe that next year Forest will be one of those kids. Basically a year from now, Forest will probably be a better skier than his momma is.