The day was the kind that draws snowbirds to Arizona, warm, sunny and dry. The sort of mid-winter day just made for MessyWeekend. We could have spent it by a swimming pool, but we had a different idea… skiing.
No, not water, but snow. How could we do that on an eighty degree desert day? By driving the short stretch up Mount Lemmon to America’s southern most ski area, Ski Valley.
Even though the slopes are high enough in the Santa Catalina Mountains to get several feet of snow each year, the ski area only opens when conditions are right.
They don’t make snow, usually it is not cold enough, so Mother Nature has to provide the flakes.
Fortunately for us a big storm had just dumped about three feet of the white stuff up on the peaks a few days ago. So much fell that the road up to the ski valley had to be closed, but we, and a bunch of other enthusiasts from nearby Tucson, finally did get a chance to get to the fresh trails.
So we dug out our coats, hats, ski pants, and Mirrored Ski Goggles, and made our way up to the mountain.
The drive up Mount Lemmon was gorgeous, going from sizzling arid desert to frigid alpine winter wonderland in less than an hour. At the top, the views were nothing short of spectacular. The perfect place to try out a new selfie stick. See more details here.
From this perch it seemed we could see hundreds of miles stretching out before us.
While that would have been worth the trip, Veronica could hardly wait to revisit her fear conquered skiing prowess. That is, until fate threw her a curve ball.
At 9,000 feet above sea level, it can be a little tough to breath.
Never having done too well with high altitude, before she could finish her first run down the bunny slope she was dizzy and seeing stars… in broad daylight. She decided that working the snow bunny angle, complete with a toddy by the fire, at the Iron Door lodge might be a better idea.
The Iron Door takes its name from a legend that a stash of gold mined from the mountain was hidden by seventeenth century Jesuit missionaries somewhere in this vicinity. They supposedly buried it in an underground vault secured behind an iron door.
The treasure has never been found, but we did find some pretty good soup.
After our meal David took one more schuss down the slopes before we headed back down from the high country and returned to the summer-like climate below.
It was like passing through all of the seasons in one day.
David & Veronica, GypsyNester.com
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Wow, awesome blog!