Picto Diary - 05, 06, 07, 08, 09 January 2021 - Jackson Hole/Grand Targhee Ski Trip
Above: Glorietta Restaurant. Jackson, WY. 05 January 2021.
This place was surprisingly good! Ceasar, Ribeye. Spicy squash. Cab/Malbec. Joined by the New Hampshire Cousins (1) and (2).
Above: Million Dollar Cowboy Bar. Jackson, WY. 05 January 2021.
Due to Covid restrictions, no dancing and no cougar dancing partners.
Art Anderson. Eat your heart out.
Above: Caspar Lift. Jackson Hole Mountain Resort. Jackson, WY. 06 January 2021.
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Skiing on a new level. DV Black's = JH Blues. Lot more snow here. 8 inches last 24 hours. All restaurants open and well attended, another contrast to DV, where restaurants require reservations and where attendance is limited. Lift and mask protocols are about same as DV. Didn't see any other geezers...and, for good reason...blue runs are challenging...not to mention blacks.
Above: Snake River Grill. Jackson, WY. 06 January 2021.
Usual fine experience in restaurant with iconic status, a la Joes Stone Crab.
Above: Bishop and NH Cousin (2). Caspar Restaurant. Jackson Hole Mountain Resort. 07 January 2021.
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Snowing all AM. 3 inches new. Huff puff skiing off Teewonot, Apres Vous, Teton, Casper, and Thunder lifts.
Bishop approached steep, unfamiliar, snowy, foggy, mountain with anxiety. Confidence boosted by experienced skier companions, the New Hampshire Cousins.
Snow smooth and buttery.
Again, paucity of geezers here.
Late lunch at Nora's in Wilson, WY on return.
Above: Jackson Hole Mountain Resort. Ranch Parking Lot. Jackson, WY. 08 January 2021.
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New Hampshire Cousins load up their skis in the F350 after an AM of hard skiing.
Nirvana ski day. New snow, bluebird, long, steep, buttery, runs.
2 inches new. Bluebird. Indescribably fantastic ski experience.
The ski trip to Jackson Hole was oddly a response to the coronavirus epidemic.
During 2020, coronavirus prevention protocols preempted any international travel. Accordingly, we converted from usual international travel to doing a deep dive into our home area, Summit County. We went on frequent walks and picnics with family and friends to Rockport State Park, Echo Reservoir, Witches Rocks trail, Wanship Rail Trail and so on.
We also bought a Sprinter van, had it converted by an Ogden outfitter to a Class B RV and drove it out to Arkansas where we visited family and acquired a new Newfoundland dog, Freddie.
I wondered how coronavirus would affect the upcoming ski season. I thought to myself that this season might be a good year to branch out a bit and ski some of the more obscure Ma and Pa ski resorts.... particularly if skiing at the major resorts was threatened in any way. We had the new Sprinter to facilitate our travel to the remote resorts. So, I was prepared to break from my tradition of daily skiing at Deer Valley.
Sometime in late September 2020, I received a promotional email from the Anvil Hotel in Jackson, WY. Because of its central location in Jackson, we had stayed there several times and were on their email list.
The lodge was offering a ski promotion. Like many vacation resorts during the coronavirus lock down period, Anvil was doing everything they could to keep rooms occupied.
The promotion was this: four room nights, three Jackson Hole ski passes, four $20 discounts on dinner at their Glorietta Italian restaurant, and free bus tickets to and from Jackson Hole Mountain Resort.... all for $250 a night.
What? I said, as I noted the promotion? This is too good to be true. Jackson Hole, one of the nations premier ski resorts wasn't actually a Ma and Pa. But, I had never skied there, was already prepared for overland travel to ski else where... so, on impulse, I accepted the Anvil Hotel offer immediately, threw a dart at the calendar which landed on 05 January to 08 January 2021. On 09 January, I could go over the Teton Pass, ski Grand Targhee, and then drive home, making the obligatory dining stop at Don Pedros in Evanston.
I called New Hampshire Cousin #1, and asked him if he wanted to join me. We'd drive the F350 ... I didn't need the Sprinter to the Anvil Hotel's promotion offering a place to stay. He said, "yes, can I invite my cousin, New Hampshire Cousin #2?" "Sure," I said. I had skied with New Hampshire Cousin #2 before. Both cousins were life long skiers and good guys. For me, a boon to be able to ski with better skiers than I Mwah (sic).
The experience to date has exceeded expectations.
1. There was a lot of real snow at Jackson Hole, unlike YTD Deer Valley. Note: Deer Valley had done an excellent job opening up its resort with mostly manufactured snow... and, I had enjoyed the ski experience there. Still, experiencing the soft new powder at Jackson Hole clearly ramped up the quality of my ski experience.
2. Wide, long, steep runs. Jackson blues seemed as steep as DV blacks.... on average, longer, steeper descents than Deer Valley! On our final day we skied thirteen runs, which at DV for me would be an average early season ski day, involving roughly thirteen thousand vertical feet... but, at Jackson Hole, those thirteen runs amounted to almost 20K vertical feet. We skied mostly the Thunder, Apres Vous, and Teton lifts... all of which are 1700 foot vertical climb lifts.
3. We didn't see any geezers apart from our selves. A normal, non holiday ski day at Deer Valley would find geezer skiers as the majority cohort. Jackson Hole, like Alta and Snowbird, is a skiers mountain. There are bunny runs at Jackson Hole, but they are really easy and we saw very few skiers there. Its a good boost to the geezer self esteem to ski successfully at a resort favored by young people.
Having had this "get out of the DV ski rut, branch out and explore ski experience, prompted by out of the box thinking" in response to the coronavirus epidemic, and having enjoyed it immensely, I hope to try some other new ski areas before the ski season ends.
Note: With my companions I ate at two new restaurants while staying in downtown Jackson. The Glorietta restaurant is affiliated with the Anvil Hotel. A wood fired grill, an excellent Italian wine list, and a grilled squash dish to go back for. On the recommendation of a sixty something guy, apart from ourselves, the oldest guy we saw skiing, at the Caspar lodge, we found Teton Tiger, a pan Asian restaurant with an excellent Indian selection... butter chicken, bindis, vegetable samosas, and garlic nan. We also were able to get reservations at Snake River Grill for one night... socially separated tables, at its usual, superior standard. The trip turned out to be a solid gourmet experience as well!
Above: Grand Targhee Ski Resort, Alta, Wyoming. 09 January 2020.
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Image 1: Looking west. Grand Tetons.
Image 2: Looking east. Driggs, Idaho.
More than a Ma 'n Pa resort. Not a major resort. Exceptional scenery nestled in the Grand Tetons of Wyoming.
Only three lifts, but two, Dreamcatcher and Sacajawea, are high vertical climb, high speed quads... Dreamcatcher is a 2000 foot vertical climb quad... the highest vertical climb lift on which I've ridden. So, not withstanding only five lift rides, we accomplished nine thousand vertical feet of skiing before departing at noon. Snow was fresh. Six inches within last twenty four hours. Bluebird day. Temperatures were ten to fifteen degrees while we were skiing
Grand Targhee is in Wyoming, but access is only from Idaho.
Crowded.... as in "bursting at the seams." It was Saturday, after all. Demographic was mainly young families and college kids. BYU Idaho, Rexburg is nearby.
Dined at Don Pedros in Evanston on the return.
Great four day ski trip. Found new hills... new ski experiences, augmented by outstanding snow, above par gastronomy, and genial companionship in the New Hampshire Cousins.
