Last Saturday (Jan. 10, 1998), in support of "Take Your Daughter to the Slopes Day" I had the opportunity to experience Alpine Meadows Ski Resort with my daughter Gina - a daring 5 year old. Gina and I are both intermediate skiers. We rose early to a cold January morning, gathered our gear, and made the scenic drive around Tahoe's North Shore from Incline Village, NV. Despite the fact that a storm was perched over the basin and the snow had already started falling on the West Shore, driving conditions were normal both coming and going.
We entered the parking area at about 10:30 A.M. and the attendant directed us to a spot. After winning a friendly wrestling match with our suits and boots, we were on our way.
At about 11:00 we slid into our first lift line at Meadow Chair. Happily, the line was short and quick. The wind was 20-30 MPH and new snow was blowing directly at us, pricking our faces like little needles. In spite of the marginal weather conditions, our first run was terrific as the snow on the ground was fresh and cold, not wet. The lift attendants were always courteous and frequently slowed the lift for us upon request, allowing a bit more time for Gina and I to get on and off the lifts. This was a big relief, as Gina is only about 3 feet tall and must stretch to simply reach the back of the chair in order to load the lift. All the runs were well marked and groomed beneath about 2" of fresh powder. I didn't realize how much my daughter and I needed a little adventure to shake us out of our routine. The wind and the freezing, blowing snow began to seem like Nature's way of waking us up, and we were laughing uncontrollably on our first lift ride.
Gina and I continued on to ski all the green runs on the lower mountain, but due to the strong winds the upper mountain seemed like Mt. Everest, and we opted to conquer that on another day. By the time we returned to the car 2 more inches of snow had fallen and it was time to shelter ourselves from the wind and turn the heater on full blast. We had red noses and cold fingers as we made the scenic drive back to Incline Village, NV, but two hot bowls of soup and a long bubble bath later it seemed we had never felt so good!
Thank You Alpine Meadows for celebrating "Take Your Daughter to the Slopes Day". We hope that in the future other resorts will join in on the fun.
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The lift attendants were always courteous and frequently slowed the lift for us upon request, allowing a bit more time for Gina and I to get on and off the lifts.
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