Everyone has their favorite mountains for winter sports. We’re no different. We don’t live in a mountainous state, so skiing (for Michelle) and snowboarding (for Neil) means flying or driving to a resort. We can get to resorts like Monarch or Crested Butte in Colorado in a 12-13 hour drive. But, we wouldn’t be us if we didn’t have a preferred resort that is much more isolated and difficult to get to. Enter New Years 2016. Michelle and I decided our annual trip to bring in the new year would be shredding powder in Colorado, but it wasn’t going to be the popular destinations of the A-Basin. We made the decision to make the trek to Telluride.
If you’re not familiar with Telluride, it’s a tiny mountain town tucked away in the southwest corner of Colorado. There is no large airport like Denver for the nearby resorts in and around A-Basin. You can fly into Durango on American Airlines, but that causes two potential problems—either bad winter weather canceling or diverting flights or closed roads between Durango and Telluride. We figured the risk of potential disaster was greater via air travel so we drove what was supposed to be a 15 hour drive over 2 days, stopping in Taos, New Mexico overnight.
We set off from Dallas early in the morning, with a cold ambient temperature, but the weather was good. 30 minutes later, it began to snow. Some flurries. No big deal. We made it to Taos just as the sun was setting. The 11 hour drive was a standard Dallas to Taos. I wish I could say the drive to Telluride the next day was standard, but it was not.
There was snow on the ground, but no sign of any problems. We headed west via Highway 64 then north on Highway 84, up to the Rio Grande National Forest on the shortest route available. As soon as we crossed the state line into Colorado, we ascended the mountains into snow. It wasn’t a heavy storm, but the roads were covered, requiring me to drive slow. This is when all hell broke loose with Michelle crying uncontrollably as the catalyst. I know you’re wondering why Michelle was crying. I promise that I didn’t do or say anything to cause it. Michelle is afraid of heights, which was compounded by her status as a passenger, giving me control of the car. I spent my law school years driving through Michigan winters so I was familiar with roads much worse than this one. I wanted to push on through since this was the fastest and shortest route and I was not uncomfortable with the conditions.
I convinced Michelle to let me ascend and descend the next mountain before stopping. I vividly remember coming down the steep grade and crossing a small ravine before her crying became audibly louder. I asked her if she wanted me to turn back around. She did. So, I turned back around and went south back into New Mexico until we reached Highway 64 where I could head west before going north into Colorado on a route that was less mountainous. The deviation cost us about 4 hours, but it was worth it. We got a chance to drive through Navajo Lake State Park and see Navajo Dam. In the winter, covered in snow, this may be one of the most beautiful places in the US that few people know about. I got out of the car and took some photos, while Michelle sat in the car…like this…
After we made it through the steep grades up, down, and through the mountains of Navajo Lake State Park, we finally made it north into Colorado…again. However, we weren’t yet close to Telluride. We would still have to encounter a cattle drive on the highway and snow covered mountain roads without guardrails before even reaching our destination. Michelle had a lot of difficulty dealing with the winding mountain roads leading into Telluride, but after the suggestion to read her book aloud and stop staring at the treacherous roads, she was able to push through and doesn’t regret it at all.
We made it to town just before 7 pm and went to grab some food to combat the hunger that had already set in. Following dinner, which included one of the best Thai chicken pizzas we’ve ever had, we turned in to get up early to hit the slopes.
We spent the day of New Year’s Eve on the mountain and planned to attend a New Year’s party at one of the small town bars. After spending most of the morning on the mountain, we stopped for lunch. Over grilled chicken sandwiches from one of the resort eateries we began to admit to one another that we were quite tired. We resolved to attempt the slopes again and probably had another two or three runs before we called it a day. Even though we had purchased tickets to the party later that evening, our exhaustion from the altitude adjustment, intense driving the day prior, and the activities of the day itself left the tickets unused. Instead, we found a pub to grab dinner and watch college football. The plan for the next morning was to beat all the hungover folks to the mountain, which was a successful endeavor. The caveat—it was barely over 0 degrees Fahrenheit outside. That kind of cold doesn’t bode well for skiing or snowboarding. The first lift ride up was unbearable. Thankfully, by the time we got down and headed back up, it was much warmer.
That trip only had 2 days on the mountain, so January 2nd meant it was time to head home. Michelle was much better with her anxiety and we made it to Albuquerque in the normal time, where we stayed overnight. On the way back to Dallas, we stopped at Cadillac Ranch while getting our kicks on Route 66.
