For early June, it was a cool day, with plenty of snow to be found in the high Wyoming elevations. We had Saturday off after a busy week working, and I love to explore ski areas – especially ones I’ve never been to.
Ramona had skii’d at Targhee when she was younger, and making the drive from her parents house in Rexburg ID over to the resort seemed like it would be a perfect outing – new for me, and a chance to re-live some childhood memories for her. After hearing that the scenery was beautiful about 16 times (and of course stopping for pics every few miles), we finally arrived at the resort. It was nearly deserted, and had that feel of a nice quiet ski area where crowds and the craziness of the 2010’s had not quite reached.
You could see the top of the mountain from the parking lot, and the main runs still had considerable snow coverage. I could feel myself getting a little more energized, and it wasn’t long and I asked Ramona if she was ready to go. “Where?” was the tentative response I got from her. I hadn’t made myself very clear to say the least, and she generally takes this as a bad omen. I could see the tiny hint of concern in her eyes. “Well up to the top via the direct snow route seems about right”, I heard myself saying as I was starting to hunt around for the necessities of such an adventure. She barely flinched, refusing to let herself say what I’m sure she wanted to say.
It wasn’t long and we had our poles, hiking shoes, and a little water rounded up for the trek. We headed out, knowing it was only a little over a mile by the way the crow flies, and less than 2,000 feet of vertical. Parts looked steep(ish) with the snow still on the ground, but I really thought the hike would go fast.
As we huffed and puffed our way straight up under the DreamCatcher lift, we found all sorts of little goodies. A nickel (which I safely tucked away), a knife (also tucked away), and of course the grand prize: what appears to be a fully functional GoPro (not yet tested). We finally made it to the top, and were rewarded with stunning views of the Grand Teton and her sister peaks. We plan to climb The Grand this labor day – her size and steepness reminded us that it was time to be getting in shape.
The hike down was as much sliding as hiking, and certainly spiced things up a bit. After skiing (via hiking shoes) The Face (blue/black) we found Ladies Waist (a snow-filled line) and made it nearly all the way down to the base with wet butts, cold toes, and tired quads. It was fast. Fun. And a great “first ski” experience for me at Targhee!
Shortly after getting down, the storm clouds got more aggressive, and we realized our timing was just about right. The cold rain and the lightening was a gentle reminder to always be paying attention to Mother Nature, as she sometimes has a mind of her own.
We warmed up in the van, got some dry clothes from the “bedroom”, and were on our way to find a nice campground where we could make some dinner, and relish the fact that a simple glass of wine had been earned that afternoon by skiing the hard way…