Alta, Utah 2014

Wow! It's been a long time since we have been skiing out west. The last time we went was 2006 and that time we went to Colorado. We had a great time there, but I have to admit my heart belongs to Alta Utah. It's where I grew up skiing, learned to ski, they only allow skiers (no snowboarders...yeah!), it's a decent size not too big not too little, the price is right and the snow, nothing's better than Alta snow. So I felt like I was going back home. It was a good thing, a very good thing to get back here after more than a decade. 

We arrived late Wednesday night and headed to the Embassy Suites, our home away from home for 3 days. It had been a long day but I was glad to finally be there.  We were all asleep by 11, with the alarm set for 6am...ouch! 

Thursday morning we got up early got dressed and headed down for our gourmet breakfast. My custom omelet was delish and I think Emma was in heaven with all the pastry options.  We let her choose whatever she wanted. We were on vacation after all. 

We headed up the mountain about 715 and it was snowing! We checked Alta's website and it said they had gotten 14"  overnight and 4 wheel drive or chains were required...perfect.

 We got to the top of the mountain just before 8 and headed in to rent skis for Emma. I also had a freak out moment when I realized that I left the receipt for our pre-paid lift tickets at the hotel. The receipt specifically said I had to bring it and a photo ID with me to pick up our tickets.  Oh no! We went to the office and thankfully they said all I really needed was my photo ID and we would be good to go...phew!  We picked up our tickets got Emma signed up for morning ski lessons and were on our way to get her skis. We got dressed in the dressing room and then Andrew took Emma to ski school and I took our bag back to the car, threw the keys in my jacket pocket and we were off!

The powder was great, practically untouched and knee deep.

Knee deep powder

The lines for the lifts were non-existent and before we knew it, it was noon and time to pick Emma up from class and grab our lunch out of the car. I took Emma to the lodge to grab a seat and Andrew went to the car to get lunch. A few minutes later he walked into the lodge with no food in hand...weird. I asked him what's up and he said "where are the keys?"  Oh fuuuuuddddggge!  I reach my hand into my jacket pocket and what's there?  Snow. Just snow. No keys.  Nothing.  Just snow and emptiness. And to make matters worse, the rental company had both sets of keys latched together.  I had lost both sets of keys. And to make it even worse the cell tower was down so our phones didn't work at all. Thankfully Alta let us use their phone to call the car rental company and then a locksmith. We would have to get a new key made for the car and the estimate, $250 big ones!  We still didn't have our lunch because the car was locked but Alta ended up calling the town Marshall and he was kind enough to open the car for us. We would have eaten lunch at the lodge but Emma was set on her packed lunch and wouldn't have anything to do with a purchased lunch. I think she was a bit tired. About 115 the locksmith showed up and determined that he didn't have the equipment to make the key we needed so he said he would have to go back down to the valley to his shop and make the key there. He would also have to take the whole ignition so he didn't have anymore problems. And of course this would all cost is more money. Of course it would. We decided to head back to the mountain and forget our problems and just wait for the locksmith to finish making our $300 key. 

Headed up the mountain

We had a great afternoon on the slopes and even though our first run with Emma took about 45 minutes, she made it down and was begging for more. We took the last lift up at 430 exactly. Literally the last people to go up. First on, last up, my dad would be so proud. Definitely not a beach day. Our new keys were waiting in the car and thankfully that was our last hiccup of the trip. 

End of day 1

Night 1, I begged Andrew to let us order pizza in our room. I was denied. So I suggested that we go to this Mexican restaurant that I had seen on yelp. We got there and the line was wrapped around the building....never mind. So we headed to an old standby, Red Rock Brewery. There was no wait, it was very tasty and the beer was delish. We were all asleep by 830....passed out!

Day 2

Emma decided that today she wanted to go to ski school all day today. I wasn't really planning on her taking all day ski lessons but I think it was a great choice for her.  Andrew and I got to ski the Germania side of the mountain in the afternoon like we usually do.

 Since I was planning on skiing with Emma all he afternoons, I didn't think we would be able to get over there.  We couldn't really take Emma because there are no green runs on that side for her to go on. It ended up that we still got to ski with her for an hour and a half after ski school ended since the lifts didn't close until 430. It was perfect.  Once again we were the first lift up and the last lift up.  Another proud Al Brown moment. Emma's skiing improved considerably this day and both us us were very impressed by her new skills.

Wedge turns

Straight skis

In case you're wondering we did a key check after every fall, every lift ride, every run, every 15 minutes.  We weren't going to lose that $300 key again!  

Dinner night 2

We weren't nearly as tired this night, so I was much more willing to go out for dinner. On our way up the mountain I saw a new taqaria, so I looked up the reviews on it. Some of the reviews referred to another taqaria, Lonestar,  that was supposed to be even better. It ends up this place had been featured on Diners, Driv-ins and Dives, a show Andrew and I really enjoy. The place was packed! We could barely get in the parking lot and the dining room was nearly overflowing. The food was delish and I had the best veggie tacos I've ever had. We will definitely be back. 

Day 3

Last day :(

The forecast; 1-2 inches of new snow.  Actual; 6 inches! Yay!

Emma decided on another full day of ski school. When we picked her up for lunch, she was very disappointed that we didn't pay for her to eat lunch with all the other kids!  She didn't want to have to hang out with old mom and dad!  Today was much like yesterday with continued improvement on her skiing skills. My phone died so I didn't get any afternoon pictures. Her instructor said that if she was going to be here again the next day she would move up to the next level!  She lead us down the mountain onto "The Bear Trail" which goes through the trees. She loved it, until she veered off the path and got stuck in some powder....then she freaked. It was a little funny just because she was totally ok and we were right there. I pulled her out and we on our way again. Our last day, we were on the first and the last lift...no beach day here Al Brown.

Alta, Utah 

Dinner night 3 - Andrew had mentioned on day 2 that he just wanted soup and salad for dinner. When we were on our way to dinner I saw this place called Zupas. It was 2 blocks from our hotel and I checked it out online and it was exactly what Andrew wanted.  We decided to pick it up and take it back to the hotel room and have a bed picnic and watch HGTV. The food was delish. My soup was amazing and so was my sandwich. It was a perfecting ending to our vacation. Nice and relaxing. 

If you can't tell our trip was amazing. On our last lift up I said "who had a good time?" We all raised our hands. Then I said "who wants to come again?" Andrew and I raised our hands and Emma raised both of hers!  I guess we have a skier....we'll keep her.