Ski Trip Pt. 1

I stood on the brink of a sheer drop off of snow and ice looking out over the valley between the peak on which I stood and the summit of Mt. Hood. Evergreen forests covered the sides and floor of the valley and those were decorated with snow. In the bottom of the valley lies the small town of Government Camp. From my vantage point I can make out many of the buildings as well as the lodge and restaurant at Ski Bowl Resort. The scenery was vast and the natural specters breathtaking. How I got there was a story in itself.

I generally wouldn’t see myself on a Christmas break snowboard trip with friends, just because that’s when everyone else would be going, but that was before I knew L.J. Every year after Christmas L.J.’s family rents a condo on the mountain and goes on a ski trip, and he likes to invite his friends to go with him. This year Kevin and I got invited to go with L.J. and after getting permission, making plans, and re-making plans Mark, L.J., Kevin, and I were on our way to the mountain on the first Thursday after Christmas. I had just gotten back from Christmas at my Grandparent’s house the afternoon before and now I was off again on another trip.

As soon as we got to the condo and got settled in I was ready and pumped for a ski trip. I knew we weren’t going to be able to go up on the mountain that day but I couldn’t wait. We ended up driving back into Sandy to get a Risk game and poker chips from the Fred Meyer there. We stayed up late that night playing Risk, Poker, and Halo. After things started winding down Kevin and went to bed but stayed up late talking about anything and everything. In the morning we started talking about our options for snowboarding that day. I was really excited to go as soon as possible but I wasn’t making any of the decisions; I was just along for the ride. After we bounced ideas off of each other we decided to ski all day and started to get ready.

After breakfast we headed out to the ski rental shop to get geared up. I brought all my own stuff along so all I had to do was wait. When Kevin, L.J., and Mark got everything rented and stowed in the minivan we walked over to the Thriftway to stock up on provisions for our day. When we got to Ski Bowl the parking lot was filled nearly to the limit and the ground was covered with ice. We piled out of the van and unloading all of our stuff, we headed for the ticket office. With my lift ticket securely fastened to my coat zipper I was ready to go, not I was just waiting for the others. Every were I look around me I see people going about their own business and air is filled with the hum of voices. Despite all the people I take the time to notice the crunch of icy snow beneath my boots and the grandeur of the evergreen trees muted with fresh snowfall just beyond the crowds. The others are finally all ready and after passing through the crowds at the bottom of the ski lift I’m riding in the lift chair up the mountain.