HOME: SKI WEEKEND IN YOSEMITE FEBRUARY 2011

On Saturday at our house it looked like this:

So we decided to do some of this:

After I did this:

Originally we were going for downhill skiing, not cross-country as pictured above.  However, we were thwarted in our attempts to do some downhill skiing at Badger Pass by the National Park Service.  See, Badger Pass is the oldest ski resort in California and only one of 3 ski resorts located in a national park.  Being located in the interior of a national park, though certainly scenic, has it's share of drawbacks.  The most obvious being that the NPS is responsible for the plowing of park roads in the winter and let's just say they are somewhat casual in their attitude toward plowing snow and by extension, winter park visitors in general.  But with 2 feet of snow on the ground in Yosemite Valley, we were determined to ski!  Ted suggested skiing part of the East Valley Loop Trail from Camp 4 to El Capitan and back, making for one of our best days in Yosemite ever (despite my injured foot that is healing ever-so-slowly). 

Ted broke trail most of the way as we skied into pristine meadows and along the Merced River.  Except when under cover of pine trees, we skied in brilliant sun reflected back by dazzling snow.  The views of snow-covered Yosemite icons were spectacular, but the entire Valley is a spectacle in the snow.  This much snow on the ground in the Valley comes and goes during the winter, so even the locals are giddy when the snowfall coincides with a supremely sunny winter day.  Skiing along the river I could smell the California Bay trees - one of my very favorite floral smells signifying Yosemite in every season.

We stopped to rest when El Capitan loomed large and drank refreshing beverages sitting on our skis in the snow.  We met only 2 other couples out skiing this section of the trail in the 3 hours we were out.  How lucky not being forced to share with the usual hordes such a great day enjoying Yosemite Valley!

During the long holiday weekends in winter (namely MLK and Presidents' Day weekends in January and February), Curry Village hosts a Ski Buffet dinner at the Curry Village Dining Pavilion.  Many services in the Valley are generally shut down for the winter, but the holiday weekends provide a dining opportunity at Curry in addition to the restaurants at Yosemite Lodge and the Ahwahnee Dining Room.  We were pleasantly surprised by the Ski Buffet in January (live music, roast turkey, slices of pie, and 10 different types of salads!) so we planned to attend in February too.  Our second experience was not as great as the first - the band couldn't make it, the roast pork was dry, we sat in a heavily trafficked area - but we found the buffet to be a great value and a nice change from the usual in the Yosemite winter.

For $23.75, an adult can eat as much entree, salad, and dessert along with coffee, tea, and soda as they can handle with live music in the company of fellow skiers and other winter revelers.  Beer and wine are available at a cash bar and children 12 and under can eat for $11.75.  This night, the German Potato Salad, Marianted Cremini Mushrooms and lemony mousse style dessert was exceptional.  My serving of Maple Baked Pork Loin was delicious too, though Ted sawed his way through a rather dessicated slice.

Curry Village Ski Buffet Menu February 19, 2011

We rolled home after dinner and slept in the next morning before prepping equipment for a day of downhill skiing at Badger Pass, thanks to the hard work of the NPS crews allowing access by clearing the Glacier Point Road the day before in the afternoon sun.  Our morning laziness served us right as we approached the Chinquapin intersection near 11 AM to be confronted by NPS traffic control and closure of the Glacier Point Road since there were no more parking spaces left at Badger Pass.  It's tough to ski in Yosemite in the winter. Sunday was just as sunny as Saturday, though much colder at the Badger Pass elevation of 7000 feet.  I was a wimp both temperature-wise and ski run-wise:  I had a nice easy day on my Atomic fat skis.  Ted, true to his Norwegian heritage, is an excellent skier and encourages me to tackle steeper runs which I always decline.  However, for any truly experienced/skilled downhill skier, there really are no steep runs at Badger.  It's the perfect family ski resort that also offers groomed cross-country trails, snowshoeing and snow tubing.

We had a burger on the deck and ran into our friend and neighbor, JR, hard at work collecting shovels.  Apparently the staff at Badger has difficulty adhering to the golden rule of ski resort operation: don't lose the snow shovels!  We also ran into friends Barb and Dave, who kindly offered us a ride back to our car at Chinquapin.  To earn our keep, I offered to pick up Dave and Ted at the end of Rail Creek while Barb ferried home a passel of children.  The Rail Creek drainage is a popular ungroomed ski run in Yosemite due to the start being in close proximity to the runs at Badger.  Just convince some unsuspecting friend with plenty of time to leave Badger in their car at roughly the same time you start to ski down Rail Creek and they can pick you up at the turnout on 41.  According to Tom Lambert in a guest post at YosemiteBlog, Rail Creek was created as a ski run when the early park concession Tressider family was grooming Yosemite in order to bid for the Winter Olympics in 1920 (Lake Placid won the games that year).  Tom didn't cite a source, but I'm sure you could find more information in Magic Yosemite Winters by Gene Rose.

JR and Ted

Barb, Dave and TedOur friend Barb is also the president of the Yosemite Winter Club.  Created in 1928, also by the Tressider family, the club was formed to "encourage and develop all forms of winter sports and to advertise and exploit the great advantages, beauties and healthy benefits of winter in the California Sierra to all lovers of outdoor life."  Today, the club supports the Yosemite Junior Ski Team, hosts the Silver Ski and Ancient Jocks Races at Badger Pass, provides hockey lessons, scrimmage, and ice skating lessons at the Curry Village Ice Rink, hosts cross-country outings to Ostrander Lake and Glacier Point Ski Huts and generally encourages locals and visitors to enjoy the winter in Yosemite.  Anyone is welcome to join and you can support the YWC by proudly wearing logo appropriate apparel available at Badger Pass and the Yosemite Village Store.  Benefits include Badger Pass lift tickets, ice skating passes, and insurance coverage for Yosemite Winter Club programs.