Ski trip to Summit County

This weekend the family made a ski trip up to Summit County.  We had family in town that were planning a trip to Breckenridge and figured it would be good to visit with them and get in a little skiing as well.

My daughters are 6 and 4.  They have limited ski experience, so no trip is complete without lessons.  We have been taking them to Arapahoe Basin and did that Saturday as well.  It is not surprising that our 6 year old is picking it up faster.  She is older, stronger, and as a personality trait more determined to get things done.  Last summer she went through numerous spills learning to ride a bike without training wheels.

During their 2 hour lesson, I got some runs in, but when I went to check in on them our 4 year old was done after about an hour.  This is fine.  I am glad we exposed her to skiing and things should go better next year.  Our 6 year old did not want the lesson to end.  She was excited about going up the chair lift on the bunny slope, has got a feel for turning and can snow plow with the best of them.

The next day we were at the Mountain House learning area at Keystone.  This is actually pretty nicely set up with 2 magic carpets and a lift accessing the bunny slope.  Magic carpet access is free, but riding the bunny slope requires a pass at the standard rate.  Both of them continued to make good progress, but it was difficult for me to teach them as I am not a strong skier myself.  If we try to ski together again, I am definitely getting a harness for the little one.

The highlight activity was ice skating at Keystone.  The girls had never ice skated before and were thrilled with the experience.  It is a little pricey at $12 skate rentals and $12 lake access for adults and only slightly lower for kids.  However it was a great change of pace and the girls picked it up relatively quickly.  By the end of the morning we started playing follow the leader and tag.