Knees bent, arms out, holding tightly to the metal bar in front of me, I could feel the slippery wind at my ears and feel the bumps in the road making my arm muscles tense and release over and over again. Who knew that today I’d be riding on the back of a dog-type sled being pulled by a snowmobile headed into the mountain range. I guess it’s all part of working at a ranch that offers cross country ski vacations.
I neither expected or planned for this as part of my backcountry ski adventure. What fun! Twenty minutes later we pulled up beside the Routt Forest Campground, popped on our skis, and trekked down to North Fork of the Elk River with the sun reflecting off everything and begging us to take layers off and enjoy the Spring like day. The creek was piled up with 4 feet snow caps that looked like giant marshmallows stabilized on top of moving water, yet somehow we were able to trek over the top of it without falling into a sticky situation!
It was intriguing to pursue a beautiful stream that weaves itself into landscape full evergreens and aspens. We were each mesmerized by the different shaped portals along the way that displayed clear pools of water gurgled through the underworld we were all standing on. Amazing that it held us up!
On the way back I was offered to be left off the snowmobile near a ski trail so I could get in a longer ski if I so desired. So I ventured out on my own through a lush forest about a mile from the ranch. The extra ski was exactly what I needed and was a perfect work out for a perfect day at this Colorado ski lodge!
