Winter is here and so is the snow. DC and the neighboring states got some snow last week and folks have been making the most of it.
For most people an escape to a warmer place tops the getaway list but believe me there is a different charm in paying a visit to the wintry mountains. I was able to squeeze in a weeklong escape with my family to the Bryce Resort- a ski resort here in VA and it was a blast. We were there earlier this year and since my first rendezvous with the snow-sports left me unsatisfied, we decided to go there again.
I shared a comprehensive list of the snow gear and accessories one must consider bringing to their ski trip, see the list in the post HERE, a couple a things that I’d like to add to that list would be a dozen face masks and heaps and mounds of hand sanitizers. Dozen face masks because the snow and sweat is guaranteed to soil your mask and if you are skiing three-four days in a row- you definitely need more.
We booked an AirBNB with another family. One that had multiple rooms, multiple bathrooms, sauna, Jacuzzi, was closer to a convenient store and one that was pet friendly. For most part the January 2020 trip and December 2020 trip felt same, a few things that were different were….
January 2020
We were a party of 13 including some out of country guests.
There was no sauna and/or jacuzzi at the airbnb.
December 2020
We were a party of 6 and a dog as the state of VA caps the party gathering size at 10.
We made sure our airbnb had sauna and jacuzzi cuz boy the things that ski and snow-tubing does to your body is real…and it hurts!
Our stay was two days and three nights long. We all were working and couldn’t afford more days off.
Our stay was five days and six nights long as we all could work virtually so why not from a ski resort!
We carried some snacks, tea and a couple marinated dishes for dinner time grilling as we ate most of the meals outside.
We packed all the meals, breakfast, lunch and dinner as we are still wary eating out at restaurants. I had my cooking lady cook several Indian dishes that could be eaten with rice and bread and I’m glad we did! It saves you a tonne of time and moolah when traveling in a group.
We traveled light with just one set of snow gear and a couple changes for in-between.
We overpacked as we were gone for a longer time. We brought several different outfits, linens, sanitizing wipes, sanitizing sprays, hand sanitizers, hand wipes, masks, and all possible safety stuff we could think of.
The snow mountains weren’t as packed, there were shorter lines and we did not have to wait in line much.
The resort was packed as it was a holiday week. The lines were longer and we had to wait everywhere, reason- social distancing. We were made to wait our turn and each family/group was given a time slot. Considering everyone was working virtually, the place was bustling with skiers.
We were able to get our tubing tickets on-site, no prior reservation was required.
This time we had to reserve our skiing and tubing slots 14 hours prior to the appointed time. No walk-ins were entertained.
We were tired but just enough to be able to enjoy other things.
We were tired and when I say tired I mean EXHAUSTED on days we went tubing and skiing! Wearing a face covering aka the mask and lugging that heavy gear up and down is daunting. I would have to occasionally remove my mask to catch a breath. I guess the respiratory masks would have been a better option but sure not the safest one.
Last time we stayed mostly indoors as whatever little amount of snow fun we had ( our very first ) was tiring enough. We played card games, board games and kept it low key.
Despite all the odds, we ventured outdoors. We visited vineyards and breweries, sat outside in their heated patios. We hiked alongside snow-laden lakes and hills. We made the most of all the time we could enjoy outdoors sans the mask.
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