Washington's Big Dig

I took my title from last Sunday's Washington Post front page and truer words could not have described the last days here. The largest amount of snow to fall in a day in 70 years fell on December 19th, 2009 and I relished every moment of it.

It was a hectic time for the family too, my flight back from CO was among the last to arrive at Reagan National, my mom was still stuck in Denver (it took her more than 36 hours to finally get home!) and my sister was stuck in Morgantown, WV. Despite our families' fragmentation we managed to stay in high spirits, particularly through the monumental task of keeping the driveway clear throughout the day. My dad and mine's backs were thoroughly sore that evening from clearing the driveway 3 times.

Even so, shoveling snow is somehow relaxing, kind of like washing glassware in a lab, mowing the lawn or painting a fence. A day of a few monotonous tasks mixed in with the usual thought-provoking ones makes for a nice blend and helps keep a man sane. The amount of snow was astonishing, by the end of the snow Saturday night, I was proud to proclaim we had received 20+ inches of snow! In some areas it drifted as much as 30 inches! A dream come true in my own backyard and one could taste it everywhere. I think I could wake up to a bit of fresh snow every other day during the winter.


Our house was thoroughly immersed in the winter wonderland. I especially love how long it took to get our street plowed and that it kept people home for a little while. People in Northern Virginia drive and work entirely too much (driving is a way of life here- oh wait isn't that all of this country?) Either way, I was genuinely happy to see some activity paralysis in an area where everyone expects things to get done instantly.


Unfortunately for me, my mom had my ski boots with her and I could not make a ski tour. That did not stop me from lacing up my snowshoes though, still fresh from only being used a few times in Lake Tahoe. It was real nice spending that time at home with just me and my dad, we're the ones in the family who enjoy the snow the most, I think he enjoyed digging around the yard for access to stuff.


I am very much looking forward to enjoying the snow for some days (hopefully weeks!) as it melts and is forgotten. Gosh, I feel so spoiled by this snow storm, if only we could have more snow storms like this in the east, snow storms on a Wild West scale.

Monarch ski area, Colorado

I had just finished a scrumptious dinner at the Himalayan restaurant in Big Bear Lake, CA when I got a lovely call from my mother. We chatted about what was going on lately and then she said she had an ambitious idea for a Christmas present for me, but I would have to wait until I got home to find out. I scarcely got inside the house before she spilled it out; "Would you be interested in skiing in CO for a week while I attend training for work in Lakewood?" No one in their right mind would turn that kind of an offer down!

Some days later and I had contacted my old friends Dan and Tyler who live in the Front Range and we were on! I would fly in on a Monday and leave on Friday, carefully coordinated with my mom's schedule for work so we could carpool. Despite our best planning intentions all kinds of things went wrong. I had my first 1 hour-long formal conference call for work immediately when I arrived (because my plane was 1.5 hours late to arrive) and had to take it in the baggage claim area. Our whole trip was hectic from the get-go. Thrifty rental car was all out of compact cars, so they gave her a black Hummer H3, which coincidentally was the same one my dad rented 2 years ago when he came to Denver for business. Needless to say the H3 was pretty lame; cramped interior, unfunctional small windows, underpowered and it just had an overall cheap feel to it. But, for some reason it is still a head turner, I think it is all hype.

Dan scooped me up in his Tacoma and after stopping at REI for some Telemark knee pads, we headed south to stay in Colorado Springs for the night. I went to bed early with some jet lag while they deliberated about which ski area to go to in the morning. We all decided the big resorts along I-70 were lame; exorbidant high prices, no new snow and of course crowding. Farther south, conditions were much more lucrative at Monarch ski area, which had gotten 30+ inches of fresh in the last 3-4 days. They get some of the most snow in the state, after Wolf Creek and it was clear that was our destination.

Monarch did not dissapoint! Although the runs were a bit tracked out, we seeked out little pow spots, especially ones where I could drop my knee a bit further to push it though!



The scenery was a part of CO I had not witnessed before, the Sawatch Range was pretty new to Dan and Tyler too. We all felt pretty spoiled to be skiing these conditions this early in the season. Our accomodations worked out well too, I was able to use my reward points to get us a free night and the place we stayed had a choice hot tub.

Monarch ski resort sits near Monarch Pass, which is a highpoint on US 50 where it crosses the continental divide and provides a unique vantage point to view the Sawatch range. This range and south to the San Juan range are I think among my favorite ranges in CO, and yet they are the ones I have least explored. I cannot confirm this, but Monarch ski area seemed to follow the Continental Divide, which is probably the reason why they get so much pow. A summit elevation of 11,300 feet (3,448) also helps too, everybody knows the higher you go the better everything is anyway.

Monarch was such a beautiful location, you really cannot deny the allure of the wild west if you're an easterner like me.


The last run of the day I told Tyler I would film him going along, so I did and it started off well, until I paid more attention to the camera. Watch for when I catch an edge and eat shit at the end!



Getting home after a wonderful ski week turned into a yard sale because of the blizzard that engulfed the east coast. My poor mom, all week she worked 11-12 hour days with a colleague to learn this new method in the lab. My 2 planes made it on American, she flew Frontier and hers got canceled. It took her 2 full days to finally get home. Then she had baggage issues because of checking her cooler full of critical samples and it had to be re-routed. Fortunately we all made it home safe, and for the first time ever at my home in Northern Virginia we got more snow than the wild west!

NOVA ski tour

From recent memory, I can count on my hands the number of times we have had snow in northern Virginia. I can count even less when there was enough to make a ski tour. So, it was quite a pleasant surprise to watch as 3-4 inches of wet, slough snow found its way to the earth to graces us with its presence. I'm a snow fanatic and I love it in all ways, shapes and forms, but this snow was absolutely terrible for skiing. It was so wet it would clump to the bottom of my skis and prevent them gliding.

Snow quality aside, the landscape aura that snow creates is second to none. With my work done for the day, I wasted no time in engaging with the snow, full throttle. For those who have not seen snow yet this year, I pity you, for this is my 3rd time seeing it fall in 3 different states. Snow at home is a special time:

We have a lily pond in our backyard, everyday I scoop some dead leaves out of it for the last week. Still there seems to be an endless amount and I won't stop till I can see the the darn goldfish swimming along the bottom. It is pretty though, especially when our state bird, the cardinal comes along to chat for a while.

The ski tour itself was nothing to write home about. Despite the hugely inflated anticipation, the snow just did not perform. That or my xc skis direly needed the proper wax for the warm temperatures. I had a blast nonetheless and it felt exhilarating to open up my lungs to some cold air and breathe hard.

Part of my tour took me to the farm animals at Frying Pan Park. See if you can spot the goatie in the little hut.

It is super nice to live so close to an open area in a land infested by the needs of the automobile. Too often these days we find ourselves removed from nature, I hope they can inspired to enjoy the tranquility that only nature can provide.