Spring Powder Graces in the Rockies

This epic winter just keeps rolling along, with resorts extending their seasons

Skiers and snowboarders will remember the winter of 2007-08 as slow to start but then just would not quit -- and as a skier myself, it's news that I'm thrilled to share after several consecutive posts about airline/airport misery. Spring powder is a rare treat.

In Colorado, weekend storms bestowed 19 inches on Aspen Highlands and Beaver Creek, 18 inches on Snowmass and Steamboat, 16 on Aspen Mountain, 15 inches on Vail and Crested Butte, a foot or so on Loveland, Winter Park and Buttermilk, but "only" about six inches on Copper Mountain, Eldora, Arapahoe Basin, Keystone, Telluride and Echo Mountain.
Silverton reports 120 inches of settled snow at mid-mountain and Wolf Creek boasts 129 inches. Such significant snow totals this season have prompted some resorts to extend winter operations. Aspen Highlands is the latest resort to extend their closing date, joining Monarch, Purgatory (Durango) and Wolf Creek, which have already pushed back their closing dates. Arapahoe Basin will operate as late as it likes while there's still cover. (The two pictures on this post were taken on March 31, the top one at Vail and the bottom one at Aspen -- or perhaps Snowmass. Hard to tell with all that pow'.)

Utah has been similarly snow-blessed. Alta and Brighton have both surpassed the 600-inch season snowfall totals. Resorts that have tallied 12 or more inches in the last 48 hours include Alta, Brighton, The Canyons, Snowbird and Park City.

Up north, Sun Valley is keeping the lifts running on Bald Mountain until April 20 and is also offering a great Last Tracks package, with one night lodging and one day of skiing from $86 per person, plus kids 15 and under can ski free with each paid adult. Also in Idaho, Brundage Mountain near McCall surpassed the 400-inch mark on March 29 and is extended its season as well, operating seven days a week through mid-April and for the two weekends after that.

Aloha Airlines Grounded for Good

Long-time Hawaiian carrier to cease operations tomorrow

"Aloha" is Hawaiian both for "hello" and for "good-bye," and now, as the island state says "aloha" to its namesake airline, it seems to be "good-bye" for good. Just eight days ago, I posted news that 61-year-old Aloha Airlines had filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy but was continuing to operate. That was then, and this is now.

The Hawaii Convention & Visitors Bureau sent out the following sad news: "Aloha Airlines announced today it will be shutting down its interisland and transpacific passenger flight operations on Monday, March 31, 2008. Only momentary disruption is expected as other interisland and transpacific airlines have the capacity to accommodate Aloha ticket holders."

"We simply ran out of time to find a qualified buyer or secure continued financing for our passenger business," said Aloha president David Banmiller in a statement. "We had no choice but to take this action."

The Hawaii Tourism Authority issued a press release about the situation.

• The Hawaii Visitors and Convention Bureau (HVCB) is also keeping Hawaii travelers updated on the situation with information on its website.


• Aloha Airlines' announcement: Aloha Airlines to Shut Down Passenger Operations After March 31, 2008, Ending a 61-Year Tradition of Service to Hawaii


• Aloha Airlines Customer FAQ website


• Hawaiian Airlines' Information for Aloha Airlines Ticket Holders. Hawaiian said that it will add capacity and take Aloha passengers on a standby basis free through April 3.


• United Airlines' Help for Aloha Airlines Customers

In addition to interisland service, Aloha flew to four destinations in California and two in Nevada with a fleet of 27 Boeing 737 aircraft. Some of these planes carry only cargo and will reportedly continue to operate, at least for now, because Seattle-based Saltchuk Resources is interested in buying the freight service, a business it is already in.

Heathrow's Terminal 5 is a Terrible Mess

Mountains of lost bags, canceled flights, frustrated travelers and a public relations fiasco

The dedicated website for Heathrow Airport's new Terminal 5 cooed into cyberspace, "At London Heathrow Terminal 5 we’ve created a natural, logical journey that’s so calm, you’ll flow through. It shouldn’t take long to get from Check-in to Departures. Transferring and arriving are just as simple and calm. Spend the time you save enjoying the excellent range of shops, cafes and restaurants. Or simply relax and be wowed by the world class architecture."

Instead, travelers using the new £4.3 billion ($8.7 billion) T5 were wowed by utter chaos that began almost as soon as the new facilitiy. In its first four days of operations, at least 250 British Airways flights were canceled, stranding thousands of passengers. At least 15,000 and perhaps 20,000 pieces of luggage that reportedly were not loaded onto the planes need to be "repratriated" to their owners who had, in fact, taken off while their bags were still on the ground. Computer problems were blamed.

In a story called "Flight Club at Heathrow T5," the Sun newspaper reported of a brawl among 30 baggage handlers. BA could be libel for compensation up to a stunning £5,000 per passenger, it was further reported. At the very least, the airline had to arrange for and pay for emergency accommodations for armies of stranded passengers. Image-conscious Brits are have a cow, and the tabloids are having a field day.

Long-haul flights were said to be operating close to schedule today (Sunday). Domestic (i.e., within the UK) flights and flights to the European continent have been most affected. "We are endeavoring to do everything we can to get the operation back to normal," said an unnamed but clearly beleaguered spokeswoman for British Airways. Of course. The airline claimed that 400 employees volunteered to work on Sunday to help with what the BBC described as "mountains of suitcases stacked up in the terminal after passengers were unable to reclaim them or were forced to fly on to their destinations without their luggage, and which the BBC continued "could take weeks to sort out."

The flying public will have to take their word for it, because BBC also said that "it had been banned from filming at the terminal, where hundreds of passengers were facing long delays. Sky News television also said it had been locked out." Go to the Telegraph's online story, scroll down to "In Pictures" and we wowed by the slide show of the mess.

Even when the chaos has been straightened out and T5 is humming as promised, Heathrow will remain an incredibly congested airport. It is the world's third-busiest airport (after Chicago/O'Hare and Atlanta/Hartsfield) and has just two runways, meaning that delays are endemic, even without a snafu like T5's opening days. In wisdom that matches US automakers' foresight, US-based Delta, Continental Airlines, Northwest and United began flights into London's chronically constripated Heathrow Airport on Mar. 30, even as their BA brethren were still struggling under mountains of luggage. At least the American carriers won't be using T5.

Addendum from the Monday, March 31, report in the Telegraph:

"The debacle, which is estimated to have cost BA £20 million already, will mean the airline has been forced to scrap more than 450 flights since the opening of the £4.3 billion Terminal last week. The chaos would have been even worse had the airline not decided to continue operating the bulk of its long-haul operation from Terminal 4."

Historic Hotels of the Rockies at 25 Years

National association modeled after Western regional group

The Rocky Mountain region is known for its pioneering past, so it is not surprising that the promotional organization called Historic Hotels of the Rockies was a pioneer in its own right and is celebrating its 25th anniversary this year. Founded in 1983 by 15 properties as Association of Historic Hotels of the Rocky Mountain West, it was created to promote the unique features of historic inns, to provide mutual support and to advance the common interests of historic hotels. The organization proved to be a such a success that the National Trust for Historic Preservation used it as a model for the Historic Hotels of America, established in 1989.

Membership is by invitation. Criteria are that the hotel . . .

. . . must be at least 50 years old.

. . . must be listed in, or qualify for listing in, the National Register of Historic Places.
. . . must be maintained in a manner which enhances and is appropriate to the building's historic character.
. . . must offer guests unique and memorable accommodations which reflect well upon all other members.

I've stayed in a few, visited others and admired them all. Current members are:

Grand Union Hotel, Fort Benton, MT (photo above right)
Izaak Walton Inn, Essex, MT
Historic Plains Hotel, Cheyenne, WY
Nagle Warren Mansion, Cheyenne, WY
Irma Hotel, Cody, WY

Historic Franklin Hotel, Deadwood, SD
Hotel Alex Johnson, Rapid City, SD
Armstrong Hotel, Fort Collins, CO
Beaumont Hotel and Spa, Ouray, CO
Castle Marne, Denver
Delaware Hotel, Leadville, CO
Hotel Colorado, Glenwood Springs , CO
New Sheridan Hotel, Telluride, CO
Peck House, Empire, CO
Strater Hotel, Durango, CO
Bishops Lodge Ranch Resort & Spa, Santa Fe , NM
Don Gaspar, Santa Fe, NM
Plaza Hotel, Las Vegas, NM

The commonality among members appears to be that they are quite small, ranging from deluxe B&B's to boutique hotels. The Hotel Alex Johnson in Rapid City, with 141 rooms appears to be the largest. Double digit room counts prevail for the rest. That puts this group into the classification of intimate properties with personalized guest services and often also fine dining.

Among the missing (but in most cases do belong to Historic Hotels of America) are several larger properties that I assume would qualify are the Brown Palace Hotel, Denver; Oxford Hotel, Denver; The Broadmoor, Colorado Springs; the Hotel Boulderado, Boulder, and the Wort Hotel in Jackson, WY. I understand that Aspen's Hotel Jerome was a member until RockResorts took over management. If La Posada de Albuquerque manages to complete its restoration and reopen as planned this spring (or whenever), it too would seem to qualify. So would the historic lodges in Yellowstone and Glacier National Parks, though the historic ones are all seasonal.

I don't know the association's invitation policy or hotels' acceptance policies, but on the surface, they would all make sense to me.

Colorado Legislature Considering I-70 Tolls

State Senate weighs lame-brained proposal to levy a $5 toll at the Eisenhower Tunnel

Western Slopers and Front Rangers who love the mountains are opposing it. Colorado resort officials are apoplectic. But a state Senate subcommittee is reportedly keeping the nightmare of a $5 peak period toll alive.

"Senate Bill 213, by Senate Minority Leader Andy McElhany, R-Colorado Springs, passed the Senate Transportation Committee 5-2 after about two hours of heated and lopsided testimony," the Denver Post reported. Colorado Springs residents don't customarily use I-70. Their route into the mountains and western Colorado is via toll-free US 24, so of course, Senator McElhany doesn't find shoving a toll down the throats of presumably more liberal skiers and other mountain recreationists from Denver, Boulder and elsewhere on the northern Front Range who do use I-70.

"McElhany said his bill would generate hundreds of millions of dollars to pay for a solution to congestion woes on I-70. But, he said, his bill would not circumvent the existing studies on I-70 because it would not specify what the solution would be," the Post report continued.

Hundreds io millions of dollars? It would take a long, long time. Last year, 11,775,017 vehicles traveled through the Eisenhower Tunnel. At $5 per vehicle, that would have grossed less than $60 million in 2007 -- if tolls were collected 24/7 every week of the year. Peak periods only would have brought in less. Add to that the cost of building and staffing toll plazas, and it would take years for these unpopular revenues to build up.

Furthermore, fiscal idiocy aside, as anyone who has lived or driven in states with highway tolls can tell you, the backups at each toll gate 1) cause delays; 2a) cause idling/crawling vehicles to burn more fuel and 2b) therefore cause more carbon emissions; 3) and 2b will probably further stress the trees and other vegetation growing along the roadside; and 4) delay snowplow that are stuck behind winter traffic at the tolls.

With representatives like Senator McElhany looking out for the interests of Coloradans and travelers to our state, we might as well throw in the towel on mountain recreation now. What an lame-brained idea.

Federal Air Marshals MIA

Feds made big deal of air marshal program that has atrophied -- and pilot's gun goes off in flight

The US instituted a federal air marshal program in the 1970s after a spate of hijackings and said it was beefing it up after 9/11, when it made a big deal of hiring more agents who would be on board many commercial flights to protect the flying public. Now, CNN reports that only about 1 percent of daily flights have an armed federal marshal on board. The Air Marshal Service claims it is closer to 5 percent, but admits that attrition has impacted the service. The Transportation Security Agency, une which the Air Marshal Service operates, won't give actual numbers or percentages, on the gronds of those being "classified" information. Still, it is worth reading the entire CNN report just to learn how the feds are tap dancing, semantically, around the the issue. According to the CNN report, "the marshal service considers a flight 'covered' even if a marshal is not on board -- as long as a law enforcement officer or pilot in possession of a firearm is on board, even if that person is flying for personal reasons. The 'covered' designation includes pilots armed in the cockpit."

On Saturday, such cockpit coverage literally backfired. An unnamed pilot's firearm on US Airways' flight #1536 between Denver and Charlotte discharged in flight while the plane was on approach to Charlotte. News reports indicated that none of the 124 or five crew members were in danger, and no one was hurt. The circumstances were not detailed. The Transportation Security Administration is reportedly investigating how the gun discharged and where the bullet hit. How reassuring!

Frankly, I don't know whether any air marshal ever deterred any incident, or whether it is just another example of government ineptitude masquerading as protecting the traveling public.

Paying Homage to Ancient Trees

World's oldest tree on record -- or oldest trees, "on record" or not?

Is it hair splitting or wood splintering to discuss relative ages of trees on the greater tourism trail? The Sri Lanka Tourist Board has just sent out an announcement that the country's Ministry of Tourism has purchased a non-polluting, four-passenger electric vehicle to carry old (or otherwise mobility-challenged) visitors to a very old tree. They believe the Sri Mahabodhi tree in sacred Anuradhapura to be the world's oldest recorded tree. The revered Bo tree (top right) is more than 2,500 years old.

That may be, but it's only because no one was around at high elevations to record the time when today's bristlecone pines were seedlings. Even today, they are remote and often difficult to reach. Small colonies of this rugged, thick-trunked pine species that sometimes resembles banzai on steroids grow between about 10,000 and 11,000 feet in six Western states: Colorado, Utah, New Mexico, Arizona, California and Nevada (a Great Basin bristlecone is shown, lower right).

Donald R. Currey, then a doctoral student of the University of North Carolina, merits a footnote to the history of seriously misguided endeavors. In 1964, he was taking core samples of bristlecones, including a huge, gnarled specimen named Prometheus. It was so solid a tree that he kept breaking his coring tool broke. He asked for and shockingly, received permission from the U.S. Forest Service to cut the tree down to determine its age. In a spectacularly example of bone-headed bureaucracy, the Forest Service granted permission to cut it down, earning Currey the distinction of having killed the oldest known living thing on the planet. Forty-four years ago, 4,844 rings were counted. A website devoted to bristlecones refers to Prometheus as "The Martyred One."

Currently, the oldest acknowledged bristlecone pine, nicknamed Methuselah, is still growing in the Ancient Bristlecone Pine Forest in eastern California's White Mountains. Either it's not as tough a tree as Prometheus was or core sampling tools have improved, but it has been dated by dendochronology, the science of counting tree rings, to be 4,789 years old. The Forest Service has learned something in more than 40 decades and will not reveal Methuselah's exact position in the bristlecone grove in order to protect it from a latter-day Currey who wants to break the record.

The road to the Ancient Bristlecone Pine Forest Visitor Center is about an hour from Bishop, CA, and is generally open from May through October. These ancient trees are concentrated in two groves, the Schulman Grove and the Patriarch Grove.

In addition to groves that require something of a hike, I know of three fairly easily reachable bristlecone groves in Colorado:

• The most straightforward is the Mt. Evans Scenic Highway, not far from Idaho Springs, which provides access to a bristlecone grove between Mt. Evans and Mt. Goliath. The road is generally plowed out by Memorial Day and remains open until October.
• Bristlecones also inhabit the picturesque lake-filled cirque at the foot of St. Mary's Glacier, north of Interstate 70's Fall River Road exit (Exit 238). Local residents of surrounding subdivisions are fiercely protective of their private property, and permitted parking is extremely limited.
• The Windy Ridge Bristlecone Scenic Area is about four miles from Alma, which in turn is along Colorado 9 south of Breckenridge. Reaching the parking area for the bristlecone grove requires driving an unpaved road and fording a small steam. It is usually drivable by May, but with this winter's heavy snows, who knows?

Aloha Airlines Files for Chapter 11

Hawaiian inter-island fare wares hurt Aloha

When Go!, a subsidiary of Phoenix-based Mesa Airlines, entered the Hawaiian inter-island market in late 2006, it set off a fare war that pleased passengers but hit Aloha Airlines so hard that is now in bankruptcy -- again. The situation resembled Hawaii's version of the biggest loser. In January, upstart Go! reported a $20 million operating loss in its first 16 months of operations, while Aloha and its major traditional competitor, Hawaiian Airlines, reported combined losses of nearly $65 million since go! took to the Hawaiian skies. Aloha had previously operated under bankruptcy protection for 14, emerging in February 2006, and then, along came Go!. Aloha is still flying, but the future is cloudy. Stay tuned,

New Terminal at Beijing

World's largest terminal opens to serve the capital of world's most populous country -- in time for the 2008 Summer Olympics

Yesterday I reported on the new Terminal 5 at London's Heathrow Airport (LHR). Today I share the news that Terminal 3 is about to open at Beijing Capital International Airport (PEK). At 1.8 miles long and five stories high, it dwarfs Heathrow's new terminal and, in fact, by most measures is the largest building on the planet. In order to construct it, the Chinese government leveled five villages -- something the People's Republic can do with impunity. The Kingdom or Great Britain and Northern Ireland fortunately cannot simply destroy neighborhoods and villages to expand Heathrow's runway system, much as airlines and their customers would want that to happen.

Again, I write fortunately, because all of China's mind-blowing construction projects -- whether the Three Gorges Dam on the Yangtze, the railroad to Lhasa, Tibet, and now this terminal -- come at untold human cost. The villages are gone and an unknown number of villagers dispersed, and the feng shui principles reportedly used in the terminal's design that melds Eastern and Western styles didn't do them much good. Twenty-seven airlines will be at home there. The massive building -- ironically designed by British architect Norman Foster of Foster & Partners -- cost $2.8 billion, plus $4.6 billion in related infrastructure improvements. Some 50,000 workers labored to build the new terminal in less than four years (about the amount of time the British spent holding hearings and discussing their Terminal 5), ups the airport's capacity from 35 million passengers per year to 85 million. Last year, the airport actually saw nearly $48 million passengers crowding through the existing terminals, four miles from the new behemoth, with one entire concourse devoted only to charter flights. A rail link connects the airport to the city, which is a very good thing in this congested, polluted but ultimately impressive capital.

China is banking on the upcoming Olympics and projects like this impressive terminal to raise its stature in the eyes of the world. But the production tainted pet foods, questionable medicines, potentially hazardous toys and most significantly, the current brutal suppression of Tibetan protests snag the headlines from what the country hopes to accomplish.

British Airways and Qantas have already moved into the new building with four other OneWorld alliance airlines (Cathay Pacific, Dragonair, Finnair and Japan Airlines) joining them by the end of the month. In decidedly un-Communist fashion, premium passengers of these six carriers will share the luxurious OneWorld lounge, and for Cathay Pacific and Dragonair will be soon open their own lounge soon. Also moving their operations to the new terminal in the next few weeks are Air China, Shanghai Airlines and Star Alliance airlines (including United).

The new terminal appears to be visually stunning, but I do wonder whether the villagers who were dislocated in order to build it have been moved someplace from which they can see it, and if so, what they might think. It is impressive, to be sure, and it's all in the name of progress, Chinese-style, regardless of the cost to its people.

Third Micromini-Room YOTEL Opens

New concept in airport hotels - and a glossy new terminal opens soon at Heathrow

Inspired by Japan's "capsule hotels," an English group operates YOTEL facilities at London's Heathrow's Terminal 4 and at Gatwick and has a new one at Amsterdam's Schiphol. Designed for a short rest or an overnight between flights, YOTEL"rooms" are a cross between an old-fashioned railroad sleeper cabin and a first-class sleeper seat on a top international airline. All are non-smoking, are soundproofed and offer individual climate control. Guests check themselves in using a kiosk -- not unlike an ATM.

The 7-square-meter (a bit over 75 square feet) standard little rooms (right) includes everything necessary for a good rest. The large single bed (which the YOTEL people say is also "large enough for a cosy 2," spelled the British way) is outfitted with a comfortable hand-layered mattress, quality cotton percale sheets, pillows and a duvet. The bathroom includes a shower, revitalizing all-in-one-body wash, heated mirror and soft towels. A fold-out work/dining table can and stool with a complete range of power and connectivity including free WiFi and wired Internet access. The table also serves for unpacking space, and there is overhead hand luggage stowage, suit-bag hanging and storage areas for small pieces. Flat-screen TV was model for tiny spaces. In standard accommodations, it is a 20-incher with a choice of films, TV, radio and games and Internet. Food is available 24 hours a day. Guests can order from an on-screen menu or visit the galley. The premium cabin features a double bed that converts into a couch at the push of a button, additional storage space, a 23-inch television and an overhead rain shower in the bathroom area. Rates begin at £25 per stay.

Heathrow's Terminal 5 Soon to Open

More news from Heathrow is that Terminal 5 (left) is about to open. The enormous, $8.5 billion terminal was first proposed in 1993. Construction alone took more than seven years. Highly touted features include acres if marble and hardwood floors, panoramic windows (the better to see the fog?), luxurious lounges for first- and business-class passengers worthy of a five-star hotel, some 112 shops including predictable top-shelf and an abundance of restaurants galore, including celeb chef Gordon Ramsey's Plane Food.

Airport authorities say that some 92 percent of all passengers will be switching to Terminal 5 built for British Airways. T5, as the new terminal is nicknamed, is impressively intermodal, with a London Underground station for the Piccadilly line, buses, the Heathrow Express train to and from Paddington station, and a new spur road with direct access to and from the M-25 motorway. With only two main runways no room for more, however, Heathrow may continue to experience epic delays, but at least they will be less uncomfortable while passengers are waiting to board their aircraft.

United to Sell Some 737 Aircraft

Sale of planes could change mix at Denver International Airport

United Airlines has announced that it is putting the "for sale" sign on 15 to 20 older 737-500 aircraft and cutting back its flight schedule to save on fuel costs and to address an uncertain economy. United has been Denver International Airport's largest carrier since it opened, initially providing more than 70 percent of the lift from the then-new airport. Since then Denver-based Frontier Airlines has steadily expanded its route system, and Southwest Airlines has been adding flights as well. (Other smaller carriers have come and gone in the Denver market since the airport opened.)

United is continuing to cut its domestic flight schedule at DIA and other airports, and expects its capacity at DIA to to drop below 50 percent for the first time. United is not the only carrier to reduce its fleet. Frontier Airlines is selling four airplanes and and is prepared to slow its growth to 3-5 percent in the next year.

In addition to cutting its schedules and selling off about 4 percent of its fleet, assuming a buyer can be found, United has been generating revenues by such tactics as charging passengers for each second checked bag -- an unpopular move with its customers.

If other carriers continue to see Denver as vibrant air market and come in to fill the void created by United's changes in operations, Chicago-based United might no longer be the 900-pound gorilla at DIA.

Frontier to Sell Inflight Food

Another carrier following the PEOPLEexpress a la carte model of the '80s

Following the lead of other US carriers, Denver-based Frontier Airlines plans to begin buy-on-board food on May 1. Inflight food sales in the economy cabins of domestic carriers began in 2003 and have steadily increased as the airline business model has shifted from inclusive pricing to an a la carte approach for services. Items range from $2 to $10. United, which hubs in Denver, sells $5 snack boxes on some of its longer flights.

Interestingly, this harkens back to PEOPLExpress, an innovative East Coast carrier founded 1981 that soared, expanded rapidly and was folded into Continental in 1987. In this country, "PExp" pioneered low pay-on-board fares, plus such newly rediscovered a la carte services as $3 per checked bag and food and beverage sales on board. soda, honey-roasted peanuts or Rachel's brownies were 50 cents and a "Snak-Pak" with crackers, cheese and salami sold for $2. PEOPLExpress viewed itself as a transportation provider like a bus line or train, rather than some kind of luxury experience. Now, most domestic airlines no longer provide the trappings of luxury (like food) to any but front-cabin flyers, but aren't exactly bargains either, especially when add-ons are figured in.

Welcoming B&B Hotel in Durango

Charm, antiques and a warm welcome at the Rochester Hotel and Leland House B&B

My husband and I recently returned from a long weekend in Durango, enjoying the warmth and hospitality of the Rochester Hotel and Leland House. These two properties are located across the street from one another just a block east of Main Street in the historic heart of town. My son moved to Durango to attend Fort Lewis College, and he has now lived there for nearly six-and-a-half years. Over that time, I've spent a number of nights there -- sometimes by myself, sometimes with my husband. I've stayed in mom-and-pop motels and motor inns affiliated with national chains. There was never one I cared for enough to make a point of going back to.

Not until I stayed at the Rochester Hotel and Leland House, that is. After just a couple of stays, it feels like home. Here are some of the things I love about it (and I write "it" rather than "them" because the two buildings are under the same ownership and operate as one unit). I love the history. The Rochester Hotel was built in 1892 and has been lovingly restored by Diane Wildfang and her son, Kirk Komick. I love their green practices. I love the large, antique-filled rooms, with no two even remotely alike. I love the movie posters and art lining the corridors. I love all the Western memorabilia in the public spaces. I love the from-scratch breakfasts -- juice, a self-serve fruit/pastry/cereal bar, a different hot entree every morning, and either coffee or a selections of quality black and herb teas. I love the three glass jars of house-baked cookies and tea set out every afternoon. I love the free WiFi in every room. I love the fact that when I return, I am welcomed like a long-time friend.

In terms of room rates, winter is considered to last through the end of April. Through May 14, book online or call and mention a special discount posted on the hotel's website to reap a 20 per cent discount off rack rates. In winter, these rates are $119-$159 per room (king suite, $189), double occupancy. High-season rates are $159-$209 per room (king suite, $259). I consider these to be a very good value for the location, the ambiance, the good breakfasts and those tasty afternoon treats.

The mailing address for both the Rochester Hotel and Leland House B&B is 726 Second Avenue, Durango 81301; 800-664-1920 and 970-385-1920·

Air Fares Rise Again

Why? High fuel prices -- and because airlines can.

United raised its domestic air fares by as much as $50 per roundtrip, which Continental quickly matched. Some travelers may be persuaded to book with these or other carriers instead of low-fare Southwest, which found "an ambiguity" in some of its maintenance records related to required testing. The carrier took 38 Boeing 737 aircaft out of service while it addressed the issue. One plane with a questionable maintenance record had previously been retired, while five were undergoing regular, scheduled maintenance when the "ambiguity" came to light.

Upbeat Report from Grand Canyon Flood

Flooding beneficial but probably won't be repeated until 2012.

The recent artifical flood unleashed earlier this month via a three-day water release from the Glen Canyon Dam that I blogged about earlier this month appears to have been successful -- better that the two previous floods that, at the time, were also reported to have been successful in rebuilding sandbars for wildlife habitat and also as beaches were rafters could camp.

According to a widely published Associated Press report, Grand Canyon National Park superintendent, upon returning from a five-day trip down the recontoured Colorado River flowing through canyon floor, told reporters, ""On a couple of big sandbars there were already beaver tracks, bighorn sheep tracks. You could see the animals already exploring new aspects of the old canyon....It changes the feeling of the canyon as you see the sediment along the shoreline from a feeling of increased sterility to one of a greater amount of vibrance. The benefits are substantial."

This is a contrast to similar manmade floods in 1996 and in 2004, which, according to the AP report, "actually resulted in a net reduction in overall sandbar size because they were conducted when the Colorado River was relatively sand-depleted, according to the U.S. Geological Survey. Officials believe this year's flood will be beneficial because sand levels in the river are at a 10-year high and are three times greater than 2004 levels. Whatever benefits come from this year's flood, however, will be eroded within 18 months without additional floods every year to 18 months depending on the amount of sediment available, Martin said. In its environmental assessment on Glen Canyon Dam releases, the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation calls for no other high-flow releases until after 2012."

So now that the authorities have figured out when and how to do it, there's another example of a foot-dragging federal government that now predicts that this year's benefits could well be gone within 18 months but is planning to wait another four years before unleashing another flood.

Jackson Hole's "Tram-Formation" Website

Jackson Hole documents the replacement of its old tram with a new one.


If you ever skied Jackson Hole, you know the old aerial tram, installed when the resort opened in the winter of 1965-66, to be one of the icons of American skiing. For most of its four-decade existence, until it was taken out of service at the end of the 2005-06 ski season, it provided the only access to the top of one of the country's most formidable ski mountains.

Every 12 minutes, only 45 skiers would disembark on the summit of Rendezvous Peak, the country's largest single ski mountain, disperse in small clusters and begin skiing down 4,019 vertical feet of unsurpassed challenge, often through deep powder snow. For locals, it was routine. For first-time visitors, that first run down Rendezvous was often a defining experience.

In summer, the tram ferried camera-toting tourists who oohed and aahed and shutter-clicked in response to the jaw-dropping Teton views from the top and then rode back down. Ironically, those summer tram operations were bigger revenue generators for the Jackson Hole Ski Corp. than skiers who did laps, hoping to arrive at the tram dock when there wasn't much of a wait.

When the resort decided to replace the venerable old "red box" tram, they considered various options, finally settling on a sleek state-of-the-art tram that is larger (100 passengers), faster (nine minutes) and features larger windows than the old one. Of course, it had to be red.

The new tram is due to be operational in December 2008, and Jackson Hole has launched a dedicated website to allow people to follow the resort's "tramformation." The process is bittersweet, as such replacements of treasured old things with better new ones always are. The website depicts the project in videos, still images and words. Some particularly poignant shots show the faithful old tram ferrying construction materials to the summit for the new upper terminal -- rather like a doomed prisoner carrying rope to his own hanging.

Visit the site, wallow in nostalgia for the old tram and look ahead to the new, which will begin service this coming ski season. Perhaps, four decades from now, snowsports-lovers will be nostalgic for the "vintage" 2008 tram too.

Durango, CO: Travel Writers' Crossroads

I am on Christopher Elliott's weekly E-mail list and regularly check his travel site, Elliott.org. Imagine my surprise when his Monday message was headlined, "Hello from Colorado! -- Elliott's E-Mail/March 11, 2008," and when the message began with:

"FIRST Random thoughts about the week in travel

"Hello from Colorado! This week's newsletter comes to you from the
southwestern corner of Colorado, where I'm on assignment for Skisnowboard.com.
You can see pictures of Purgatory (the ski resort, not the place of temporal
punishment) and later this week, read more about this must-see part of the
country. Plus, I've got updates on the illegal cruise surcharges, a column on
the greening of travel, and a brand new troubleshooter."

It so happens that I am in Durango right now too, doing a food story. I shot him an E-mail, he responded right away, so we cell-phoned each other. I managed to catch him at the tail end of his breakfast at Carver's Bakery & Cafe. We traded travel writer-isms for 15 or 20 minutes before he went off to Mesa Verde National Park and I started the process of packing up to go home to Boulder.

With communications what they are, ships like us don't simply pass unknown and unseen anymore.

Four Big Anniversaries in One Swiss Resort

Two Olympics, one storied hotel and one terrific museum celebrate decade-iversaries in '08.

St. Moritz, Switzerland, hosted the second Olympic Winter Games in 1928 and the first post-war Olympics 20 years later, which by my impeccable calculations, marks this as the 80th and 60th anniversaries respectively. Alpine skiing was not on the '28 Olympic calendar, but cross-country skiing, ski jumping, bobsledding and figure skating were prime winter sports. Norway's Sonja Henie won the first of her three Olympic gold medals on St. Moritz ice, the only figure skater to have won gold three times. Twenty years later, Dick Button won the first of his two consecutive Olympic gold medals in St. Moritz, becoming (and remaining) the youngest male skater to win the Olympics. On the slopes above, Gretchen Fraser of Sun Valley, ID, became the first American skier to win an Olympic gold medal. The resort has since hosted scores of international competitions, including the 2003 World Alpine Ski Championships and is bidding to host the 2013 Championships too.

The year 2008 also marks 150 the 150th anniversary of Johannes Badrutt's purchase of a small summer guestshouse called the Pension Faller, which he eventally turned into the Hotel Engadiner Kulm. He is called the father of Swiss winter tourism, because in 1864, he challenged four British guess to return at Christmas. Badrutt is the marquis name 0n the fabled Bradrutt's Palace, but that's another Badrutt (Casper), another story and another anniversary.

Aficionados of the works of painter Giovanni Segantini, who spent the last five years of his life in the Engadine, will celebrate the centennial of the Sergantini Museum this winter and the sesquicentennial of the painter's birth. Born in 1858 in the province of Trentino, Italy, he is known for his ability to capture to mountains in all their luminosity.

Best Cities in America? T&L Launches Survey

Travel & Leisure magazine launches second annual "best city" survey. Cast your vote

Dave Letterman doesn't have a monopoly on "top ten lists." Magazines trip over themselves in compiling issues devoted to the "top ten" this and "ten best" that. Advertising sales staffs love them, as do the promotion people, who send out press releases that get their publications mentioned in newspapers and on TV. Bloggers and on-line discussion boards are awash with comments from people who agree or disagree with the selections.

Top hotels. Top spas. Top ski or golf resorts. Top restaurant's. Top beaches. Top for families. I understand why publications do them, and I don't take them seriously, but they are fun to read. You might enjoy them too, especially if you live someplace that regularly appears on such lists and want to see where your town ranks. Boulder, CO, where I live seems to be on every list for fittest cities, best cities for walkers or cyclists or rock climbers, best scenery, most environmentally conscious, etc.

Whatever the theme, there are two ways magazines go about making their selections. One is for editors to compile a list and assign writers to describe them -- glowingly, of course. The other is a reader survey. Frankly, I think editors' selection is "fairer" -- if there is such a thing as fair in this ad-driven effort. I think back of my days as a contributing travel editor of Skiing magazine. We all had skied many more places than most readers. If, for instance, a reader had a season pass to, say, Killington or Winter Park or Heavenly Valley, that naturally became his/her favorite. Most Westerners had never skied the East, and neither Easterners nor Westerners tend to ski the Midwest.

I do enjoy voting and picking things though, so I fill out reader surveys -- except Conde Nast Traveler's, which I consider too long, too boring, too time-consuming and also too pointless, because the same hotels, restaurants, spas, cities, etc. appear in the magazine. year after year. And in my opinion, the printed result is fairly dull too. Frankly, I just skim it.

Travel & Leisure's methodology is a hybrid. The editors make the initial selection of cities, and they, readers get to participate in online survey. The 2008 survey is open for voting now. The editors have pre-selected 25 cities -- alphabetically from Atlanta to Washington, DC, and geographically from Boston to Honolulu. Houstonians are going to be annoyed because while Austin, Dallas/Fort Worth and San Antonio are on the list, Houston is not.)

To see the results of the 2007, click here. To participate in the 2008 survey, click on one city at a time -- theoretically ones you are familiar with -- and rate it on a 1 to 5 (or no opinion) on eight thematic screens (Culture, People, Food & Dining, Nightlife, Shopping, Quality of Life/Visitor Experience, Type of Trip, Holiday Experience). You have until June 15 to participate. Ironically, the grand prize in the optional sweepstakes for those who have completed the survey is a trip to Australia.

Feds Unleash Artificial Flood in Grand Canyon

Huge release from Glen Canyon Dam to refresh downstream ecosystem.

The Grand Canyon is 277 miles long and up to one mile deep, yet most of the million annual visitors to Grand Canyon National Park do not stray below the rim and never even see the Colorado River that, for 6 million years, has carved it. Right now, a dramatic artificial flood is occurring in the canyon that in addition to helping restore the ecosystem, will change the beaches where rafters camp on their multi-day river trips.

Today, federal agencies literally opened the the dam's gigantic bypass tubes on the Glen Canyon Dam of the Colorado River (for photos, click here and here). The release helps restore the ecosystem of Grand Canyon, just downstream, as 300,000 gallons of water per second pour out of Lake Powell. This periodic flood (previously unleashed in 1996 and 2004) is intended to reproduce the results natural spring floods that occurred before the dam was built in 1963.

The Colorado used to be a warm, muddy river whose natural annual floods built up sandbars that are essential to native plant and fish species. Since the construction of the dam, the river has become cooler and clearer, which is more aesthetically pleasing but not natural to the river. Since the dam was built, fish species have become extinct and and two others, including the endangered humpback chub, are nearing extinction.

During this week's three-day flood, water flows in the Grand Canyon are expected to increase to 41,000 cubic feet per second, which is four to five times the regular release from the dam. Scientists are monitoring the results of the induced flood, including habitat changes that will hopefully protect rare native species. The release from the dam is intended to mimic the natural floods that once flushed and rebuilt the narrow sand beaches along the river on the canyon floor.

The two earlier floods demonstrated the importance of sand and sediment in maintaining a semblance of the Grand Canyon's ecosysten. With the dam now trapping most of the sediment that once coursed down the river, beaches and habitats eroded, even as the Paria and Little Colorado Rivers, which join the Colorado below the dam, continue to carry sediment into the Colorado. The current flood is scouring and reshaping miles of sandy banks and beaches, and scientists and environmentalists will monitor what happens when floodgates are closed dam and flood waters recede. They have already found that the endangered chub has recovered some of its lost numbers since the last flood, and they hope that they are learning when to trigger future floods.

The feds say that they are improving the health of the Grand Canyon and are formulating long-term plans to offset the effects of the dam on the river and the Grand Canyon. "Our ultimate purpose is to learn whether or not this is a viable strategy for creating sandbars and habitats for native fish," John Hamill, chief of the Grand Canyon Monitoring and Research Center, part of the U.S. Geological Survey, was quoted as saying.

Environmental activists believe that the feds' on-and-off flooding operations delay those long- term policy changes and thereby jeopardizing the canyon's health. Environmentalist want the dam's operation to be altered permanently to better mimic nature's cycle rather than instead of repeating the same artificial flooding every few years.

I have been down to the river twice, once step-by-step on a four-day backpacking trip and once one paddle stroke at a time on river trip. Both were in late September. We backpacked from the South Rim descending on the South Kaibab Trail, crossed the river at Phantom Ranch, climbed up the North Rim, came back down, crossed the river gain and hiked up to the South Rim on the Bright Angel Trail. Some years later, we did a river trip on the Lower Canyon that began with a 7 1/2-mile hike down Bright Angel Trail to meet our raft outfitter at Pipe Creek (river mile 89) and rafted to (mile 225). I'm grateful to have not just looked down into the canyon from the rim or flown over it in a helicopter but experienced it up close and personal, to me always the best way to travel.

Route 66's Detour to Colorado

Charming and nostalgic exhibition of America's "mother road" closing soon at Longmont Museum.

"Return to Route 66" ends its three-year national tour at the Longmont Museum & Cultural Center on March 9. The show features black-and-white and color photographs by Shellee Graham, who lives not far from the storied highway that linked the Midwest, the Plains, the Southwest and southern California. Graham photographed iconic motels, drive-in theaters, gas stations, roadside attractions, cafes and other eateries and, of course, the people who ran them. Some still exist, most in a state of decay, and some are gone completely. The show also includes four vintage automobiles, a Texaco gas station display (with the price at the pump permanently set at 24.9 cents a gallon), a pyramid of oil cans, chrome hood ornaments, postcards, maps and more memorabilia.

Graham lives in Missouri, so many of her images are from there and from Illinois. I remember a long-ago trip from Connecticut, where I grew up, to Albuquerque that included many miles on Route 66. Other than crossing the Mississippi, virtually nothing stuck in my mind from Illinois or Missouri, though surely we stopped to refuel in the kinds of places Graham documented. All I remember about Oklahoma and the Texas panhandle was the occasional sign saying "Stuckey's 90 Miles" or some similarly imposing distance, at the end of which was a pecan log roll. The brilliant neon lights of Amarillo, which we reached at sunset, and Tucumcari, which we passed through late at night, are etched in my memory more enduringly than the Art Deco and funky, folksy businesses they promoted.

But for the rest of what I value now that I'm an adult and increasingly dismayed by the chains that dominate the landscape, I was then too young and too ignorant to appreciate what I saw along Route 66. Oh, how I longed for Howard Johnson's, with its familiar fried clams and 28 ice cream flavors. I missed New England, with towns that were just a few minutes apart not many miles apart. I wan't used to driving for what seemed like hours between places to stop. I had no sense of the the importance of those vast, flat stretches, knew nothing of the Dust Bowl except for its name and couldn't really understand why the road had been so important in American migration.

Now, whenever my husband and I take an east-west road trip in New Mexico or Arizona, we always escape from Interstate 40 to explore what remains of the old Route 66. Grants, Gallup, Holbrook, Winslow, Flagstaff, Williams and Seligman are my particular favorites, and these towns have worked to resurrect their Route 66 heritage.

It serves as downtown Albuquerque's main drag, but in smaller towns, remaining landmarks have proved to be enduring attractions along the way. In fact, Route 66 is the destination and not the detour for many travelers, including many Europeans, who seek out Historic Route 66, as its remaining sections are now signed.

For an armchair road trip, get Graham's evocative book, Tales from the Coral Court: Photos and Stories from a Lost Route 66 Landmark. For a real trip along the proud old road, I recommend the Route 66 Traveler's Guide and Roadside Companion by Tom Snyder, one of numerous guidebooks. Historic Route 66, dedicated to providing information to travelers, maintains a current list of useful books.

Admission to the Longmont Museum is free (donations welcome). It is located at 400 Quail Road, Longmont (just east of Main Street and south of downtown and Ken Pratt Boulevard); 303-651-8374.

Glaciers Up Close and Personal

Article about Argentina's Perito Moreno Glacier stirs up my own memories of a hike down Switerland's Great Aletsch Glacier (left).


"A Touch of the Arctic in Argentina, " a front-page feature about an Argentine glacier in today's Denver Post (originally published in Newsday), set off a torrent of memories. The headline writer's cavalier use of the word "Arctic" to describe the Magellanic region of Patagonia, a whole lot closer to the Antarctic than the Arctic zone, notwithstanding, I was taken by writer Ann Givens' tale of being stranded (air traffic control issues with domestic flights) in inland town of El Calafate. It is located near Lago Argentino, an enormous lake at the Argentine-Chilean border fed by Andean snow and ice, and Givens and her husband made the most of the situation by visiting Perito Moreno Glacier.

Givens wrote, "There are glaciers all over the world, of course, ranging from Africa to New Zealand. But there are a few things that make the Moreno glacier unique, as we learned from our English-speaking tour guide. The first is its accessibility: You can get to it by car, without hiking for miles through ice and snow or traveling for days on an ice-breaking boat. Second, the Moreno Glacier is dynamic, meaning that it is constantly forming at one end, while it is breaking off into the water at the other at the same rate."

Regarding her first point, Perito Moreno is far from unique. Numerous compelling glaciers are easy to reach. Just think about Juneau, Alaska's drive-to Mendenhall Glacier and fly-to Juneau Icefield, the Columbia Icefield right off the route between Banff and Jasper, and numerous Alpine glaciers that you can reach by cable car from a resort town in the valley below are among those that come to mind. Ice breaking boat? Some but not even most Antarctic trips are by icebreaker, but otherwise, visitors can get close to numerous tidewater glaciers there and elsewhere on everything from a cruise ship to a Zodiac. Mountain glaciers like Perito Moreno are reached in other and often easy ways.

Regarding her second point, at the present time, Perito Moreno not unique either, but it is definitely unusual. It is one of only three Patagonian glaciers that is not retreating, which also makes it a worthy pilgrimage site. In any event, Grimes' description of their two-hour guided hike on the glacier captured her thrill.

"We were each outfitted with crampons, cleats for climbing on ice and
snow," she wrote. "From the inside, the glacier's terrain is beautiful: icy
hills and valleys, separated by deep crevasses and tiny streams of bright blue
water formed by newly melted ice. The walking wasn't easy, and our guides were
there to help us over some frighteningly deep canyons, and down some steep
grades. People who had been smart enough to bring water bottles filled them up
in the glacial streams, and the rest of us sucked on small chunks of
million-year-old ice, a surprisingly delicious treat, which we were assured was
perfectly safe.

"After a couple of hours, we came over a peak and saw our guides ahead of
us, standing around a table that had been set up on the ice. On the table was a
glass of scotch for each of us, each with a chunk of glacier ice in it, and a
bowl full of chocolate truffles. Standing on a glacier near the southern tip of
Argentina, it seemed to me a delicious indulgence. My husband and I beamed at
each other and clinked our glasses."

It might seem like quibbling on my part to note that one doesn't hike "inside" a glacier, but rather "on" a glacier. Only in Alpine resorts where man-made caves are carved into the heads of large glaciers does one actually enter inside one. A glacial maze, if indeed the group was led through one, might feel like being inside the ice. But maybe that's just envious me writing, because I too would like to see this rare glacier that is not shrinking even when those around it are.

Chilling drinks with glacial ice is a popular feature following a tourist experience to or near various glaciers, it seems especially in South America. I enjoyed a pisco sour on a sightseeing boat called the "Lady Grey II" that motors to the foot of the Grey Glacier in Chile's Torres del Paine National Park, close as the condor flies to the Perito Moreno Glacier. It is also an easy-access glacier. You can drive to the Hosteria Grey and board a boat to the foot of the glacier that feeds the lake.

Switzerland's Great Aletsch Glacier: One Great Hike

Of the several glacier experiences I've had -- Antarctica, South America, Alaska, the Alps and even on the top of Mt Kilimanjaro in Africa -- the most epic glacier by far was a hike down Switzerland's Great Aletsch Glacier 2004. We rode the train from Kleine Scheidegg through the Eiger to a saddle called the Jungfraujoch, with its mammoth structure holding the train station, numerous restaurants, viewing platforms, a humongous gift shop and an observatory.

From there, we walked through a short tunnel and stepped onto the glacier. With veteran guide Bernhard Stuckey, we roped up and hiked more than 10 miles (of the the glacier's approximate 14 1/2-mile length) with an overnight at the Konkordia Hut perched high on a cliff above the shrinking glacier. The "hut" is not an Appalachian Mountain Club-style lean-to but a substantial stone structure built to house, shelter and feed hikers, touring skiers and climbers. You can see it poking out above the sloping rock shoulder of the cliff in the bottom photo, which was taken from the surface of the glacier.

We climbed up a series of ladders and zigzagging metal steps bolted into the rock from the glacier to but. The view from the terrace next to the hut was beyond breathtaking. Below was the vast Great Aletsch Glacier, a UNESCO Natural World Heritage Site. We looked right down at the Konkordia Platz, an amazing confluence of the glacier we hiked down and side glaciers that meet right there. It is surrealistic to gaze at his scene of rock-rimmed, ice-filled valleys where human evidences seem very far away -- even though we had left the Jungfraujoch just a few hours earlier and though the hutkeepers were just inside, preparing hot meals and pouring wine and beer for hungry, thirsty trekkers.

While the glacier surface at the beginning of our route was covered soft snow that became mushy in the afternoon snow and did not require crampons, as we approached the hut (two bottom images) the snow began to give over to crust. The second day, we were on ice, and we did need crampons. When we left the hut, we descended to the crenelated surface of the glacier, put on our crampons and kept on hiking. The farther down we went, the rougher the glacier surface and the more crevasses we encountered. We left the glacier and climbed up big rocky surface, unbuckled our crampons and followed a long trail through alpine meadows to the village of Bettmeralp.

Whenever I read about hiking on glaciers, standing on glaciers, looking at glaciers or making a drink with glacial ice, I want to be there too. So thanks, Ann Givens, for sharing your experience and resurrecting memories of some of my own.

Shift to Natural and Organic Cafeteria Fare at All Vail Resorts

Mountain eateries use organic and natural ingredients for tasty meals.

Yesterday, five of us enjoyed a glorious day of snow and sunshine at Keystone, stopping for lunch at the self-service restaurant in The Outpost, the summit lodge atop North Peak. Like many ski area cafeterias, it is designed on as "scramble system" facility, meaning that specialized food stations are ranged around the room instead of one line, so that people can go straight for what they want to eat without sliding a tray along an entire stainless-steel track from soup to cashier.

Since the Pacific Rim station was closed (as it had been a week earlier), my second choice was the salad bar. Choice of ingredients. Choice of dressings. Easy. My husband got a chicken Caesar salad, curiously, from the pizza and pasta station rather than from the salad area. Cathy dug into the chili, which she had really enjoyed when she, I and another friend skied at Keystone last week. Glenn had an individual pizza with its crust jauntily turned up at the rim. Shelley ordered a Coleman Ranch burger on a Kaiser roll. The fries must have been good too, because while she says that she "never" eats fries, she are all of those. In fact, all five of us joined the clean-plate club yesterday.

Going way back to its early days as an independently owned ski resort, and continuing through its time as a Ralston-Purina subsidiary and as part of mammoth Vail Resorts Inc., Keystone has been ahead of the food curve. Even just about every ski area in the country, large or small, was putting out commercially canned soups, institutional burgers on cold buns, greasy fries, white-bread sandwiches in cellophane wraps and other uninspired cafeteria foods, Keystone hired chefs to develop recipes and made a real effort present better lunch choices.

Keystone and its four sister resorts are well into the Appetite for Life program, announced at the beginning of the 2007-08 ski season. Vail Resorts, Inc., has shifted natural, hormone-free meats and poultry. This means they are buying such brands as Coleman Natural Foods meats and Horizon certified organic dairy products for all 40 on-mountain restaurants all five mountain resorts (Beaver Creek, Breckenridge and Vail, all here in Colorado, and Heavenly, CA) this season. The choice of Coleman and Horizon is also part of the company's Good Food Partnership with Colorado-based purveyors. This has become the largest program to serve natural meats and organic dairy products in the travel industry.

The first step at the very beginning of the ski season was to introduce Coleman hormone-free natural beef patties, chicken breasts, breaded chicken breasts, chicken nuggets, beef franks, bacon, roast beef, oven-roasted turkey breast and Black Forest ham and Horizon organic chocolate milk, 2 percent milk, strawberry milk and mixed berry yogurt. Next came hormone-free natural ground beef, chicken wings, honey maple ham, smoked turkey breast, pork stew and natural beef brisket to its on-mountain restaurant options, as well as resort-specific offerings such as St. Louis-style beef brisket. Organic butter, cottage cheese, several flavors of creamers, plain and flavored yogurts, more types of milk, sour cream, soy plain and vanilla milk, heavy whipping cream, half and half and whipped cream. By the busy Christmas-New Year holidays, Keystone and the rest were making on-mountain meals with such organic cheeses as cheddar jack, Monterey jack, mozzarella, blended pizza cheese, sharp cheddar and pepper jack.

I usually write about food in general and food I've cooked or eaten on my Culinary Colorado blog, but since everybody who skis -- whether day-trippers as we were or vacationers -- needs to stop for lunch, this seems like an appropriate site for the topic of on-mountain fare.