The holidays are upon us and even on the ski slopes that means you expect a little more hustle and bustle.

So I was pleasantly surprised today when I finally hit the slopes. It was about 1:30 in the afternoon, and the upper parking lot was full.

The sun was shining and all day I’d been hearing about how good the skiing was, both on and off-trail.

Naturally, I was expecting so see a lot of people on the runs and to have to pick my route carefully if I wanted to avoid the crowds.

You’d think you’d have to sneak out of bounds to find an empty run…or find some obscure little goat trail that’s only a few feet long.

So imagine my surprise when I took the entire first pitch of 45th parallel…without seeing a soul!

I stopped to snap a couple photos, even answer a phone call, and still, no one. Just me. One of our longest, most popular runs, all to myself!

That’s not unusual on a weekday when kids are in school and grown up people aren’t out on vacation. But during a holiday? This couldn’t last, right?

My lucky streak continued down the middle stretch of the run…and all the way to the bottom. I didn’t have to share this slope with a single person the entire run. I LOVE that feeling!

It’s not like there aren’t people here. There were several families exploring the runs on the Bear Chair when I passed by.

But somehow, the crowds of people had parted and left me alone for that one, delightfully quiet run. I thought it must be a fluke. At least until I started off at the top of Main Street.

I’m not even kidding.

No one next to me, no one behind me.

A couple people WAY down there, but not the kind of holiday crowds you expect to have to ‘navigate’ around. And don’t think for a minute that the slopes had emptied because the snow was bad.

The groomed runs were smooth and easy to carve…hero corduroy to start, and still super forgiving by afternoon.

I know this double-whammy of good fortune is unlikely during winter break, but it’s nice to know that even during the holiday periods, there is a place where you can find some peace and quiet on the slopes. And some darn good skiing, too.

– April