Storms (and closed ski resorts and how to use a truck to shuttle 6 people)

It feels odd to post this now that it's about 70 degrees in Denver and almost 50 here. The snow is slowly (or quickly in places) melting. We were waiting to post this story until we received some photos from the characters you'll read about later, but since The Storm was now a month ago, we will just post this and show photos later...

So in Michigan there are plenty of snowstorms. White outs are not unheard of, and a few feet of snow just means better snowball fights. We figured things would be similar here. Well a few Fridays ago, we had a hoot-a-nanny (can I pretend that's really a word?) of a storm roll through here. This is a little late in coming because we were waiting on some photos from some new-found friends from Kansas (you'll read about them soon), but on February 16, Winter Park and surrounding area experienced a real-live blizzard, including car-wrecks, closed roads, shut-down mountain passes, and the first-ever closing of the resort due to wind (that everyone we know can remember).

Read the rest...
I think the day really began with the night before. Our roommate had some friends visiting, and due to the weather, they didn't make it in until around 3am. They were up until around 5 getting settled in. Fine, except that we had to be up at 6am for work! So we grumbled our way through the unusually-windy drive to the shuttle, talking about calling in sick. We should have.

The morning started as usual, with Josh having 5 and 6 year olds while I had 3 and 4 year olds. Since I got Level 1's (beginners), we spent some of the morning inside learning how to walk in our boots and skis. Then we went outside to try out the mountain. They lasted 15 minutes. I think each kid made it down once before falling over in the wind and complaining of cold cheeks and fingers. I didn't blame them- it was cold! I had never experienced winds like that while still at the bottom of the ski slopes. We went in early for lunch, where I saw Josh. I heard from the other instructors that many of the lifts had been closed due to high winds and that some trees had even fallen on the Zephyr lift. I also heard that they had closed the pass (the only road up from Denver). Apparently the resort was experiencing 65-70 mph winds!
Just as I was thinking about braving the winds again with my kids, a rumor spread that the resort was closing. Before long, the rumor was confirmed, and suddenly our not-so-large lunch room shrank to an even not-so-larger size, as classes began coming in and not going back out. This included a special program with 120 kids bussed in from Denver. We were instructed to remain with our kids until their parents picked them up.

I was lucky- my parents came within the first half hour, just as the 3 and 4-year-olds were beginning to tire of coloring the same dinosaur and Dora pictures and just as the smell of hundreds of kids who just ate lunch was growing stronger. The parents of Josh's kids didn't come for another two hours. Not that it mattered- I quickly learned that not only was the pass closed, but the road out the other way to Granby was closed, too. That road doesn't go through any mountain passes, but it crosses a long, wind-swept valley. It just so happens that we live in Granby. It also just so happens that the road being closed doesn't mean you just take another road. This is the mountains-there IS no other road. Fantastic.

Eventually, those of us who lived in Granby began to gather together, discussing the rumors of a 6-car pile-up and white-outs and predictions for winds subsiding and the road re-opening. There was talk of a Red Cross shelter, cots and all, in the elementary school gym. We were given a map of how to get there. There was talk of putting us up in a room at one of the resort lodges. We were told to sit tight and wait for word. Eventually, there was talk of the police barricades coming down and an employee shuttle heading for Granby.

Finally, around 7pm, they announced we would be leaving soon. We went out to the dark green school buses that serve as shuttles, where we, living in Granby Ranch/SilverCreek, were separated from our ski school buddies who lived in Granby proper (ha-ha, if you knew of Granby, that would be a funny thought). Our bus (which happened to be a short bus) took the lead. I find the shuttle drivers very trust-worthy when it comes to driving, and this old-timer was no exception. A number of "natives" sat up front with him and reminisced about one other possible time the resort closed due to a power failure on Easter in the 80's, but you could tell we were all a bit nervous. Out the window was a sea of white. The winds were blowing drifts into the road and visibility was horrible. We passed cars in the ditch and were thankful that it was dark- at least it meant headlights were easier to see. Over the radio, our driver would joke with the other drivers to break the tension. "So just how long do you think this road will be open? How long before they realize that they opened it too soon?" they asked each other.

To distract myself, I asked the other group of younger people on the bus how they got from Granby Ranch to the resort that morning, since I didn't know of any shuttle but the employee one. They explained that they had driven over from the midwest for a week and were staying at a condo near ours. That morning, they had decided to drive to the resort and ended up as part of the pile-up we had heard about. Because they weren't hurt and emergency vehicles were in short supply (what with the road going both ways closed!), they had had to wait in their car for two hours. Eventually, a policeman took them to the resort instead of back to Granby Ranch, since the resort was closer. Unable to ski as the resort was closed, unable to rent a car as there were none to rent, and unable to drive back anyway as the road was closed, they had waited around all day until this shuttle was announced. We chatted. We tried not to look out the front window. They took photos of their totaled van as we drove by. And eventually we made it back.

End of story? Nope. Not yet!

Josh and I park our truck at the hotel at the base of Granby Ranch and drive the two miles back into the hills to our house since the shuttle goes no further than the hotel. Well, these four people had driven down the hill, only now they didn't have anything to drive them back up. So, taking charge, I walked them into the hotel to ask about the shuttle I know runs up that hill. "Not this time of night and especially not this night!" the woman told us. Hmmmm...

So... Josh and I offered our truck as a shuttle- we could fit one or two more. Unless... they would want to ride in the back?? Despite their long day, they laughed, threw their skis/boards in the bed of the truck and climbed right in with them. We left the hard top up as far as it would go and took off! We could tell they were doing alright by the camera flashes we saw coming from the bed of the truck. It must have been so cold and windy for those five minutes- we passed cars that couldn't even make it up the hill! Before we got to their condo, Josh offered to do some donuts. They declined. I don't know how they made it back to Denver where they could rent a car, much less back home, but I did get an email a few weeks later that they made it.

After that long day, we finally made it home around 8pm, only four hours later than usual and seven hours after they closed the resort. Of course, we almost didn't get in as the door was practically iced shut (see photos from the next morning and notice the beautiful blue sky!).