Breckenridge

Four days in Breckenridge, even in a low snowfall winter, is still an awesome way to spend four days. Especially when spent with a bunch of wonderful people.

Christopher was kind enough to put all of us up in his parents' condo. And by all of us, at one point there were 11 people in a one bedroom condo.

The view from the condo

I spent 2 days on the slopes. One day at Breckenridge, sticking mostly to Peaks 7,8,9. I was definitely the least experienced skier of the group. They were all good sports taking it slow in the morning and dashing off to the more challenging stuff in the afternoon. Tom stuck it out with me till I went down to the wrong ski lift (again) and skied back down to the condo on Four o'clock Run.

Then, Becca came down from Fort Collins (!!!!) Jared and I went to ski on her guest passes at Copper Mountain, about 30 mins from Breckenridge. I preferred Copper - the trails were a little wider, even if they were harder. My peak elevation during this trip was about 12,300ft.

And then... Laura came to town!! It was completely coincidental that she was out visiting her boyfriend Jim at the same time we were out. It was so great to catch up with her. Sadly, I forgot to get a picture.

Back in Breckenridge, Jared and I went snowshoeing at the Breckenridge Nordic Center while the rest of the group took off to drive around the mountain passes. Once we got off the trails closer to the Nordic center, I really enjoyed the scenery and plowing through some off-trail powder.

Skiing all day and hot tubs, cooking, and Colorado beers in the evenings. What a fantastic vacation.

Wedding in Colorado

Friends, continue to get married, I absolutely love going to weddings. The wedding of my former roommate Leigh and her new husband Joe took place in Fort Collins, where Leigh just finished her MS and Joe is working on his PhD.

First, the wedding:

Just what the meteo nerds ordered

When I told my sister Molly that I was going to Colorado for a wedding, she immediately asked if she could come. So, Molly was my date, and we worked some fun things around the wedding, including whitewater rafting on the Cache la Poudre river (or the Poudre "pooder" to the locals), the bachelorette party, breweries, and bar hopping around Fort Collins, plus dinner in Denver and hiking outside Boulder.

No zoom. This guy was just chilling on the side of the road outside Boulder.

The best part of the trip was seeing old friends and meeting some fun new people out for the wedding (Leigh and Joe's friends from home and PSU). Becca, another roommate from Penn State, graciously picked us up and dropped us off at the airport and let us crash at her apartment. Laura, yet another roommate, hung out when her bridesmaid duties didn't call. And, my bunk buddy from my first day of college, Sara, drove us to/from Denver and all around Fort Collins. It was so good to see my buddies; we're scattered across the US now and we don't get to see each other nearly as often as we'd like.

Me jumping over Boulder

Molly, Me, Becca, and Sara at the New Belgium Brewery in Fort Collins (mmm Fat Tire and Blue Paddle and hooray free beer and postcards and a wind-powered brewery)

Laura, Sara and I as the last women standing during the dinner hailstorm in Denver