Road Trips: Mt. Rose

Winter is here, and it’s time to hit the slopes! Hopefully, we get some more snow this week! I love going up to Tahoe to ski, especially when the sky is blue and the snow is powdery. But, unlike many who probably prefer Northstar, Squaw and Heavenly, I love Mt.Rose!  It is where I learned to ski growing up, it is a local’s resort and it has some great runs, especially if the chutes are open.

skirose.com

Mt. Rose is the highest peak in Tahoe and usually gets the most snow every winter. But it’s also just a cool place to hang out! Most of the mountains in Tahoe have villages, bars, restaurants, ice skating rinks, and other things to help you relax and recover after a day on the snow. And Mt. Rose is no exception, but it has a more casual local vibe with fun activities on the mountain and just some great runs (“Northwest” is my favorite), including a few with a view of Lake Tahoe!

In fact, they have some unique events like the Santa Crawl, where you can get heavily discounted lift tickets by dressing up as Santa for the day while you’re on the mountain. They also do a Beerfest, New Year’s Eve spectacular, poker runs and many other events throughout the year. Recently, they also added a “Magic” lift, a dual conveyer belt for one of their hills (it’s the 1st one in North America and only the 2nd one in the world!).

skirose.com

I always have a great time when I go to Mt. Rose. Usually, I stay in Reno and then it is just a 20-minute drive up the hill, but it is also easily accessed from Incline or Kings Beach; even from Northstar. They have a newer lodge on the old Slide side of the hill and many locals on a nice day will tailgate in the parking area. The Mt. Rose lodge is more crowded, but the bar is my favorite, with no kids allowed and a taco/burrito bar.

Are You Doing the Things That Are Most Important to You?

relaxI periodically send out the American Lifestyle Magazine alternating to past clients, friends and potential clients.  I decided to share the introduction I wrote for the latest issue in this blog post.   The theme is about the ways in which people go to great lengths to relax. Each pursuit is noble and all the tales are interesting, but you don’t need to ride across a desert or build a boat, like some folks do in American Lifestyle, to find your path to a happy, healthy life. In fact, for me, it’s much simpler than that.

We’re all busy, so sometimes just taking a moment to breathe is helpful. I work a lot of hours and juggle many responsibilities, so lately I have found yoga to be a big stress reducer with its emphasis on breathing. It allows me to disconnect, take a deep breath and just relax for a while.

At one point in my life, when I was trying to work on my marriage, we attended a weekend retreat and they asked us to write down five things that were important to us. I wrote out my list and skiing was one of the things on it. Then they asked us how often we did those things, and when was the last time? I was astonished to realize I had not done something I was so passionate about for more than two years. I made a change; I love to ski, and this year I hedged IMG_4022my bet with El Niño and got a pass to Squaw Valley.  (note: picture to the right is taken on 1/15/16, my ski birthday weekend, bluebird day, waiting to ride up Siberia for fresh tracks at Squaw)

As I get older, I find it is extremely important to take more time to disconnect and get away from everything in order to regroup and start fresh the following day. As we approach Valentine’s Day, I’m sending out my love with a reminder to share yours with the people you care about, and take the time to disconnect, relax, breathe and do those things that are most important to you.

I would love to hear some of the things you do to disconnect and relax! Please e-mail me your ideas, and they could be featured in one of my next blogs here on WalnutCreekLifestyle.com.