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Silverton Final Arrangements for New Years

Car Trip Chair Rob Suminsby announced the final arrangements for the Silverton New Years Celebration Car Trip to all those who will be braving the elements to get there for the event. According to Rob, "Hope everyone is emerging from their Roast Beef or Turkey-induced comas in time to enjoy the new snow.  I have given up keeping track of how much snow Silverton has received over the past week or so, but it’s well in excess of 2 feet, and there is more on the way between now and next week.  There will DEFINITELY be good ski conditions!"

Somewhere around 38 skiers will be descending on Silverton, CO, for our now annual hajj to Silverton Mountain and environs. Some of the important details include:

Parking

There is parking on the street in front of the hotel, but there will be a LOT of us.  If you are an early arrival, please consider unloading bags and then keeping the spots of two closest to the door open for others to do the same.

Room Assignments

Everyone has a room assignment and the front desk will have the list.  No need to worry about a late arrival…the rooms are reserved. PLEASE do not ask to change rooms at the desk.  We have filled every room in the hotel with the exception of two suites, and I don’t want anyone to lose out in a game of musical chairs.

Meals

The hotel will serve breakfast on Fri, 2 Jan and Sat, 3 Jan.  Other days are on your own.  The Brown Bear Cafe is just a minute’s walk away and serves a great breakfast, and there are a couple other options as well.  There are no microwaves in the rooms, but there is one in the kitchen that you can use.  Just ask at the front desk.

Dinners are at your leisure; refer to the list the Karen sent out to see what’s open.

Storage

There is a large room off to the right of the front desk where we typically store skis and poles. Please try to keep it organized, and make sure you are grabbing the right gear in the morning.

Trips - What to expect

For trips starting on 1 Jan, I will ask trip leaders to advertise their trips via the normal website/email process so that everyone can make plans for the first day’s skiing.  After that, we will play it by ear based on conditions and reports from the first day.  If you have guidebooks or maps of the area, please bring them.  Plan to congregate in the dining room/bar area each day about 5 pm so that we can discuss trail conditions and make plans for the following day.  Planning a ski tour is an essential skill, and this is an opportunity for those of you with experience in that to teach those who may be new to it.  Over a beer.  In front of a fire.  What could be better?

We will try to post the day’s trips in time for breakfast to allow for late adds/changes of plans.

Some of the trips will be ski-out-the-door affairs, and others may involve a 10-15 min drive to the trailhead.  Please arrange to carpool to the trailheads to the extent possible, to avoid overcrowding the parking areas.

As for what to pack, Rob created one of those "best of plans" packing lists, which is here Silverton Packing List for those of you who collect such things.