For the past few years, we've collected our snow gear, packed up the troops, and gone up to Snoqualmie Pass to play in the snow and go tubing. This year, we incorporated our trip to the mountains as part of our Christmas vacation ... perfect timing, if you ask us!
The tubing area at Snoqualmie is great and this year was no exception. The snow was ideal, there was no wind, and we had great visibility. We expected snow to fall on us because of the dark, heavy clouds that loomed above us, but we didn't see any precipitation at all. (We heard people who went up later in the day got soaked with rain, so we're feeling really fortunate that we went when we did!)
As soon as we arrived, we got checked in, grabbed our tubes, and hit the hill with verve and gusto. When we got to the bottom after our first run, we realized that the rope tow we were so used to had been replaced by a covered escalator. How fancy!!
We went up and down (and up and down ... and up and down) the hill for the entire two hours that our tickets were valid for. By the end, the kids were pretty pooped and ready to call it a day. Fortunately, other people called it quits sooner than we did, so the line for the escalator up the hill grew shorter as time progressed.
After our last run, we stacked our tubes and headed back to the car. We stripped off our wet boots, hats, scarves, and gloves; gulped down water (we planned ahead for once!); and plotted out where to stop for lunch. The closest non-summit place to grab food is North Bend, so we happily stopped there for some burgers before heading the rest of the way home. We also made a quick pit stop for some Starbucks for the grown ups ... we were cold and tired. Coffee = good! :)
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| All geared up - bring on the slopes! |
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| Annika ready for her first run of the day |
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| Conor wants me to point out it is really hard to smile while wearing goggles |
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| Me getting ready for another run |
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| Pre-launch planning conference |
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| Eric about to re-conquer the hill |
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| Bye, Conor! |
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| Happy tuber |
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| Inside the covered escalator |
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She looks happy to sit here and get her picture taken, but she was just
being kind to her old mother ... she really wanted to head down the hill again (at top speed!) |
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| Annika agrees with Conor -- smiling while wearing goggles is no small task |
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| The Olson Four |
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| Have fun, Annika! See you at the bottom of the hill! |
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| Our view for the day |
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