Thirty-three of Nashville Ski Club’s finest headed west on Saturday February 25th to enjoy one of the club’s favorite, and most infamous destinations, Telluride Ski Resort!

For this trip the travel gods spared us the winter mess that California is dealing with now and we had no troubles getting to Montrose, CO where we loaded the very tight van to make our way to the resort.

Bear Creek was ready for us and most were able to check in early.  Those that couldn’t made the best of it hanging out at the other condo’s until theirs were ready.

We had a nice welcome party and most called it an early night to be ready for the skiing on Sunday.

Sunday was overcast with some snowfall mixed in, but visibility was pretty good, so not a bad start to the week.

The snow continued off and on through the night and we woke up Monday to a bluebird day with fresh powder stashed throughout the resort!

It was a fabulous day that started off with 20 of us meeting at the top of the mountain to sing Happy Birthday to Monica’s mom, and practice partner Tarha, then also to Kim’s daughter Britta!   All was captured via video recording and the recipients were extremely grateful for the well wishes, even if the singing was a bit off key!

We kept most of the group together through the day and then ended at the Garano Ranch, where we enjoyed the sunshine, a few drinks, and dancing to the music of a local artist on “the beach”!

Tuesday and Wednesday had more snow in store for us, again the visibility wasn’t too bad so most people were able to enjoy full days of fresh powder!

Tuesday night we gathered at the Mountain Village resort for our group dinner.  Monica did a great job selecting the limited menu and everyone said their dish was great!  We finished off the night by singing Happy Birthday to Brad.

Wednesday started off a little overcast, but the fresh snow made it a great morning for those that skied.  Most of the group took the day off and went about their business until the early afternoon.  Monica set up a historical walking tour of Telluride that started at the Telluride Historical Museum.  Some people arrived early to take in the local history of the town before the tour and found a number of really interesting items.

Did you know that Telluride is the first place in the world to use the Alternating Current electrical system invented by Nikola Tesla?  The Ames power plant was built in 1891 by George Westinghouse and is the first AC hydroelectric power plant as well.  It is actually still in use today.

In the late 1950s and early 60s, the mining operations started shutting down, and Telluride almost turned into an abandoned ghost town before local leadership and some entrepreneurs decided to start a ski resort and shift the economy to tourism.  I think they made the right decision!

Our walking tour led by Ash, took us to several historic sites in town including the historic New Sheridan Hotel, and the Sheridan Opera House, which has held the most world movie premiers outside of New York and LA!  The annual Telluride Film Festival is based at the Sheridan Opera house and continues to host many events throughout the year.

We finished our tour at the spot of Butch Cassidy’s first bank robbery!  The bank burned down a couple of years later, but a plaque commemorates the event so people can stand in the spot where Butch Cassidy once did!

Most of the group hung around town for a couple of more hours before sitting down for dinner at the famed Floradora Saloon where we split up into several tables and enjoyed another great dinner.

Thursday gave us another bluebird day on the slopes and everyone seemed to not want the day to end.

Friday turned back to overcast with some light flurries, but yet another good day on the slopes beats any day in the office!

Our farewell potluck on Friday saw the group gather on one of our condo’s and many stories from the week were told long into the night.  The gathering showed how we had bonded throughout the week and more lifelong friends are added to our lists.

Saturday showed us partly sunny skies and perfect travel weather, so definitely no “To-hell-u-ride” for this trip!  We had a short delay checking in (we were too early!), and delay getting luggage loaded at Denver, but otherwise a thankfully very uneventful travel day.

Monica and I can’t thank the group enough for joining us on the trip and really being a great travel group!  I know several people made new friends and everyone had a great time.  Most put Telluride up there with their new favorite place to ski, so we can’t wait for the next trip, and also the next trip back to Telluride!

Join the Nashville Ski Club for a fun week at one of our favorites, Telluride Ski Resort!

Telluride is located in the Southwest corner of Colorado. It has a total of 120 runs and 2,000+ acres of skiable terrain. 23% of Telluride's runs are ranked at Beginner, 36% Intermediate and 41% Advanced/Expert. Telluride on average receives over 300 inches of snow each winter season.

The resort has been ranked #1 in the annual Conde Nast Traveler's Reader's Choice Survey in 2013, 2014 and 2015.

Lodging: Bear Creek Lodge -  three 4BR/4BA condos and one 2BR/2BA condo

Bear Creek Lodge has easy access to the slopes. Each condo includes a gas fireplace and a newly remodeled kitchen with granite countertops and stainless steel appliances. Tucked away in Mountain Village, the Bear Creek Lodge offers the best of both worlds - easy access to all the activities the Telluride area offers, along with a luxurious, relaxing atmosphere.

Airport transfers are included from Montrose (MTJ) via private charter bus. A grocery stop is included.

A free gondola connects the mountain village to the town of Telluride and operates daily from 6:30 am to midnight.

Full Package includes: R/T Air from Nashville to Montrose, CO, mountain transfers, 7 nights lodging (2 per room), 5-day lift ticket, club dinner and socials.  There is also a welcome wine and cheese party the night of our arrival.

Pricing: Full package including 5-day lift ticket: $2584

                Land-only (excludes air) including 5-day lift ticket: $2211
                Five-day lift ticket: $644

                Adjustments available for 0-4-day or 6-day lift tickets. If you have an Epic Pass, Telluride is only available on the full pass, not the Local pass.

Trip leader: Joe Moreau - joemoreau23@aol.com - 615.513.8121

                       Monica Davis - monica-davis@comcast.net - 615.708.1337