Keystone, Colorado - February 9th to 16th, 2024
Keystone has become an annual event for Ann and her brothers. We rent a condo and spend a week together. Our son even joins us. Some of us downhill ski, some cross country ski, some snowshoe, and some just hang out in the condo, but we all manage to have a good time.
Friday we drove up to Keystone. We arrived around 3 pm, but couldn’t check into our condo until 4 pm. So we stopped at the nearby Steep Brewing and Coffee Company for a hot beverage while we waited. At 4 pm, the codes that Vacasa had sent us worked to let us in. It seems like so many places, including campgrounds, have switched to contactless check-ins since COVID. It is nice not to go to a separate office to check in.
For dinner, we went to Snake River Saloon and Steak House. Being Friday night, the place was packed, but we managed to get a table right away. The food is decent, but pricey. It’s a ski resort after all, so the high prices are expected.
Saturday, we hung around the condo and went for a walk around the area. We wanted to give our bodies a day to get acclimated to the elevation. The River Run gondola was only a 15 minute walk from our condo. Keith and Ann were not downhill skiing, but a couple of others in our group were planning to. We discovered some nice walking paths that we didn’t know were there, but we didn’t do much wandering around the area last year.
Sunday, we hiked up Keystone Gulch to the LaBonte’s Smokehouse BBQ. Another person in our group was skiing Keystone that day and met us there for lunch. The BBQ place is at the base of the Ruby Express ski lift. The trail we hiked in on is a National Forest Service road. It looks like it is used as an evacuation route for injured skiers and/or a way to drive the snow cats back to the more remote ski runs. The road is somewhat groomed and seems to be popular for hikers and telemark skiers.
Ann felt the incline of the trail as soon as we started. She felt like she was not quite adjusted to the altitude. Keith didn’t seem to have any problems with it. Other than going a little slower than she felt she would have normally gone, she managed the hike pretty well. We completed the 6.5 miles with an elevation gain of 794 feet in just over three hours, not counting the time we spent inside eating lunch. We counted it as hike number 4 of our 52 Hike Challenge for 2024.
Oh, and the BBQ was pretty tasty. We would have preferred a larger portion of coleslaw, though. It is rather nice to have good food in the middle of a hike, especially hot food in the winter.
We all made it back to the condo in plenty of time to watch the Super Bowl. Instead of going out for dinner and fighting the crowds, we opted to make dinner in the condo, the advantage of having a kitchen.
Our original plan for Monday was to go cross-country skiing and snowshoeing. However, Keith wasn’t feeling up to it, so we opted to just go for a long walk and explore the area a little more. We found even more nice walking paths to explore.
For dinner, we went back to Snake River Saloon and Steak House. Keith wanted prime rib to celebrate his birthday. Plus, the place was walking distance from our condo, making it rather convenient.
Keith was feeling worse on Tuesday, so Ann went snowshoeing without him. She tried a new trail called Soda Creek. The trail started not too far from the Keystone Nordic Center, which was where Keith had planned to cross country ski. Soda Creek starts in a residential neighborhood, but soon enters the woods. The trail is on National Forest land. It is a nice combination of sun and shade, with sections through the trees alternating with exposed sections, with wonderful views out across a valley.
Temperatures were close to freezing, so Ann struggled to keep from overheating. She started out with just fleece pants with gaiters on the bottom and a thin turtle neck and light thermal layer on top. No gloves, no hats, no coats. After about three miles, she stopped to have a snack and started heading back. On the return trip, the wind started picking up a bit and the sun was at her back. She pulled out her rain jacket to use as wind protection and added light gloves and her headband to guard against the wind.
Ann completed the six miles with an elevation gain of 689 feet in about four hours. She counted it as hike number 5 of our 52 Hike Challenge for 2024. Keith will have to make that hike up somehow. Or not. Keith doesn’t really care.
Ann didn’t really need to use snow shoes for the first mile or two of the trail as it was hard packed. However, the further she got from the trailhead, the less traffic had been on the trail and the softer the snow got. During the last mile before turning around, there were quite a few places where people had been “post-holing”, about one to two feet deep. Even though Ann was only sinking about an inch or two with snow shoes on, she decided it was time to turn around. The warm temperatures and sunshine were just going to make the snow softer as the day wore on. Post-holing would turn a lovely hike into an exhausting ordeal rather quickly.
We went out to dinner in Dillon, at a place called Red Mountain Grill. We ate there last year. Last year we had a long wait for a table and had trouble finding a place to park, but we had gone on a weekend. This time we went early. We arrived before 5 pm on a Tuesday. The parking lot was busy, but not full. We were seated right away. That made it a much more pleasant experience.
Keith felt better on Wednesday, but decided not to push it by skiing. Ann’s brother also decided to skip downhill skiing that day, so he joined her on a walk around town. The paths were really icy, especially in the places that were partially cleared or shoveled. Our walk was rather slow, as we shuffled through the slippery sections. Ann didn’t notice the ice on what looked like a clear sidewalk. The walk was on a slope so her feet slipped right out from under her and down she went. Miraculously, she fell in slow motion somehow, so she didn’t get seriously hurt. One of her wrists felt a little jammed, but it felt better within hours. She wishes she could always fall that slowly if she happens to fall again. Of course, not falling would be an even better option.
For dinner, we went to Montezuma Roadhouse (aka Zuma), our favorite restaurant from the previous year. It did not disappoint.
Keith debated about skiing, then decided against it. Ann went snow showing, but got a late start since she was waiting for Keith to decide. The trail she picked out was the Peaks Trail, over near the Frisco Nordic Center. The trail actually goes all the way over to Breckenridge, but Ann didn’t go that far.
The strap on her snow shoe broke, but Ann managed to make it back to the trailhead with no issues. She only went a total of 4.8 miles with an elevation gain of 577 feet. She counted it as hike number 6 of her 52 Hike Challenge for 2024. She came across a couple of hikers, cross country skiers, and a mountain biker. The trail was quite enjoyable, staying mostly in the woods, crossing a stream a couple of times.
We opted for Pizza on the Run for dinner. It is a more casual place than Zuma’s. The pizza is fine, but not our favorite. We thought we ordered three small pizzas for the five of us, but they brought out three larges. It was twice as much food as we needed. That was fine. The leftovers became our lunch for the following day.
Friday we packed up and drove home. Keith was a little disappointed that he never got the chance to cross country ski, but the winter isn’t over yet. It was snowing and a little slick when we left, but the road conditions improved throughout the drive. Soon we were on drive pavement. And so ended another successful trip to Keystone.
Check out our related video: Keystone, Colorado 2024
(Ann)