Most locals know that summer has arrived when the Teva Mountain Games come to town and they are coming to town next Thursday.  Teva Mountain Games are "the country's largest celebration of mountain sport, soul and culture" and they take place right in Vail, Colorado at the start of summer.  Professional and amateur outdoor athletes complete in everything from extreme kayaking to raft paddlecross to bouldering to running (trail and road) and biking (x-country, freestyle, slopeside and road racing).  Culture also plays a large part in the celebra

With the arrival of spring, comes spring cleaning and the staff at the Lodge at Lionshead is hard at work.  Alfonso and Angelo have been manicuring the lawns, scrubbing down the pools and hot tubs and generally getting the property polished-up for summer.  Today, we've been watching them powerwash the balconies all afternoon.  That will be followed by window washing.  Those boys are busy!  It's definitely a big job to keep the Lodge in top notch condition.  Steammaster has been here this week deep cleaning condo carpets and rugs.  Our housekeeping staff

Spring has arrived in Vail...for the most part.  I can see Vail Mountain from my desk and it is amazing how quickly the snow is melting.  Last week there was still enough snow for mountain employees to travel via snowmobile and snowcat on the mountain to get things ready for summer.  Now, they can't do that anymore.  Patches of snow are few and far between and I can already see a little bit of green on the big brown areas that have melted.  What a difference a week makes! 

Well, it's officially the end of another great season tomorrow!  Economically, it was a little tough - as it is everywhere - but we couldn't have asked for a better season.  Vail Mountain received a total of 434" (36 feet!) of snow and still has a 70" mid-mountain base.  To put this in perspective, Vail averages 350" of snow a season.  Conditions were truly epic and those who made it out here had great skiing/ snowboarding and few crowds.  What a way to spend a winter vacation!

The biggest party of the year begins next week in Vail and this season it's all FREE!  Spring Back to Vail revelry includes in-town parties galore, on-mountain DJs, the wild & crazy World Pond Skimming Championships and much, much more.  Chris Isaak headlines Friday night, DJ Logic on Saturday at the Pond Skimming Championships and Of A Revolution (O.A.R.) headlines Sunday.  Did I mention all performances are free?  After Dark and Apres Ski parties start Monday.  The Epic Lounge will be open everyday starting Thursday.  Think of it as a

I wish I knew how many winter storm warnings we've had so far this season.   Seems like hundreds, but that might be a little extreme.  Vail Mountain has already had 26" of snow this week not including the blizzard conditions that swept into town with the winter storm warning this morning.  Ryan and Alfonso, Lodge at Lionshead's dedicated maintenance engineers who have had the pleasure of shoveling all morning, think we got at least a foot in 2 hours.  Our snowmelt system for the heated paths and driveways can't keep up with the pace of the storm.&nb

It's back!  Taste of Vail officially opened yesterday with the Colorado Lamb Cook-Off in Vail Village and continues for the next three days with a wide range of culinary events.  Favorite events are the Mountain Top Picnic at Eagle's Nest on Friday and the Grand Tasting on Saturday night.  But that's not all.  The beauty of the festival is that is in not only food and wine.  There is a slew of other events that cater to the more adventurous and trendy foodies out there:  

We are definitely seeing snow showers this first day of April!  The sun is peaking out a little this afternoon, but only after a full morning of blizzard conditions.  All of the people lucky enough to be visiting this week are experiencing fantastic conditions on Vail Mountain!  Personally, I'm ready for spring, but will take the snow while we can get it.  Deep snowpack now makes for amazing whitewater conditions this summer...

Winter is back with a vengence!  20" of snow has fallen on Vail Mountain in the last 48 hours.  It is amazing how quickly conditions can change from spring skiing to champagne powder.  As I cleared several inches of fluff off of my car this morning, I knew conditions on Vail Mountain today would be awesome!  Unfortunately, I'm still nursing a broken ankle back to health so I can't experience the powder first hand.  I considered it, believe me, after all a ski boot is stiff and supportive, right?   Maybe not.  My common sense has gotten the bett