Red Mountain 2025

Missing a ski day at Red Mountain would bring sadness. Stopping there breaks up the long drive to Revelstoke.

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Revelstoke Loop 2025

Rossland 2025

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Seattle winter hung in the air as I departed the motel in Auburn. Winter remained on the ground on the I-90 Snoqualmie Pass impeding driving. East of the pass 20 plus miles the roads transitioned to wet from snow packed and icy allowing pegging the posted speed limit.

In Ellensburg I pulled off seeking a cup of coffee to shatter my grogginess. I searched the town for coffee shops which the town must of had at least a half-dozen but they were all drive through windows. Reluctantly I headed for Starbucks only to discover after parking and going inside that there was no place to sit down! I understand that is considered one of the reasons Starbucks is falling out of favor. I turned walking out no coffee in hand.

I made it Ephrata, WA (Wonder what the history of that town's name is??). Several hours on the road by now feeling more in a dream state. The car suddenly turned into a Safeway gas station even with half tank left. I didn't argue and topped off the tank. Ephrata turns out to be a rather large town for these parts with extensive shopping and services. Google called out the Bookery Cafe for coffee with a 100% rating. The clock had yet to strike high noon as I entered the cafe with books on one half and a bistro atmosphere on the other. (Am I really in central Washington? Must be with all the Trump signs.) The menu offered hummus, cucumbers, and pita bread - say what? I enjoyed it! The place filled with the lunch hour: a table full of older ladies, lady friends, a guy in a wheel chair, and an elderly guy (like me, ha ha).

Grand Coulee Dam lay an hour off the shortest route. It beaconed enticing the car into a U-turn and then I vetoed the choice and quickly made a U-turn back onto the short route to Rossland. Well over an hour of the drive followed alongside the Franklin D Roosevelt Lake, a.k.a. Columbia River. I watched the Gifford ferry crossing the lake wondering what is on the west side that can support a ferry out here in rural central northern Washington. A sign of a circle with a line cutting it and the words 'socialism' and 'liberalism' speed south past the car. I choked in laughter thinking about the MASSIVE federal water subsidy of the Grand Coulee Dam for farmers.

Near Northport I topped off the gas tank assuming the gas prices in Canada will better reflect the replacement cost of oil. The Canadian Border officer didn't ask me about gifts I might be transporting to relatives - a rare omission! He did ask why I chose to come across here rather than I-15 at Coutts? A daughter in Seattle and plans to ski Red Mountain seemed to satisfy him. His final inspection was of the spare tire compartment with a grumble as he struggled with the lid. His voice tone hinting mild resignation, he invited me to proceed into Canada.

This trip finds me staying at the Mountain Shadow Hostel in downtown Rossland. A top bunk in a male dorm room of six beds paints the accommodations. There are folks from Australia, UK, France, and ??. I'm surprised how many conversations involve 'back country' activities. I wish my French was fluent so I could converse using it.

I downed a beer at the Rossland Brewery. Some visiting nurses from the U.S. here to ski provided a brief side conversation. Last year they'd been to Niseko (Hokkaido, Japan) skiing on the IKON pass; that was fun to hear about since I've been there.

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Sometime prior to 1947 a hunting cabin was built in a wooded section on the slopes of Grey Mountain near what is now the town of Rossland. I stumbled upon this compact one room cabin adjacent to the Get Up Stand Up blue run. The aroma of wood burning attracted my attention on a previous run and on this run the people milling about drew my eye to the charming wood cabin with smoke wafting from it's short chimney. Someone shared that the public is welcome to enter. The chill temperatures of -25C in this small valley according to the lift operator compelled one to enter and warm themselves. Inside was a host stoking the fire in a small stove I later learned was donated and installed by Rick. Entering I'd met another telemarker from Golden, CO. While inside I met a couple from Aspen, CO: Whitney and Chris. They turned out to be ski patrollers from Buttermilk Aspen and knew Evelyn! Whitney and Evelyn had recently worked together on the X-games at Buttermilk. As the next group entered the tiny space, the host suggested they must also be from Colorado. They weren't. They were from Minnesota.

So this begs the question, 'Other than the host, is anybody on the mountain a local?' Today, everyone I talked with was not from Canada. Red Mountain is rapidly becoming a destination ski area. When I first came several years ago, it was still just a local small ski area. Word of it's challenging powder tree pitches and back country accessible skiing has spread.

I took a lunch at my usual haunt: Velvet Bar and Restaurant at the base. The local Hazy IPA along with a mushroom burger hit the spot. A bar conversation developed with 'Rick' who it turns out IS local and had installed the wood burning stove in the 'Judge's Cabin' as the place is called up on the mountain side.

After one last run from the top of the ancient two seater lift servicing Red Mountain - the mountain that gives the place it's name - I caught the free local bus back into Rossland. I'd like to share that Red Mountain is a conical mountain with nothing but black runs coming off the top. The ride up is slow and it was a very chilly ride today. The lift operator was nearly has old as the chairlift.

Back at the Mountain Shadow Hostel in Rossland, I had scattered conversations. One guy was from Boulder. It's almost like I haven't left home.