Our 22nd Anniversary Trip

March 18 - 21, 2000
Our trip began with dinner in Denver at The Fort Restaurant.  This was, of course, the restaurant which served the world's leaders (oh, yeah, Bill Clinton was there, too) at The Summit of the Eight in 1997.

We began our meal with drinks and an appetizer.  My drink was a whiskey boiled with tobacco and chili, then with a pinch of gunpowder added (honest)!  The appetizer tray included Bison "Boudies" (Hearty Frontier buffalo sausages from French fur trappers' recipe), Rocky Mountain Oysters (a great delicacy of the West), Bison Tongue (poachers used to kill buffalo and take only the tongue, now I know why), guacamole, and Jalapeņos Stuffed with Peanut Butter (one of my long-time favorites).

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 For dinner, Kathy had the Bison Tenderloin.  I got the "Game Plate" with elk, bison, and quail.  For our anniversary dessert, we were served the traditional Chocolate Chili Cake (chocolate cake with chilis cooked into it ), marvelous!
Early the next morning, we went on to Keystone for 3 days of skiing.  Keystone is about 70 miles west of Denver, just 10 miles past the Eisenhower Tunnel, in Summit County (where there Vail, Beaver Creek, Breckinridge, Copper Mountain, and Arapahoe Basin are, also).

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(click HERE to see the LIVE shot of this view, updated every 5 minutes from 0600-1600 hrs daily MST)

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 The first morning (Sunday), Kathy took a lesson; so I went exploring, from Keystone Mountain, to  The North Peak and The Outback - terrain I had never skied before.  The summit of The Outback is 11,980 feet - above tree line.  WOW!
After lunch, Kathy and I set out together to explore the vast beginner areas on Keystone Mountain.

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By the third day, Kathy gained enough skill and confidence to begin to tackle some intermediate slopes.  The one we both really enjoyed was Spring Dipper.

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 Of course, it's always important to stop for regular rest (and wine) breaks.
And then go for the next run...

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