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Hi. I’m Ben Benton from Flagstaff, Arizona. I believe that you will enjoy my daily journal from Winter Park, Colorado, Ski Resort during Christmas break 1999-2000. I left downtown Flagstaff Wednesday morning, December 22 with my skis, duffle, and laptop computer, and ended up at Snoasis, a lodge midway up the mountain in Winter Park. My journal will continue through the first week of January. You’ll read about Winter Park Ski Resort, Snoasis, Sunspot Lodge, the great people who work here, and anything else I can think of to write about. I’m the author of “National Park Employment Data,” a guide to working in national parks, which is available for purchase on my web site at www.gorp.com/nped/. I’ve been working in national parks and ski areas off and on for over twenty years. Because I want the data in my book to always be fresh, I continually test the concepts, employers, and tips that I provide. I first worked at Winter Park in the late 70s while I was a student at Arizona State University. |
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Thursday, December 23, 1999 Moab, Utah, to Winter Park, Colorado Just north of Moab, two miles or so, there’s a junction marked by a sign that reads, “Castle Valley - 19” and an arrow pointing to the right. You would never know that the route it’s pointing to is the most spectacular canyon auto adventure in the Western U.S., Utah Route 128. It follows the edge of the last of the wild and free Colorado River from Moab to Interstate 70, a distance of 45 miles, give or take. It’s the last because Lake Foul, I mean Lake Powell, I mean Powell Reservoir since it’s a manmade lake, starts below Moab and forever ruins what’s left of the Colorado. It’s like déjà vu, since I spent six years as a Grand Canyon mule guide. Being on the road is like being on the River Trail at the bottom of the Bright Angel Trail, complete with house-size boulders balanced precariously on either side of the river. Along this stretch are several working ranches, like the Red Cliffs Ranch with its own small cemetery on a knoll above the river, the Mayberry Preserve, now owned by The Nature Conservancy, and the Sorrel River Ranch. I was curious about two vehicles following me as if they were in a commute, instead of meandering along looking at the river, the sheer cliffs, the clear blue sky, and the odd-shaped formations. They turned right on the road to Castle Valley, so I did too. I found the answer. Castle Valley is a side canyon of the Colorado River midway between Moab and I-70 that was probably settled a century ago with several connected ranches. It is now filled with houses and real estate signs offering building sites. If you ever thought about building your retirement home at the bottom of the Grand Canyon amid Monument Valley-type monoliths, now’s your chance. I don’t know whether to laugh, cry, or shake my head and move on. I’ll move on. Few people realize that the entire length of the Colorado River, with the exception of Glen Canyon and the Grand Canyon, was settled and claimed as private property. You can drive the banks of the Colorado from Granby, Colorado, to Moab, Utah, on paved roads. They are plowed and maintained year-around so the school busses can get through. You’ll never find a marked highway sign in Colorado because the residents don’t want anyone to know this secret. Leaving the special world of Utah 128 behind, I joined the gaggle of holiday travelers on I-70 and ate lunch in Glenwood Springs. Had I left Flagstaff on time, Glenwood would have been my overnight stop. I was looking forward to jumping into the clandestine hot spring on the edge of the Colorado just below Glenwood bath house. It is actually the outlet for the spring water from the bath house. People have built up small pools out of rocks and created a wonderful free hot pot. The brighter, larger full moon would have made quite an evening. The roads were clear and dry all the way to Winter Park, except on Berthoud Pass. The pass, which is just south of Winter Park, was snow packed. I drove straight to the Snoasis employee’s parking area along the Denver and Rio Grande railroad tracks and called Snoasis on my cell phone. Night baker Chris came right down with the snowmobile pulling a trailer and we loaded up my stuff. I’ve settled into a bunk in the basement and I’m
ready to start work tomorrow.  |
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