Shellbelle in the Snow

I know that many of you had a good laugh when I told you I've been sleeping under an electric blanket in our 62 degree (brrrr………) weather. As I watch the news and peruse your blogs, this is perfectly understandable. I've admitted I'm a real cry baby when it dips below 70 and I've whined about wanting the sun to come out and warm up our beaches. This is the tropics after all and after the heat and humidity of the summer, I'm more than ready for days spent in the sun, swimming in the Gulf of Mexico and combing for shells.

For Outdoor Wednesday this week I thought I would show you that this old beach gal has spent her time in the snow also. Growing up in Southern California, my family had a modest home in the San Fernando Valley, a mobile home at Paradise Cove in Malibu and a small cabin in Big Bear. We divided our time between the three, but I usually opted for Malibu as you can imagine.

Since Valentine's Day is coming up on Sunday, rather than share stories of my family in the snow (like the time a small plane was crashing and one of its wheels hit the top of our car when I was 5-years-old on a family trip to Frasier Park), I thought I would tell you about a trip I took with my then boyfriend to  

Jackson Hole Wyoming

Valentine's Vacation 1986

Btw, everyone, including the pilot were fine.

Here's a pic of Devin. Think big-haired musicians of the 80s.

We flew out of Los Angeles to visit this parents in Utah, where he grew up. After a lovely visit and several trips to local ski slopes, we borrowed his father's van and drove from Salt Lake City to Jackson Hole, Wyoming.

The sights along the way were stunning!

Braving the cold

However, we did come across something unexpected in the road.

Cows!

Your only option is to slow wayyyyyy down and wait for them to pass.

You can see they came quite close.

We finally reached our destination and it was beautiful!

Now Devin is an excellent skier, on the other hand, I am not. While Devin was off on the expert slopes, I stayed on the Bunny Trails. I have a strategy though when I ski. Well, I don't really ski, but I fall down really well. When I found this postcard, I had to buy it, because it shows what I usually look like on the slopes.

I love her pink snowsuit, it would've have gone so well with my pink hat (see first photo of me) and she shows up so much better against the snow than I did in my all white snowsuit (again see first photo). All white is probably not a good color for a newbie skier. Thank goodness there wasn't an avalance!

My strategy? Hire a young, good-looking ski instructor. When you fall it is their job to help you up. This is probably why I've never learned to ski.

We did lots of activities, including taking a 45-minute horse drawn sleigh in the evening to the Cascade Restaurant where we had a fabulous gourmet dinner. We drank Chocolate Mamas at the The Mangy Moose Saloon, had amazing sourdough pancakes with blueberries at Jedidiah's Original House of Sourdough, and sat in the saddles that serve as bar stools as The Million Dollar Cowboy Bar. The trip was incredible and romantic.

Not everything was quite romantic though. Like when Devin coaxed me on the tram to travel to Rendezvous Peak. I like things at sea level, you know, like beaches. Not wanting to spoil his fun, I braved the trip.

The elevation?

Not anywhere near sea level!

The scenery was amazing, as long as I didn't have to stand on the edge.

I love mountains, not cliffs. Skiers travel up this tram AND actually ski back down. I was the lone person to travel back down by tram. This gal is no fool!

An activity I really enjoyed was the day we snowmobiled to the Granite Hot Springs.

Gorgeous views and once you arrive there is a room where you take off, yes I said take off, your snowsuit! Underneath you have already planned for this event and you're wearing a bathing suit. Did I mention it was 20 degrees below that day? Well, it was. You then walk from this changing area to the hot springs and eagerly slip beneath the 105 degrees (hot) waters. Once you get used to the temperature difference of 125 degrees, it is heavenly!

Getting out, not so much fun. You freeze, your hair freezes, you learn what a popsicle feels like. You wonder if your hair will break off when you put your helmet back on. Then someone says, "Stand there so I can take your picture." What?

Well here it is faithful readers, Shellbelle Snowbelle standing soaking wet in her bathing suit at 20 degrees below!

Now, just let me hear you call me a wimp again!

I'm linking this post up with other Outdoor Wednesday participants with Susan @ A Southern Daydreamer. Do you think anyone else can match this picture of themselves in the snow? I don't think so!