WOOFTASTIC AT THE WOLF (CREEK)
pizza party
WOLF CREEK RESORT
PAGOSA SPRINGS, CO
THE ADVENTURE
Let's just start off by saying Pizza and Grandma did NOT get enough time at the obscure ski resort of Wolf Creek. They only got a measly itty-bitty half day on their road trip from northern CO to New Mexico, a HALF DAY! YES - WE ARE YELLING - there is so much to do, A WEEK AT LEAST IS NEEDED. Sheesh. Wolf Creek is not an easy hill to get to, if you aren’t local. Albuquerque is the nearest international airport, and that’s 212 miles away, or you have Denver which is 244 miles north. This duo had to take it how they could get it. Alright, enough sniveling. This is a story of wonder and enchantment. Our pair of snow addicts had long heard the tale of Wolf Creek and it's mucho mucho pow. They had heard that only those in the know, go. They had heard of endless stashes (like a hipster cold-brew track-bike party), and they had heard that the family owned and operated resort does not bow down to the corporate world -
lone wolf - woof!!
The sisters in our story arrived around noon last February on the eleventh. It was a golden sun day, with new fluffy inches glistening from the night before. The girls frantically pulled their gear on, picked up their passes, and threw themselves on the Treasure Stoke lift. At the top, they immediately started hiking. (Treasure Stoke might be the best name for a lift ever, in fact it’s a quite nice name for a child, car, and perhaps president, too.)
Wolf has three lifts that spread out along the top ridge of Alberta Peak. With a little hiking or a lot of hiking from these lifts you have bowls and chutes galore to hop into. We’re talking a giant-whale-mouth full of frothing lines. Wolf also runs a Horseshoe Bowl Snowcat shuttle from the Dog Chutes that will help you lap up that white goodness.
Pizza and Grandma started with the Glory Hole Bowl, duh. There were only a few tracks in the Glory, even though it was already the afternoon. With the sky a pulsing baby blue and the sun’s rays shining far, they could see all the northern mountains of the San Juan range as they ripped down the bowl. Mesmerising. It was certainly the best Glory Hole grandma had ever been to. After another short hike to Boundary Bowl, they hit the Waterfall Area. There is ever so much to do in this place of waterfalls: drops, jibs, trees rails, baby chutes, etc. You know the movie Groundhog Day where Bill Murray has to live the same day over and over? If this happened to you in the Waterfall Area, you would be like yaaaassssssss! - again and again.
The day had gotten away from them, and they hadn’t even been to the Knife Ridge. The twosome in our adventure began to panic. Pizza threw a bag over grandma’s head and tossed her gummy snakes off the lift - not because of the panic - just for fun. A sweet little jaunt above the Alberta Lift brought them to 25+ chutes, gullies, and glades. Mmmmmmmmm. It was too hard to choose, so they just dropped when they had “the feeling” - the feeling totally freaked it! DOG CHUTES! Tongues out, slobber flying, tails wagging, jumping up on the couch, delirious fun.
pizza on the mow
FUN FACTS
Wolf is going solar next season! Not like it’s a new thing for Wolf Creek to be green doe, they’ve been running on wind power for the past eleven seasons. Impressive.
430 natural inches is the average snowfall for a Wolf season.
In the 1970’s the Dallas Cowboys bought Wolf Creek and pretty much owned them until the 80’s. Which is super gross except Mike Ditka was a big part of the operation, so we suppose it’s okay.
The first lift tow in the area opened in 1938, but it wasn’t where the resort is now. It was across the road on Wolf Pass. That slope was south facing (faster snow depletion), so when they brought the lifts in they moved operations to the north facing land that is Wolf Creek now. Evel Knievel was also born in 1938.
Wolf Creek has $48 lift ticket Appreciation Days, last year this happened 12 times.
Wolf Creek is also the name of an Australian horror film made in 2005 that we have never seen, but plan on reenacting next Halloween.
Thank you so much for having us Wolf Creek! Please sir, may we have another? Our day on the hill haunts us, still so we must return - see you soon……….
bad pizza!
Thank you andy a (instructor of the snowboarding at Mountain Creek) for the flicks!
All other pictures (unless otherwise noted) and words by grandma samoan.
snowboarding & skiing = life