Sound of Music family’s Vermont lodge and ski resort still going strong

by Jamie Rhein on

Certainly any kid who imagined him or herself a singer pictured what it would be like to be dressed in a play-suit made of curtains leaping about Salzburg, Austria with the von Trapp children as they sang “doe a deer.” I certainly did.

When the von Trapps escaped from Nazi-ruled Austria during World War II, they eventually landed in Stowe, Vermont as the Trapp Family Singers who made money by performing and opening a ski resort lodge. After the movie “The Sound of Music” came out in 1965, the real family and their ski resort and lodge gained even more notoriety.

I read in this New York Times article that Sam von Trapp, the grandson of Maria and the captain, immortalized by Julie Andrews and Christopher Plummer, is the newest von Trapp to take over the business. He’s happy to do it since, from what I understand, no one asks him who he was in the movie. A generation of distance from tinseltown fame helps.

Recognizing that “The Sound of Music “connection is one that brings business, Sam is running commercials advertising the Trapp Family Lodge on tonight’s showing of the movie on ABC. He also plans to bring back holiday singalongs like the good old days.

The one song I can sing reasonably on key is “Edelweiss.” If you’re ever at the singalong, see if that’s on the list of options. If you want to sing the song along with the movie von Trapp’s, click here.

Try snowshoeing or cross-country skiing for free on Winter Trails Day

by Alison Brick on

Is one of your New Year’s resolutions to learn a snow sport?

You might get encouragement from friends who are whizzes on the trails, but the thought of keeping up with them can be intimidating. Start thinking about all of the fees, and you might not get much farther than that fireside couch in the lodge.

Winter Trails Day makes it easy to follow through on those resolutions. The one-day event on January 10th lets you try out cross-country skiing or snowshoeing for free. Resorts across the US are waiving the costs for newbies–on everything from equipment rentals to trail passes. Depending on which of the 100 locations in 22 states you go to, you could also hit up mini-lessons and product demos to make the transition a bit easier.

It’s true that cross-country skiing is just like walking (but even better because you get to glide!). Give those skinny skis a whirl, and see what you think. I just might have to test-run some snowshoes, myself. See ya out on the white stuff?

Two days, 21 inches in Telluride

by Tom Johansmeyer on

Telluride currently bears the weight of 21 inches of snow, and I, for one, can’t think of a better place to be stranded. The powder is soft and begging to be carved, so grab your skis and pick up a lift ticket. The Telluride Ski Resort is starting packages at $119 a night next month, making a quick trip out to the slopes even more enticing.

This is the second year in a row that Telluride has had record snowfall in December. For the entire month, more than 100 inches of fresh flakes have fallen. That’s more than eight feet! For the entire season, total snowfall is close to 12 feet. The resort’s CEO, Dave Riley, sweetens the pot, with “new terrain, chairlift, restaurants, howitzers, snowcats, hotels and air service on top of the fantastic start to the season.”

Yes, Dave, we know. We need to get out to Telluride.

Head out west for New Year’s Eve, and you’ll get to enjoy a fireworks display, torch light parade and a countdown on Main Street at the courthouse clock tower.

American Explorer Todd Carmichael Reaches The South Pole

by Kraig Becker on

American Todd Carmichael reached the South Pole yesterday, becoming the first person from the U.S. to make that journey solo and unsupported.

Carmichael set out on November 12 from Patriot Hills, the traditional drop off point on Antarctica for explorers arriving from Punta Arenas, Chile, the southernmost city of it’s size in the world. His intention was to break the speed record to the South Pole, currently held by Hannah McKeand of the U.K., who made the same 690 mile journey back in 2006, in 39 days, 10 hours, and 33 minutes. At this time, there is no word if he succeeded in breaking the record, but Carmichael also arrived on his 39th day out.

Antarctica traditionally sees a lot of traffic in November of each year. While in the northern hemisphere, the temperatures are falling, and autumn begins to give way to winter, in the southern it’s spring time, and the best opportunity for explorers and adventure travelers to visit the region. Temperatures can still be quite cold however, and Carmichael endured blizzards, sub-zero wind chills, and whiteout conditions on his way to his destination.Making a solo and unsupported journey to the Pole is far from easy. The landscapes are quite desolate and mostly featureless, with dangerous crevasse fields, which has led previous explorers to remark on the lonliness they felt on a solo expedition. The unsupported tag means that the person making the trip will carry everything they need with them as they go, pulling it behind them on a heavy sled as they ski the 700 miles south. That sled weighs hundreds of pounds at the start, although it does lighten up as the supplies are consumed.

In Todd’s case, he faced all kinds of adversity along the trail. Besides the inclidment weather, he also broke the bindings on both of his skis within the first week. Unable to make repairs, he was forced to make the journey on foot, dragging his sled behind him, and yet he still managed to flirt with the new speed record, and may have achieved it. in the past few days he has also been out of communications thanks to the failure of both his primary and back-up satellite phones.

Traditionally, a plane would now be dispatched form Patriot Hills to pick Todd up and return him to Punta Arenas, but a storm has been raging in the area and he is not expected to be picked up for a couple of days. During that time, I’m sure he’ll get lots of sleep, and dream of tropical locals. Congrats Todd!

Canadian gondola crash

by Annie Scott on

It’s that nightmare you have every time you ride a gondola. Not the one where your car falls, but the one where the tower goes down and all of the cars fall.

Yesterday at Whistler Blackcomb Resort, 177 km north of Vancouver, tragedy struck when a support tower for their gondola system snapped in half. Falling gondola cars hit a bus stop and a house, and another was suspended over an icy creek.

The good news is that all 53 passengers were successfully rescued, and while 5 required medical attention, no major injuries were reported.

Check out the story here on CNN for video footage.