chorizo in a roasted habanero sauce. Knowing that I would be skiing again the next day, I opted for something a little lighter: shrimp tacos with an airy guacamole cream sauce. For our second day on the mountain — wonderfully sunny with bright, blue skies — we purchased Beginner Area lift tickets (also $23), which allowed us to use Chairs 6, 9, 10 and the Big Easy Carpet (a “magic carpet” surface lift that is mostly used by young skiers who only started walking a few years earlier). It’s a package that offers safe trails for a beginner while also providing several options for more experienced or adventurous skiers. I spent most of the day practicing turns and stops on Chair 9’s Under Easy and Over Easy Runs before finally building up the confidence that I wouldn’t plow into anyone at the bottom of the Chipmunk Run, where many people congregate in front of a fire pit and ski racks before heading inside to the Base Lodge Cafe for a warm lunch. After our day on the slopes, our mountain fun continued at The Bierstube, a rustic bar located at the resort’s upper village that’s filled by 4 p.m with tired but enthusiastic skiers of all ages throughout the winter. The mountain’s first après ski bar — housed in its current location since 1967 — underwent an exterior renovation this year with new siding, doors, windows, roof and deck ready for the 2017/18 season. You’ll find the same historic photos, signs and memorabilia celebrating Big Mountain ski culture adorning the interior walls. Before leaving the next day, we dipped into downtown Whitefish for a hearty breakfast at Swift Creek Café (swiftcreekcafe.com) and window shopping at a variety of art galleries and boutiques. Whitefish Mountain Resort (skiwhitefish.com) provides a great atmosphere for new skiers to find their feet, and I hope to return soon (with a few more ski runs under my belt) to explore the dozens of other trail runs along the mountain, including a visit to Summit House, which — at nearly 7,000 feet above sea level — offers the only mountaintop dining in Montana with majestic views of Glacier National Park and the Flathead Valley. P Right from top: The Bierstube; French toast at Swift Creek Cafe, Swift Creek Cafe exterior (photos by Theresa Tanner).
November 2017
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