SOL March 1

As I come to the end of the ski lift, the intense wind rocks our chair from side to side. Although the chair is far above tree-line, we get off the lift with still many feet to go to get to the rocky summit. I ski down a brief run, and hop on another lift. This lift takes us up to the very summit, and the wind is even more intense.  As we hop off the lift, we ski into a sheltered cat-track carved into the snow, to protect skiers from the wind. I clip off my skis, and climb up the snowy face to the summit. The second I look over the edge, I am amazed. To the west, there was range after range of snow capped mountains, and to the east, there was the rest of the ski area, followed my more mountains. On the top, there was too much wind for snow to collect, and my clunky ski boots tripped on an icy rock. I briefly lost my balance. The gusts of wind knocked me over, and I landed on the more protected snowy side. I had seen enough, and after taking several photos, I clipped back into my skis, and skied down the steep slope.