Telemark!

If you haven't ever visited the northern Wisconsin ski mecca called Telemark, you really should. It is a throwback to the skiing heydey of the 70's. The lodge, with its woodpaneling, massive fieldstone fireplace, and sunken carpeted 'conversation pit' is unchanged from when my family visited in my youth. I felt like I should run into a red/yellow/brown ski-sweater clad person around every corner. I hate to say it, but most of the telemark lodgers have ditched wool for lycra. And really, there aren't so many lodgers. It's a bit of a ghost town on non-ski race weekends. Which is a shame because the ski trails are world class. You can ski right out the door of the lodge and onto over 100K of finely groomed exciting trails. The accessibility of the trails allowed us to get out with the kids several times a day. And they loved it! They are of that age where we can head out for a couple hours and there are no complaints. I think a big part of that is that we were with some of their best friends- and the trails were wide enough for all four boys to ski abreast of each other- they chatted the whole way- except for when the thrilling downhills caused them to interrupt their narrative with shouts of glee. It was a fabulous weekend where good friends, great weather, superior snow and decent health all came together to convince us to put our deposit down for next year. When we weren't on the trails, the adults relaxed in front of the Olympics while the boys carried out an intense session of 'the Telemark game'. We don't really know what that game entails, except for epic unchaperoned forays around the massive lodge, hiding clues and probably pestering the 5 other guests. But no one complained, so we let them carry on. There is talk that the lodge is up for sale and 'upgrades' might be in order. Kind of excited for that - the locker room by the pool is rather unsightly- but also a little sad. I am sure the 'Telemark game' will lose some luster if they replace the undulating carpet covered plywood halls with something more straight and narrow. And I do kind of like having the place to ourselves. But we shall see next year. I already have my ski sweater packed...