Tim called it a “breakout day” of skiing with Abigail and Evelyn. It was a breakout because, up to this day, his girls had been generally unenthusiastic attitude about skiing. In the previous winter, Abigail got to be comfortable on the bunny hill but was ready to quit skiing altogether because she had a bad run with her Opa on the Quicksilver trail. Evie was not certain that she wanted to try to ski anymore.
Fortunately this day turned out differently. After the first run on the bunny hill, Evie was now skiing on her own. Abigail was cautious at first but after two or so runs, she too sped down the hill without waiting for me.
The “bunny hill” at Crystal Mountain is called the Discovery Meadow and is truly a meadow for it has a very gradual slope to it. It is excellent starting place for beginner skiers because one can’t gain much speed at all. On the other hand, this modest little hill doesn’t offer much challenge, and the next toughest trail at Crystal is quite a bit more challenging.
Abbey and Evelyn were doing so well on the bunny hill that dad Tim decided that the girls needed to try the next step up in terms of difficulty at Crystal. The staff at Crystal recommended the Tinkerbell Trail. So, with that advice, we skied over to the base of the Chinook Double Chair to get to Tinkerbell. We had been warned that the top portion of Tinkerbell was quite steep for a beginner, and that the girls might struggle with it.
Once off the Chinook Lift, we traversed along Broadway looking for signs for Tinkerbell. Finally, we found the sign for this trail. As we were warned, the top portion of the trail was not a simple green trail but was in the blue category of trail difficulty. Tim guided Abbey down this steep pitch by putting Abbey between his legs, and I did the same with Evie. The girl were not comfortable on this steep portion. Then, the slope of the trial lessened in pitch, then the girls were on their own. This pitch was definitely steeper than the bunny hill, but the girls handled it well. Each made good snowplow turns without any falls. When they got to the bottom of Tinkerbell, both were smiling and were proud of their success.
That was enough of Tinkerbell for this day. We headed back to the Discovery Meadow for the balance of the day. The girls didn’t need either Tim or me any longer and just sped down this meadow without difficulty. They were enjoying themselves, and that was the great accomplishment of this day!
