The world of skiing, any winter sport really, is foreign to me. I have never tried skiing or snowboarding, neither ever appealed to me. I attempted to ice skate once as a child. It did not go well. But I love watching the Winter Olympics and am amazed at what people can do on the snow. I live about 70 miles from the Poconos in Pennsylvania and suggested to my husband that we go to one of the ski resorts there and take a look around. We decided on Blue Mountain Resort located in Palmerton, Pennsylvania.
Parking in the lot once we arrived, we made our way into the single building marked as the lodge. I was expecting an apres-ski atmosphere but instead it was an industrial building full of people in ski gear hurriedly going this way and that, the sound of heavy boots and awkward walking – clomping, really – coming from every direction. We had no idea where to go. A Blue Mountain employee, Jay, must have seen our lost faces. He asked if he could help and I replied, “We’d just like to watch the skiers.” He pointed out where the elevator was located, telling us to go upstairs to a large public room. We thanked him, making our way to where he had directed, passing lockers along with skiers and snowboarders of all ages.
Exiting the elevator a few floors up, we found the room that Jay had mentioned. The view of the slopes was not that great, we were a bit disappointed. I sat down at an empty table while Mister Rain looked around. A few minutes later Jay appeared in front of me. “Come with me,” he said. I got up, walking behind him, my husband bringing up the rear. We didn’t go far before he stopped and moved a sign in front of some closed doors. Opening them, he motioned for us to enter. Here was a huge open room with the windows I had imagined. “Do people have wedding receptions here?,” was the first thing out of my mouth. It seemed the perfect setting. Jay confirmed that they do, describing a recent marriage that had taken place out on the snow before the party in this room afterwards.
Jay allowed us all the time we wanted to walk around, giving the history of Blue Mountain while Mister Rain took pictures of the slopes. When we had our fill, we thanked Jay and headed back to our car.
Driving around the area, we found another part of he resort where the tubing is located. My husband got photos so I could see what it looked like later. After he explained the tubing set-up to me, we agreed we will come back next year and do it.
The Poconos may not be Telluride but it is the perfect winter spot for the Snow Bunnies in the Keystone state. It is also a place where a very nice man helped two aliens on Planet Snow, going above and beyond to show them around. It was a fun day. Although we didn’t ride the ski lift, our spirits were raised by the kindness of a man named Jay.
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