Ski and Boards: Mt. Baker Shines for College Students
On February 23rd, Josh and I led an Introductory Ski and Snowboard trip at Mt. Baker Ski Area, in collaboration with the Western Washington University’s Black and Brown Male Success Coalition. Mt. Baker Ski Area in Washington holds the world record for the most snowfall in a single season (1,140 inches in 1998-99) and is known as one of the snowiest ski resorts in the US. We’re grateful it’s in our backyard!
At 7:00 a.m. that Sunday, our student participants met Josh and I (along with another OC Trip Leader, Mace) at the Outdoor Center, where we met each participant, and distributed all the proper snowboard gear and layers to everyone (all eight of our participants chose to snowboard, which was incredibly exciting!). After that, we piled all our snowboards into our two cars, and set off for the slopes. Over the course of the hour-and-a-half drive, we listened to a playlist everyone on our trip collectively made, stopped at a grocery store to purchase snacks for the day, and conversed about our lives and shared general interests. Both cars were filled with eager anticipation and bright energy for the day ahead.
When we arrived at Mt. Baker Ski Area, we were greeted with blue skies and sunshine reflecting off the white, fluffy snow. We parked, got out of the car, and began donning our snow layers, snowboard boots, and helmets. Once everyone was ready, we set off to the ticket office to buy lift tickets. While Mace bought tickets, we acknowledged the land that we would be recreating for the day and the Indigenous people who nurtured and cared for the land before us and currently enjoy spending time there too. We expressed gratitude in being able to go snowboarding, as the sport has historically been inaccessible for many groups of people, and conversed about what we can do to open the sport to everyone. After that, we tested our ability to think on the spot with a rhythm, word-association game. We were already hooting and hollering, and hadn’t even hit the slopes yet!
After everyone received a pass for the day, we carried our snowboards over to the bunny hill. It was time! To begin our on-snow lesson, we introduced how snowboards slide on snow; with bindings, binding straps, snowboard edges, the base, nose, and tail. Once everyone was briefed and felt confident about how the physical mechanics operate, we strapped into our snowboards. The sun was shining, and we could feel its warmth as we learned how to stand and then fall safely with both feet strapped onto our boards. Then, one at a time, we pointed our boards down the small slope and began to slide down the hill. We were snowboarding! After several laps of the bunny hill, four of our eight participants were ready for the chairlift, and the steeper slopes that came with the new terrain.
We split our group, with Josh taking the crew ready to experience the chairlift, and Mace and I stayed with the four who wanted to continue developing their skill on the first slope. After many more repetitions of the bunny slope, our participants declared they were ready for the next step; the chairlift. We slid down to the bottom of the chair and watched other skiers and snowboarders alike loading themselves onto the moving contraption. Then, it was our turn. Slowly, in two groups of three, one following the next, we skated (with one foot out of our bindings) to the load line and waited for the chair to swing around and approach us. Once it arrived, we sat and were propelled into the air. With shouts of excitement and exhilaration, everyone got on the chair successfully! On the chair, we observed the views from new heights and watched as we passed snow-covered trees on the way up. At the top of the lift, we unloaded ourselves and met up with the rest of our group of 12, to take our first run all together. We clipped into our bindings and began to snowboard down the run. Slowly but surely, everyone linked turns all the way back to the lodge, where we celebrated with lunch.
Ready for a midday break, the 12 of us propped our boards outside and entered the Heather Meadows Lodge, where we enjoyed an assembly of burritos, hamburgers, soups, fries, and hot chocolate. It was delicious and hit the spot after a demanding morning. We exchanged banter and jokes and encouraged each other for the afternoon filled with snowboarding under the big blue sky and next to Mt. Baker and Mt. Shuksan. After lunch, we headed back out to the slopes, where we continued our fun with a new chairlift and expansive terrain on repeat until it was 3:00 p.m. and the mountain was closing.
As we headed back to the car, we talked about how much joy and laughter snowboarding, and the day in general had brought us. It was many of our participants’ first time sliding around on snow, and everybody said they would love to go back. We plan on leading more trips with the WWU BBMSC, and other groups in the future, and not only to ski or snowboard. Overall, it was a grand day, with loads of fun all around! We hope that this experience brought out our peers’ sense of curiosity, and a want to continue exploring and experiencing the land around us.
