Winter in the Basin

Call it "White Saturday."

The nearby ski and snowboarding venue opened a hill to welcome eager folks ready to hit the slopes.

Tyrol Basin uses what the glacier left behind quite well to welcome beginners and challenge those with more experience.

I remember the ski club from Craig High School taking trips to Mt. Horeb to ski Tyrol.  Tyrol refers to an area of the eastern Alps in western Austria.

It's an amusing name when you consider the rich Norwegian heritage of Mt. Horeb.  But the name fits.

There seemed to be equal numbers of boarders and skiers out Saturday morning.  It's an adjustment the hills made years back to accommodate the increasing number of snowboarders looking  for a place with a half-pipe and practice special moves.

Last weekend's snow melted away so Tyrol operators made their own creating a white oasis amidst the greens and browns of the south Wisconsin hills.

Up to this point in the blog I've not mentioned it, although readers who know me won't be surprised I played the role of spectator of action on the hills.  The pictures in my head associated with either skis or a board seem to end with flashing lights and sirens.

Maybe a sledding trip sometime, but I think the "sell by" date for that too, is beyond its expiration.

Just going up the lift would be a nice adventure, I'm sure.  However it's probably like climbing the ladder to the diving platform.  You either jump or climb back down.  If it's ski or walk, I'd need to walk.


We don't have mountains in Wisconsin.  Well, we have Rib Mountain, but it doesn't make the grade.

Instead, the state is blessed with hills of all sizes and inclines which the Europeans who settled in the state were excited to bring their livelihoods and their recreational pursuits with them.

In the middle of Swiss, Norwegian, German, and Swede settlements - I'm sure they'd be glad to see skiing one of the prime winter sports.