A perfect winter day in Burlington, Vermont would start with a mid-morning alarm clock consisting of the smell of French roast wafting into the bedroom from the kitchen. Underneath the warmth of a feather comforter, there is no sound; only snow-dampened silence. It is a nice change from the summer when the entire town is bustling with tourists and just-turned-21-year-old college students. After stretching out and crawling out of bed around 9 am, there is a hot cup of coffee being handed to me by the slender arm of my most handsome boyfriend. I walk softly to the window, still rumpled like the blankets, and open it to watch the snow sift from the clouds like powdered sugar, the branches are covered and small mounds of snow and ice start to build mini glaciers on the street-sides. The transformation from fall to winter happens fast, and it is icy, but with the cold comes the mountain.
After having a smoke and a coffee by the window, it’s time to put on the familiar attire of long johns, informally referred to as LJ’s, and the rest of the gear necessary for a day of skiing on our local mountain, Mt. Mansfield, aka Stowe. Although Vermont is on the East Coast we like to call it the Ice Coast because a lot of the time the mountain gets bitter cold at night and freezes the trails. From December through February the summit temperature with wind chill can be a freezing, negative 20 degrees F. But for my perfect day, it will be 15 degrees F and sunny with no wind, that way it is possible to stay out for more than five runs. With Hieroglyphics running through my headphones, it’s fun to start on Switchback, named for its continually curvy trail meandering between the gondola trails. We slowly work our way into the diamonds, but only after a hot soup and a beer from The Den.
{Photo by Paul}
After catching all the fresh powder runs we can throughout the day, we are usually wiped out around 2 or 3 pm. Then it’s time to head for the apres-ski beer at The Shed Brewery. The Shed is a rustic, wooden spot with all the beer you could ask for, from strong Belgian Ales to the barrel aged American Stout, they’re effervescent and rich, one or two is enough. Once all is said and done, we leave Stowe with the sun and head home. Leaving my skis at my friends house, I ask to get dropped off at the market to pick up the necessary ingredients for chili and then walk my normal path home. Burlington is very small, about a four mile radius, so it makes it easy to not have a car.
{Photo by Paul}
When our bellies are full of spice and warmth, we lay our heads down to rest in the comforting sink of the tempurpedic, watch a movie and slowly snore ourselves to sleep. Lofting dreams up into the clouds of snow, we patiently await for the next day to come when we can start all over again.
Cynthia Kozak is a freelance editor currently traveling around Europe in a van with her boyfriend.
{My Perfect Day is a weekly Tidepooler series that reveals the most wonderful and interesting places in cities and towns around the world, as shared by the people who live there}
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