We arrived in Red River in time to get our ski equipment that evening before closing time. Our plan was to cook a little dinner and relax! I had come down with a head cold and really was feeling drained by this point in the day. Russ went out to the local grocery store to buy me some Kleenex and learned that a parade was going to be starting soon. It was Mardi Gras in the Mountains this weekend. We hurried outside at 7:00 pm to see the small parade. Next thing we knew, we had been invited to join the parade! Small town hospitality at its best! We walked along; me, thankful I had changed out of my pajama pants.
The parade ended down the street where the crowd watched the burning of the Wild Tchoupitoula, an annual Mardi Gras tradition involving Red River guests and residents burning all of their bad "ju-ju" by writing negative thoughts on pieces of paper and and getting rid of them by throwing them into the fire as a representation of the fictional Tchoupitoula (ironically, Gene Simmons from the rock band KISS) was burned. It provided a good opportunity to talk with the kids about the One True God who takes away the sin of this world and encourages us to cast our cares on Him alone. We shared our concerns as a family. Russ and I had “debt” on our mind to get rid of. Meanwhile, Sam wanted to give Satan over to God for Him to get rid of once and for all this year. We were freezing, having been hardly prepared to be out as long as we had been. We found ourselves having to walk back to our accommodations, which seemed to take much longer than it did walking in the parade.
Here are some sights around the town, and a few views of the slopes.
Getting ready to venture out that first day.
After skiing on Friday, we went tubing in the afternoon. They had changed procedures a lot, so there was a pretty lengthy line between turns this year. The ski area had created a huge hill to slide down, but I’m not sure it was worth the line. We were able to go many more turns in previous years. It also created a rather steep hill to walk back up, with two boys who wanted a free ride from their parents.
On Saturday nights in Red River they have a torch light parade and fire works. The ski instructors ski down the face of the mountain in the dark with red lights whirling around. It is pretty awesome. I was having fun playing with settings on my camera and took the shots below.
Sunday was my birthday! What a great way to spend a birthday!
There had been more snow this year than last. For that reason, and the fact that our family was all skiing better, we hit many more trails and were able to explore the back side of the mountain some too. Unfortunately, exploring really means that you don’t know what to expect until it is too late to go back. Below, we are on a blue that had moguls. My three guys are the little figures down below. I was rather pokey going down the hill. It did offer breathtaking views though!
I love this particular green run because of all these aspen trees that you ski past.
While we would have loved some fresh powder to ski a day in, we didn’t have that opportunity. But as the slopes were closing on Sunday, a little storm came in; my birthday gift. We were able to go tubing in the snow storm, and that was a lot of fun!
Do you see that child sitting near the center of the picture? That would be Sam. He walked half way up, and then decided to wait until we were down near him again before joining us.
A little play time with some cap guns purchased on the trip.
We had a great time! I am thankful for this time together being in God’s creation. The boys have improved so much, and Dellen keeps telling us he will take his children skiing when he is a parent.
I’ll have one last post with some video links.
