Steamboat, Colorado

16 years many of the Hogs made their first trek out west to ski for the very first time. Back then, we were looking for a mountain that would be forgiving, convenient and cheap. Steamboat fit the bill perfectly for us. American Airlines had started non stop service to nearby Hayden. We had gotten great deals on the plentiful lodging in the area and the mountain itself while challenging to us Midwest skiers became a great teacher.

Since then, we've found that our ski trips are our most treasured trips. We enjoy them more than cruises and even trips to Las Vegas. We've tried skiing with the Hens but for one reason or another they are more than willing to give us a yard pass and let us go skiing on our own :-). Maybe that's a reason we enjoy it so much. (Truthfully the hens are a pain on a ski trip)

TRANSPORT

American Airlines flies directly from Chicago's O'Hare Airport as well as Dallas Fort-Worth. Delta and Continental also have slots at the Hayden airport but do so via Denver International.

With the aforementioned DIA so far away (over 150 miles), it makes sense to spend the extra money to fly right into Hayden. Since we were going during a relatively quiet time (before Steamboat's Winter Carnival and Spring break), we found airfare that was only a few dollars more than if we flew into DIA.

One downside is that while the American connection is painless as the flights are direct on Boeing 757s, our compatriots who flew Delta got the short shrift. For the second year in a row there was a snafu with Delta. For whatever reason they love to cancel flights. In this case they cancelled the 3pm flight out of Hayden. Their only flight out was a 1:15pm flight that was delayed for 3 hours. Unbelievably this plane was a commuter jet that could not handle the overflow  of the cancelled flight. Cell phones and friends had to be called for our compatriots and luckily they found flights out. Whether they got reimbursed for their trouble is another story, but it makes us wary about booking any flight with Delta that doesn't involve one of their hub airports. Delta had pulled the same stunt on a frequent flier flight to Cabo. They didn't inform our buddy that the flight had been cancelled. He had coincidentally checked on his flight a couple of weeks before and found the flight was cancelled with no alternate flight listed. He called Delta and they said the flight was cancelled. The agent offered a completely unacceptable and round about way to get to Cabo from Boston. He decided to cancel the flight and have his miles returned to his frequent flier account. A couple of days later he went online to search for fares just for laughs and found the original flight had been restored. He called Delta again, but the agent said "sometimes flights disappear in our system and aren't really cancelled".

Delta Airlines deserves it's impending bankruptcy. Complete and utter incompetents.

We decided not to rent cars. In hindsight we couldn't decide whether that was a good or bad thing. Alpine Taxi is a pretty expensive option for transport into town from the airport. It cost about 24 dollars one-way to the hotel; so with tip for the driver it's over 50 dollars for a shared ride/shuttle bus type arrangement. With 4 guys we spend about 220 dollars. We easily could have rented a car, but then we would have the hassle of parking at Steamboat and parking in town. Either option is not an attractive thing at Steamboat.

The reason is the town of Steamboat Springs provides excellent bus service throughout town, amongst the condos and to the ski area. Buses run frequently and are FREE. They have ski racks so that's convenient along with the fact that the bus drops you off steps from the gondola. The SST is definitely the way to go around town since it helps you avoid parking hassles and possible DUIs from your Après Skiing adventures.

ACCOMMODATIONS

We stayed at The Bunkhouse on US 40. For 53 dollars a night we got two double beds and a clean room along with a free breakfast and newspaper. The room has a very nice, well lit bathroom with a large vanity and a tub with shower. Very good water pressure. There's also a coffee pot with coffee in the room (no cream and sugar though, you have to steal some from the breakfast area). Another nice feature is the mini-fridge. Enough to hold a couple of six packs. Very nice! The two downsides are the thin walls and floors. We had some people that just loved to walk around upstairs. You could also hear when somebody next door showered or used the facilities. However, we were lucky in that there were no screamers or partiers in our section of the motel. The other is that there really isn't a lot of drawer space. We had a room that could have slept 4 and found that we had a hard time with two folks storing stuff in the small armoire.

Here a couple of pictures from the Bunkhouse:

The breakfast isn't anything much to speak of: cereal, muffins, bagels, assorted fruits, orange juice, milk and coffee. But, it's 53 bucks a night! How many ski resorts offer a room for that price with a free shuttle into town and to the slopes that runs every 20 minutes right outside the front door?

The Bunkhouse also has a nice great room with two comfy sofas, coffee table and a huge fireplace. There's also a nice hot tub right outside the door which is perfect for soaking those aching muscles after a day at the slopes.

We were very pleased with the accommodations. There are other cheap lodges along US 40 including a Super 8 right in front of the Bunkhouse, a Holiday Inn, Fairfield Inn, Comfort Inn and a La Quinta right across the street. All of these are served by the free bus. There were a couple of nice places in town including the Rabbit Ears Motel and the Nordic Lodge that probably would have been more convenient, but we're quibbling. We'd definitely stay and recommend The Bunkhouse for anyone trying to contain costs on a ski trip.

DINING AND NIGHT LIFE:

Rarely do we dislike any kind of food. However, if you're going to eat dinner in Steamboat the skiing village is nowhere to find a good restaurant (with two exceptions: Saketumi and Cafe Diva, but we couldn't get into either of these without a reservation). The only place that we could get into was "Dos Amigos" a positively horrible place to eat and about as far from authentic Mexican as Taco Bell. Places like the Tugboat Pub and Slopeside Grill were all overrun with people who were eager to eat overpriced, mediocre food. There is a "Butcher Shop" located in the village, but that was overrun as well. Outside of the horrid Dos Amigos, we had good experiences at the restaurants downtown. Spend the extra 20 minutes on the free bus and get some good grub.

Before we get into the dining reviews, a word about going to Steamboat:

According to the locals the start of the busy season is the Winter Carnival which starts around the second Tuesday in February and lasts until Sunday. After that, Steamboat is overrun with tourists starting with President's Day all the way through Spring Break. While we weren't in town for most of the daytime festivities, Winter Carnival seemed like a relatively calm affair. When we had heard that it was going to start up, we decided to avoid downtown the first day. Most of the heavy duty attractions like chariot races and other organized activities occur on the weekend.

In any case, the locals told us the week we picked is usually ideal since the weather and snow conditions along with the number of tourists make it that way. We just had bad luck this year with the snow.

 Dining Guide

Some of the noteworthy dining establishments:

Dos Amigos

Ski Village

Steamboat Springs

970 879-4270

The signs say "reservation recommended". However, even with places like the Tugboat overrun with people, getting a table at this awful place was pretty easy. No we know why. Grubby wait staff that practically turn your stomach. Tasteless and poorly presented food make this a place to avoid at all costs. Truly awful.

Cottonwood Grill

701 Yampa

Steamboat Springs

970 879-2229

In a word: WOW! Not cheap, but well worth it. Asian fusion grill that is out of this world. Calamari stuffed with macadamia pesto and japanese veggies with an orange aioli, roasted Elk Loin with shitake mushroom mashed potatoes and roasted vegetables. Great wine list. Really enjoyed sitting at the bar and enjoying classically made cocktails served in the correct glass ware. An all around wonderful place. Located on Yampa St between 7th and 8th street downtown. Yampa is one block toward the river off of Lincoln.

8th Street Steakhouse

50 8th Street

Steamboat Springs

970 879-3131

A "grill your own" steakhouse serving better than average cuts of meat. The grill could have been hotter, but the chef knows what he's doing. A nice casual atmosphere. Grab a cocktail and grill with your fellow hogs.

Antares

57 1/2 8th Street

Steamboat Springs

970 879-9939

Another place where we ate at the bar. Really enjoy being served by a top notch bar tender. Whenever your glass is empty, he's right there. Say hello to Billy who really knows his stuff.

The cuisine here is influenced by Thai and Indian cuisines, but with hints of it for the truly timid. Tandoori Spiced Chicken skewers were quite yummy as were the Thai Chili Prawns.

Creekside Cafe

131 11th Street

Steamboat Springs

970 879-4925

Billy the bartender suggested this place for breakfast over venerable favorite "Winonas". They only serve breakfast and lunch, but they still have a full bar :-). They are famous for their Eggs Benedict and they have literally a half dozen versions of this breakfast treat. Try their omelets though. The spinach, garlic and feta cheese sampling was completely yummy along with the country potatoes. A winner!

Stoker Bar

Off the Gondola

Steamboat Springs

Say hello to "Danni" a sexy and sweet little lass who should be model but prefers to interact with the locals that hang out at Steamboat's version of "Cheers". Stop by at around 1:30 and say hello to "Girty" "Bruiser" or "Jerry", a veritable cast of characters that step up to the bar to eat, drink, laugh and buy drinks for tourists. What a blast! Have the tomato basil soup and sample a half dozen or so micro brews on tap. The best bet on the slopes for food and good times.

Ragnars

Off the Gondola

Steamboat Springs

Ragnars is a fru-fru offering white table cloth service on the slopes. Things get really expensive here but they serve you on fine china and offer you gourmet food. We had the butternut squash bisque and the Ragnars salad with a couple of glasses of wine which set us back about 30 bucks. In hindsight, we'll skip the gourmet treatment at lunch and hang out at the Stoker Bar next time. However, if good food and good service is something you're looking for instead of the cafeteria style fare you're used to on the slopes, then Ragnars is for you and is definitely worth it!

NEXT:  SLOPE REPORTS!