Tis' The SKIson

Another great trip to Jackson Hole, Wyoming is in the books! I had the chance to visit for the first time in March 2019 and we loved it so much, we had to go back to celebrate a birthday along with a new decade. My boyfriend's cousins live there and they are the BEST hosts and know all the in's and out's of Jackson, making our trips there 1000x better. Plus, they had some awesome ski gear like the sweet blue suit I have on in the picture above.

If you are looking for an amazing place to visit or ski, Jackson is the place. The Teton Mountains are beautiful and the ski runs are challenging and fun. When we first visited we stayed on the Jackson Hole mountain side at the Teton Mountain Lodge and Spa, but it is about 20 minutes to the main town square. This time we stayed in a condo a few minutes from town within walking distance to Snow King Mountain. It is also much closer to the airport. Personally, we felt like there was more to do being close to town and alternated skiing between Snow King and Jackson Hole.

Town To-Do's

The most infamous part of Jackson are the antler arches in town square (and also at the airport). You better believe I made my way here for allllll the IG pics.

There also is lots of shopping, bars and restaurants. One of my favorite stops was the Million Dollar Cowboy Bar, which is so unique and has live music most of the time. The bar has legit horse saddles in lieu of bar stools, which made us laugh really hard trying to get a cute picture. The next night we had a fun night celebrating a 70th birthday, dancing and drinking Wyoming Mules.

Skiing

The night before we left, I conveniently ended up with a sinus infection and I was pretty miserable for the first few days in Jackson. I would not advise skiing while sick, but made it from the slopes, to the doctor, and then back to the slopes. TRAVEL TIP: Always travel with your insurance card. You never know when you're going to need it.

Packing & Dressing for Skiing

It was 10 BELOW on one of the days we skied with the wind chill. I have never skied in cold like that before, but here's what I wore that kept me from becoming a popsicle:

1. Three Under Shirts- Two tight layers, usually Nike dri-fit because you are still working out and sweating even if you can't feel it, and one looser layer over both (like a sweatshirt or half-zip I can remove if I do get hot).

2. Ski Jacket- I like a hood on mine to pull over my helmet and love having a lot of pockets to keep essentials like extra hand-warmers, chap-stick, Kleenex (especially while I was still getting over being sick), wallet and your phone. PRO TIP: Keep a hand warmer by your phone to keep it from getting too cold. On the really cold day my phone literally froze, which zapped the battery and I couldn't use it.)

3. Helmet- It's not lame! Almost everybody skis or boards with one on now, plus, it keeps your head warmer. I always shoved a beanie under my shirts to wear while we took a lunch break since you can't wear one under your helmet.

4. Two Pant Layers- Fleece leggings are perfect underneath some athletic leggings.

5. Ski Pants- I've been wearing my mom's ski pants from the 80's for several years. They're a little bit thinner than most ski pants, which are typically puffy, but keep me so warm and I don't feel like a total marshmallow. Retro clothing for the win, thanks Mom!

6. Mittens- These were new for me! I used to wear regular gloves and this year, due to a packing fail, borrowed some mittens. They were SO much warmer, especially with two toasty hand warmers inside.

7. HEATED SOCKS- These are a GAME CHANGER. I've skied for years and without fail, my feet are always so cold and it is miserable. I would try multiple thick socks, which you shouldn't do because I learned on this trip that ski boots are designed to help with blood flow so you stay warmer. Wearing 2-3 socks is a no-no. I received some heated socks for Christmas and they aren't super hot, but keep you just warm enough so your toes never get cold. All you do is charge the battery at night and they stay hot for almost nine hours.

8. Scarf and Face Mask- I've always worn a scarf tucked in my jacket for extra neck warmth. I used to try to use it to block my face, but if it's snowing or really cold, your breath can actually make it freeze and it's even colder. I wore a face mask this year and it totally saved my face.

Speaking of faces, you want to make sure and bring some good skin moisturizer and apply this ALL THE TIME. I used this one from Neutrogena and really liked it! Also, even if it's cloudy and even if you're blocking your face, you must wear sunscreen. You are (obviously) closer to the sun at higher elevations and can burn. I wore IT Cosmetics foundation, which has a 50 SPF!

9. Goggles- I asked for some new goggles for Christmas, mainly because I kept getting heavily targeted by ski gear companies on Instagram. I ended up getting some blue Blenders to match my jacket and loved them.

Skiing is like golfing, when you look good you ski good :)

Tubing

We tubed in Snow King and it was SO. MUCH. FUN. I used my GoPro and literally screamed and laughed the whole way down every time. You can rent tubes in 1-hour increments, which is really all you need.

I hope you all get to visit Jackson Hole or at least make it to the slopes somewhere this year!

Till next time, Jackson!

Thanks for reading All Kinds of Vibes // Megan