MY FIRST SNOWMOBILING TRIP WITH NOVA GUIDES!
Incredible. There are very few words to describe the awe inspiring beauty and experience that the Top of the Rockies Snowmobile Tour at Nova Guides provides. If you’re looking for an awe inspiring activity in Vail, look no further.
Beginning at historic Camp Hale, our tour began at 9,200 feet at a spectacularly grand, yet rustic 6,000 sq ft log cabin with a double sided roaring fireplace. As we walked through the vaulted ceilings and French double doors, the initial view of the Colorado Wilderness is a sight to see.
Tall deep green pine and white barked aspen trees flanked a vast open field, where the 10th Mountain Division trained during World War II. Our friendly and knowledgeable guide walked us out to rows of brand new, gleaming Ski-Doo snowmobiles and instructed us on safety and the history of Camp Hale.
Once each person in the group was comfortable, we headed out on trail and began the mighty climb to Machine Gun Ridge and the Continental Divide at 12,500 feet. To try and describe the views is impossible. Miles of 14,000 foot mountains to your south west, the sharp peaks of the Gore Range to the North and the Sky Chutes of Copper Mountain to the East leaves you feeling like you are on top of the world.
If you are lucky to experience one of the “Blue Bird” days as we did, the true blueness of the Colorado Skies are so deep they appear to be photo shopped, especially against the sparkling fresh pure white snow, that was freshly fallen from an evening snowstorm. As we stopped to take photos, our knowledgeable guide gave us more history of Historic Camp Hale.
After a short break, we started up and around various other winding trails that took us through open meadows and high altitude alpine forests. The freshly fallen snow glistened on the trees and made you feel like you were in a holiday wonderland. After several hours of exhilarating and inspiring views, we made our way back to the Cabin at Camp Hale where we were greeted by the most adorable quartet of dogs; Tucker, Rocco, Yankee Doodle and the newest puppy, Bess, what more could you ask for in a day of snowmobiling? Fresh snow, incredible views and an overall exhilarating experience with Nova Guides and Camp Hale.
By Lori Harding – Sales & Marketing Manager