Fresh Pow Day at Bridger Bowl!

Last Saturday was probably the best day I have had a Bridger. Despite the very crowded lift lines, due to all the new snow, it was a perfect day. It was great to see so many people out enjoying the very thing that brings most of us to Bozeman in the first place. By Saturday morning we had 23 new inches of snow and we could tell on the drive up. The normal 20 minute drive took us 35 minutes because half of the way up the traffic was nose to trunk. On the chair ride up we looked down at the beautiful untracked snow and new that it would be a great day. We rode until our little tummy's rumbled then headed to the lodge for lunch. On our way in the door some Health and Human Development Majors were doing a hydration survey outside the lodge and asked us if we would like to participate for a $5 dollar lunch voucher. Being college students and not having a lot of cash flow, we agreed and took the survey. Once we had finished our surveys they handed us each a cup to pee in and told us to go to the bathroom and then a women would trade our pee for five dollars. I was a bit hesitant at first but decided that it was a pretty good deal considering that at the doctor you usually have to pay them to pee in a cup and here I was being paid. So we all did it and lunch was a bit cheeper. The rest of the day was great as expected and we headed down the mountain with a sense of enthusiasm and accomplishment. We then proceeded to sit on the couch and watch the Olympics for 6 hours. It was in the end a perfect day. 

MSU Friday

Last Friday MSU held MSU Friday up on campus. MSU Friday is a chance for all prospective students to come and check out our school. I am in Advocats and as an Advocat we help put on this huge event. I spent my friday waking up at 6:15 to be on campus by 7 to start the crazy day of fun. I love MSU Friday because I get to show people the school that I attend and love so much. I gave tours of campus and got up in front of 500 people to tell them why I came to MSU. 

I came to MSU because it is one of the most beautiful places on earth. We are snug right in the middle of big mountains. I also came because I felt that the people at MSU and in Bozeman itself are super friendly and welcoming. I am so glad that I chose to come to MSU and if you haven't had the chance to check out our great school you should take up our great opportunity that we offer through MSU Fridays!

There is no shortage of Hot Springs around the Bozeman area and there is no better thing to do after a long hard day up on the mountain. Soaking in the nice hot natural springs is so relaxing and tons of fun. 

My all time favorite hot spring is The Boiling River which is about 90 miles from Bozeman so its a longer trip but totally worth it. It's inside Yellowstone National Park and is the most natural hot spring you will ever come upon. There is a hot river that is more than 200 degrees that comes straight out of the earth and runs into the cold Yellowstone river. Where the two rivers meet is right where you sit. The hot water runs off rocks and you can sit under the hot waterfalls and relax in the beautiful Yellowstone wilderness. Its a great day trip!

My second favorite hot spring is Norris hot springs and it is about 40 miles out of Bozeman. Its just one pool but they have live bluegrass music every Sunday night. Nothing is better than being able to sit in a hot pool listening to great music and looking up at the stars all while enjoying company of friends. 

Hiking the Ridge

Bridger Bowl is a super close and awesome ski area. It sits only 16 miles out of Bozeman and has tons of great terrain for anyone from beginners to experts. 

Most of the mountain is accessible by chair lifts but for the expert terrain it requires a bit of a hike up to the ridge.

I Hiked the ridge for my first time last week and oh my goodness it was definitely bitter sweet. Once I made it through the horrible straight up hike carrying a snow board and dressed up in snow gear, It was one of the most beautiful sites I have ever seen. Looking east you see about three other mountain ranges around the area and looking west you see the entire Gallatin Valley and you can see over where the Big Sky Ski area is. I knew that once I got up there it would be worth is and thats what I kept telling myself the entire hike up. 

The ride down was just as worth it too. It had just snowed like two feet the weekend before so there was some nice powder and open terrain that hadn't been completely tracked out yet.  Once I was done and made it to the bottom I was exhausted but it was that good accomplished exhaustion. It also was a gorgeous day all around which happens quite often up at Bridger. 

Star Gazing!

Bozeman is a perfect place to star gaze. The city lights aren't too bright to pollute the light from the stars so pretty much anywhere you are, as long as its a fairly clear night, it's the perfect time to look up and see the pretty sparkling stars above. 

One of my favorite things to do is climb up on my roof with blankets and my roommates and lay and try to find and many constellations as we can and also wait for shooting stars!

Last spring semester I took a class called Mysteries of the Sky and it really got me into learning about space. I have bought a few books on star gazing and have learned tons about our night sky just by looking up!

A great site to check out every day is the Astronomy picture of the day. They have a new picture up every day, sometimes its of the moon and it will give you a little blurb telling you what's so cool about it and then other days it will be a picture of a white dwarf star the the Hubbell space telescope took a picture of. Check it out and learn about the Universe!     http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/astropix.html

Ski Premiers

A very popular and fun thing to do in Bozeman is go to Ski Premiers. They are put on frequently by different organizations around town. Usually they range from 7-12 dollars and you get to go see a sweet ski film where they give out lots of sweet prizes. I was sitting by one of my really good friends at one and she won a really nice backpack which made me really mad because I went and picked up her ticket for her and it could have just as easily been my ticket as her but thats just my luck... 

These events are always supper fun and a great thing to go out and do with a group of friends!