Darkness fell, the overhead lights flickered on, and they cared not for dinner or bedtime. I thought my girls would eventually get bored, not because of Hidden Valley but because they were twelve and nine. ![]() There is also a tubing park for sliding down the hill on giant inner tubes, a new zip line course, and two terrain parks for trick skiers and snowboarders. I didn’t set foot, to say anything of skis, anywhere near them. But Hidden Valley’s trail map lists two peaks and fifteen ski runs, including three classified as black diamond. Ski resorts in flat suburban areas usually offer little in terms of variety. That allowed me to leave them to ski by themselves and explore the rest of Hidden Valley, located in Wildwood, a twenty-seven-mile drive from downtown St. At the three-hour mark, my girls could go up and down Slow Poke (a tick more difficult than Easy Street but still safely in the bunny hill category) repeatedly without incident. Within an hour or so, most, if not all, of the kids could get to the top of Easy Street via a carpeted moving sidewalk and ski down, though that skiing came in fits and starts. I saw frustration from them and their fellow students matched by patience from the instructors. Then again, Easy Street-the funniest of Hidden Valley’s bunny hills-is small enough and flat enough that I doubt they could have hurt themselves no matter how epic the wipeout. I want them to walk right up to the point they are scared and take one more step … but I don’t want them to fall on their faces and break bones. I want to teach them to try new things, push themselves, and take risks. Prior to that, their only outdoor winter adventure had been sledding and even that was on small hills. I tried not to helicopter over them during the instructions, but I snuck peeks every now and then. They learned alongside a handful of other kids, none of whom, judging by appearances, had been on skis before, either. We walked out of the dark gear area and blinked into the bright sun reflecting off the snow in the “classroom” at the bottom of a bunny hill called Easy Street. ![]() I lack the knowledge and expertise (to say nothing of patience) necessary to teach my daughters, twelve and nine, who had never been on skis of any type.Īfter I signed them up for lessons, they alternated between being nervous and excited as we rented boots, skis, poles, and helmets. I had skied for the first time in twenty years just a few weeks earlier. I brought with me two daughters, no skis, no gear, and if I’m being honest, more than a little trepidation. I arrived at Hidden Valley, Missouri’s largest winter resort, in Wildwood, Mo., on a brisk Monday morning late last winter. Find fifteen total runs, three black diamond runs, and parks for trick skiers and snowboarders. There’s a 65-acre resort where kids and adults can learn to ski on bunny hills or intermediate slopes.
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