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RecreationForty years ago, volunteers carved a ski area from trees and meadows on the north slope of Pajarito Mountain.
Pajarito SkiingSkiing, with volunteer help, has been part of the Los Alamos winter scene for a long time, according to a forthcoming history of the ski club by Deanna Morgan Kirby titled "Just Crazy to Ski." An informal ski club was organized in November 1943, the first winter that the Laboratory was up and running. The primary area for skiing at the time was Sawyer's Hill, located about four miles west of the back gate. By the late 1950s, however, the skiers realized that the skiing could be extended into late spring if they could find an area with a north-facing slope and a higher altitude. According to Kirby's book, two jeeploads of explorers checking out the north side of Pajarito Mountain in 1957 found what they were looking for four feet of snow in the middle of March. In order to get ready in time for the next ski season, work parties were held every weekend. Teams of three to four people felled trees, while other teams of 10 to 20 people hauled them off. By Christmas, the volunteer workers had cleared two slopes, installed two rope tows and set up a temporary lodge. "It was primitive by any standards, but we could start skiing," the late Bob Thorn, Ski Club president at the time, is quoted in the book as saying. "We didn't quit skiing until the first of April. " Today, the ski area, which is owned by the Ski Club, spreads across 730 acres of mountain terrain. It has five chair lifts, a ski school, a day lodge and a cafe. "Pajarito Mountain has relied on the hard work and dedication of volunteers throughout its history," said Kay Fletcher. "You can find summer work crews on the mountain almost any day of the week, taking care of everything from removing rocks and aspen shoots to repairing the lodge and ski patrol building. We couldn't do it without them." >> Learn more about Ski Pajarito
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