While I usually start hinting to hubby about making plans for a trip for my birthday several months ahead of time, hubby is the exact opposite with his birthday. In fact, I often find that I am pestering him if/when/where he wants to go on a weekend getaway for his birthday! But it’s for good reason that I’m always thinking ahead and not just because I’m such a “planner”. Lodging for places Colorado in the winter months book up almost completely since it’s such a popular destination for winter activities. Furthermore, finding decent lodging not only for us, but that allows pets is also quite a challenge if you don’t book ahead of time.

For this reason, hubby’s winter birthday came and went and we never planned anything, but by mid-April, I was still asking if he wanted to go somewhere for a quick weekend getaway before all the abundant amount of snow we had received in Colorado this season melted away!

We eventually settled on a last-minute weekend trip to Breckenridge because we had purchased a 4-pack of lift tickets to Copper Mountain (which is very close to Breck) and still had tickets left to use up before the close of the skiing season.

On the drive to Breckenridge and elsewhere during our weekend trip, it was fascinating and terrifying all at once seeing firsthand, the damage that the abundant amount of snow had caused on the area’s mountains. Road-side avalanches, big and small, were almost as frequent as mile marker signs in some areas. I actually felt relieved that we hadn’t taken a weekend trip earlier in the season when the risk of driving and experiencing an avalanche right across the road we were driving on was a high possibility.

The first adventure of our trip started before we even reached Breckenridge. We took an alternative route to Breckenridge on Loveland Pass, which has some of the most jaw-dropping views of snowy mountain peaks in the state without even having to step out of the vehicle or climb to a mountain top.

We decided to take a quick hike along the summit of Loveland Pass and when we arrived, intermittent mini-blizzards blew through the area changing our views from 360-degree panoramic views to complete white-out conditions in a matter of seconds. It goes without saying that the dachs stayed cozy in the car while we explored.

We didn’t explore for long though, as happy hour was awaiting us in Breck! Priorities.

Day 1

The next day, we took to the slopes at Copper Mountain.

While all of Colorado had been pretty excited about the amount of snow that dumped on the state and continued falling until very late in the season, I, on the other hand, was not as anxious about snowboarding in it and would much rather view it from inside the lodge while sipping on a s’mores martini.

I did as much snowboarding [and falling] on the snow as I could handle and then excitedly retired early for happy hour while hubby adventured off on his own to do double blacks.

Copper Mountain upgraded two of their lifts this past season, adding a gondola to one lift and converting another chair lift to these blue “bubbles”. My personal favorite is the gondola that you can just walk in and walk out of since I’m pretty clumsy when it comes to getting on and off the chair lifts!

This flask was gifted to me for a birthday and always accompanies me on every snowboarding day in the mountains.

Day 2

And just like that, our quick, 2-night weekend trip to Breck was already coming to a close! Before we headed back to Denver, we took a long detour out of the way to do a hike outside Leadville: Mayflower Gulch Trail.

For hubby’s birthday, we usually stay in Leadville, which is about 2.5 hours past the turnoff for Breckenridge and we always see many cars parked along the side of the road on the way to Leadville for what must be the trailhead for an awesome hike. We finally decided to see for ourselves what all the hype was about for this trail.

Mayflower Gulch is an easy, straightforward hike, with the end of the trail leading to some interesting mining remnants. We came prepared with our snowshoes, but with no fresh snow for several days, we ended up not needing them! It was such a treat to still see so much snow in April and I personally enjoyed walking on the snow more than trying to plow down it on a mountain strapped to a board the previous day. It was a great activity to end our quick weekend trip with!

Imagine this awesome view the miners had outside their cabin window! But also, imagine towing all these logs up a mountain to make this cabin…. NO THANK YOU!