The weather was perfect for skiing the day we hit the slopes at Andes Tower Hills near Alexandria, MN. Our trip was the second hill we skied while using the Minnesota 4th Grade Ski Passport. Our fourth grader loved this hill and commented that it’s been one of his favorites. In all fairness, he’s only skied on three hills in the state, so he has limited perspective.
With fifteen runs and three chair lifts, Andes to is an easy to navigate hill with plenty of unique runs for all skill levels. When we first lock into our skis and venture onto a new hill, we like to start with the resort’s bunny hill. It’s a way to ease into the day and get a feel for skiing, especially if it’s been a few weeks since we’ve last skied. At Andes, the bunny hill is not much of an incline so we didn’t bother with it and went straight to a run called Big Ben.
It turned out Big Ben was a great introduction to the hill, so we went down it again before moving on to Serendipity. From there we made our way to the Milkway Chair Lift to try Hawaiian Cruise, Big Dipper, Frikadily and Cloud Nine. Cloud Nine ended up being our least favorite run because most of it traverses through the terrain park.
After about 90 minutes of skiing, we took a break for lunch. Andes offers your standard chalet food with chicken strips, burgers and pizzas. We recommend the cheese curds. They are Minnesota State Fair caliber. After lunch, we took the L.A. connection trail to the Little America Quad Chair Lift. Just after unloading the Little American lift, you get some great views of the area surrounding the ski resort.
Favorite Runs
From the Little America Lift we were able to access our favorite run; Paradise. Paradise starts off quick and then levels off before curving around a group of trees. For a quicker and more interesting descent to the bottom, skiers can take a small trail through the trees to get to the Little America run.
We skied Andes Tower Hills on a Sunday and arrived at opening. Even when the chalet and parking lot were at their fullest, chair lift queues were minimal. We never waited more than a few minutes to get on a lift.
Andes was the second hill we skied as part of the passport program. Our first passport stop was to Spirit Mountain Resort in Duluth. You can read more about that trip here.
Happy Adventuring, Rochelle