I Left Tahoe for My Old Home Mountain in Pennsylvania, It Was Lovely

Pulling my buff down, I shouted over the wind and chatter of fellow skiers at the top of Camelback Resort's Stevenson Express lift, "Want to ski 'Nile Mile' like the good ol' days?"

My brother and mom shook their heads with approval. I think I heard one of them shout back, "Yeah! Sounds like fun," but I had already begun to ski away in excitement.

Nile Mile is, just as its name implies, a mile-long trail at Camelback, my once-home resort in Pennsylvania's Pocono Mountains. It's on this trail that I first recall carving...