It was nearly 50 years ago that Swiss-born Ernie Blake flew over the Taos mountains in his Cessna 170, and noted that it offered skiing comparable to his native land. The Taos Ski Valley resort, now named as one of the top 10 destinations in North America by Skiing magazine, has been in the Blake family's hands since then, and is now headed by Ernie's son, Mickey Blake. Today, 300,000 annual visitors enjoy alpine skiing on 72 trails. Although snowboarding is not permitted, winter ...