We have normality

The blocking high that has kept Whistler in Groundhog day mode for almost 2 weeks finally broke down yesterday and delivered a powder day. I hear Wellington is about to enjoy a similar high pressure system.. except it is appreciated in the summer!

Yesterday I did my first fresh tracks breakfast on Whistler. Fresh tracks is a program where you pay to head up early on the mountain and have a full cooked breakfast at the top restaurant. Then when the mountain opens you get 25 minutes or so of riding before the first people who loaded the gondola at the bottom reach the top. The snow unfortunately didn't deliver as it was quite wet, and on top of a very hard crust. Today made up with that however with 11cm of dry powder and blue skies.


As with anything in life, it's the little things that can really put a spring in our step

While it may just look like an ordinary meat pie.. these are in fact a rarity in Canada (and at $6 + tax I can see why they may stay that way). I can say however that it is genuine, with meat chunks and tongue burning heat. (Remember.. always blow on the pie! Safer communities together.)

Last Friday night's hockey game was highly entertaining. Unfortunately the few photos I took didn't save on the phone so there isn't much to share. Our seats were 3 rows from the glass, and right next to the players box. Hockey is certainly a very fast paced game, and the NHL matches on TV faster again. One of our party from Whistler was also very lucky not to catch the puck with her face as it made it over the glass.

Brandon came with me and gave me the run down on all the rules and intricacies of the game, and although it doesn't seem that way there is actually quite a bit more than just getting the puck in the net and fist fights! (Although it wouldn't be hockey without a bit of roughing.)

Retro Rod

Monday night was our last staff party, and it was quite sedate compared to the others earlier in the season. I managed to get a little in with the retro theme with an old rental jacket (children's size of course). The 200' roll of fluro tape also went down a treat with all. It's hard to believe that we're already half way through the season!

Details for the upcoming trip to the interior have been a little more firmed up. Looks like it's going to be 4 days riding on the first week of March. Phil, Amy, Chris and I are already counting down the days. I'll throw up some more details closer to the time.

Tonight/Tomorrow in town is all about 'Straya day (Australia Day for the uninitiated). This is a very popular time for drinking, cricket, drinking, footy and more drinking for the large amount of Australians that are in Whistler. I think I'll be giving town a miss tonight and tomorrow, but here's an indication of how wild it gets.

Note the times!

The Dry Horrors

The biggest news over the last few weeks is that there has been no news at all, at least in the snow department. We've only had a single storm cycle in the last 2 weeks, and it looks to be staying that way for another week or so. We have a temperature inversion at the moment where it is still -5 in the valley, but +5 on top of the mountain.

This creek is an excellent temperature indicator

The one storm cycle that did come through was setup to be one of the biggest days of the season. Walking home after dinner out the night before the snow was knee-deep in dry. Unfortunately waking up in the morning it was to the opposite. The snow had turned to rain with warming temperatures and turned heavy. Thankfully the end of the storm dropped 10cm or so of dry snow, and we spent the next few days seeking it out.

One afternoon's snowfall (with Phil for reference)

Straight after the storm cycle setup this large blocking high that we currently have. Every day is groundhog day.. but groundhog day's aren't bad when they are like this.

Tyler dropping in North Flute bowl

Brandon in the Flute Chutes

Unfortunately almost everything has been ridden, and also with the warm temperatures the avalanche risk is up so back-country travel is limited. Everyone is certainly holding out for the next storm.. but it's a number of days away yet.

Another major event in Canada is that the NHL lock-out is finally over. For those of you who don't follow the sport, the owners and players have been at an impasse for over 100 days. However, with a deadline only days away the issues have been resolved and we will finally get to see some hockey! Speaking of which, I am heading to a Vancouver Giants game this Friday (Not quite NHL, but still hockey).. so look out for how my first ice bashing experience goes!

The busy period has now been and gone, and we are back to being a very quiet store. I'm not sure how long it will last but everyone is thankful for the break. I am looking forward to getting back to why I am here and into the mountains. I have the next 4 days to get things back on track.. even if it is spent in the terrain park and groomers.

Often these dry periods are spent watching movies, making movies and planning trips to get better footage. For those of you holding out, yes I am still working on an edit. I have decided on a soundtrack and am slowly working through the best parts of the video I have so far. In the mean time, check out this clip from the Whistler Blackcomb wonder reels to give you an idea of just how big this place is.

The rest of the spare evenings has been spent researching and planning trips. The first is I am already putting together plans for when Leela gets here at the end of March, but that's going to stay secret! The other is a trip for myself and 3 others to some of the interior mountain resorts of British Columbia. We have decided on some dates in early March, and the target resorts of Revelstoke, Kicking Horse and possibly Sun Peaks. On the cards was a day cat skiing, however as they are all completely booked up it may be upgraded to Heli skiing.. we will have to wait and see!

I'll leave you with what tomorrow morning will look like for me.. as it does every day before skiing. With a solid breakfast!

New Years - Ski bum style

After a very snowy December, the last few weeks have been contrastingly dry. This has meant that the sun has come out a lot and the tourists are happy, but not a lot of riding being done. With a large number of people being sick as well, I have been called into work quite regularly and am doing around 6 days a week. This will go well towards funding a planned trip (more on that shortly), but my legs are starting to get a bit sore from a lot of standing and not much movement!

On the 30th I decided to have a break day, and joined Chris in his Ford F150 for a trip down to Squamish during the day. I was really glad just to have a day with no cares on timing, and enjoy the views on the drive out. It certainly made me realise that while we are not in the 'Alps' we are certainly in the mountains!

Only 300m above sea level

New Years eve itself was certainly eventful! As it was a busy morning on the mountain with not a lot of fresh snow, I decided to spend the morning practising my back-country beacon search techniques. Whistler Blackcomb has an early dedicated to this where they bury practise boxes with active beacon's in them. I was happy to find that I hadn't gotten rusty, but as always I learnt a few more things.

From the top of Glacier Chair

As it was Chris' birthday, we had a casual day ripping some groomers and then deferred to Crystal Lodge for a drink. This is certainly one of the most picturesque places on Blackcomb mountain.

Enjoying a birthday drink

Unfortunately I got called in to work for the afternoon. They were that desperate for the assistance that I came directly off the mountain and worked in my ski gear. For 4 hours I was in my ski boots dealing with customers, bending down to fit boots, and trying to walk. It was only the next day that someone pointed out that I could have just put on a pair of snowboard boots!

Not wanting to waste time, once I left work I headed straight to Merlin's where I had left Chris earlier in the day. The next 5 hours were spent happily talking, drinking and celebrating each New Years day as it came in around the world. The major talking point seemed to be around me being the only one in the bar still in ski gear, but as I had work the next day I decided to head to the fireworks at midnight in the village, and then quickly home to bed.

New Year's Day at Whistler Blackcomb

The Holiday Inn looking good in the sun

Unfortunately there's not much more to report. It looks like we are going to finally get some fresh snow over the next few days. Unfortunately I don't have much time off at all.. but things will look better in a week or two no doubt. Until then I will keep my creative cooking alive, trying to keep a bit of kiwi eating in Canada!

Bacon & Egg Pie