Welcome back to winter

Wow.. 2 weeks since my last blog post! Time kind of moves quickly when you're in a groundhog day like period. Thankfully that period now looks to finally be behind us and the winter switch has been well and truly turned back on. This is what the forecast looked like for the week just been

Note the lovely snowfall numbers

Since then we have managed to get a good couple of powder days riding in, with the best being yesterday with 17cm of new snow. I got in early to the Fresh Tracks line (6am... Zzzzz) and was rewarded with a solid day of beating the crowds around the mountain. Unfortunately the camera was particularly bouncy and I don't know how much usable footage I got.

Speaking of footage, before this winter resurgence the back country was riding particularly well. As my season edit isn't going very far I decided to put together a quick video of a couple of days spent off the back of Blackcomb mountain.


Blackcomb Backcountry from Aaron Tasker on Vimeo.

The mountains around here are very picturesque and I couldn't resist putting together a panoramic shot as well. It's best viewed in high resolution so be sure to click on it and download it from the options at the top!

Here are some other fun shots from those days too.

The bootpack setup

This wasn't an intentional shot.. but came out looking great

Another unintentional wonder

Look mum... cliffs!

This igloo is at the top of Blackcomb Glacier and provides some great shelter during windy days

Brandon & I on a not-as-sunny day

The season is moving fast and before you know it Leela will be here with me to hopefully enjoy what will still be some good snow in March. Although we haven't typically celebrated valentines day much, I decided to surprise her this year with a reminder that I'm still thinking of her daily.

A valentines day surprise

There have been some other exciting activities that have taken place to break up the weeks. The Banff Mountain Film Festival came to Whistler and was well worth attending both nights. Highlights would certainly have to be 'Crossing the Ice' (Click for trailer), a tale of the 2 Australian friends who kayaked the Tasman Sea attempting the first unassisted (no kites, dogs, skidoos etc.) return trip from the south pole. For you climbing folk I highly recommend checking out 'Wide Boyz' (Click for trailer) and their journey climbing off-width cracks in America. There were also a number of BMX, Kayaking, Caving, BASE jumping and other fantastic videos. For those of you who like downhill BMX, or the cute factor of a little dog, you have to check out 'Lily Shreds Trailside' (Click to watch for free!)

Last Monday we headed out after work to enjoy a spot of ice-skating, as well as the money that had been earned by every ones mistakes at work. These mistakes if called were written on the FUBAR list and over $100 was raised towards some jugs.. which turned into a few more! Suffice to say it was a great night.. but here's a couple of shots of before the drinking.

The Blackcomb Daylodge rental team of 2013

My first game of 'Shinny'

An impromptu game of ice-hockey is commonly referred to as 'Shinny', and I found out one of the reasons why as I came away with a good strike to the shins. While not the worst injury of the night, a very good time was had by all.

This week I also finally decided to upgrade my ski setup. As some of you may know, I have been deliberating over what skis to buy for quite a while, and in the end there wasn't one that fit exactly what I wanted. So I decided to upgrade my current setup, and keep looking for a ski that fit my 'powder/charger' category. So now the Line Blend's are a bit heavier, but now allow me to go 'skinning' up the mountain. This method of travel uses animal skins which are attached to the bottom of the ski, and a binding that releases at the heel. It can mean travelling up to 3 times faster on snow than carrying your skis, especially on the flatter ground.

The upgrade!

The biggest highlight of the last 2 weeks has to be the ice climbing that I did with Coast Mountain Guides. About 90 minutes north of Whistler in the Lilooet Gorge is an ice climbing area known as the 'Rambles'. The drive is stunning and whilst Pemberton and the other towns on the way through are certainly not as resort like as Whistler, it felt really good to get out of the 'city' and into some real country.

Once we arrived at our site and got kitted up with harness', crampons, helmets, axes, belays, ropes and other equipment between our party of 11 and 2 guides we then hiked another 30 minutes to our ice climbing site. This activity is not for someone who is afraid of exercise!

The waterfall we were to climb

3 ropes were setup at the top of the waterfall by our talented guide, and very soon we were all having a go up the wall. The photo's really don't do it justice.. but a lot of the center section is completely vertical. I was very impressed at how complex this sport is, as not only do you have to puzzle solve your way up the slope, but also how your equipment will help (or hinder) the situation.

Attacking one of the harder parts of the climb

Lookin up!

Placing axes in the wall

The climb

I have some video that I hope to put together with some that our guide took to form a highlights reel of  the day. 

It's only a few days until we are in March, and while January and February weren't the greatest for snowfall there is still plenty of fun to be had! Chris, Amy, Phil and I are now looking forward to this weekend as we head to Revelstoke! The weather forecast keeps changing on us.. but we may strike it lucky with a bit of snow and sun yet.