Hey, hey I'm back! Back from the land of poutine & maple syrup.
What a wonderful trip it was, eh! One week at my old stomping ground Big White (5yrs instructing little rippers there) and two weeks shredding the steep bumps of the Silver Star backside with the fam. Enjoying the benefits of this winter wonderland with Mum, Dad, Ana, Bec and Will and fleeting visits by Ana's mum Eufi; and my cousin Laura and her husband Matt.
During the day we skied long hours - first to last lifts most of the time *Ok, with a stop or two to warm up. We made a snowman with wonky arms; threw many a snowball; made not so perfect snow angels; went tubing on a number of occasions; snowshoeing without snowshoes?? (my Sis was convinced they had been snowshoeing... until it came out that had been on a snowshoe track in normal shoes!! Nice try Bec); taught or at least attempted to teach Eufi to ski; and photographed when weather permitted and there was NO fresh snow to ski.
By night we hot tubbed with drinks in hand; played card games; watched movies and generally just hung out before crashing into bed after what had been a long day. A new day would begin and we would start all over :-)
A fabulous family holiday >>
Groomers Delight
The Knoll - We didn't stay here lol.
There's some super cute homes here that are painted in a wide variety of colors (Canadian for colours). They look like a packet of liquorice allsorts sitting next to one another.
Frozen Matchsticks
Snowbanks
Snow Day
Most of our days we had at least 5cm of the white stuff that had fallen.. a few days more!! - but nothing like those crazy Whistler snowfalls of the past week :-( We had days of untouched champagne powder laps through the cliff; days of speed on freshly laid corduroy and days where you couldn't see much so tree skiing was in order. A mixed bag where each day was different.
I loved it all :-)
Stickered
>> These next couple of ski shots were taken on the front side of Silver Star Mountain. I never took the camera to my favourite side, the back or as Mum likes to call it the "Dark Side" as (1) because it was a long way away and (2) it's not fun carrying a heavy camera bag whilst skiing, especially double black runs with names like Gongshow, Freefall or Gowabunga!!!
Mr Will
The Bec
SuperSTAR Ana - Skied from every lift ✓ Peanut Trail ✓ First Black Run ✓
RollerCoaster
Sunset Reversal
Ribs & Rumps
Flame over the valley
Tina Sparkly
An inland ocean
Light Dusting
Above is a shot of Big White Ski Resort (or so I think) taken from Silver Star, some 60km away as the crow flies. Usually it's hard to spot - Why? It seems to be covered in what the locals like to call "low lying cloud", to everyone else it's FOG! Brings a LOT of quality of snow though!!
I spent the week staying with with my old boss Bill and his lovely family. Truly the most amazing people ever. These are the kind of people who give up their own family Xmas dinner (each and every year) to put on an fabulous festive feast for all the foreign ski school workers who are away from their families. I'm incredibly grateful for their generosity they once again afforded me by opening up their home for the week.. It was wonderful to catch up and hope it's not long before I see them again.
During my time in BW I noticed many changes; pubs and restaurants have closed / moved / rebranded; the ski school has grown way bigger; new faces all over the hill; new and exciting kids runs like the one through Ogopogo's (mythical creature) giant mouth. But, what I noticed that hadn't changed was how good this place is for the WHOLE family. There's something for everyone, from tots to grandma.. so much fun can be had at this place!
My greatest memory about Big White was and still is the people.. the friends that I've made through skiing here will last a lifetime. I was lucky enough to go for a slide with a few that were still around; Holly, Judy and BY it was wonderful seeing you guys and hearing how your lives have grown.
Snow everywhere - just the way we like it!
Spun around and around - Bec & Ana go tubing
Cool Room - no need for refrigeration here
Beer + Hot Tub = Relaxed mind, body and soul :-)
Weeks in the snow and mountain have been awesome...but now the surf, sand and sun call my name.
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