Whistler

I promised pictures but unfortunately I can't deliver - I decided not to bring it with me so that I wouldn't break it. A good thing too...
Whistler rocks.

I skied Blackcomb, actually, and was able to get into the back bowls with just a short hike from one of the summit t-bars. I love skiing in powder! I've never skied that kind of terrain before and approached it with trepidation. After taking a few runs in choppy powder though, and with a bit of instruction from Michelle (my boss), I found it quite easy to float through it.

I quickly realized that my decision to leave the camera at home was a good one. This, when I hit a patch of totally fresh powder a little off-balance and at too slow a speed. I faceplanted into about two feet of fresh powder - soft as a down pillow, but rather "refreshing" nonetheless.

There were a number of places that I saw that I didn't ski - at least not yet. Steep, icy bowls that were probably 65 or 70 degrees in slope. Fall on that and it's a fast tumble to the bottom, about a hundred metres below. It's not all quite that steep, mind you - that only lasts for the first 15 or 20 metres and then it starts to ease in grade before rolling out to join the rest of the mountain at a more reasonable slope of descent.

Another unskied "run" was the Sudan Couloir, reportedly the steepest run on either Whistler or Blackcomb, and the subject of many scenes in various ski movies.

Next time, I'll see about bringing a camera with me - the mountain ranges in the area were absolutely beautiful to see on the few occasions that the clouds parted long enough to get a decent look.

That's all from BC for today!

Be well.

pk