Saturday, February 04, 2006

Not a lot

I haven't been doing anything different lately from what I was doing this time last year. And I know I flooded my blog last year with shots and tales of the deep, deep snow. However, just to let you know that I haven't quite been snowed off the face of the planet, I've compiled some shots here that probably resemble closely those that I took last year.



This shot was taken on route 7. It was probably the last time I take that route since I've now discoverd that the 394 is open pretty much all the time, except for when there have been phenomenal snowfalls. What you can see are the fences that protect the road from being covered by snow drifts, and some nice clouds.



Can't remember when I took this shot, or where, but it was a good day.



I've been getting more stick for my bright blue pants this year. Maybe folks thought they'd give me a year to come to my senses. However, I think they look nice, especially when I'm biting the air from under the ropeway. This was one of those days when the ropeway got closed at noon due to high winds. Be safe, be seen.



Along the 394.



Also along the 394, before the big bridge. This part of the route can be hairy in high winds, with blizzard conditions forcing drivers to progress at very slow speeds.



The tunnel where Hugh took a late turn one time.



Here's the waiting room for the ropeway. Except, this year, with me being a private English school teacher, I ride on weekdays, which means the snaking queues are a thing of the past. Oh, and who might that be sat on the bench? It's only everybody's favourite little French Canadian, Franky. He's back, and he's been a bloody good mountain buddy.



So, what you do is you climb the stairs, strap your board onto your feet and head into that zero-visibility mist. That's got to be a good day out.



At the top, where the ropeway dumps it's willing victims. And we love it.



Earlier that day I played a game that I'm always hesitant to play called 'follow Francois'. It was good with Francois because of his canny knowledge of the tiny knooks and crannies of the mountain range. The shot above is when me, Ian and his mate Kengo went down the same route later. I kind of forgot Francois' route, and we ended up skiing in deep mist in unknown terrain. Luckily, I have a lethal sense of direction and we ended up safe and sound, but there were moments that day. At the bottom, Kengo explaind that he hadn't cared in the slightest for our safety because he didn't understand English words like "Shit, where the f**k are we?"

Hakkoda has been blessed with an equal amount of extraordinary powder this year as last. It's all been good for me. Though when I spoke to Francois this morning, he did tell me that a young girl had to be rescued after a tree collision yesterday resulting in a broken hip. Play safe, wear a helmet!!