Surface Crust Day 6

 

DB takes a header



A little air time

Today's entry will be short and sweet.  Since it’s our last night on vacation, we're trying to finish off the alcohol, so my grammar and lucidity will be tested.  Without the necessary cold temps, today’s snowpack was heavy and crusty.  Even so, we were all hyped to get some turns and have some fun.  Aside from the five of us, only Bob the Boarder (from the previous day) joined us for today’s adventures.  The Peak Adventures crew showed us a great time in spite of the heavy snow conditions.  Once again, the Ewok Village was the place to be….perfect, natural spacing between the trees and lots of stumps and logs to huck.  Unfortunately, the hucking didn’t always go as planned, as you can see from the photo of me upside-down beneath a tree.   I needed a little help from Paul to disengage my board from the branches, but all limbs (mine and the tree’s) were undamaged. 

We definitely had to work for our turns today, but to a man, there was no place we would rather be.  We head home tomorrow thankful for these opportunities and thankful for the friends that make it so fun.

DK, DB and the Cat

FM and TP chillin' with the guides

DB and TP at the end of the day

Tubbin'

Peak Adventures crew: Paul, Carey, Ryan and Phil

Our team at lunch



Carl gets an uppercut



Pow Day 5

Toe Pimp

Day 5 promised to be a new adventure in northern Idaho.  It was our first time with Peak Adventures, and we had some early morning jitters as we drove the vehicles to the cat.  There was a lot of dust and little snow, and we thought that mountain biking would have been a better choice than skiing.  Lo and behold, we boarded the cat with three snowboarders from Washington and were pleasantly surprised to ascend into some pristine pow.  Our three new partners in pow included a father/daughter boarder team from Seattle (Bob and Katie) and a solo boarder from Spokane (Tony).  I was very happy to have three good boarders join our posse since I was no longer outnumbered by those salacious skiers.  Tony the Tiger (as nicknamed by our crew) became my partner for the day and turned out to be an excellent boarder. 

The Peak Adventures team proved to be very fun and professional.  Ryan (owner and lead guide), Paul (guide), Ian (tail guide) and Phil (cat driver) showed us an unforgettable day on the mountain.  The morning pow was light and fluffy, and although it got a tad crusty in the afternoon, we found lots of good stuff through the trees.  I think all would agree that the best runs of the day were through an area dubbed “Ewok Village” which, like the name implies, was eerily reminiscent of the forest on the moon of Endor where the Rebels engaged the Imperial Army in “Return of the Jedi”.  (Yes, I am a geek….May The Force Be With You!!!)  The Ewok Village had perfectly-spaced trees that allowed each of us to rip hard and feel like a superhero (or at least like a Jedi on a land speeder).  We did have some carnage that is partially captured in the photos.  DK’s lips picked a fight with an evergreen branch and came out the loser, though DK’s fighting spirit was not diminished.  Carl also took a spill that got captured on film by DK.  As for the rest of us…..well, let’s just say that we were able to get back on our feet before a camera-toting onlooker could get a shot.  The day on the slopes ended with some beers and good laughs on the cat ride back to the cars. 

Back at the house, DK prepared an excellent salmon dinner (with Carl as sous chef), and we now look forward to our last cat day with our new friends at Peak Adventures.  In addition, we want to introduce our official mascot for this year’s trip……DK’s adorable dog Cassie (see photo).

The last day awaits….

FM and DK

DB and FM

DB and Tony the Tiger

The Cat

Scenery

DK goes down

TM goes down

Peak Adventures owner Ryan

View from the cat

TP and FM need directions

TP and DK

DB, TP and FM

FM in the trees





TM sells out

The dusty road to the cat

TM and TP



Katie, FM and Bob (Katie's dad)




FM



Day 5 Crew

Our mascot Cassie

Travel Day 4



Lunch in Creston



Not much excitement on day 4.  We loaded up the vehicles and departed the Riversuites at 9:45am.  After a quick stop at the Valhalla office to return TP's loaner poles, we set off on our drive to northern Idaho.  We experienced a 20 minute delay while the Canadian version of Cal Trans cleared snow from a high mountain pass.  The man that stopped us had a gray beard down to his navel and spoke in tongues that none of us understood.  We were sure to roll up our windows and lock our doors as we waited.  I swear I heard the faint sound of the "Deliverance" music in the background.  After a nice lunch in the Canadian town of Creston, we continued south to the border patrol station.  We answered a few questions and were welcomed home with open arms.  After some grocery shopping, we made our way to our new home for the next two days....an exquisite house that seems much too nice for our crew.  Tomorrow, we'll try to post some pictures of the house, but for now, we are about to start a movie, so stay tuned for tales of tomorrow's adventures....

Whitewater Day 3

Day 3 was a split operation… two hardcore powder hounds (TP and DB) drove to the Whitewater ski resort in the early am while the other three sipped tea and debated drapery design.  It was freakin’ cold at Whitewater (-18C), but it was a bluebird sky, and the snow conditions were great.  TP and DB scouted the new lift at Whitewater and made several tree runs through dense forest.  We realized that our legs were not as fresh as we thought and narrowly avoided intimate encounters with the snow-laden evergreens.  At 11:30am, we rendezvoused with FM, TM and DK in the Whitewater bar, where the three of them were already enjoying Faceplant ales and yam fries (extremely delicious).  After two rounds of Faceplants, TP, TM and DB headed out to the slopes while FM and DK snuggled in the bar.  As you can see from the photos, it was a beautiful day on the mountain.  It felt as if we were the only ones there.  Just before our legs completely gave out, TP and DB finished the day at Whitewater with a powder run down a bowl with no other skiers or boarders in sight….fantastic.  We joined the others at the bar for another Faceplant (non-drivers only), and then headed back to the Riversuites while chillin’ out to reggae tunes on the XM radio.  We enjoyed our nightly relaxation therapy in the hot tub, and then (brace yourself) FM prepared a meal!   Those familiar with this crew will understand that FM has rarely, if ever, been seen preparing anything in the kitchen besides a margarita.  To his credit, the nachos were fabulous and complimented the beers and tall tales perfectly.  Not long after the nachos were consumed, Thong Man wrapped himself in a blanket and passed out on the couch while the rest of us continued drinking (see photo).  For all the grief we received from TM about getting the wrong kind of beer, it was sweet justice to see him drooling on the couch while the rest of us had a good laugh at his expense.  It is now time to sign off as the final beers are consumed, and we head off to bed.  Tomorrow is a travel day to Idaho, so hopefully the roads are clear, and the border patrol is kind.

Until tomorrow….

Pow Day 2

Day 2 is dedicated to Queenie!

Like day 1, we got picked up in front of our suites.  However, this time, the temp was much colder, and we were equipped with two six packs of beer instead of one.  The bus was full of Canucks and Swedes......unfortunately, not the Swedish women's bikini ski team....just more old codgers like ourselves.  We arrived at the cat and got grouped with Canucks from Kelowna.  The youngest ever cat skiier in Valhalla history was in our cat....13 years old and a helluva skier.  At the transceiver training site, while the newbies were getting their training, our lead guide Chev told us we could get an extra run since PB was nowhere to be found.  How was the office today PB?!!!  We got our extra run, picked up the Canucks, and headed up the hill under blue skies and cold temps.  The first two runs were spectacular, and then we went to a west facing aspect that required the guides to dig a pit and check the stability of the snowpack.  After getting the A-OK, the young 13-year old whipper-snapper poached our lines and got first tracks down the run called Prune Juice.  He stole a page right out of PB's cheating playbook.  When we were ha lfway down Prune Juice, we gathered near our guide, and my dream words were spoken: "Rusty, if you see your line, lead us down to the cat."  Chev let me rip the lower half of the slope since it was a perfect speed run for a snowboarder.  The sides were lined with snarb, and FM complained the whole way down.  I got to the bottom and videotaped the others coming down.  Unfortunately, the videos are taking way too long to upload, so you'll get to see them later.  Holiday chute was next on the agenda, and it was officially measured with an inclinometer to be a 48 degree slope (e.g. steep).  It was a narrow, one-man chute and surprisingly firm (insert joke here).  For the most part, the chute was handled expertly, except TP had some trouble with premature release.  He exited his skis and quickly remounted before FM could film the carnage.  Unfortunately, while helping Don stop his own detached ski, TP immediately snapped a pole.  In his efforts to ski with a half pole, TP took another header, and one ski decided to go ahead without him.  Dream Killer came to the rescue and located the wayward ski 100 yards below the crash site.  TP slid down the slope on his backside while the tail guide (Johnathan) carried his other ski.  He looked like a dog wiping his bum along the carpet.  After regrouping, the rest of the run was excellent.  TP got two loaner poles from the tail guide, and he was good to go for the rest of the day.  The next drop-off location was called "Top of the World", and the views were spectacular.  The run was pure bliss.  We liked it so much that we convinced the guides to take us back for a second pass.  These are the two runs we want to dedicate to Queenie because they were as magnificent as her friendship and adventurous spirit. 

The rest of the day continued in similar fashion, and we concluded with 9 superb runs.  The bus ride home was much better than the day before since we were able to lock our lips around a thirsty beaver (see photo below).

The hot tub was wonderful as always, even though the cold air caused TP's hair to freeze.  Dream Killer cooked a fabulous dinner of linguine and clam sauce, and the five of us are going to bed fat, dumb and happy. 

Tomorrow's adventures await....

Pow Day 1



The Lodging



The Bus

The Cat

The Crew



FM



DB and TP



It was a spectacular day 1 in the Kootenays.  The 'new' Valhalla bus picked us up at 8:15 am sharp in front of the Valhalla River Suites. 5 of us boarded the bus and joined 7 Canucks from Rossland, who were exactly like us...pining for pow.  The bus driver was our most favorite lead guide, Martin.  The new bus had comfier seats and a fancy video player that showed us scary avalanche footage and instructions on how to use our transceivers.  Apparently, the new bus is a little more 'squirrelly' on the ice, so Martin and our tail guide 'Nesbo' had to put chains on to ensure that we didn't misakenly create a runaway truck ramp through the bodacious amounts of pow on the side of the road.  The new bus had more creature comforts than the old bus, but Toe Pimp and I think the music took a downturn and didn't give the same adrenaline boost as the tunes on the old blue bus.  Where was the Zeppelin and Hendrix?????

We successfully departed the cat loading zone without any hydraulic, mechanical, or psychological problems and made our way up the steep cat road to cheers and smiles.  Snow conditions: fresh, light pow (perfect); temperature: single digit Fahrenheit (perfect); Skies: blue with a few whispy clouds (perfect).  What can I say, we were all giddy like Thong Man in a liquor store.  Nesbo gave a very proficient transceiver training course, and then we were off to our first run of the day....fresh pow with lots of hooting and hollering.  After the first run, all I saw were white teeth from all the grinning.  The first run instantly reminded me why I came on this trip.....floating through the soft pow with the greatest of ease is like no other feeling in the world. 

So the entire day continued in much the same manner except that there was an unintentional 20 - 30  foot drop off a rock face by two of our new Rossland buddies that caused some excitement.  Yours truly was following two "Rossis" down a fairly gentle slope through flat light conditions when all of a sudden both of them disappeared into thin air.  On seeing them disappear from sight, I made a hard right and just missed following them off the precipice.  The good thing is that neither of them saw it coming, so they never slowed down and sailed clear over the rocks down below.  They both landed in fresh pow and came up smiling.  However, skis and poles were spread to all directions of the compass, and we had to take a few minutes to collect gear and catch our collective breaths.  FM caught the whole thing on video and weasled a beer out of one of the Canucks on the bus ride home as payment for showing him the footage.  Good move FM, especially since Dream Killer (Don) only brought one beer for each of us on the bus ride.  FM and TM will not let Don live that faux pas down. 

So day 1 was a complete blast that ended with some time in the hot tub and a delicious lasagna dinner prepared by Toe Pimp and Dream Killer.  As I write this, FM and TM are passed out on the couch, and intermittent snoring is disrupting my typing.  Apparently, FM cannot handle his own margaritas!

I will now sign off and try to post some pictures and videos.  On a final note, I must give a shout out to the wonderful service that we received at the Pepperbox Bistro last night.  We stopped in Salmo, B.C. for dinner and discovered this wonderful little place that was serving delicious Chinese food.  I think it was the only place open in the whole town, and it was packed.  The waitress was a snowboarder, and she regaled us with great stories of surfing and boarding.  The best part was that she was not shy about giving the skiers the business.  I was loving it!

Until tomorrow....

-DB

p.s. PB, I don't blame you for joining the girls, but it sounds like your panties are in a bunch.  We'll be thinking of you as we float through the pow tomorrow....NOT!!!

Intro

I'm all new to creating a blog, so hopefully this turns out alright.  From Jan 29 - Feb 5, myself and four friends will be skiing and boarding in Canada and Idaho, and we'd like to share our experiences.  I'm following in the footsteps of two funny storytellers (PB and Gazelle) who unfortunately could not join us this year, so hopefully I can live up to their high standards.  I will try to update the blog every evening with photos and tales of the day, though the call of the hot tub and a cold margarita at the end of the day may distract me from my blogging duties.  :-)

Until Jan 29...