My Ski Holiday in Canada (loads of pics)

geeza · 26 Feb 2006 at 22:46

I went to Canada skiing for 10 days on 6th Feb with my dad for my 21st that was in october. We had an excellent time and the weather was great (BIG snow dump the week before and then sun whilst we were there!)

We ski'd many of the runs, loads of blacks and we even dared take on a double diamonds. Double diamonds, blacks, blues and even some of the family runs were hard. Skiing was hard as we hardcored it every day from 8.30 - 4pm, just stopping for a quick lunch (cuppa soup and some slow gin!)
Then back to the sauna, jacuzzi and heated swimming pool to repair those chopped liver feat.

The next trip (quite soon) will include my mum (she had an operation on her feet so couldnt come)

geeza · 26 Feb 2006 at 22:47

geeza · 26 Feb 2006 at 22:47

geeza · 26 Feb 2006 at 22:48

geeza · 26 Feb 2006 at 22:48

geeza · 26 Feb 2006 at 22:48

geeza · 26 Feb 2006 at 22:49

geeza · 26 Feb 2006 at 22:49

geeza · 26 Feb 2006 at 23:00

Phog said:
Looks like you had an awesome time! Definately has to be Canada for me next time. I'm just hearing too many good reports!

last year apparently the snow was non existant so people were going fishing instead! they had the best snow in january in about 10 years i think. suppose we dropped on with the sun aswell, bonus! but on the last day it did need snow and the blowers were all on.

ps its cold when the cold kicks in. -16c + wind chill isnt fun on your face (see balaclava) my nose felt like it was going to drop off!

geeza · 26 Feb 2006 at 23:06

PlacidCasual said:
Ski'd Whislter and Blackcomb myself a few years ago, the old ski in ski out is quite good. There are some seriously steep pistes there hard on the old legs at times. Glad you enjoyed it.

some of the double diamonds looked scary! mcloneys and other looked terrifying, we tried following an expert guy and he went down past a sign that said 'caution, rocks and unmarked cliff edges' so we sk'd around it a so find a cliff edge with loads of rocks and a big drop on the other side! (picture just below the one with sausage i my mouth) we climbed back up which took about 30minutes and we both slipped down and neally fell off an edge. my dad screamed and i though he was going over! (didnt feel good at all) anyway we learned to not go off piste on high mountain sides again. (still off piste of course though!)

we spoke to people on the lifts like instructors who said a guy who ski'd blackcomb last year died on a 'DOA' course. there apparently a sign that says 'dont stop or fall' if you slow down u fall of a sheer drop. i wont be doing that thanks. there are some hardcore people there who do runs like triple diamonds etc

geeza · 26 Feb 2006 at 23:07

dbappa said:
where abouts in canada did you go?

to vancouver airport, then a coach to whistler village. stayed at delta whistler village suites

geeza · 26 Feb 2006 at 23:19

Phog said:
An additional note, you have a HUGE mouth! That salami is rather large!

not that big. i didnt try with the 'crosley' sausage. crosley is my housemates black dad!

geeza · 27 Feb 2006 at 12:07

AJUK said:
Whilster-Blackcomb kicks arse!

I was there for the last week in Jan.

A huge snow dump then then. Please say you did the small hike over to blackcomb glacier. the first time we did it, it was fresh powder. The real hardcore hiked up around the top of the glacier (taking about 30minutes) and ski'd down the almost vertical drops around the top.

geeza · 27 Feb 2006 at 14:52

^ i didnt think about that at the time. I was just trying to not let the gale force winds blow me over the edge. That was one of the days when it was -16, i couldnt feel my fingers. (but yes, it was indeed extreme) I landed about a 3 foot drop onto an almost vertical slope, with a bit of a wobble i may add

'I was in Whistler myself from the 4th to 19th. You didn't happen to see a bunch of people all wearing bright orange hats did you? That was us.'

I think so yes! Im positive I saw 2 people with orange hair wigs on anyway

geeza · 28 Feb 2006 at 10:39

gord said:
IIRC Harmony Horseshoe and Whistler Bowl were fairly easy double diamonds.

Can you still get Couloir Extreme posters? I got two when i went and heard they were being stopped... love one of them ive framed it properly.

If memory doesnt fail me i think that that the pic above blackcomb glacier is inbetween Couloir Extreme and big bang. We were NOT going down there because it said 'expert unmarked rocks and cliff edges' instead we walked back up where we had come down. yes harmony horseshoes are 'easy' double diamonds but they are still very steep and most wouldnt do them. Whistler bowl is a black as is sun bowl but sun bowl is harder.
I think the difference between black runs and double diamonds is that the blacks are actually marked out and you can see where to go most of the time, double diamonds however are not so you have to pick a route or get stuck/die (which isnt always fun!)
edit - then theres triple diamonds and DOA's, which are for the mentally insane only (as i said before someone died on blackcomb last year when he slowed down too much and then fell off a cliff edge)