Breakfast, pack, and off to the airport. If it is snowing and the visibility is bad we will sit and wait. There is a crew of people that spent yesterday doing just that. Today, even though there is a bit of fog hovering about it looks like we are going. At our appointed 9:30 departure time, the chopper starts up and we’re on our way.
By about 11 am we are all high up in the Rockies, staying at Mistaya Lodge, organizing food for the week and packs to head out skiing. Every lodge has different routines and we are filled in on where the garage goes, what is recycled, dry areas and wet rooms, and assorted other details.
Motivation is ebbing so it is time to make the suggestion and get everyone off their butts. Since I have been here before I have an idea where I want to go. It is easy terrain but it is high and we can see most of the area we are going to ski from there and get our bearing for the week. Jo, Br, and K decide to come with me.
The up track is hit and miss. We follow it but every once in a while the track is blown in and we have to search. At the top the wind is howling, we turn our skis down. The snow is quite deep but it is dense and we don’t sink too much. Maybe only up to our knees. To the south is another slope we have been eyeing up. The up doesn’t look too bad and there is still lots of light so up we go. It is only the first day so Br doesn’t want to burn out and he waits as Jo and I go up. The light is bad, all I see is white. The skiing is great. 40ish turns in very skiable snow. If it stays like this we are in for a good week. The route back to the lodge is short. I’m tired but not dead. As the sun goes down the snow again starts to fall.
Tomorrow there is no chopper ride and not nearly as much organization so we will be on the road early.