Sun peaks 2008
Sun peaks 2008
13 Feb – A sunny day. We had a latish start. Geoff went in after three runs – a few after effects of his crash. Helen stayed out until 11:30. We completed the jigsaw puzzle that we began on our first day here. Very tricky because it was mainly various shades of green. The Brennans came over for tea. They have been coming to Sun Peaks from Sydney for almost as long as we have. It was good to catch up.
14 Feb – A morning of perfect grooming. We had 4 quick runs on Sundance. Sundowner was close to perfect cruising – quite quick. Three Bears had been groomed for the first time since we have been here. It is Scott Coopers favourite and we always do it when it is groomed. A good run. Then, back to the condo to get changed for x-country. Perfect grooming. Extremely good skating. Our form is improving with each run. Sue Burt’s ‘keep shoulder blades down’ is a considerable help. It appears to stabilise the core and help prevent the upper body from moving about. It also causes a more upright stance and that gets the skis running very well. We did Holy Cow in 40 mins – which is as quick as we have ever done it. We almost got around without seeing anybody. Just two people. Certainly not crowded trails.
We began the new jigsaw puzzle. This one has very odd shaped pieces.
15 Feb – We did not go out today. Geoff was not feeling up to it. We went to the Brennan’s for tea. Return match.
16 Feb – A x-country day. We went from the top of Morrissey, down Holy Cow and turned right at the bottom and went to the cabin at Lake MacGillvray for the first time this year. Then, back via the uphill Ravens Ramble. All up about 17km. We arrived back fairly exhausted. We finished the jigsaw. (Now what that was the last one?)
We had Al Raine and Nancy Greene Raine over for tea. A good lively discussion. They have sold the management company for Cahilty Hotel, and are building a house to the east of Kamloops. It sounds like a very environmental house with considerable insulation, geothermal power. Nancy has become a very concerned environmentalist. It was good to see them again.
17 Feb – A day of downhill. Four Stings and 3 Broadways. That was the first time Geoff has skied Sting since his crash on it. Taking it a bit slower now – though still with 12 turns to the bottom.. We met up with Lynda from the British Ski Club. She is replacing Harry who we met last year and who had been here for the last 3 weeks. British Ski Club has a rep on the hill to show their members around and help them out. We showed Lynda around for the morning (as we did for Harry last year on his first day). It is an interesting concept considering the free ‘Sun Guides’ volunteers who are lurking around everywhere trying to find someone to show around the hill.
Helen went out again in the afternoon to do over the moguls at the top of the mountain.
18 Feb – After one run on Sundance we went over to Morrissey for a few runs then put the x-country gear on for a round of Holy Cow. A beautiful sunny warm day. We took the video. Temps of about 10C during the day. Much of the snow on the roads has melted. The x-country tracks were beautiful. We took quite a lot of video, especially of the animal tracks in the snow. Cats (probably lynx and bob cat), martins and hares. We saw and filmed a squirrel eating the paint off a sign.
We got back pretty exhausted and were collapsed around watching TV when the maintenance men arrived to have another go at the heating. Fixed this time, we hope.
19 Feb – We got the first chair along with Jeff Miller (who has over 90 days skiing this year and who is usually on the first chair each day) and Larissa. We have know both these people for a few minutes each day for several (7+) years. This was due to be a cloudless sunny day. We decided to do ‘The Tour’. The Tour begins at Sundance lift; takes a connector over to the Morrissey lift then down ‘Back In Time’ to the Burfield lift. (The Burfield lift is a replacement of the original lift here. They kept it at the same speed, so it still takes 20 mins from the bottom to the top). Up the Burfield to ‘The Top of the World’, then down anything to the 5 mile and back to the base of Sundance. Jeff Miller does it every day. This was the first time we had done it. Jeff and Larissa waited for us at the bottom of the Burf. Jeff is one of the fastest skiers on the hill – a very nice man. The last we saw of him was at ‘The Top of the World’. We all headed down Spillway (groomed black) although Larissa got lost and went down 5 Mile. A good run down. We went back up the Crystal chair again so Larissa could do Spillway. Geoff took the video down 5 mile to capture some visuals. (Unfortunately, he did not take the lens cap off, so we had to do it again.) After a few runs down 5 Mile, Geoff was feeling ill so he went in. Helen came in after a couple more runs. We went out for lunch to a very tiny café/bistro – seats10.
The last couple of days have been warm (more than plus 10C) during the day, the sky clear of clouds and the nights coldish (about minus 10C). During the days, a big amount of snow melts (especially around the village), the roads have lost their snow cover, and the roofs are dripping from their snowy tops. We can hear water running down downpipes. In the village, huge ice stalactites hang from buildings. Overnight, this running water all freezes again. Roads are ice sheets. Runs that were groomed early (when they were still wet) freeze into frozen corduroy that can be very unpleasant to ski down until the sun gets on it and softens it.
Sun Peaks trip 2008 - week 4
Tuesday, 19 February 2008