Pablo is in Whistler.
He took many a photograph on the road to Whistler to keep Fairlie happy.
He intends to spend the next week here just relaxing and watching some live music at the Telus Festival which is on here at the moment.
He will write a summary of the last few days (with Pictures) soon - stand by.
For now..he's going to the village centre for some lunch, a haircut and maybe a ski if he feels like stretching the legs for the afternoon. He wishes you all a nice day!*
*Pablo exits
Wednesday, April 22, 2009
Friday, April 10, 2009
Decisions, decisions...
The season here at Big White is very quickly drawing to a close. We have had a couple of days in the last week around +10 which has had us all out in shorts during the day around the village and in just a t-shirt up on the hill. The big upside has been the construction of a number of beer gardens around the village - simple roped off "licenced" areas with a bbq and keg making for really social apres ski hours. It is amazing how quickly the sun changes a place like this. The days are noticeably longer every day and it has a little more bite to it.
Thankfully our base will hold to see us through to April 19 when we all scramble back down the hill and into reality. In some ways at this time of year we want the temperature to either be above +3 or below -3 as anything in between yields very icy, uncomfortable and dangerous conditions on the hill.
Everyone is sharing their plans at the moment for what the Spring and Summer hold for them. For me the decision is a big one. The economic downturn has hit hard and job prospects are slim. My old job back in Perth no longer exists and I am negotiating with them now as to how exactly that works (any advice is appreciated). I can either head home where I know where everything is and try my luck there or stay on here in Canada where I don't know where everything is. Now of course it is always easier to find work back home where you have an established network and a mum that lets you live at her house, eat her food and washes your clothes (any comments about this will be deleted) but I'm here now and it would seem such a waste not to give it a crack.
So now I am living week by week...its exciting, a little scary but mega fun. Next week Amy comes to visit me from Whistler and we will pack up my house together and close the season here at Big White. Next Monday we are hiring a car (the Windstar is gone - that's a whole other story...) and driving back to her place in Whistler, overnighting in either Merritt or Hope (but probably Hope as most roads lead there) by a river, in a tent, with the bears. Before hitting Whistler for one last week of ski bum life. There is a big ski and snowboard festival being held in Whistler that week with international music, arts and ski and snowboard demonstrations amongst some great parties. It will be a fun way to cap off the season.
Then its down to Vancouver and back on the couch at Tim's place. I'll be working hard from the get go in Vancouver trying to land a job and a place to live. I have been doing some long hours on the net so I have fair idea of where I want to live and how much I should pay for it. As for work...obviously a professional placement is the goal to earn real money again and experience working abroad. In the meantime I will dig holes if I have to pay the rent. If it looks like I won't land anything worthwhile then who knows?? I'll probably travel through a few places on my way back home.
I have touched base with some contacts in Vancouver thanks to generosity of friends and family and I will be meeting with them in person to try to find my feet. Despite the bland appearance of this blog I do have hundreds of photos from the season and some cool little video clips of Matt and I riding which I will share with you all...one day. The first thing I am buying when I have a decent wage again is a really good camera.
Thankfully our base will hold to see us through to April 19 when we all scramble back down the hill and into reality. In some ways at this time of year we want the temperature to either be above +3 or below -3 as anything in between yields very icy, uncomfortable and dangerous conditions on the hill.
Everyone is sharing their plans at the moment for what the Spring and Summer hold for them. For me the decision is a big one. The economic downturn has hit hard and job prospects are slim. My old job back in Perth no longer exists and I am negotiating with them now as to how exactly that works (any advice is appreciated). I can either head home where I know where everything is and try my luck there or stay on here in Canada where I don't know where everything is. Now of course it is always easier to find work back home where you have an established network and a mum that lets you live at her house, eat her food and washes your clothes (any comments about this will be deleted) but I'm here now and it would seem such a waste not to give it a crack.
So now I am living week by week...its exciting, a little scary but mega fun. Next week Amy comes to visit me from Whistler and we will pack up my house together and close the season here at Big White. Next Monday we are hiring a car (the Windstar is gone - that's a whole other story...) and driving back to her place in Whistler, overnighting in either Merritt or Hope (but probably Hope as most roads lead there) by a river, in a tent, with the bears. Before hitting Whistler for one last week of ski bum life. There is a big ski and snowboard festival being held in Whistler that week with international music, arts and ski and snowboard demonstrations amongst some great parties. It will be a fun way to cap off the season.
Then its down to Vancouver and back on the couch at Tim's place. I'll be working hard from the get go in Vancouver trying to land a job and a place to live. I have been doing some long hours on the net so I have fair idea of where I want to live and how much I should pay for it. As for work...obviously a professional placement is the goal to earn real money again and experience working abroad. In the meantime I will dig holes if I have to pay the rent. If it looks like I won't land anything worthwhile then who knows?? I'll probably travel through a few places on my way back home.
I have touched base with some contacts in Vancouver thanks to generosity of friends and family and I will be meeting with them in person to try to find my feet. Despite the bland appearance of this blog I do have hundreds of photos from the season and some cool little video clips of Matt and I riding which I will share with you all...one day. The first thing I am buying when I have a decent wage again is a really good camera.
Tuesday, April 7, 2009
Whistler Blackcomb
Undoubtedly the best known ski resort in North America is Whistler Blackcomb. The two previously separate, but neighbouring ski areas, of Whistler and Blackcomb were integrated into one enormous operation in 1997 after Intrawest merged with Whistler Mountain Ski Corporation.
Together, Whistler and Blackcomb mountains form the largest ski area in North America at 8,171 acres (33 km2), 54% larger than Vail, the next largest, which has 5,289 acres (21 km2). By comparison Big White has 2,765 acres (11km2) of skiable terrain - so it is fair to say Whistler Blackcomb is quite the destination ski resort.
In addition to their shear size, both mountains have some of the largest lift-serviced vertical skiing in North America (until Revelstoke stole their thunder this year Whistler Blackcomb boasted the largest lift-serviced vertical skiing in Canada). With Vancouver to hold the winter Olympics in 2010 and Whistler to host a large number of the alpine vents I had to go and check it out. So on Thursday morning I loaded the trusty Ford Windstar and headed west.
I must digress from the enormity of Whistler for a moment to talk about the road from here to there. To get to Whistler the shortest route is to drive down the hill to Kelowna, take Highway 97C to Merritt where you take Highway 5 (affectionately known as the Coquihalla Highway) to Hope which turns into Highway 1 and takes you through to Vancouver. Then over the Iron Workers Memorial Bridge and up the Sea to Sky Highway (Highway 99) to Whistler. Seems easy enough - I mean, how hard could it be?
Now the village at Big White sits at 1,700m above sea level and there is currently about two metres of compact snow on the ground. The route described above includes two mountain passes one on Highway 97C on the way to Merritt which touches 1,728m above sea level and the second on the Coquihalla Highway on the way to Hope which is a mere 1,244m above sea level. Both of these passes are West of Big White so put simply, all the weather which brings snow to us here passes of these points first, if we get snow the highway gets it too.
Google maps prepared my journey for Thursday morning at 567km or about 6 hours and 46 minutes of driving time. What google maps didn't account for was the 18cm of snow we received on Wednesday night. Through the course of the season I have watched these roads cause numerous guests to arrive very late here at Big White often as much as a day after they were due as the roads are simply impassable despite the efforts of a dedicated road maintenance team of heavy ploughs and sanding trucks.
Conveniently, the roads are also serviced by a number of web cams which allow you to determine the state of the road from the comfort of home before embarking on the journey. On Thursday morning the DriveBC website advised that both mountain passes were experiencing severe winter conditions and that the highway was not a road at all but more a mix of compact snow and ice.
The web cams painted and even worse picture. On one camera I could not even determine the distinction between the highway and anything else in the frame - it was simply a blanket of white. A little nervous I decided to consult a number of old hands around here as to whether in their experience they would attempt the drive in today's conditions. Of the 5 people surveyed (some of whom boasted over 30 years of driving in BC) none of them would have chosen to drive it on Thursday morning unless it was absolutely necessary and even then only in a strong 4wd vehicle with chains. And definitely not in a $750 front wheel drive mini van. Everyone advised me to take an alternative route to the south and along the lower highways through Penticton to Hope.
So after riding the 18cm of fresh on Thursday morning for an hour or so (come on you didn't expect me to let that go untouched...) I started the trusty van, took a deep breath and headed down the hill. The road to Kelowna was easy enough and I was soon at the turn off to Highway 97C. Here I could choose to go against the wise words of those more experienced and chance the high road or turn south and take the lower roads through Penticton to Hope.
At every point until this intersection I had resolved to adding the extra two and half hours to my journey to take the safer road through Penticton but then in a moment of madness I turned right and immediately started ascending. Is it better to enter the gates of heaven in a burning car wreck backwards or be wheeled in on a hospital trolley as an 85 year old man with a tube up your nose?
Not more than a few kilometres up the hill and around the first significant bend the snow started. The two and at times three lane highway was reduced to two simple tyre marks somewhere near the middle of the lanes that a few lonely cars and trucks before me had cut. Within 10km I had passed a very sturdy and modern looking 4wd slammed sideways into the concrete barrier, its left rear wheel buckled beneath it...to say I was concentrating hard and just a little nervous was an understatement.
To add a degree of difficulty I was alone, mobile phone reception in the area is poor, I only had half a tank of fuel, there was still 84km to Merritt and my windscreen wiper blades were frozen solid and completely useless. My only companions were a few locals and large semi-trailer trucks which overtook me regularly leaving me in a wash of slushy brown snow and completely blind for up to 20 seconds as the frozen rubber tried to do its job - it was horribly frightening.
But the old girl just kept chugging...literally at a crawl I watched the kilometres slide by. The van never missed a beat and when a small white sign on the side of the road indicated the Pennask Summit at 1,728m I beeped the horn like a man possessed, cranked the stereo and celebrated the beginning of the decline. As I descended every kilometre congratulated me with ever increasing road quality till just outside Merritt my tyres again touched solid road. I had passed the impassable in a car no one would have chosen as suitable.
In Merritt I gave the van a good drink, bought a dodgy petrol station roast beef and salad roll and headed for the Coquihalla knowing that at only 1,244m at the summit I was a good chance. The second half was slightly easier and when I reached Hope I telephoned Amy in Whistler to let her know that I was on my way and barring any unforeseen drama I would be there for dinner.
Elated I made it to Vancouver just after 4pm and the last run along Highway 99, despite its heavy roadwork in preparation for Vancouver 2010, was a breeze. I arrived at Whistler village just after 6pm having taken the best part of 9 hours to complete a 6 hour and 46 minute drive.
That night we had dinner with some friends near the base of Blackcomb and took a bus into Whistler Village for a few after dinner drinks. The snow was on my side last week - we had four powder days in a row here at Big White and after we settled in for the night at Whistler it dumped 12cm at the mid-station and a little more on the peak. Friday morning brought blue skies and a powder day at one of the premier ski resorts in the world. Amy has been to Whistler 7 times and with 2 seasons under her belt she knew just the spots to hit with such good conditions. We rode the entire day on Friday and enjoyed the apres ski scene afterwards - double gin and tonics for $5.25.
It's hard to sum up Whistler. It's a fully fledged community complete with everything a decent sized town has including a museum and state of the art library amongst designer shops art galleries and endless bars and restaurants. Even more amusing is the eclectic mix of people. Walking around the village after a day on the slopes are Whistler locals, ski bums, backpackers, working holidayers, children, families and the rich and famous all dressed in everything from office wear, ski gear, jeans and jackets to designer dresses with heels and clutched in their hands are everything from skis and boards to fistfuls of bags from the endless shops. Some people are there for the skiing and riding, others for a pampered five star holiday and some just to say they are at Whistler.
On Saturday Tim, of North Vancouver fame, joined us for the day on the hill. We rode all day Saturday till the apres ski scene then cooked a nice meal at home before resting for the drive back on Sunday.
Apart from the amazing snow we received and the endless people watching in the village the terrain at Whistler is world class and the recently opened Peak 2 Peak Gondola lets you travel between the two ski hills in 11 minutes. This amazing engineering achievement lets you travel the 4.4km between the two mid points of the ski hills in a comfortable 28 person gondola swinging at its highest point 436m above the ground. Making it even more amazing the construction only has four lift towers meaning the span between with second and third towers is over 3km!!!
I do wish I had some photos from Whistler...I did take my camera with me but neglected to take a memory stick - sorry!! Luckily I am going back there on April 21 for another week of skiing so I will take some pictures for you all then including the Peak 2 Peak Gondola.
The drive back was uneventful but beautiful as the weather had cleared and the mountain passes were amazing.
For now though its Spring skiing here at Big White. Riding around in a t-shirt all day on sloppy snow.
Together, Whistler and Blackcomb mountains form the largest ski area in North America at 8,171 acres (33 km2), 54% larger than Vail, the next largest, which has 5,289 acres (21 km2). By comparison Big White has 2,765 acres (11km2) of skiable terrain - so it is fair to say Whistler Blackcomb is quite the destination ski resort.
In addition to their shear size, both mountains have some of the largest lift-serviced vertical skiing in North America (until Revelstoke stole their thunder this year Whistler Blackcomb boasted the largest lift-serviced vertical skiing in Canada). With Vancouver to hold the winter Olympics in 2010 and Whistler to host a large number of the alpine vents I had to go and check it out. So on Thursday morning I loaded the trusty Ford Windstar and headed west.
I must digress from the enormity of Whistler for a moment to talk about the road from here to there. To get to Whistler the shortest route is to drive down the hill to Kelowna, take Highway 97C to Merritt where you take Highway 5 (affectionately known as the Coquihalla Highway) to Hope which turns into Highway 1 and takes you through to Vancouver. Then over the Iron Workers Memorial Bridge and up the Sea to Sky Highway (Highway 99) to Whistler. Seems easy enough - I mean, how hard could it be?
Now the village at Big White sits at 1,700m above sea level and there is currently about two metres of compact snow on the ground. The route described above includes two mountain passes one on Highway 97C on the way to Merritt which touches 1,728m above sea level and the second on the Coquihalla Highway on the way to Hope which is a mere 1,244m above sea level. Both of these passes are West of Big White so put simply, all the weather which brings snow to us here passes of these points first, if we get snow the highway gets it too.
Google maps prepared my journey for Thursday morning at 567km or about 6 hours and 46 minutes of driving time. What google maps didn't account for was the 18cm of snow we received on Wednesday night. Through the course of the season I have watched these roads cause numerous guests to arrive very late here at Big White often as much as a day after they were due as the roads are simply impassable despite the efforts of a dedicated road maintenance team of heavy ploughs and sanding trucks.
Conveniently, the roads are also serviced by a number of web cams which allow you to determine the state of the road from the comfort of home before embarking on the journey. On Thursday morning the DriveBC website advised that both mountain passes were experiencing severe winter conditions and that the highway was not a road at all but more a mix of compact snow and ice.
The web cams painted and even worse picture. On one camera I could not even determine the distinction between the highway and anything else in the frame - it was simply a blanket of white. A little nervous I decided to consult a number of old hands around here as to whether in their experience they would attempt the drive in today's conditions. Of the 5 people surveyed (some of whom boasted over 30 years of driving in BC) none of them would have chosen to drive it on Thursday morning unless it was absolutely necessary and even then only in a strong 4wd vehicle with chains. And definitely not in a $750 front wheel drive mini van. Everyone advised me to take an alternative route to the south and along the lower highways through Penticton to Hope.
So after riding the 18cm of fresh on Thursday morning for an hour or so (come on you didn't expect me to let that go untouched...) I started the trusty van, took a deep breath and headed down the hill. The road to Kelowna was easy enough and I was soon at the turn off to Highway 97C. Here I could choose to go against the wise words of those more experienced and chance the high road or turn south and take the lower roads through Penticton to Hope.
At every point until this intersection I had resolved to adding the extra two and half hours to my journey to take the safer road through Penticton but then in a moment of madness I turned right and immediately started ascending. Is it better to enter the gates of heaven in a burning car wreck backwards or be wheeled in on a hospital trolley as an 85 year old man with a tube up your nose?
Not more than a few kilometres up the hill and around the first significant bend the snow started. The two and at times three lane highway was reduced to two simple tyre marks somewhere near the middle of the lanes that a few lonely cars and trucks before me had cut. Within 10km I had passed a very sturdy and modern looking 4wd slammed sideways into the concrete barrier, its left rear wheel buckled beneath it...to say I was concentrating hard and just a little nervous was an understatement.
To add a degree of difficulty I was alone, mobile phone reception in the area is poor, I only had half a tank of fuel, there was still 84km to Merritt and my windscreen wiper blades were frozen solid and completely useless. My only companions were a few locals and large semi-trailer trucks which overtook me regularly leaving me in a wash of slushy brown snow and completely blind for up to 20 seconds as the frozen rubber tried to do its job - it was horribly frightening.
But the old girl just kept chugging...literally at a crawl I watched the kilometres slide by. The van never missed a beat and when a small white sign on the side of the road indicated the Pennask Summit at 1,728m I beeped the horn like a man possessed, cranked the stereo and celebrated the beginning of the decline. As I descended every kilometre congratulated me with ever increasing road quality till just outside Merritt my tyres again touched solid road. I had passed the impassable in a car no one would have chosen as suitable.
In Merritt I gave the van a good drink, bought a dodgy petrol station roast beef and salad roll and headed for the Coquihalla knowing that at only 1,244m at the summit I was a good chance. The second half was slightly easier and when I reached Hope I telephoned Amy in Whistler to let her know that I was on my way and barring any unforeseen drama I would be there for dinner.
Elated I made it to Vancouver just after 4pm and the last run along Highway 99, despite its heavy roadwork in preparation for Vancouver 2010, was a breeze. I arrived at Whistler village just after 6pm having taken the best part of 9 hours to complete a 6 hour and 46 minute drive.
That night we had dinner with some friends near the base of Blackcomb and took a bus into Whistler Village for a few after dinner drinks. The snow was on my side last week - we had four powder days in a row here at Big White and after we settled in for the night at Whistler it dumped 12cm at the mid-station and a little more on the peak. Friday morning brought blue skies and a powder day at one of the premier ski resorts in the world. Amy has been to Whistler 7 times and with 2 seasons under her belt she knew just the spots to hit with such good conditions. We rode the entire day on Friday and enjoyed the apres ski scene afterwards - double gin and tonics for $5.25.
It's hard to sum up Whistler. It's a fully fledged community complete with everything a decent sized town has including a museum and state of the art library amongst designer shops art galleries and endless bars and restaurants. Even more amusing is the eclectic mix of people. Walking around the village after a day on the slopes are Whistler locals, ski bums, backpackers, working holidayers, children, families and the rich and famous all dressed in everything from office wear, ski gear, jeans and jackets to designer dresses with heels and clutched in their hands are everything from skis and boards to fistfuls of bags from the endless shops. Some people are there for the skiing and riding, others for a pampered five star holiday and some just to say they are at Whistler.
On Saturday Tim, of North Vancouver fame, joined us for the day on the hill. We rode all day Saturday till the apres ski scene then cooked a nice meal at home before resting for the drive back on Sunday.
Apart from the amazing snow we received and the endless people watching in the village the terrain at Whistler is world class and the recently opened Peak 2 Peak Gondola lets you travel between the two ski hills in 11 minutes. This amazing engineering achievement lets you travel the 4.4km between the two mid points of the ski hills in a comfortable 28 person gondola swinging at its highest point 436m above the ground. Making it even more amazing the construction only has four lift towers meaning the span between with second and third towers is over 3km!!!
I do wish I had some photos from Whistler...I did take my camera with me but neglected to take a memory stick - sorry!! Luckily I am going back there on April 21 for another week of skiing so I will take some pictures for you all then including the Peak 2 Peak Gondola.
The drive back was uneventful but beautiful as the weather had cleared and the mountain passes were amazing.
For now though its Spring skiing here at Big White. Riding around in a t-shirt all day on sloppy snow.
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