The Mountain and I
On Saturday Greg and I ventured out to Crystal Mountain where we enjoyed what I would say was the perfect day on the slope. The weather was bright and sunny for most of the day, with temperatures either above or just at zero. Even though it's Febraury it felt like spring skiing conditions!
I went off and explored on my own for most of the day. The last time I visited Crystal, the top was so foggy that you couldn't see. This time I was treated to clear views of Mt. Rainier and the surrounding mountains. I could even see Mt. St. Helens in the distance.
It was very crowded in the morning. However, after a wonderful home-packed lunch of seeded baguette from Macrina, Cotswold cheese, roast beef, turkey and pineapple we returned to the slopes and the crowds had magically disappeared. And the best part, the crowds never did return!
I spent most of the afternoon skiing on the Green Valley lift. It felt like I owned the mountain. I was virtually alone for at least an hour on the hills, sharing the runs with at most a couple of other people at a time. I had my favourite runs and once I got going, I could beat the lift down the hill. The best run was where I didn't stop -- I skiied down the hill and onto the next chair lift up as it was rounding the corner. I must have gotten 20+ runs in that day.
The only drama was when I took a run with Greg on the bunny hill, for some reason we were paired with a 4-year old who was in lessons. There was no "Do you feel comfortable taking this child up the hill" No, it was Lauren you'll be going up with these people. The little kid (Lauren) was incredibly cute, she counted the numbers of the lifts as they went by, excited she was able to identify "1", "2" and "3". However, when we got to the top, for some reason she didn't try to get off the lift. I wasn't sure what to do; I think I was trying to slow down the lift but somehow I ended up half on, half off not wanting to leave her. It was awful! They finally stopped it, got her off and untangled me. But really, that reminded me why I stay away from the bunny hill, it's scary being around people who have no clue what they're doing!
I went off and explored on my own for most of the day. The last time I visited Crystal, the top was so foggy that you couldn't see. This time I was treated to clear views of Mt. Rainier and the surrounding mountains. I could even see Mt. St. Helens in the distance.
It was very crowded in the morning. However, after a wonderful home-packed lunch of seeded baguette from Macrina, Cotswold cheese, roast beef, turkey and pineapple we returned to the slopes and the crowds had magically disappeared. And the best part, the crowds never did return!
I spent most of the afternoon skiing on the Green Valley lift. It felt like I owned the mountain. I was virtually alone for at least an hour on the hills, sharing the runs with at most a couple of other people at a time. I had my favourite runs and once I got going, I could beat the lift down the hill. The best run was where I didn't stop -- I skiied down the hill and onto the next chair lift up as it was rounding the corner. I must have gotten 20+ runs in that day.
The only drama was when I took a run with Greg on the bunny hill, for some reason we were paired with a 4-year old who was in lessons. There was no "Do you feel comfortable taking this child up the hill" No, it was Lauren you'll be going up with these people. The little kid (Lauren) was incredibly cute, she counted the numbers of the lifts as they went by, excited she was able to identify "1", "2" and "3". However, when we got to the top, for some reason she didn't try to get off the lift. I wasn't sure what to do; I think I was trying to slow down the lift but somehow I ended up half on, half off not wanting to leave her. It was awful! They finally stopped it, got her off and untangled me. But really, that reminded me why I stay away from the bunny hill, it's scary being around people who have no clue what they're doing!