Spring Snow!

We woke in the morning to a fabulous dusting of fresh snow. Overnight conditions turned favourable resulting in about 10cm of fresh snow falling. Our morning routine was similar to yesterdays except that Katy stayed behind at the lodge initially.

The snowcat was a little late - apparently it got bogged on the way over. Confusion with bookings saw 16 people (mostly kids) squash into the back, so the ride was much cosier as well as slower thanks to the fresh snow. At one point we lost momentum while heading uphill. A tense moment ensued but a couple of reversing manoeuvres saw the snowcat find traction and continue on its way.

The kids and I enjoyed a hot chocolate at the cafe while waiting for 9am to tick by! We all found our relevant instructors and were soon off learning new tricks! Our group had intended to ski at Pleasant Valley but the chairlift was on wind hold so we ventured back to the trusty early starter slope to learn the beginnings of parallel turns.

Meanwhile Andy enjoyed a half hour of skiing by himself on the Guthega trails before picking up Katy and together they made their way over to Blue Cow Terminal to meet up with us again in the cafe. Over lunch we discussed with Susie and Patrick options for the afternoon adventures. Tentatively we decided to ski down to the Terminal quad chair before continuing over to Pleasant Valley.

However the weather conditions outside had deteriorated somewhat. The wind had picked up and sleety snow was falling. Undeterred we skied down the slope regrouping at the Terminal quad chair lift. Unfortunately our family chair lift ride was not very enjoyable as the sleet stung our faces and the wind froze our bodies. It was a little too much for Katy who began crying. We did manage to ski off the chair without incident.

Another conference was held between the families as it was obvious that both Katy and Mia were struggling. Unanimously we thought it best to head back to Guthega. Down Guthega Way we skied with Katy still crying and Mia struggling off the back. Our focus quickly turned to getting the kids back to the warmth and safety of the lodge as fast as possible. The Burning Log was a wonderful sight to see. We took the opportunity to seek shelter, warmth and food while composing ourselves before embarking on the final leg - the walk home!

It is amazing how fast the weather can turn in the mountain and although we were never really in super danger we were definitely on the edge of our comfort zone. After what seemed like a short spell of time recovering in the lodge, Andy suggested that we (just the two of us) should go for a ski. Why not I thought so off we went.

First was to tackle the Blue Calf T bar. Not my favourite type of lift but we managed to get up without falling off or me pushing Andy off. We came down Dorfer Trail just to the left of the T bar. A nice run but slightly too steep for my ability (or lack of) so I found myself snow ploughing rather a lot plus it was still sleeting and fogging up my sunnies. Not as enjoyable as I'd hoped so at the bottom I retreated back to the lodge and left Andy to explore the trails.

With not much of the afternoon left we baked stacey's chocolate chip cookies. The cookies were delicious as always especially eating them within minutes of coming out of the oven with the chocolate still slightly gooey!