So at this stage I’ve had about a week snowboarding, and it’s been a mixed bag. There’s not a lot of snow about, so most of the time I’ve been confined to green runs, both here in Fernie and at Lake Louise. There was one day in Lake Louise when they opened the back bowls and there was plenty of powder up high, but Fernie has yet to see snow like that. I’m off to Ireland today, so hopefully when I get back in two weeks it will all be covered.

Our place in Fernie is really nice. Warm and cosy, with our own hot-tub out the back. It’s great to climb into after a day on the slopes. I’ve only made use of it twice so far, though once the snow is good and we’re riding for longer each day it will be used a lot more.

Fernie hasn’t changed much. It’s still almost the same as last year, with not too many new buildings around the place. It’s nice being back for a second year and recognising faces around town or the slopes. I met Dave, who is one of the owners of NonStop, at the launch of the restaurant attached to their new lodge. They’ve 110 people arriving on Dec. 26th to start their various courses this season! Yesterday, after finishing on the hill, I bumped in to all my instructors from last year, who were preparing for the arrival of this year’s crop.

It’s hard to leave now that I can hear the avalanche bombing, and there’s 10cm of fresh on the ground!