*********Saturday**********
The entire day is more or less a blur of incredibly intense, mind-blowing, adrenaline-pumping, and probably unrepeatable snowboarding. We woke up before 07:00 to head down to breakfast before we left. For 5.50 euro, the slices of bread with various jams and cheese were barely worth it, but I was too anxious to get up the mountain to eat much anyway.
Justin's heliskiing had been cancelled again for the weather, so he was awesome enough to not only drive us up to the mountain, but to stop at a rental place so we could pick up some gear. Yet another thing Swiss skiing has over mountains in the USA: prices. Cheap, cheap prices. I got a board, boots, helmet and gloves, and the rental cost me a 60-something CHF deposit (probably something like 50ish euros) and only about 70 CHF total, including the sunglasses I bought since they had completely sold out of goggles for rent or purchase. We walked our equipment up to the mountain, paid our 50 CHF for the one-third section of the mountain we'd be exploring (which we didn't even make it all the way through in one day), and headed to the first train to take us up to the mountain.
The mountains near Interlaken have a pretty ingenious ticketing system. For all the trains, cable cars, lifts and pulleys to get further up the mountain, all we needed was a card that we stuck in our left jacket pockets. The turnstiles for each lift have some kind of scanner than picks up the card and unlocks the turnstile to let each person through. It's quick and so simple, and yet as used to the sticker tickers we hang off a zipper at home, I never would have thought of something like this. So easy.
The mountain was a bit confusing; lifts were all over the place and took us all over the place. We got vague directions a few times from people who spoke mostly German and spent the rest of the time winging it. As random as we were in our exploring, I don't think we took any of the sam trails twice. It probably wouldn't have mattered if we had taken the same path, since basically the entire mountain, even if it wasn't designated, was a trail. Wherever the snow wasn't packed into a pre-made path, it was surrounded by gorgeous fresh powder just begging to be carved and faceplanted by me. It was super sunny with scarcely any clouds. The snow glittered as it reflected the sunlight, making the entire day even more incredible. I realize probably about an hour in that I forgot sun + snow = serious Amanda sunburn. Idiotically, I had managed to completely forget how easily I burn and how simple it would be to burn on such a snowy mountain on such a sunny day. But with nothing I could do about it, I enjoyed the skiing and tried not to think about it again until we got back to the hostel that night when Alex and Justin decided to nickname me Rudolph.
We just kept boarding and boarding from about 09:00 to 13:00. Around then, we checked a map and decided to take a lift all the way to the top after we broke for lunch. We ate in a lodge on a gorgeous peak. When your ears pop on nearly every lift, you get an idea of how high up you're moving. That was probably my best gauge of height, though, since the views from the tops of nearly every lift were so breathtaking that the distance up was no longer very comprehendible to me.
I'll be honest, I was nervous on our way up to the highest peak on our part of the mountain. It was the first time I'd been boarding this season (and the only time, unfortunately, but I'd never have it any other way) and the only way down from the top was a black diamond trail. I was just a bit worried about breaking myself on the hill, but figured a black diamond is just a steeper version of any other trail and I'd just board down slowly.
I got a little more worried when we got in the cable car to take us up the mountain. Justin, I and one other guy were the only people with snowboards in the car. A thought nagged me in the back of my brain: so few snowboards, could that mean the entire way down was moguls? But nah, I figured the other guy with the snowboard either could probably speak German and would have seen some warning or had already gone up to the top once before.
Turns out, women's intuition strikes again. On the way up, I look out the window of our car to see dozens of skiers navigating large bumps in the snow. On the entire trail. For at least a third of the way down. I wasn't thrilled, but there was only one way down. And the adrenaline from the incredible views and being at the top of the highest trail got the best of me. Still, I more or less crawled my way through the moguls, but as a result was able to make it to the bottom without falling. It wasn't the most heart-pumping moment of the day, but flying and sinking through all the fresh powder off the side of so many trails made it worth it.
We spent 9 a.m.-5p.m. on the mountain. Our last trail probably took us at least a good 45 minutes–we skied and boarded from nearly all the way at the top through the most serene, tree-lined paths at the edge of beautiful cliffs all the way to the bottom of the mountain. As soon as we got back to the hostel I could tell how sore I already was and how sore I would be the next day. My face was more than worthy of the Rudolph nickname I'd acquired, and it stung. I peeled for the next few days, but it didn't bother me at all. I had my one day of boarding in the Alps and a goal crossed off my list of things to do before I die. Really, knowing that fact and the feeling of the mountain and the best boarding I've had made it the perfect day.
We showered when we got back and discussed dinner. Justin had seen a Hooter's down the road and I was in a group of guys with an affinity for chicken wings. Justin also had somehow never met a vegetarian before me and spent a good 15 minutes inqusitioning me before we left for food. Then him, Alex, Sian and I walked down to the Hooter's, who I have to hand it to for making some pretty decent veggie nachos.
We headed back to the brasserie for one last beer, and then, exhausted and so, so happy, I fell asleep within minutes.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
No comments:
Post a Comment