We left Magna Bay and drove south to Rossland on Feb 25th, with the exception of waiting 45 minutes in standstill traffic before deciding to take the alternate route through Kelowna, it was a worry-free drive! We arrived at my brother David and his wife Hannah’s house in Rossland and were delighted to find pizza and tickets to the local hockey game that evening (the Trail Smoke Eaters)! We were also lucky enough to cross over with Hannah’s parents Gordon and Rosemary for a few days. It was wonderful getting some time to hangout with them! Looking forward to seeing them more in Vancouver!
J There were many highlights on this trip! Most importantly, we got to spend lots of time with D&H, which historically has been difficult since we lived on opposite sides of the country. We did so much skiing! I think I went from pretty nervous about skiing to thoroughly enjoying it! I used to only do greens and blues and I finished this trip with glades and even trying a double black run! Only possible through the kind of tough love and disregard for safety that a sibling can offer! 😉 Thanks David!
W Downhill skiing is really freakin scary! I did a couple of half days at Red Mountain Resort and one (terrified, icy) night skiing run at Salmo ski hill. I did mostly greens and a couple of tiny stretches of blues, wiped out lots and ripped my snow pants at the seams with my Thighs. Skiing is a real exercise in self soothing (lots of deep breathing basically the whole time) and throwing myself into something that scares me over and over. I’m still not sure it’s my favourite activity – I’ll hopefully find my favourite outdoor winter activity someday. We also tried cross-country skiing, which mainly left my hip flexor(s) sore with my improper technique.
We ate a lot of good food, marvelled at the wonder of Ferraro’s Fine Foods, saw some almost-fights at the Smokies hockey game, discovered the joy of sardines and steamed egg breakfasts, and spent about 90% of our time under Honcho Ponchos (sometimes two). Most of all, I really enjoyed spending some good quality time with David & Hannah <3
Skiing with David post night shift is not something I would recommend for the faint of heart! It was a great accelerated learning experience though! haha!
Nay, your eyes do not deceive you – Jonny did grow a moustache (technically he started growing it in Magna Bay). I don’t remember what he was cooking in this video but I do love how this photo turned out.
Relaxing in the hot tub became a near-daily ritual. Especially after a long day of skiing! As Jonny’s Mom would say, “It’s a rough life!”
Rossland gets about 3.5 metres of snowfall every year. It snowed at least 40 cm in the 2 weeks we were there! We quickly learned to “push” the snow, not pick it up.
We had a lovely 6 course meal (the “Trip around Italy“) at Gabriella’s, which was delicious! There was a map of Italy on the table, and each dish came with a story about the region it was from, as well as a wine pairing. It was a gift from D&H (Thank you!). Jonny also ran into a former co-worker, Oscar, from Clir there by chance! Small world! WW stopped taking photos after the first 3 courses…
We went snowshoeing to a small wood cabin one evening.
This was such a lovely experience! All of the fun of renting a cabin in the back country, except it’s free (maintained by volunteers), and only a twenty minute drive and 1 hour snowshoe away! We hung out at the cabin, played cards, and made grilled cheese on the wood oven. Walking back after dark, with our shadows bouncing around the trees and the snow glittering around us was absolutely pristine!
Love you David & Hannah! Thank you so much for having us at your beautiful home, it was lovely! Jeep jop!
We also posted some more photos & videos here.
