37 Years between Slopes

In 1974 and as a sixteen year old schoolboy who knew absolutely everything he needed to know about the world I travelled to Bulgaria.  I did so with about 30 schoolmates and under the management of three schoolmasters from John Fisher Grammar School.  Wearing loaned ski regalia I was obviously Val D'Isere himself; never mind ther fact that my ski pants were actually ladies ski pants if I recall correctly.

Having landed in Sofia and boarded our grey bus; to travel through a grey landscape in a grey and very communist country, we remarked on the absence of snow.  Our guide informed us that at least 24 inches of the white fluffy stuff would arrive overnight so fret ye not.....

We were greeted at the hotel reception in Borovets with hot fresh baked bread and a hot non alchoholic toddy of some description.  That was to be the last non alcoholic toddy like thing for the next week as I and my classmates discovered Mastika Brandy and that pretty unclad girls on playing cards fetched a rare price on the Bulgarian black market.  Good job I had some with me.  We skied each afternoon and took lessons each morning and gradually climbed higher on the slopes as we became more competent.  I recall failing to detach myself from the chair lift at the intermediate disembarkation point and arrived at the top of the mountain and a route down that could only be described as bloody scary.  Got down eventually but only after deliberately falling over as few times to avoid plummeting down over the steep cliff like moutain edges.

I remember having a fantastic time and recall very clearly the Russian Army Officers who stood guard on numerous gates in and around the resort.  Very cold war and very KGB.  I was glad to be there to experience it.

The reason for blogging this long ago event is to report my second visit to a ski resort just 37 years later than the first trip.  Mildly more mature but no less susceptible to an alcoholic toddy I again boarded a bus, this time in Mission British Columbia.  No classmates within a continent but colleagues from the local Chamber of Commerce.  The event was a business after business get together for networking and socialising.  $10 per head covered the bus trip, fresh pizza and hot chocolate; lift passes, equipment hire and a hot food buffet after a bit of slope action.

Hemlock Ski Resort is about 45 minutes from home in Mission and the switchback climb up the mountain is quite hairy particularly in a bus and on compacted snow.  The temperature up the mountain was reported to be -30.  That on the face of it sounded rather chilly but in reality and without any wind it did'nt feel as cold as the Mission we had left behind.  In fact for the first time since I arrived here in July 2009, the Fraser River had frozen over.  No mean undertaking when you consider it is every bit as wide, if not wider, than the River Thames in London.

Not quite a lithe as I was in 1974 I passed on the ski-ing and snowboarding and opted for tubing and tube races.  Great fun; fast paced and with a tube lift to get back up the course not too strenuous. 

All in all it was a great experience and a reminder of 37 years before.  On this ocassion, though, the chances of a rapid return are great.  Having a resort like this pretty much on the doorstep is huge.  Being gifted a free tubing pass for family also makes it likely I'll take Kim with me sometime soon; don't think I'll be around in another 37 years time for visit three......

John Wayne woz 'ere

Seven months out of work and living in a splendidly isolated rural location can and does make one stir crazy.  So, it was in the nick of time that Kim and I whisked ourselves off to Vancouver Island for a five day break and to visit Mike and Sue in Campbell River.  The original trip had been planned to give Kim some respite from her busy work schedule and to enjoy an early birthday dinner out with her parents.  I was programmed to mind the homestead and the furry occupants therein.  Plans changed.  I rattled my cage; we found a house sitter and headed west. 

We pre-packed and I collected Kim from the Hospital at 8am Friday after her night shift.  McDonald’s egg and bacon McMuffin’s and hash browns in hand, plus coffee we started our journey in bright sunshine towards Horseshoe Bay and BC Ferries.  (Sometimes only a McDonalds will do it) From Mission to Campbell River is no small undertaking and our estimated arrival time at destination was 2pm.  Added to our food for thought was a phone call from Sue warning that Campbell River had seen a dump of 8 inches of snow overnight. 

Highly amusing was the fact that when we left Campbell River five days later we did so in bright sunshine only to arrive to snow in Mission.

We met the snow at Fanny Bay....one moment no snow at all then suddenly it was there.  The sign at the side of the road has always amused me because Deep Cove (an adjoining resort) and Fanny Bay are posted one above the other.  Read vertically rather than horizontally the text takes on an altogether different meaning.  I mean, Cove Bay for goodness sake!  The road conditions were treacherous and the driver who slid into the grass on the median and held his head in his hands was clearly expanding his vocabulary.  Campbell River was under 8’ of snow and that snow stayed for as long as we did and is probably still there now.

Nothing quite relaxes a person like a change of scenery and a change of pace.  In this instance the scenery provided food for the soul.  The change of pace provided by brisk walks for a couple of hours each morning of our stay; twice at Salmon Point and once at Miracle Beach.  We chuckled because Miracle beach slightly overstated the quality of the location.  We felt that perhaps sleight of hand beach might have been a more appropriate moniker....That said it was still beautiful.

Vancouver Island is a remarkable place; the pace of life is slower and the people friendlier than their counterparts on the mainland.  That is not to say that Canadians are not friendly, just that on the Island they are more so.  We dined out on every day and a different meal each time.   Dinner at the Anglers Dining Room at the Dolphins Resort on the Saturday was fantastic.  Very few choices with four starters; entrees and desserts, but the quality was on a par with our favourite menu at the Wharf in Bugbrooke, Northamptonshire.  Everything on the plate was special and the mmmmmm’s round the table were quite audible.

Sunday we breakfasted at the Willows a sports bar with an excellent breakfast at a great price and on the Monday for lunch we repaid Mike and Sue’s hospitality from the Anglers Dining Room with a visit to the Salmon Point a restaurant with a beautiful ocean view, good beer and fine food.

Our other meals were home cooked fare and invariably followed with some enjoyable verbal sometimes even intellectual jousting at the table.  World affairs, world leaders and multiculturalism formed the ad hoc agenda.  It is always fun to wash down the distraction of a focused debate with an ale of two. 

I spent some of the time watching movies with Mike....Older wartime movies are not generally my cup of tea but I have to confess I thoroughly enjoyed the Devils Brigade with Montgomery Clift and William Holden and then the Desert Rats with James Mason and Richard Burton.  Mike was less enamoured with The Birdcage which we watched with Kim and Sue.  I’m pretty sure that the last straw was seeing Gene Hackman in a dress.  On a personal note I cannot recall seeing a less attractive drag queen in my entire existence.  Even Terrence Stamp in Priscilla Queen of the Desert was a better fit.

Campbell River is a haven for the rich and famous.  Painters Lodge in the town has been host to John Wayne, Bob Hope, Bing Crosby and Julie Andrews.  Goldie Hawn is also regular visitor which presumably means Kurt Russell is also in town.  The fishing is obviously the main attractor as Campbell River is the Salmon Capital of the world, but the prospect of seeing whales, seals, bears and other fauna in the vicinity adds to its appeal.

We set out to get rest and we achieved that.  Like any trip from home; there comes a point where home and your own place beckons.  We left recharged and headed south towards Nanaimo and Departure Bay.  We passed Willow Point, Oyster Bay, Qualicum Bay and the aforementioned Fanny Bay.  (Fanny Bay Oysters are apparently widely renowned).  The passing vista was amazing almost scenic saturation.

We had originally planned to take the 1230pm ferry back to the mainland but set out earlier to try and make the 1030am boat.  We arrived in Nanaimo ten minutes before sailing and drove straight onto the ferry.  The crossing was quite choppy with 2 metre swells.  I have sea legs and my darling wife does not so breakfast for me presented no challenge where for Kim it could have been a problem.  The sea settled before any problems ensued and we arrived home by 1.30pm a lot quicker on the return journey than outgoing.

For visitors to Canada we strongly recommend adding Vancouver Island to the itinerary. The glacier on Mount Washington is also a must visit and I have yet to enjoy that pleasure.   We plan to return to the Island in early summer.  We will head across to Tofino on the Pacific Coast and take a Whale watching boat trip to watch the Grey Whales on their migration north to the Arctic Circle to feed on the abundant Herring.  (I hasten to add we will not be joining them for the whole of their journey).  We are also quite likely to see pods of Killer Whales who shadow the grey whales looking for calves for food.  So come on over to our place........