Last year we went to Leavenworth with our friends Jill and Paul and Kevin and Becky, for some cross-country skiing, game playing, and fun, over the midwinter break. It's tradition now. So this year we ventured to Mount Washington, on Vancouver Island, for much of the same. And we added more friends: Julie and Jerry and Matt and Aubrey, though we had to subtract Kevin.
And it's like this: Mount Washington would be a great place if one didn't have to cross a border and take a 2+ hour ferry to get there. As is, it will have to settle for really nice.
Four or Six Sentences for Each Day
(1.1) I left early with Julie and Jerry, blew through the border, caught the ferry, and rolled slowly through the fog into the parking lot at about 6 pm. (1.2) We ate dinner, and I won at Hearts. (1.3) Julie and Jerry went to bed. (1.4) I waited up until about 1 am for Erin and Becky, who got stuck at the border but would have made their ferry, had it not broken down, and for Jill, Paul, Matt, and Aubrey, who got stuck at the border and wouldn't have made the ferry, though it didn't matter since it broke down.
(2.1) We woke up late, had super scrambled eggs, and walked to the cross country ski trails. (2.2) It was snowing like crazy. (2.3) It was blowing like crazy. (2.4) We classic skied for about an hour. (2.5) We trekked back to the cabin. (2.6) We were soaking wet, and cold, and had crock-pot chili for dinner.
(3.1) We were worried that we'd have another awful day, but when we got up we could see blue skies and fresh snow. (3.2) We got out a little earlier, drove to the trails, and decided to go on a 12km black diamond lake loop on the skate skis. (3.3) We are not yet good on skate skis. (3.4) Black diamond cross-country ski trails have lots of uphills. (3.5) Uphills on skate skis are hard. (3.6) We nearly died, and Erin's hip flexors nearly exploded, though I perfected the single pole V2 style, and we headed back to the cabin, exhausted, exhilarated, and wishing we had taken the blue trails instead.
(4.1) The return travel day, we cleaned a bit and left the cabin at 9:50, about 50 minutes earlier than I wanted to (overruled). (4.2) We arrived at the ferry terminal about one hour and 45 minutes early ([4.2.1] Erin refused to acknowledge my superior time insight). (4.3) We learned a fun new Russian card game. (4.4) We won the neck-and-neck race through the US border, came home to a grateful Gryffin and Brindzi, and enjoyed the last few hours of a fun-crammed weekend.
Three Pictures from One Day
The view across the valley from our cabin. The day before, we could hardly see past the railing.
Trying to work that V2, which is especially hard when you're dead tired from 5km of uphills, with 5km still to go.
Erin and Jill enjoy posing by the lake after--yep--another long uphill. And they still look happy!
(2.1) We woke up late, had super scrambled eggs, and walked to the cross country ski trails. (2.2) It was snowing like crazy. (2.3) It was blowing like crazy. (2.4) We classic skied for about an hour. (2.5) We trekked back to the cabin. (2.6) We were soaking wet, and cold, and had crock-pot chili for dinner.
(3.1) We were worried that we'd have another awful day, but when we got up we could see blue skies and fresh snow. (3.2) We got out a little earlier, drove to the trails, and decided to go on a 12km black diamond lake loop on the skate skis. (3.3) We are not yet good on skate skis. (3.4) Black diamond cross-country ski trails have lots of uphills. (3.5) Uphills on skate skis are hard. (3.6) We nearly died, and Erin's hip flexors nearly exploded, though I perfected the single pole V2 style, and we headed back to the cabin, exhausted, exhilarated, and wishing we had taken the blue trails instead.
(4.1) The return travel day, we cleaned a bit and left the cabin at 9:50, about 50 minutes earlier than I wanted to (overruled). (4.2) We arrived at the ferry terminal about one hour and 45 minutes early ([4.2.1] Erin refused to acknowledge my superior time insight). (4.3) We learned a fun new Russian card game. (4.4) We won the neck-and-neck race through the US border, came home to a grateful Gryffin and Brindzi, and enjoyed the last few hours of a fun-crammed weekend.
Three Pictures from One Day
The view across the valley from our cabin. The day before, we could hardly see past the railing.
Trying to work that V2, which is especially hard when you're dead tired from 5km of uphills, with 5km still to go.
Erin and Jill enjoy posing by the lake after--yep--another long uphill. And they still look happy!
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