Ventura
Highway in the sunshine, where the days are longer, the nights are stronger
than moonshine. You're gonna go I know, ‘cause the free wind is blowin' through
your hair, and the days surround your daylight there. Seasons crying no
despair, alligator lizards in the air, in the air.
- America
Perception is an interesting thing. We had
an amazing day today, waking up to snow and blue skies and no wind. Lauryn and
I skied and skied and skied, thinking, deciding that the cover was about as
good as we’ve ever seen, the sort that you rarely see back at home. Then, we
were on a chairlift with some folks and we got to talking about where we were
from. They commiserated with us that we didn’t arrive and get a little more
snow.
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| Heavenly Village and the Gondola trail up the hill |
It’s funny, because I was thinking that I
probably wouldn’t see snow this good again for a long time, and our lift
companions were wishing it was better. Us Aussies thought it was awesome, and
the locals are waiting for mid-season conditions.
 |
| Lake Tahoe from the Heavenly Gondola |
It was a magical day today, warmer than
yesterday, which was very much welcome, and with the same bluebird sky weather.
As good as Northstar was yesterday, Heavenly is even better because most of the
runs are facing the lake. You get off the lifts – all express quads or
six-seaters – and ski down towards Lake Tahoe, an immense body of water at it’s
magical best today, glassy and so clear that you can see the reflection of the
towering mountains.
 |
| Snow...and frozen desert |
Heavenly Village, where we are staying, is
a 30-minute gondola ride away from the base of the lifts on the Nevada side –
there are two bases, California and Nevada – and what a ride it is! About a
minute out of the bottom station, Lake Tahoe peaks out from behind the fir
trees and the higher you get, the more of the lake you see. When it’s clear and
sunny, visibility is unlimited, right across the lake towards Northstar and
Squaw Valley. We were treated to stunning conditions yesterday. The views make
the ride go past quickly.
Because it’s early season, there were only
a handful of lifts open, but it didn’t matter. There were very few people
around and the runs are wonderfully long, drifting down through the trees, with
views of the lake on one side and the California desert on the other. I don’t know
that there is a more picturesque place to ski in all of America than Heavenly.
I also have to note the quality of the food
at North American resorts as compared to Australia. I noticed the same up in
Canada when we were at Whistler and Grouse Mountain a few years ago. Food is
appealing and tasty, and reasonably priced. I had a bowl of smokehouse chilli,
loaded with Spanish onion, jalapeños and sour cream. Nathan’s pulled pork
sandwich looked awesome, too. I had a beer with lunch. It was perfect weather
for that!
Four o’clock came quickly, and we headed
back down the gondola, a few minutes ahead of Nathan, who was finishing up a
lesson. Those of us who skied were pretty stuffed by the end, so we ordered
pizza in and spent the night drinking beer and watching movies. It was a very
relaxing way to end a great day!
Good news was announced last night: Heavenly
will be opening up 5 more runs and a new quad express tomorrow, the Stagecoach
Express. That means we’ll be able to ski top-to-bottom on the Nevada side of
the mountain. That’s more than two miles through the trees! Can’t wait!
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