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Published: March 11th 2017
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Big Sky has been on our hit list for about five years now, after we read about how on average there are 2 acres of terrains per skier / snowboarder, so I have been super excited about coming here. One of the main reasons we've stopped going to France are the crowds; there are just too many people in the big resorts that it can be dangerous. America in comparisons is much quieter, and Big Sky is next level quiet - it's amazing!
Big Sky has a very different vibe to the other resorts we've been to. It feels a little old school and very chilled. Rather than big 'canteen' style restaurants on the mountain, there are overgrown (cute) sheds that house tiny little soup kitchens. And it is so quiet - we've barely had to share a chairlift and often have entire runs to ourselves. We are being so spoilt!
Another difference is that none of the black runs are groomed. Grooming is the process of flattening out the snow (akin to running a rake over a sand pit) so it is easier to ride on. When runs aren't groomed, moguls form - think VW beetles covered in
a white blanket. To spice things up even more, there are lots of black gladed runs, so a wonderful combo of moguls and trees! It's been quite a steep learning curve for us all, and there have been endless falls (even from Katherine!). Worryingly, I think Paul is actually getting a little bit addicted to moguls!
We've had the usual mix of days so cold you think your toes are going to drop off, and days where it appears that spring has arrived. We've had some wonderfully snowy days and some amazing runs in the bowls and the glades. After fresh snowfall our practically ski in condo becomes properly ski in (providing you are happy to ride down a road!).
For the first time on our trip we have a bedroom, so no more listening to the fridge turn on and off all night. The place is super quiet and was amazingly clean when we arrived (less so now) - almost up to my mum's exacting standards! We have a wonderful view of Lone Mountain from the lounge and the only thing better than the view is when there is no view because it is covered in snow
clouds!
Our walkie talkies have come in very useful here. On the first day I got lost at the end of the day. I'm navigationally challenged so Paul had quite a stressful 30 minutes waiting for me to find my way home. This wasn't helped by the fact my walkie talkie battery was dead and I had no piste map (and stupid Vodafone have turned off international calls on both our mobiles!!!). I made it, eventually and now have a piste map in my bag and a fully charged walkie talkie!
Last week we lost Katherine - she didn't technically get lost as she managed to stay on the correct run, but Paul took a wrong turn and I followed. We managed to regroup back at the lift with ten minutes to spare.
The day after we cut it even finer and made the same lift with only 5 minutes to spare. This was after one of what Katherine and I call Paul's 3 o'clock challenges. We've both realised that around 3pm (exactly a hour before the lifts close) Paul comes up with some crazy plan to try a new run, usually a black gladed, mogul run
and either we get lost, lose someone or have multiple falls (the most time consuming are those that involve lost skis or tree hugging!). It's becoming a regular occurrence!
So far we are loving Big Sky. The terrain feels quite different to other resorts and some of the gladed runs, especially the blues and easier blacks are exhilarating! Maybe this is the end of our beautiful relationship with groomed runs???!!!!
We have just over two weeks left before we leave and we are so not ready for it to stop. People expected that we'd be bored by now, but we could happily do this for another two months. If only the US visas lasted more than 90 days!
***Please scroll down for more pictures***
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Christine Garfield
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Looks Lovely
Have already tried to send this on my phone but don't know if it was sent. So appologies. Glad you are having a great time. Big Sky sounds and looks lovely. Not surprised you don't want to leave. Hope you got the Happy Birthday message. How was the 40th birthday in the snow ?. !! Have fun, will see you soon. xx Mum