Up into the mountains

Our ride out of Vancouver up to Whistler was just incredible. The views of the mountains were phenomenal. The first section we hugged the many river ways that wind their way down to the vast inlet known of the Strait of Georgia, the stretch of water we crossed from Vancouver Island some 3 days previous. The road constantly twisted with hairpin bends. Banked steeply on the otherside side of the river ways stood huge pines running right to the edge of the tarmac.

On boarding at the rather grand Vancouver Pacific Central station, photo ID's were required. We were questioned by the driver if we'd ever been up to Whistler before. Nope, we replied. 'Left hand side of the bus for you two then'. Was this some sort of weird first timers initiation process? No, the conversion continued, it's just the left handside would deliver the best views. Today's driver, Noel, nice guy.

We were welcomed into Creekside by a couple of wild deer who were loitering roadside. Our hostel, with diner below, seemed so close to the gondola, a mere 200 metres, if that. We dumped our bags and got a lift from Iva, the hostel manager, to a local 're-use it' centre. A recycling shop in the name of charity. We have come to love thrift stores, but this one topped the league. It felt like going into oxfam in say Primrose Hill! We got kitted out with salopettes (Fe got a pair of Spyders!) and Scott goggles all in and under 20 quid, so cheaper than hiring. There was a boat load of great branded ski stuff that had probably only seen a season or two at the max. All given up in a drive for next years latest colours or fashion. We could have bought a lot of kit here but we had to show restrain and left pretty swiftly as at one stage we were contemplating buying stuff we already had! Anyone arriving in Whistler with no real gear, as we did, this place is a must.

Next stop was into Whistler village to collect our skis and those oh so comfortable boots. John, a London lad and Mattias from Spain, who Fe was more than happy to have a boot fit session with, sorted us out. Chocolate doughnuts included as part of a heavily discounted hostel owner set up deal. Squeezing our feet into these boots after over a years break didn't feel too bad. Almost comfy! The words comfy and ski boots rarely go together so we grabbed them tightly and headed for the door. We were good to go.

We had a quick look around Whistler village. There was a big party feel as the TELUS World Ski & Snowboard Festival was just kicking off. http://www.whistlerblackcomb.com/twssf/index.htm
A week long end of season party theme with a music stage and skiing and boarding shows in the mix. This was gunna be a great week!