Saturday, February 18, 2006

~*...shredding solo...*~

i wasn't able to get in touch with my swedish friends jonas and frederick today, but i still wanted to go riding. so i walked down to the hitching spot on the highway hoping i'd be able to hitch a ride to whitewater.

i had never hitchhiked before in my life, so all of this was a new experience for me.

it took me 6 minutes standing at the hitchin spot before someone picked me up. its nelson, the community here is strong, the energy is friendly...and there's a hitching spot to get up to whitewater.


riding solo was also a new experience for me. i'm used to having at least one person to shred with, but not today. the sun was shining brightly against the clear blue skies. that also meant that there was no new snow. the runs were all hard packed and groomed. that did make for some very very fast runs.




this woman was rocking the original kemper one piece, and she was on a monoski! old skewl baby!


i shared my last run with a guy named cory that i met on the chairlift. turns out he is from toronto, and is visiting family in nelson. he hooked me up with his grandparents after, who drove me back into town. schweet. no need to hitch a ride back.

overall, it was a good day out. riding solo is still shredding, so i can't complain...but i prefer riding with others. riding is fun no matter how you slice it, but riding with others is more fun.

this is where i have been sleeping for the past two weeks...and three of the beautiful souls who have opened up their home to me as i search for a more permanent place to live.

owen, carron, akkal

owen and i headed over emily's place for a pizza potluck for dinner. i met some incredible people, drank lots of booze, and ate delicious pizza (pear and pesto make for delicious pizza toppings).


lighting our shots on fire were also part of the menu for the evening.


got to hang with some very kind, chill, and amazing people. nelson is growing on me. thanks for opening up your home to me emily.



~*...normaste...*~

Wednesday, February 15, 2006

~*...happy hallmark day...*~

fuck hallmark! but i did hear the voices of the women i love today, and i am thankful to have them in my life to love.

hearing erin's voice today warmed my heart and made me want so badly to be near her.

i just got off the phone with christina, and i'm experiencing my usual after christina conversation high.

i don't even question how its possible for two women to have my heart, it just is. spend some time with them and you'll understand why. i can't wait for you two to meet. it will be majik.

i love you erin. you blow my mind and rawk my world.

i love you christina. thank you for reminding me that i am perfekt.



...and i awoke, and faintly bouncing 'round the room was the echo of whomever spoke.

i love you...and its not because hallmark told me to say it.

i also received a package today from my friend alex in toronto. i started a thread on tribe two weeks ago about nalgene bottles, and how i lost mine in jasper. alex saw my post and offered to replace my lost nalgene. he did more than just replace it, he went overboard. the package included four boxes of granola bars, advil liquid gel caps, an edge sharpener, an adventure towel (to wipe down my board), kung pao chicken (the freeze dried kind), a sticker, chocolate kisses, three dvds full of essential mixes, and a brand new red nalgene bottle. dude, i can't thank you enough. thank you for thinking of me. its good to know i'm loved.

and to make it even better, erin found my nalgene in jasper and is sending it back to me. not to mention that i found another red nalgene in the lost and found at whitewater. three nalgenes are better than none. schweet.

~*...normaste...*~

Sunday, February 12, 2006

~*...my first back country experience...*~

yesterday i experienced my first taste of back country riding at whitewater. not having any of the necessary equipment made it even more of a challenge. snowshoes are key! otherwise the hike back up is very difficult. i was sinking into the snow so often that i had to crawl at times just to move forward. add to that the weight of my board on my back, and it was a challenge getting back up.


the snow is worth it though. knee high powder on the north face, harder packed on the south because of the intense sun that has been gracing nelson for the past week. i wasn't complaining though. beautiful sunshine beating down on you as you hike up a mountain peak in february!


i spent the day with two swedish skiers that i had met at the dancing bear inn, jonas and frederick. these guys were a lot of fun to ride with. one was on skiis, the other on telemark skiis.

imagine riding down that, and then having to hike back up! nucking futz...but soooo worth it. without snowshoes, the trek back up took 90minutes as we zigzagged our way back up to the peak.

then we trekked up to the peak behind me here...another 25minutes. then we rode down this 44degree mountain face:



we started at the top left by the trees, and rode down through the bowl. heaven it was, steep heaven!

hearing your voice echo off of mountains is like nothing else i've ever experienced. riding pure powder after hiking to it is the the purist high, and i now know what it feels like. the satisfaction of hiking to the top of a mountain and then riding down it is overwhelming and incredible. its pure.


whitewater lived up to its slogan again: simple. pure. real...deep!



next purchase...snowshoes!

i was supposed to attend a free goa trance party last night, but i was in bed by 6:30pm. i woke up this morning. yah, hiking that much really took its toll on me.

this afternoon i'm hiking up to the crystal creek. yes, it is exactly that...a creek with crytals in it. i'jm so excited. i wish my ipod worked so i could listen to beatz :(

~*...normaste...*~