East Meets West at Kokannee Glacier

Our ski week in at Kokannee Glacier was a big success and who can argue with 5/6 days of sunshine? We did have to start a day late because of the huge rainstorm going through the valley on March 24th. We made up for it with 5 more days of brilliant sun. Very little snow fell during the week and this kept the avalanche hazard pretty low. I thought the snow was icy, crusty, too soft or just about perfect, but I used snowshoes the entire week so I was fine. I never felt fomo (see previous post) for one minute - I hate skiing on the icy, crusty stuff and there was a layer of it depending on the altitude.

I think I could earn the title Hut Nazi after my week in the cabin but it's funny how people see the cook as the hut custodian. The meals I cooked were well received, I thought, and the desserts all seemed to get rave reviews. If lack of leftovers is an indication of the quality of the cooking OR just the sheer exertion of the participants makes them eat anything, leftovers were never a problem! I enjoyed having that bit of structure to my day, I loved having the hut to myself with its huge, sunny kitchen. It was just like playing house. To me, it was a good thing for the group to HAVE to share one meal per day. It keeps the confusion out of the kitchen and it forces people to do some bonding whether they want to or not. I've been on too many trips where people don't really visit. This group warmed up to each other well during the week and although I probably won't see most of them again, it was a friendly, happy feeling in our hut.
So why would I call myself Hut Nazi? Well, I organized the clean up crew on the last day and everyone was coming to me for orders. They were a great crew and 90% of our jobs were done before going to bed on Friday evening. I have to say there's something to be said for a group of relative strangers getting together to spend a week together - because we don't know each other well we're on our best behaviour and always very civil. So what does that say about how we treat those closest to us? This was our humble abode for a week - note the satellite dish.

Our "east" group included 5 people from SK - I included Dave and I in that group because we'd never have been involved if it hadn't been for our SK ACC contacts. The "west" included mostly people from parts of B.C. - the west coast, the Okanogan Valley, and a Calgaryian.

The heli ride this time was good. I didn't like the steep swing in for the landing - that's feels too much like a ride at the Ex for my taste, but I did like flying over a familiar area and looking at the landmarks. I particularly enjoyed the ride over the lake. I think riding in a helicopter could be something I could get to really look forward to. This was our fly out 'copter.

Snowshoes with crampons worked really well for me in these snow conditions and over the steep hills. I'd take those again and Andrea has bequeathed them to me on the condition that she can borrow them for a trip if necessary. This is the kind of terrain I travelled through on snowshoes.

It was a good week in the high country but getting back to spring was just as fine! I was chagrined to see that a deer had eaten my hyacinth flowers in the garden but there is a heather blooming! Having a week of winter on a glacier that has limited access is a happy way to finish off a winter of incessant weekend storms.

This is my first attempt at multiple pictures and I'm learning a little more each time about how to do this - hopefully it'll look a little more 'arty' next time.