The weekend with the work ski trip

Hi,

What a great weekend - thanks to Mike for organising huge parts of it.  He collected the tramping club van on Friday afternoon and at 4.15pm we all piled our gear into it outside of work and took off for Ruapehu.  This involved stopping at two liquor stores and a supermarket for food.  Quite a slow trip up.  But a lot of fun.  I sat right at the back and could see all the cocktail making (and drink spilling and giggles) as we drove up.  Mike and Toby sat at the front (well, Mike drove so there weren't a lot of other places he could sit!) and kept Toby sheltered from any dodgy behaviour.  But there was none.  They were all very happy and civilised.

We got into the lodge around 10.30pm.  Forest and Bird have a great lodge tucked up behind the chateau and it is pretty new.  We found our bed and I slept despite the poor sound proofing (our room backed onto the lounge).  Not a lot keeps me from my sleep.

Next morning the weather was dire - high winds and cold rain.  But Happy Valley was open and there was a rumour the Rockgarden was on hold and might open.  It didn't.  But we drove up and some people got a beginners lesson.  I convinced Mike to come and play in Happy Valley with me and some keen others.  So we skied up and down Happy Valley.  There were probably only twenty of us out there.  And most of them you couldn't see until you were within ten metres of them.

The driving rain meant I was soaked to the skin - but it wasn't super cold.  The snow was awful - waterlogged and icy slush without a lot of give to it.  Mike went back into the cafe and after a few more runs so did all of us.  A bit of hot chocolate and I was out in it again with less people this time.  We had a plan to meet Mike at 12.30 and we skied. 

The wind was so strong that I had to stay in a tuck the whole time and not turn at all.  To stop, I stood up and the wind stopped me.  Horrid conditions.  The others returned to the cafe and I kept going for a few more runs before the cold seeped into my bones and I eventually decided it was madness.

I did buy a new ski jacket though - the wet one on me convinced me of the need for a new one.  No one will recognise me on the slopes now.

Back to the lodge and a lazy afternoon reading. Toby had a lot of fun playing with the other kids.  Off to dinner at the local pub and watched the All Blacks play a hard game against Argentina in Wellington.  The lights went off in the stadium at half time.  Very funny.

Sunday we cleaned up and went home. The entire mountain was closed.  We collected a hitchhiker with his broken bike outside of National Park and took him all the way to Wellington.  I left him at the Youth Hostel and I hope he has a better time down south.

Home to watch some TV and to bed.  Phew.  We're all quite tired.

Have a wonderful week.
Love,
Angela