Vail, Colorado

What a difference the snow makes! It was a long flight over, but after settling into our comfy apartments in Vail on Saturday night, we got right into it on Sunday morning.

Our first run was unbelievable. Never before have we felt so good on snow! We were feeling a little apprehensive after the bad snow in La Plagne in December, but it didn't take long for us to build confidence and to realise that falling over didn't actually hurt... well not as much as usual anyway!

We had an amazing and fun-filled week. Vail is absolutely HUGE. And it's not crowded at all. At times you feel like you're the only one on the mountain. It really has to be seen to be believed. The front side of the mountain is a good mix of green, blue and black runs. Over the other side are the world famous bowls and the Blue Sky Basin. Personally I found the bowls a bit strange at first and take some getting used to. The tree runs were fun though :) At the peak of Blue Sky Basin is Belle's Camp, where we cooked up our own BBQ lunch on Tuesday. Yumbo!

But it was not all fun and games... During the course of the week, our group experienced:
(1) an allergic reaction ending with a hospital visit;
(2) a sled down the mountain for altitude sickness; and finally,
(3) a sled down the mountain following a bad fall, also ending in a hospital visit. Luckily there were no broken bones this time. Nancy - you're a trooper!

The week absolutely flew by. We have improved in leaps and bounds, and I have never enjoyed snowboarding so much. I still can't believe it's been a whole week! It was well worth the transatlantic journey, and if we ever get the chance we'll be back for more.