(Canmore, Alberta, Canada)

The title says it all. On very short notice, I found myself on a plane to Calgary and about to do my first skiing since my trip to Morzine, France, in early 2020.

I’m once again based in Canmore, Alberta, and spent the first day of skiing at Sunshine Village (just north of Banff). There was no real sunshine today, and usually my ski photos feature brilliant sun and blue skies, but I’ve decided to include the photos anyway. After two years, I was just so thrilled to be on the slopes that I want to document the occasion here!

In one of those quirks of geography, a tiny sliver of the Sunshine Village ski area is actually located in British Columbia. I took the above two photos to document my very brief visit to B.C. today. Both were snapped whilst riding the chair lift into the grey misty abyss at the top of the resort. So, I have successfully proven that (ski mitts + movement + fog + wind) = objectively bad photos. I even managed to make an uphill chair lift look like it was going downhill!

I was kind of anxious about the flight to Calgary, as I hadn’t been on one for so long and quite a few restrictions were still in place. But once I printed out my baggage tag, it all seemed to fall into place and it really wasn’t that different from before. I just had to wear a mask for a lot longer than I’m used to doing, and people seemed to be just a little more cautious about personal space, etc. And I’m OK with that.

Being on skis for the first time in two years also brought some mild trepidation. Would I still remember how? Would I still like it? Would the overcast weather lessen the fun? Would I be cold?

I needn’t have worried. It all came back fairly quickly, and I’m not even feeling that sore…despite maintaining a hectic pace for the entire day (and having a fairly short lunch to boot). It was a reawakening – finally being able to do something that had brought me so much joy before the pandemic. I still like the deep snow, I still relish the challenge of solving the slope, and I still love being out in the mountains. We kept on going until the lifts were closed, and we’re going back tomorrow for more.

More snow is in the forecast for the rest of the week, so I may not post *any* spectacular sun-dappled ski photos at all. But I’m still ecstatic to be here, and I admit that I’m already looking forward to the next trip…wherever it may be.