Slush

Conditions have been deteriorating over the past couple of weeks, and in more ways than one. First and foremost, spring has decided to come particularly early this year. There's still been some precipitation on the mountain, but the state of the runs are what you would see in an average Australian season - ice or slush - because of the increasing temperatures that haven't allowed for any decent powder. The champagne and summit runs were closed for the first time since the start of the season yesterday due to high winds, and will probably close permanently some time soon due to the lift operator staff thinning out (as a lot of them have left or are leaving).

That seems to be the general theme around work lately. A lot of people are taking off early because for some it's not really worth it to stay - there's not a lot of good snow anymore, and there's only about 4 weeks left in the season. The lifties in particular have been hard hit, and they've had to poach a lot of housekeepers to keep their numbers up, which has meant that we've been losing lots of staff too. Not only that, but a good portion of the support staff in housekeeping have left for other positions or have headed home. It's gotten so bad that I'm taking on a different position tomorrow, just for one day, because the new trainees for that position are still being trained, and are all off tomorrow.

The bad conditions have also thrown my goals out of whack. I no longer intend to ride every run on the mountain because of the cover becoming thin and exposed, and have become consigned to the fact that my 75% coverage will have to do. I've also stopped at 5 other resorts visited throughout the season, as I can ill-afford trips to any of the resorts that are a little further away (with the exception of Whistler after the season). I have a feeling that I'll be back to visit some more resorts somewhere down the line, just not this year.

As for my plans for the season, I have all intentions to stay until the end. I need to save up some money for my post-season travels, and it would be mighty handy having a few more paychecks, and to get my bonus too. They're not making it an easy decision though... there's a staff day on the day after the season ends, which means people would probably head off on the day after. The bad thing is that the buses stop running on the day the season ends, which means a lot of people would be stranded here. I'm trying to get a charter shuttle going from Panorama to Calgary Airport, but it would cost too much if we don't get a full shuttle. I'm hoping for at least 3 or 4 more people, because it would then be worth it to get one. Otherwise, it'd be a free-for-all on the 17th of April to get on that Greyhound to Calgary, which would then be followed by an expensive taxi to Calgary Airport.

The post-season

In any case, my plans for where to go after the season ends are solidifying. Some travel details still need sorting out, but the locations I want to visit are pretty much locked in.

I fly out of Calgary on the 17th, going to Vancouver then heading straight to Whistler for 5 days, as I get 5 days free at any Intrawest resort for finishing my contract (another reason why I want to stay until the end of the season). After that, I'll be heading from Vancouver to LA (by plane or train - that hasn't been decided yet) then catch a bus to Indio for Coachella. I'll probably hang out in LA for a few more days after Coachella, then go to San Francisco for a month or so. I've got tickets to see Arcade Fire at the Greek Theatre in Berkley (which is near San Francisco) on June 1, which I'm really looking forward to, even though I'm already seeing them play a condensed set at Coachella. I then head to Chicago for a few days in mid-June, followed by New York, then to Montréal for the International Festival of Jazz.

Montréal is the first stop of my eastern Canadian adventure, where my goal is to try and visit all the eastern provinces, as well as major cities like Toronto and Québec. Speaking of Toronto, I'll probably be visiting the city twice. The first time will be around the time of my birthday, because I've booked tickets to go see Roger Waters there, and the show just happens to be on my birthday. The second time will be around early September, when I'll be in town for the Toronto International Film Festival. I'm very much looking forward to both of those trips. My last stop will be Vancouver, which is convenient because my flight to Sydney leaves from Vancouver, and because the Vancouver International Film Festival takes place not too long after the Toronto one. I'll probably visit Vancouver Island while I'm there too, as I hear it's beautiful there.

I don't have a great deal of new photos, and most of them are of people partying, so I won't bother uploading them yet. I'll put up some new ones when I get some good shots.