• British Columbia (and nearby),  Downhill Skiing,  Metro Vancouver & North Shore,  Okanagan,  Trips with Kids,  Videos

    Teaching a Two Year Old How to Ski

    It all started kind of accidentally. We were on our way to Mt. Baker for the Family Day long weekend back in February. On the way there Gili and I were talking about how funny it would be if Neil would try skiing. We both agreed he’s probably too young and we should wait till next year to start him skiing. Boy, were we wrong. I guess that being originally from Israel we still don’t have the Canadian mind frame of how young kids can actually start skiing. You see, both Gili and I started skiing at age 26 (!) right after we moved to Vancouver. We figured that since…

  • British Columbia (and nearby),  Coquihalla,  Crosscountry Skiing,  Downhill Skiing,  Okanagan,  Trip Reports,  Trips with Kids

    SilverStar: The Ski Combo

    Google Maps claimed the drive would take five hours. I disagree, in fact it took about hundreds of hours, or at least this is how it felt. We’ve done this trip before, when I was pregnant, but it didn’t feel so long back then. I guess having a baby does change a few things. To break the long drive we stopped at Othello Tunnels, a nice place we discovered on our first bike trip along the Kettle Valley Railway. The tunnels are always impressive, no matter how many times we visit the place. We took a nice walk and had a picnic before continuing east. After a few hours we stopped…

  • Downhill Skiing,  Metro Vancouver & North Shore,  Urban

    Last Few Days in Vancouver and Hasta la Vista

    For more than six years we lived in our lovely apartment in the family housing on UBC Campus. We fell in love with the place the moment we passed through the doors. We quickly made it ours and felt right at home. But we always knew the day would come when we would have to move out. Last week this day indeed came. We had a few very busy weeks in Vancouver, starting with Gili’s graduation and visitors staying with us on and off for over a month. It was lots of fun and smartly we started selling our furniture early. Also the end date of my job at UBC…

  • Downhill Skiing,  Urban

    More Explorations of Seattle and Nearby

    In early December we headed to Seattle again. Not exactly a place of sunshine and warmth this time of year, but a city with many attractions and good food to offer. Tal, Gili’s brother, was assigned to work in Seattle for a few weeks. He visited us in Vancouver for a week and after his first week at work we went to visit him on his days off. We left Vancouver very late on Thursday, which was a good move border-wise: there were no line-ups whatsoever. Also the drive was smooth, although we both were struggling to stay awake by the end. We reached the deserted downtown, it didn’t seem…

  • British Columbia (and nearby),  Downhill Skiing,  Western USA

    Thank You Letter to Mt. Baker Ski Patrol Team

    Dear Mt. Baker Ski Patrol Team, Three weeks ago, on February 23rd I was injured in the Mt. Baker Ski Area while I was skiing. A snowboarder collided into me at high speed, while I stopped briefly on the side of one of the groomed runs that lead to the area where chairlifts 4, 5 and 6 are. I wasn’t able to get up and I felt extreme pain in my right shoulder. Members of the ski patrol team were by my side within two minutes, checking on me, stabilizing my spine and making sure I’d stay awake as I started to feel very sleepy. The assumption was that I…

  • British Columbia (and nearby),  Downhill Skiing,  Western USA

    How to Get Your Arm Broken on Mt. Baker

    Last week Maya and I went to Mt. Baker ski area for a relaxed two day vacation, just the two of us. We enjoyed the skiing, relaxing in our log cabin, and the excellent food at the local Italian Restaurant (Milano’s). All was well until the afternoon of the second day. We were skiing down and had just stopped to discuss which run we would do next. I skied down to the lift first. It took less than a minute for me to realize that Maya should probably be there already, so I moved back a bit to get a better view of the slope above me. I could see…