A storm was forecast for Monday night, which should have ended our boredom. Unfortunately, once again nothing came of it. Far too warm and only 1 cm of fresh snow - and windy to boot. This would be the fifth day without skiing and somehow it feels more like spring than winter outside. The forecasts from Wednesday onwards are still excellent, so we'll just have to be patient for a few more days. The weather service is talking about a storm of the decade. But it's going to feel like a long time: if you're not much of a piste skier, you'll unfortunately have nothing to do here in Hakuba very quickly when it gets warm.
Tuesday then an unannounced but welcome 25 cm of Fresh, delivered to us overnight as a surprise package. A good start, but things continue to improve. Wednesday brought another 25 cm, followed by a thick 80 cm on Thursday and another 60 cm on Friday.
Yes, Friday, January 27, 2012, the Friday when everything was different. The day we ran out of words. The superlatives were missing. The Friday that no one here in Hakuba will ever forget. The Friday on which the history books were rewritten.
We drove to Cortina and expectations were high, very high in fact. The first descent was an unparalleled hallelujah. After 2 turns, I reached for the Avalung to get some air. Every turn was an experience like never before. Arriving at the bottom of the lift, the cheering, the whooping and all the indescribable feelings were overwhelming. Speechlessness, feelings that I can't even begin to describe, we cheered, shouted and hugged each other. Some had tears of joy in their eyes... I've never experienced anything like it in 20 years. From then on, the whole day was a dream, a dream that couldn't be more beautiful and that was never meant to end. For me, 10 out of 10 possible points and on top of that the rating "legendary". In the evening at the lodge and on Facebook, there is only one topic: the day of days. The day on which die-hard freeriders and storm chasers experienced something that will probably never happen again. The day on which the story "My Perfect Day" was rewritten.
On Saturday night, another 40cm came. And with them the crowds from Tokyo who must have heard our cries of joy. The lift queues are astronomical by Japanese standards. We applied our "hide and seek" strategy and tackled all the unusual descents. With 9.5 out of 10 possible points, the day was almost as brilliant as yesterday's and therefore even more unforgettable. On Sunday, half of the lodge came down with a cold, giving many of us a well-deserved rest day.
I wish every freerider reading these lines a day as beautiful as January 27, 2012, the day I cried with joy and could have hugged the world.
Country and people:
English signs: A highly recommended side activity. If you have to wait for something, just take a closer look at the signs and read them. Some people have been amazed at what translations can reveal. One ski resort wanted to warn foreigners that ice and snow could fall from the ski lift masts and chairs. The translation then warned of the danger of falling drops of water. An icy staircase and the necessary caution then became "Caution icy please slip carefully". One ski resort lists the prices for a rescue next to the piste: in addition to ski patrols, rescue sledges and other items, there is also a boat that costs 500 euros per hour. However, there is no lake for miles around, we still don't know what should actually be there.... An interesting sideline.
