The weekend before last saw a trip to Mt Hotham, one of the major Victorian alpine resorts, for some Ski Patrol meetings and a bit of skiing. The long and boring drive up the Hume Freeway was shared with friends of a friend, and we all then shared a room in their lodge for the weekend. Unfortunately there hadn't been any fresh snow for a while, so conditions weren't that great. It was hard-packed/icy at the start of the morning then started to soften by mid-morning and then gradually turned to slush. However, it was a chance to try out my new telemark skis and boots, which have been a long time coming since winning a 'Patroller of the Year' award in early 2010. I first tried out telemark skiing during a trip to Kvitfjell in Norway in 2006, and really enjoyed it (with the free-heel technique like cross-country skiing). The new gear performed well. On Sunday we had the added bonus of a helicopter ride to Falls Creek for a Ski Patrol meeting there. It was a fine day and the view from the air was spectacular. Snow conditions were no better but I did take some lovely photos of the still water reflections on Pretty Valley Reservoir, and one of them was used for the Channel 10 weather report a couple of days later. It was a late night after the long road trip back to Melbourne and off to work as usual the next morning!
