Not With a Whimper But A Bang

The 2006 Snow Season officially began on Saturday morning. Those who went to collect their season passes found out the hard way that 2006 was going to be a big season. I heard of delays of up to 2 1/2 hours to get their pass and by close of business on Saturday evening there were still delays. One enterprising parent told me that it was the cheapest child minding in the village – put the children in the queue and KT looked after them for hours.

I didn’t get onto the slopes (Friday Flat and Merritts) on Saturday but heard that the man-made atop the natural was enjoyable albeit a little crowded. The fireworks, although late to start (we thought the late afternoon drizzle might have prevented the lighting of the wicks) were great. They went on and on until the fat cracker sang and then the village erupted in cheers and applause in appreciation of a spectacular show.

Having saved my 5-cent pieces diligently I was fortunate enough to get to the cabaret on Saturday night - an evening with Wilbur Wilde, Joe Camilleri, Lisa Edwards and a great band. Food was good, the crowd enthusiastic and the music well suited to the age of the audience. Although I had heard varying reports of past opening weekend dinner shows, if future events were like this one then I’d recommend them to anyone.

During the evening it began snowing and by Sunday morning there was 25-30cm on top of Saturday’s tracks. No wind in the village meant snow covered everything, but it was cold. There was about 10-15cm in the village. Now it was time to get out on the slopes. Friday Flat and Merritts were still crowded – there was a surprising number of people taking advantage of the conditions. Monday arrived with clear blue skies. The overnight minimum that some staff forecast to drop to –15C only went down to –8.2C. Way cold enough for the snow guns to keep pumping out and cold enough for the village snow to remain intact until about midday when village temperatures managed to climb slightly into the + range. High Noon was opened this morning and took a lot of pressure off the crowds on Cruiser. The snow did get scratchy and thin after a couple of hours of hooning.

A great weekend. The Snow Ball, I was told was a wonderful gastronomic event and the after events went on well into the small hours. The entertainment and street performers were – entertaining. All I need now is some sleep.

Saturday night fireworks

More fireworks

High Noon - Sunday morning

Kozi chair - tourist rides only

Scenes: John , Monday morning, Blessing of the Snow, Sunday afternoon

More weekend scenes

The forecast is for fine weather for some time. The snow guns are pumping as I type and hopefully we will see the Supertrail open soon. There may be snow for next weekend.

Just found out I’ve had a camera operator fault and have lost (deleted) most photos taken on Sunday and Monday except for the thumbnails. The most disappointing thing about this is that John’s great stack cannot be viewed in glorious close-up. Sorry guys.