Temple Basin: The Descent

I am awoken by the sounds of people in the kitchen fixing breakfast for themselves. Sitting up slowly, I gaze at the light snow falling outside.

“And how was your night?” I’m asked.
“Couldn’t have felt better,” I answer with a yawn. “Nice and warm all through the night.”
“But did you get any sleep?”
“Mostly.”

I spend the morning inside, letting the snow fall without interruption. My sources of entertainment: a book, breakfast cereal, and random conversations with club members. It turns out I’ve been given a nickname: The Canadian Guy.

The sky cleared before midday and I was off skiing again in the sunlight. I came to the conclusion that I should have eaten more cereal because I was too slow turning my skis sideways when getting off the rope lift, causing me to slide backwards. One of my skis pops off and I lose my balance. Now I sit on the slope, looking for my detached ski. There it is, sliding away from me. It stops. I think it’s teasing me. I detach my other ski and try to walk down steadily but the slope is slippery. Now I’m sliding down the hill and can’t seem to stop. Finally, I manage to halt by digging my boots into the snow. I look up and notice that I haven’t slid a great distance, and a fellow skier has my ski & poles I’ve left above. After giving thanks, I move aside and put myself back together. The skiing must go on.

I head into the main lodge for a small lunch after leaving many curves in the snow. Lunch consisted of fruits and a coke. I could have chosen the salad and pizza but I wasn’t that hungry. Looking at the photo portraits on the walls, I'm surprised to see that during the summer (winter in North America) the area is green at this alititude and TB runs summer camps. A crying baby across the room interrupts my break. Did the parents really tramp up here holding their baby, or placed it in the Goods Lift? I didn’t ask.

After lunch came more, yes, you guessed it, skiing. Nothing really interesting happens like my slide in the morning; just skiing the slopes, going back up on the rope lifts and skiing down again.

By three in the afternoon, the time had come to vacate Temple Basin. As on the first day, club members load their equipment onto the Goods Lift (whereas I return all of my rental gear) before setting off down the trail. Even though the tramp down the mountain took less time, I still used quite a bit of energy. Instead of using my strength for lift, I was using it to stop myself from slipping & falling down the mountain. First obstacle was the slippery snow. Slide down here and there before taking a break by walking beside the trail where the snow is solid.

Upon passing the snow line, I am welcomed by the wet pointed rocks that make up the trail and the light rain falling at a slow drizzle. I guess I’ll be all wet when I reach the parking lot at the bottom. After some time, with the van packed with our wet and used belongings, we’re on our way back to Christchurch. As before, I gaze at the majestic landscape all around me and take more pictures. The Rockies in British Columbia, Canada have some tough appeal competition from the mountains down here. On the way I spot black cows grazing on a mountain near the highway. I wonder if there’s ever been a case of one of the cows slipping and falling onto the highway.

The sun had disappeared over the horizon when our van rolled into Christchurch. After being dropped off at residence, it was time for a long hot shower, a change of clothes, and doing laundry. Back to routine I say to myself with a shrug. While I waited for my weekend clothes to get clean once again, I concluded that the trip was fun and worth it, only costing $121NZD on my parents' credit card.

For the next trip though, I’m bringing a sleeping bag.

End of Temple Basin 3 part mini-series.