Sunday 7 December 2014

Westcoast Winter Memories ft. Demeter's Fraser Fir*

*Press Sample

Winter time in the Westcoast is the time to hit the slopes and to hit them hard. Nothing quite like zooming down Whistler/Blackcomb while strapped on to some metal, with the crazy pigtails on your toque (yes...I did wear these, in all black) flapping in the wind,  zipping past neon-ed tourists and scouting out all the Australian ski instructors...as rain pours down on you.

Yes those awesome sunlit, perfect powder, fresh snow days happen, but they never seemed to happen when my family made plans to go to Whistler. More often than not, I'd be drenched, miserable and in dire need of blowing my nose on something that wasn't soaked in water. Nothing quite like blowing your nose on a fresh tissue in the sweaty smelling ski lodge, since all your pocket contents have been waterlogged by rain, to make you feel like you live in a society again.

As I grew older, the slog up the mountain appealed to me less and less but I still readily make the trip up to Whistler with my family. Now that we don't make it a practice anymore, I missing those slopes. Memories of Whistler Village, getting beaver tails at that shack near base, smelling those fir trees and feeling that icy chill on the tip of my nose while walking through the forest are some things I can't wait to share with David and to revisit. I appreciate Whistler and Blackcomb so much more from the base and at night, the stars shine and the air is so quiet, you can almost hear the snow falling.

Smelling Demeter's Fraser Fir's brought all these memories back to me, the good and the bad. Though not quite the Douglas Fir that I'm used to, Fraser Firs are somewhat related and near enough to what I remember the Westcoast smelling like. You can bet that when I get off that plane to visit my family back home for Christmas, I'm going to pause and take my habitual deep breathes in of the real stuff but for now, Demeter has been a lovely reminder of home. 

Do you have any winter memories? 

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