An update is most certainly overdue. And my reasons... Well firstly winter skills. This is a week where second year students head on up to the Cairngorm national park to learn about winter mountain conditions. Scotland was seeing it's best winter season for a long while and we were all excited. An extract from my journal:
Crunch, thump, crunch, thump, crunch, thump. The beautiful sound that can only mean one thing. Dry pure powder on a clear bright and biting day. Mountain ridges rise above me either side of the flat bottomed valley and standing in all of the glory is the bothy.
There is a silence so vulnerable that a snapping twig would send the whole scene into chaos. It's so muted, cushioned. An occasional woot of joy can be heard as skiers and boarders swish and cut their way through tree infested lines of ecstacy. Snow begins to tumble from the trees and lands with a thwack, occasionally landing on an un-expecting passer by.
After this trip it inspired another, a friend and I decided to go snowboarding and skiing in the same area. We had fallen in love with this part of the world and the amount of snow made it difficult to decline temptation. But what was interesting about this trip was the people watching, I paid particular attention to the people around me what they were doing, their mannerisms. Anyway here's an excert from my journal:
Eyes dark and sunken, beard untamed and blonde hair flowing in waves almost at shoulder length. He carried a battered laptop case, and spent money sparingly. I think he was there just to use the internet, which, in the grand scheme of things isn't such a bad thing. He took his hot chocolate and paid with coins. He walked from the counter silently, his jeans were baggy and his jumper creased and stained with car oil. He was focussed as he had an intense light in his eye. He sat in the corner and got out his laptop.
The day that we were supposed to depart, it snowed like I've never seen it snow before. 40cm fell in one night, my journal explains more clearly:
Crunch crunch crunch. The snow rises up to my knees and it still keeps on snowing. It's am in the morning. It's so magical. My breath, the mountains the trees clad in lumps of the white stuff. Sensibility takes over and we decide that it's best to try and get out. much to my reluctance. We set about digging Sarah's car out but it was no use. As quickly as I dug, the snow fell and covered it again. A frustrating process for both of us. It later dawned on us that this was not getting us anywhere. We trudged down the YHA track and to the camp site across the road, but they didn't prove to be of any help.
There are more winter tales to follow but I thought that was an interesting taster as to what winter held for me. Amazing. Look out for more shortly
Bex
