St. Bernard Pass

Verbier, Switzerland (home base) - Well things are winding up here. It's been well over two months and with some 20 days still to go it's not over yet. From Slovinia to Bulgaria, France, Italy and Switz it has been a blast. New zones like Ovrnez, Vicheres, Super St. Bernard, Vogel, Bansko and Crans Montana have all played host to a load off powder slashing, ski touring, and summit bagging not to mention freeride battling. Monks serving Montain tea, stektchy Bulgarian Airport pick ups, Milan and it's haut coutre, mythical Cham, sleepy Plans Mayens, and of course good ol' Verbier pretensious as it is but big and beggin to be ripped. Besides, Mont Gele may be one of the best lifts on the face of the planet; good to till the last drop after it's two hiatus. They offically quite spinning the lifts here on the 27th of April, but the rest of the four valley system closes on the 20th. Cham is open well into May, but it looks like I'm headed to the coast range to catch the end of the BC season. Alsaka if I'm lucky. I'll be back in December to finally get a taste of the early season in the Alps butI can't help feeling that I still have much unfinished business here. Something, I guess, which is only the product of spending more time here and more fully realizing the potential. Ps. It's snowing....

Quicksilver Freerdie Battle - Vogel, Solvenia

From Feb 21st till the 24th the Red Bull Powder Kick will be held at the Bulgarian resort of Bansko near Sophia. The best Bulgarian Freeriders will go head to head against the world for a cash purse of 3500 euro. May the best win!

Lima, Peru - Six months.....and how the time flies when your having fun. San Jose, Jaco, Montazuma, Santa Teresa, Guiones, Ostional, Playa Grande, Popoyo, Madera, El Rio Colorado, and Granda. Just a few of the spots I've passed through in the last month - I came back to the breaks.

Bought a board and sold it, rented two cars and ralleyed them, took six flights, and now looking to the future, to the powder. What will the winter bring; europe and beyond only time will tell.

LaninparklotParque Nacional Lanin, Arg - In Maupuche the word Lanin means the dead. I skied off the top of 3776m Volcan Lanin, 'the dead', three days ago on one of the warmest days of the spring yet. The wind was blowing probably 60k on the summit but even so the ski run down had awesome corn and a bit of powder at the top.  Lanin is the highest peak in the Lake Distirct and is climbed totally within Argentina even though it is a boarder peak. As such it commands an excellent view of what is northren Patagonia.

canalettasBariloche, Arg - Tuesday, all day, it snowed here in the Andes, dropping some 36cms at the Frey Hut in the Catedral range near Bariloche. Wednesday a bunch of powder got skied under sunny skies. Face shots in Oct a few days after the lifts shut to skiers for the season put smiles on all of our faces - the 2 girls from Utah (sorry never caught your names), Mike 'heli' Hamiliton, Sunny from Alaska, Camilla Parker Bowles, and my own.

lookingtochileSan Rafeal, Argentina - The sun set on dusty San Rafeal for another time this evening, the spring breeze fluttering the leaves of the southren beech trees that line every street.

singleliftVilla Angostura, Argentina - Sweet memories of the days pow turns fill my conciousness as I look forward to the big haul back to LL. It's been fun in the south this season, checking out many new lines and always finding a little bit of the deep stuff to keep happy.

 Mt. Thunder - Bariloche

Esquel, Argentina - Strong winds and snow have finally made their way to the southren andes of Patagonia. It's a down day in the sleepy hamlet of Esquel, and skiers pace the hotel lobby waiting to hear if the lifts will open in the afternoon. With 60 centimeters or more in the forecast people are excited. The six day forecast shows rain after the big dump, but we all know how accurate those six day predictions can be. If one thing is for sure it's that Santa Rosa is here once again right on schedule and what a welcome blessing of snow it is this season; a decent season that has been much colder than usual if not a bit dry, but surely good.

incayalBariloche, Arg - It's ment to snow in Villa but when I get the freezing levels going to rocket. Sure it's only centimeters but there's percip out there - it's just got come here.