This past Saturday, I went skiing with my colleague Laura in Saas-Fee. We caught a 7 am train, which was a little on the early side for me, but Saas-Fee is 3 hours away, so we needed to have an early start if we wanted to ski at all before noon. The train and bus were pretty crowded with other people heading into the mountains for skiing. It has been so warm that there are not so many areas left with good snow, but Saas-Fee still had really nice conditions, with most of the runs still open. Saas-Fee is one of the higher skiing areas in Switzerland, and you can actually go skiing year-round on the glaciers here, from what I understand.
We were on the piste by about 11 am, and it was truly gorgeous. Sunny and warm (but not too warm), and the skiing was not too crowded. I never really had to wait at a lift, and it was easier to ski without worrying that I would collide with someone.
Laura is a better skier than I, so we parted ways for the rest of the morning. I stayed on a very nice, mellow blue run and tried to get the feel of skiing again, and tried to push myself to go faster, since I tend to be a nervous skier. I just want to stay under control, but some people have told me that it is easier if you're willing to go a little faster. So I was trying to go faster! I'm not sure whether or not it is actually easier, but maybe it's funner!
Laura and I had a picnic lunch in the sun, with a great view of all of the mountains, and then we took a gondola and a underground tram up to the top of the ski area, at 3500 m. The view was really amazing!
I didn't ski up there, as the runs were more difficult, but I found another really nice blue piste that went halfway down the mountain, and I started to get faster. In fact, I could almost keep up with Laura when she joined me at the end of the day!
Of course, then we had the last run of the day. I have decided that last runs are not the best idea. It's always the last run when something happens. Laura and I had decided to take a long piste all the way down to the village from the middle of the mountain. We got a little way down, past the point of no return, when the blue piste was closed, and our only option was a steep, narrow red run! Not only was it super steep, but it was the end of the day, so the conditions were not ideal. There were tons of other skiers making their last run, and the piste had turned to almost bare ice in parts, with mounds of icy snow in other parts. I really had a small meltdown. I knew that I had to get down, but I was a little paralyzed, and I couldn't convince myself to turn. I ended up sliding down sideways for a while, until Laura could encourage me enough to try to turn. I think I was mostly freaked out because I had not so much room to turn, and every time I hit a mound of snow I would lose control a little, and I was so tired that I didn't have the strength to push through the snow. Thankfully, Laura was patient, and we eventually came across an open blue run for the rest of the way down the mountain, at which point I was able to collect myself and go a little faster. Oh, skiing.
Other than my little episode at the end of the day, I really enjoyed skiing at Saas-Fee. I think it might be my favorite ski area so far! Not a bad way to end the ski season!
We were on the piste by about 11 am, and it was truly gorgeous. Sunny and warm (but not too warm), and the skiing was not too crowded. I never really had to wait at a lift, and it was easier to ski without worrying that I would collide with someone.
Laura is a better skier than I, so we parted ways for the rest of the morning. I stayed on a very nice, mellow blue run and tried to get the feel of skiing again, and tried to push myself to go faster, since I tend to be a nervous skier. I just want to stay under control, but some people have told me that it is easier if you're willing to go a little faster. So I was trying to go faster! I'm not sure whether or not it is actually easier, but maybe it's funner!
Laura and I had a picnic lunch in the sun, with a great view of all of the mountains, and then we took a gondola and a underground tram up to the top of the ski area, at 3500 m. The view was really amazing!
I didn't ski up there, as the runs were more difficult, but I found another really nice blue piste that went halfway down the mountain, and I started to get faster. In fact, I could almost keep up with Laura when she joined me at the end of the day!
Of course, then we had the last run of the day. I have decided that last runs are not the best idea. It's always the last run when something happens. Laura and I had decided to take a long piste all the way down to the village from the middle of the mountain. We got a little way down, past the point of no return, when the blue piste was closed, and our only option was a steep, narrow red run! Not only was it super steep, but it was the end of the day, so the conditions were not ideal. There were tons of other skiers making their last run, and the piste had turned to almost bare ice in parts, with mounds of icy snow in other parts. I really had a small meltdown. I knew that I had to get down, but I was a little paralyzed, and I couldn't convince myself to turn. I ended up sliding down sideways for a while, until Laura could encourage me enough to try to turn. I think I was mostly freaked out because I had not so much room to turn, and every time I hit a mound of snow I would lose control a little, and I was so tired that I didn't have the strength to push through the snow. Thankfully, Laura was patient, and we eventually came across an open blue run for the rest of the way down the mountain, at which point I was able to collect myself and go a little faster. Oh, skiing.
Other than my little episode at the end of the day, I really enjoyed skiing at Saas-Fee. I think it might be my favorite ski area so far! Not a bad way to end the ski season!
