Whistler - Canada

Last night the girls tried to book a maxi taxi for the six of us and our suitcases to go from our apartment to the bus terminal. No luck. Today we were all up early, before 6:00 am, must be the early sunrise. We called the taxi service again and this time made bookings for two Prius Taxis - all sorted.

The bus to Whistler takes about 2 hours for the 100Km journey - we were told to sit behind the driver for the best views. Because there were no stops, the driver reminded us a couple of times to go to the toilet before we leave or we would have to go behind a tree on the way there - at our age, these suggestions mess with your mind - but we all survived.

Again the weather was not great, low cloud and mist, but warm enough at around 16 degrees. We could see that the views would have been brilliant on a clear day, especially around Horseshoe Bay.

On arrival at around midday we were met by Scott and Cindy and a couple of her uncles who helped with the luggage - the central area of Whistler is all paving stones and no cars so we have to walk the few hundred meters to our Hotel - Crystal Lodge. Andrea had a brilliant two level apartment - Mary and I had a single room (with a double bed) - but I'm sure this will be a great hotel. There are only 3 floors but it is so long to walk between our rooms.

We decided to have lunch near the start of the chair lift at a place called (add later). The food and drinks were all unique, like drinks with bacon, Caesar salad made with kale [yuk]. Then it was off to the mountain tops. The highest point here is Blackcomb Mountain at 2440 meters, about double the height of Mount Wellington. We took the Whistler Village Gondola up to the Roundhouse Lodge [1,850m], this is where we will be having our BBQ dinner. They have built a peak - to peak Gondola, the worlds longest unsupported lift at a tad over 3 Km ... fantastic engineering feat, especially at this altitude. The lift travels from here to Rendezvous Lodge [1,860m].

The younger more energetic ones went for walks in the snow, we watched local wild life - the Hoary Marmot and had a few beers. The BBQ was brilliant - slow cooked ribs were the best.

Thinking of Hobart's Mount Wellington, I can't see how a chair lift would work. Here we have a village at the very base of the mountain, walking distance to the lifts. There are developed snow runs everywhere [miles and miles of them] and dozens of chair lifts. All this is paid for by millions of outdoor thrill seekers who essentially do mountain bike riding in summer [thousands of bikes here], snow boarding and skiing in the Winter and so pay for the tourists who just want to ride up the mountain easily and enjoy the views, food and drinks. It works here because of the huge number of outdoor sports participants and the lack of alternate transport to the mountain tops.

After coming down from the mountain, Mary and I took a stroll around the village, stopped to listen to an outdoor concert by the Vancouver Symphony Orchestra and went to the supermarket to get some Apple Cider Vinegar - a lovely walk.

Tomorrow is Canada Day so there should be lots of events happening - we will have a slow day and just take in the atmosphere.

Cheers,Read more