When Winter Comes for a Visit

An expedition to the mountains in April — the snow has fallen

It’s been like a day out of a fairytale. Or was it April fools? I’m not sure but it snowed like there was no end in sight. There was no land in sight at times as well. The fog was low, the driving snow incredibly thick and the temperatures lower than expected.

But all three of us were smiling. From one ear to another.

Last night I decided on this day excursion. After seeing how much snow was coming down I was drawn to the mountains, the winter, and just a day playing in the snow.

And off we went. It was still dark when we left the house. My dad couldn’t come because he had already other plans for the day but my mom joined my husband and me even though she was taken by surprise and usually doesn’t like being spontaneous. Not at all.

It was snowing the entire drive and I had to focus on keeping the car under control but I love driving in the snow so it wasn’t stressful for me.

Getting to the skiing area, I could drive all the way up to the parking lot right at the station since the resort was closed already for the season and no other visitors were in sight.

I parked the car, put a few more layers of clothes on, and started walking.

We didn’t really have a plan. We didn’t know where to go and which way to take. I mean we only decided during the drive to come to this area. Originally we had selected a different destination but then changed our plan.

We thought about hiking up the mountain and seeing how far we’d come. The walkway wasn’t covered in thick snow, only the snow from a few hours previously was covering the ground which is why we decided not to walk in snowshoes. It was simply not necessary.

I had my GoPro in my hand to capture this winter wonderland but at one point I decided to take out my camera and shoot in high-quality and in close-up.

This icicle was just too beautiful to just be ignored.

But since we were in a snow storm I was careful about getting my lovely DSLR out in this weather. I covered the camera in my scarf and only let the lens peak out at the end.

My mom captured me in action.

While both of us were occupied, my husband continued to walk further up. Away from us and our voices he was in silence. The moment for a group of deer to appear, cross the field and let him snap a picture of them at the edge of the forest.

Look closely and you’ll see two of them (maybe even three).

As we were getting to a junction and the question came up about which way to go, my mom suggested heading into the forest.

“I think we’ll enjoy this path more.”

And I know, she was right. It was like walking in a fairytale. A winter fairytale.

In the meantime, we had decided to get to the top of the mountain for us to have the opportunity of sliding down the closed skiing slope.

But we did not want to hike up the steep slope and chose instead to walk around the scenic route.

It was cold and yes it was still snowing heavily. The trees were covered in loads of packages of snow.

Another version of “tiny packages of snow”.

The village below wasn’t always visible but now and then we could look down into the valley.

At other times we could barely see our own feet.

At one point the view on the mountain ridge got so bad, that my mom decided to walk behind us. You couldn’t see the path and had to guess which way to go. She just wanted to follow us. That’s all.

I didn’t mind.

I just love being out and about in a snowstorm.

My mom was pointing out a lime tree. Standing right next to a lone cottage, this tree was covered in snow. Every tiny branch was frozen hanging in the wind.

And as I was researching the word for this tree I learned how many meanings the word lime has in the English language.

Limestone — a specific type of rock.

Lime — the fruit, similar to a lemon.

Lime tree — a deciduous tree also known as linden tree for the European species. Has nothing to do with the lime fruit.

And no, I am not done with learning. English in specific and everything in general. Writing has taught me to research everything I’m not 100% sure about because well, it gets published. Publicly.

So thank you, here I learned something new.

It wasn’t far and we got to the top of the mountain and the cottage/restaurant we were aiming for. We knew the place was closed and had our own tea and sandwiches packed but we wanted to rest in some sheltered place.

We stopped, took off our bags, and refreshed ourselves with the snacks.

From here on it was going downhill now. And for me, it meant to strap on that snowboard.

Probably one of the hobbies I miss the most since leaving Germany in 2014.

Snowboarding.

I grew up skiing, then switched over to snowboarding, and never looked back. I even worked as a snowboarding instructor in the desert teaching tourists how to board down a sand dune just to stay close to this hobby of mine.

But the boarding on the snow became rare. Last year about the same time as now I did my last run. Also just one hike up and one run down.

It’s better than nothing. And everything that is rare, increases its value.

My mom was the only one who had carried her snowshoes to the top. To walk down the mountain on this skiing slope covered in powder snow it is best to have snowshoes on.

When she was walking past me, she smiled from one ear to another. My mom also loves this weather. She prefers walking in driving snow over hiking in blue skies and sunshine.

The slope we had selected for the run down was the “Weltcup Express”, a rather steep mountain and too steep for my mom. After the first few meters, she turned away from us following a trail into the forest.

We told her to talk from time to time to the birds or anything out there so that we can hear her in case she gets lost in the snowstorm.

My husband carried up nothing more than a tiny bobsled (also called a snow glider).

While he would have gone super-fast on a skiing slope as steep as this one, due to the amount of fresh snow, he was being slowed down a lot.

He had to walk now and then across the slope and some flatter stretches, but all in all, he sledded down most of it.

Well, and I? I was simply in heaven. I prefer backcountry boarding over sliding down on a prepared slope, so this snow was perfect. I loved riding down in the powdery snow.

This was the cherry on the cake after an amazing day in the winter wonderland.

“Take me deep into the wintery woods where hope glitters freshly worn.” — Angie Weiland-Crosby

More about this year’s late winter storms:

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