It was a struggle get the day’s skiing underway this morning. I had been to the village twice before I made it on to the cable car, having forgotten various bits and pieces on my first trek up the hill. When I finally made it to Mannlichen, I lost a contact lens almost immediately. It fluttered on to the ground in front of me, but the sparkling snow meant finding it was like looking for a needle in a haystack. I had a spare lens with me, but getting that into place in the freezing temperatures was a battle against time.
When I reached the village for the second time, I had begun to think that the forecast was wrong and it wasn’t that cold at all. A brisk walk in five layers soon warms the Idle Skier. Five minutes on Mannlichen convinced me that the weathermen had been correct.
After what seemed an eternity, I managed to get the day underway properly; and what a day. The sun hid itself behind passing clouds occasionally, but for the most part it was sunny. Above all, the cold, squeaky snow was perfect and disturbed by only a few skiers. Last week saw the busiest day of the season to date, but today was the best day for a long time.
I left until late to head back to the village. After the false starts, I needed to make the most of the day. The racecourse is ready now, and the final run to Innerwengen was reduced to a narrow strip besides the catch fencing. The snow was perfect still though.
A slow start, followed by some majestic skiing conditions, brought 10,303 vertical metres in 21 lift rides and 55 kilometres travelled.
Idle thoughts from a mountain 