Practice Makes Per….You Better!

Eager to get on the slopes we set the alarm early on our first morning in Banff. Our ski gear had been delivered the previous evening to our hotel storage locker so once we all got layered up we packed the car and drove up to the Sunshine Village gondola.

Taking advantage of an early bird sale before leaving Australia we had 5 day ski passes valid at all the Ski Big 3 fields – Sunshine, Lake Louise and Norquay. We had pre-planned to spend our first two days at Sunshine and had our travel agent book the kids into Tiny Tigers daycare and ski lessons and Adam and I into a beginners lesson.

Driving up the road to the ski area was like being in a scene from a postcard, it was snowing beautifully and was what I can only assume as excellent skiing conditions.

In the car park a friendly local gave us what seemed to be logical advice to wear our ski boots up the hill so we had less to carry. So after a quick (as quick as you can dress kids in a car) change we hauled our skis, helmets, googles, poles and kids to the gondola. Thankfully there are plenty of staff ready to help load you into the gondola otherwise I’m sure someone would have been left behind!

Once the doors shut and our carriage lurched upward Ad and I were able to relax for a bit and enjoy our 20min ride up to the ski field.

We had spent the days prior really talking up how exciting Tiny Tigers would be so the kids felt comfortable in going and our tactic was a success. They were both so excited and happily ran off once we had signed them in. All of the daycare staff were warm, friendly and mostly Australian which was an added bonus. The kids favourite carer Demi had actually arrived a couple of months prior from the Gold Coast! Once the kids waved us goodbye Ad and I made our way up to the main lodge to store our backpack and get ready for our lesson. We joined another couple from the US and a German lady for our morning lesson. Our instructor was very thorough and it was well worth doing. In actual fact we should have continued after lunch with the afternoon session too but filled with confidence and a “she’ll be right” Aussie attitude we jumped on the Strawberry Express ski lift with the intent to carve it up! The reality was me stacking it straight out the gate followed by the realisation that the trail is actually a whole lot steeper than the bunny hills and not that well marked. It took us about an hour but we made it down in one piece, with only our egos bruised!

We returned to the lodge to rethink our tactics and watch the kids take their lesson from the viewing level. They were doing an amazing job! We were so proud watching them out in the snow giving their all to a new skill. Kids naturally don’t have any fear and to see them just cruising down the hill with a casual stance was great but also infuriating having just rolled down the easiest run up the mountain ourselves lol!

By this stage we were regretting taking the advice of our carpark neighbour and our feet were killing us from spending the whole day in ski boots. After the kids lesson we collected our little snow bunnies and hobbled our way back down the hill spending our gondola ride asking each other how our days went. They kids were full of stories and had thoroughly enjoyed their day, new experiences and meeting new people.

After dinner at Tony Roma’s Ad and I were finally able to rest our tired and blistered feet and the kids crashed totally pooped from their big day.

The next morning we woke refreshed and ready take on Sunshine again. It had snowed all night and again it would snow all day while we were up on the mountain, perfect skiing conditions for the second day in a row!

Second time around we wore our normal boots up the hill opting to carry the snow boots and it made all the difference. Aubs and Lioney happily returned to ski school as Lioney had named it and Ad and I hit the bunny hill a few more times to work on fine tuning our skills. Feeling more confident we then took the lift and attempted yesterday’s run again. Small improvement but still not what you’d call a polished run…..but we made it.

Ad made it down the hill a little quicker than I did this time and he was watching the kids do their lesson when I finally made it back to the lodge. After a rest and quick bite to eat we decided to get back up the hill and try it again, third time lucky surely…… nope, we struggled again albeit a little better than previous attempts but still far from graceful. As hard as it was dragging ourselves up out of the snow each time we stacked it you only had to look in any direction and be awestruck by the beauty of the Rocky Mountains being dusted with fresh snow, the landscape has to be seen to be fully appreciated and photos simply don’t do it justice. Anyway back to the skiing, we eventually made it back to the lodge, proud of ourselves for having descended down the hill 3 times but totally exhausted and done for the day. This was to be our last day at Sunshine Village and this meant we had to haul all ours and the kids equipment back down to the car park, this called for 2 trips if we had learned anything from our first day on the hill. After a freshen up and change of footwear we gathered up all our equipment and headed for the gondola before returning to collect the kids from Tiny Tigers and all their equipment on the 2nd trip. What a fantastic couple of days filled with great fun and great people. We shared the final gondola down with one of the daycare teachers who had cared for the kids (she was Australian) which was a nice way to finish too.

That night we had dinner at Saltlick restaurant after wandering the streets. Every restaurant we had visited so far had been so accommodating to children. Even higher end establishments had kids menus, colouring ins, crayons and thoughtful staff. It doesn’t take much to entertain the kids but it certainly makes all the difference to get through a nice dinner when everyone is occupied and happy.

On our walk home Ad stopped for a Beaver Tail, a famous Canadian pastry. Can confirm it was delicious!