dinner anyone?

Our Whistler home provides a great gathering place for family and friends.  Dinner parties seem to be our major evening entertainment, especially during winter.  

And so, we decided that our rather large dinner table would be improved if we could enlarge it!  In the first photo you see the original frame (on the floor) with the newer, larger frame (erected above it) and the original table top (leaning against the chimney).  The second photo shows the completed table, about a foot wider and a foot longer, with a row of tiles down the middle to accommodate hot pots of food.  The table now easily seats 12 with plenty of elbow room!

Ski season has begun

 We woke up to see fresh snow on the deck.

And, it's opening day on Whistler!

Winter is coming!

Some mornings we wake up to see white stuff on our house. 

 Here is our evening view of snow on Blackcomb ski runs.

And, mid-day view of snow-making on Blackcomb.  Skiing starts this Friday, November 19th!

November in the valley

While fresh snow is falling in the alpine, leaves are still falling in the valley here in Whistler.

There is still plenty of good weather for riding a bike ride along the valley trails.

I rode to Rainbow Park and enjoyed watching the mist rise off the lake. 

River of Golden Dreams and Romance, with Whistler Mt in the background. 

Pre-season projects

October is a good month to get things done in preparation for the alpine racing season, and a quiet month here in Whistler for heading up the mountain.   Here is a view of our race venue "Ptarmigan" with Blackcomb in the background.

 

And, our ski club storage building "Garbo Hut", located at the top of the race run (and in need of some more cleaning up....)

 Al and his timing buddies set up some new timing stations along the race run.

Hmm, some deer were browsing near-by....

How did we get up the mountain?  Hiking would have been a good idea, but with all the gear it was more practical to use the ski club truck, and fortunately the summer road goes right by the race course. 

Matterhorn Chairlift

Ready for ski season:   Wini & Irene toasting the new chair lift installed at the Matterhorn base.

Drive to the Adams River

Al went missing in Vancouver last week.....boys with toys?  He decided it was time to trade in our Subaru for a new one......

So, we took it for a drive.... over the Duffy, through Kamloops, and past Chase to the Adams River.  We went to met Charlotte and learn more about her Masters research involving spawning salmon. 

Every four years the salmon run on the Adams River is a big run and this year seems to have surpassed expectations.  It is an amazing phenomenon.  To learn more go here:

http://www.bcadventure.com/murphys/adamsriver/salute.htm

Here are a few photos of the salmon swimming up the river to spawn or fertilize eggs.  Many of the salmon have already completed their life cycle and lay dead on the banks of the river.  

Charlotte's project involves collected eggs from 20 salmon, which she then fertilizes and incubates in three different temperatures.  She is collecting a lot of data at this point....

Fungus Among Us....?

We joined the fungi fun-guys this year for a walk to observe the fungus among us....

Here are a few photos of some we found particularly interesting:
 orange peel, cauliflower and coral....

Unfortunately, we are not yet confident enough to know very many mushrooms that are safe to eat!