Hitting a rocky patch, CLThe mission is to ski in as many places in the world as you can. All countries where there's natural or man-made snow. In every major ski destination in the world. In at least some of the smaller places. On mountains, on hills, indoor, in winter and summer, on piste and off piste, on powder, slush, crust, and, occasionally - frequently, as my ski repair shop would say - on rocks. Going up by ski lift, on foot, on skins, crampons, cats, cars, or helicopters.
Night skiing in Kuopio, FI
Why? Obviously because I love skiing, the feeling that you get from making rhythmic turns on a steep mountain face, the scenery, the physical challenge, and my great skier friends and family.
But not only that. First off, my doctors tell me that I need some exercise and that working 24/7 is not an option. The problem is, I would rather submit to waterboarding in Guantanamo Bay than endure an exercise session at an indoor gym. I need a more interesting form of exercise, preferably outdoors. Secondly, my work requires a lot of travel, and, in addition to hating the hotel gyms I also hate spending my evenings and weekends in in bars, restaurants, or shopping malls. I need a healthier way to spend my free time.
Grass skiing in Treble Cone, NZ
So I have ended up spending a lot of my time skiing. My goal is to find some time for skiing every week and on every trip, be it a family vacation or a business trip, or if the destination is France, Netherlands, or Indonesia. This is a not a new thing, last season I skied in five different continents, for instance. But I'm still at the beginning, having skied in only a small fraction of all possible places.
This blog will cover the continuation of my search for new places to ski in. I hope the blog is interesting to those who also search for something fun to do on their travels, skiers who search for that special experience, dirtbag travelers searching for the affordable ski option, and round the world travelers who want to know where to go. And I'd love to get some feedback and ideas for where I should go next!
In the winter I hope to make a post every week or so, in the summer probably a bit less, except when I point my skis to the southern hemisphere or find a summer skiing area. But I also like to go climbing and biking, so I might write about those, too. In the coming months there will also be blog entries about:
Skinning up Mount Ruapehu, NZ
Photo credits (c) 2010 Jari Arkko and Tero Kivinen.
This article was originally published in the Planetskier Blogspot article series. Suomenkielisen version tästä artikkelista "Projekti" voi lukea myös täältä.
"Mongolia is kind of close, right? Story about an attempt to ski everywhere in the world where there's snow. And in some places where there isn't. On and off-piste skiing on all continents, skiing into craters of live volcanoes, climbing, photography, and travel." The Planetskier blog focuses on skiing, caving, climbing, biking, flying, sauna, and swimming adventures around the world. See the other Planetskier blog articles about skiing, caving, urban exploration, climbing, cycling, flying, swimming, and saunas.