Time to get our skis on…
Having been cooped up indoors for what seems like weeks on end, sheltering from Storms Ciara and Dennis, we decided enough was enough and it was time to try out the Nevis Range Ski Centre and hit the slopes for some skiing. Being very keen skiers, Cameron and I had been religiously following the local weather reports praying for the perfect opportunity to get our skis down from the attic and go for a slide.
Sure enough, several inches of snow had fallen through the night and Spean Bridge was looking the perfect winter wonderland. From our bedroom window, Aonach Mor and her crisp white slopes were beckoning us. We knew today was the day!
After a quick kit check, we loaded up the car, scraped off the snow and we were on our way buzzing like two excited school kids. Literally before the car had even had chance to warm up, we arrived at the Nevis Range Gondola. We braced ourselves for a full car park, but luckily, it was a week day and we found a space easily enough. We kept looking up the gondola ride and the slopes above us, pinching ourselves repeatedly saying to each other how lucky we were to live so close to a ski area. I mean we’re talking less than 10 minutes door to door and quicker to get to the slopes than the nearest supermarket!
We each paid our £27 for a day ticket and stepped into the gondola. As we rose, more and more of the Lochaber region and the stunning Scottish Highlands came into view: the Great Glen, Fort William, Loch Linnhe, Loch Arkaig and the towering mountains of Carn Mor Dearg and Ben Nevis. In less than 15 minutes, we arrived at the top and it was time to put on our skis.
As every skier knows, there’s always an element of trepidation when it’s the first run of the season… ‘Will I remember how to do it?’ Unfortunately for me, I had a bit of a faff getting onto the first button lift, and all I heard as the button whisked me up the slope was the ‘lifty’ shouting after me, “Use your edges, that’s what they’re for!” That was enough to snap me out of my reverie and catapult me into ski mode.
Our first impressions were really good. No queues, not too many people, friendly staff and everyone in a great mood in spite of only a handful of runs being open on that day. To be honest, we were expecting narrow pistes, skiing on ice while dodging numerous rocks and half freezing to death during wait times in excess of 30 minutes at each lift. These are often the kinds of things you hear when you mention skiing in Scotland. We couldn’t have been more pleasantly surprised.
Our first proper run was ‘The Goose’. First things first, the snow was super soft, a good few inches of powder. Having skied lots before in the States, we were used to skiing in this kind of snow but this was our first run of the season, and boy did our legs know about it! We made it down in a few stages managing to stay upright all the way to the bottom and jumped straight back onto the same T-bar. It was such a lovely wide run and much longer than we had expected, we simply had to have another go. With our legs still burning, we were beginning to look and feel a little more like we knew what we were doing and we got to the bottom a bit quicker this time. Back up again, but this time we tried the run on the other side, ‘The Cat’s Alley’. This was a little trickier as the clouds came in and the visibility deteriorated very quickly. It wouldn’t have been too bad but we knew that there were a few marked obstacles that we needed to avoid. Luckily, it was another lovely wide soft run so we made it safely to the bottom.
For the next hour or so, the clouds rolled in and out, so we enjoyed a few more runs before deciding to try out the Snowgoose Restaurant for some lunch. For the inexperienced, you really could have been in any self-service mountain restaurant in the Alps, except this one was a lot more affordable! Cameron tried the venison burger and I had a bowl of chips, both dishes did the job perfectly.
With the conditions having improved slightly, we headed straight for the Quad chair which had just opened for the first time that day. The chair lift was a blessing, allowing a few minutes reprieve before yet another lactic acid build-up surged through my leg muscles. A few more gaps in the clouds revealed more of the ski area. Yet again, we were left marvelling that all this was just minutes from our doorstep. Eager to explore more and with our legs nicely loosened, we skied a few more runs in quick succession before having to head off the mountain to get back to Distant Hills Guest House. A quick trip to Morrison’s in Fort William first feeling ultra cool wearing our ski gear and then we were home!
The Nevis Range ski resort had certainly not disappointed. Not only had it given us the fix we’d been craving but it left us wanting more! Unfortunately, we will to have to wait for more snow and calmer conditions before we can head back up the mountain, but head back up we will!
If you want to find out more about the Nevis Range Mountain Resort visit https://www.nevisrange.co.uk
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