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Sensory Overload in a Distant Universe
During the last ten days of April 2006 I was lucky enough to travel to the Kamchatka peninsula in the far east of Russia and experience what will always stand out as one of my most extraordinary memories on skis. This is something totally unique – and not just because our hotel offered, “deep purgation procedure”. It may not be everyone’s cup of tea but, for those with a strong sense of adventure and an even stronger tolerance for hard booze and putting up with the inevitable waiting that is synonymous with Russia, you cannot help but be blown away.
The landscape is vast on a scale that is impossible to describe and at times you feel as if you have been transported to an entirely different universe. We skied into the craters of smoking, active volcanoes; down to deserted beaches where we swum in the Pacific Ocean, and to wild hot springs for a soak and a bottle of Russian champagne. How we found the energy I will never know, but most days were rounded off / seen in with a few moves on the dance floor of the legendary Cosmic nightclub. This place has to be seen to be believed.
The capital of Kamchatka, Petropavlovsk is a grim city to say the least but its ugliness is offset by the friendliness of the residents and the awesome spectacle of the landscapes that surround it. Never have I seen so many jaws drop with complete sensory overload. At times it was hard to link more than five or six turns before I was compelled to stop and gawp at the surroundings.
On its day, the skiing and riding in Kamchatka is hard to beat but I cannot emphasise enough that no matter how good the conditions may be, the skiing or riding is only a fraction of what makes the experience. Many of the runs are typified by endless run outs where you just sit back and relax for three or four miles and take in the dramatic scenery around you. Averaging 1300-1400 metres with descents of up to,4,000 metres the runs are long by any standards, not to mention varied and exciting. If there are any negative sides to skiing here it is perhaps that the weather can be particularly harsh and unpredictable. The peninsula is exposed to ferocious winds that scream in from the Pacific Ocean transforming smoky powder into breakable crust and rock hard boiler plate in a matter of hours.
Looking out of the window on the flight into Petropavlovsk, it was evident that one such wind had recently been blowing. Every single aspect looked like solid concrete! Amazingly, we still managed to find plenty of good powder, and in between we skied some exceptional spring snow, some sparkling surface hoar, cold, dry chalky snow, sun crust, wind crust, rimed boiler plate and everything in between. You name it, we skied it. All in all though the vast majority of runs were on very good snow. There was not a breath of wind for our first five days, and we did not see a cloud. In fact the weather could not have been more perfect. Things changed quickly on day six/seven when a fierce storm came barrelling in across the Pacific and battered the peninsula for the next week dumping metres of snow on the surrounding mountains. In our exhausted state this was almost welcome and we spent the next few days exploring the city, visiting the market, skiing at the local resort, lounging in hot springs and recovering from all-nighters in the Cosmic nightclub.
If you are interested in hearing more keep an eye out for articles in The Financial Times, The Independent and Ski and Board Magazine all of which will be out this Autumn. Details of next season’s packages will also shortly be posted on the site but if you are interested in booking for next season, please feel free to email me (james@eaheli.com) or call me on +44 870 738 7838.
James Morland, June 2006
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