The Travelling Stevens Crew are off!

Thankfully we didn't have to race around on Friday night in order to check out of our condo for 10am. We had booked our dog sled tours for Saturday afternoon and on checking with the managers of the condo where we could store our luggage until 5pm, the owners advised that they were coming in for the last week of the ski season so feel free to stay on until 5pm!! We were stoked!

We had quite a lot to cram into our last day. The kids had managed to get their skis for an extra day so hadn't returned their gear with Wayne and myself on the Friday. We tentatively let them do the Happy Valley run back from the village on their own while Wayne and I caught the gondola down.

Wayne and Denver were keen to take a snow mobile tour so booked that for 11.30am. The girls and I went off to the village to take a last look in the shops and select a momento of Big White.

Apparently the snow mobile was not quite what Denver had expected and after Wayne saw the gripping fear on his face, he had to curtail his testosterone a little and tone down the speed. I think Wayne will be booking a single tour next time without a passenger.

The resort also had mini snow mobiles which they called Mini z's. Denver and Jaimie both hired these and enjoyed the slower pace - but of course they were TOO slow - never happy!

The girls and I had our dog sled booked for 1pm, we ran over to where the dogs were, so excited. We had booked this back in Perth and managed to get the last 2 bookings for the season. Tim and his 18 dogs live on the resort only on the weekends and during the week he is back home north of Kamloops.

We were introduced to all his dogs, Alaskan racing dogs, and given lots of information about their personalities, what they are fed and what their needs are. We were surprised at how friendly they were and how excited they became once harnessed. They was a very special routine to follow and different dogs worked best in different positions.

Before all the dogs were harnessed, Tim showed us how to get in the sled and what we would need to do if he had to get off the sled for an emergency. We were warned we may come across a " situation" as he had seen 3 dogs run off into the woods with out leads and his team didn't like being "messed with" when they were working!!

Once the last lead dog was harnessed and Tim released the rope that was keeping the sled anchored, the dogs were off in a flash. It was one of the most amazing experiences ever. Whilst anchored, the dogs were barking and carrying on but as soon as the sled was off it became totally silent with only the swish of the sled along the snow. They were so fast and responsive to the different commands.

We didn't end up with any major situations , a couple of dogs on the trail however they were on lead and asked to move off the trail so we could pass. Trying to keep the dogs stopped for any length of time is difficult and any situations need to be fixed quickly because even with a person on the brake, the dogs could move the sled on if they really wanted.

Wayne and Denver did their sled ride after us and found it equally exhilerating.

Our cab arrived at 5pm to take us back to Kelowna for the night. Sadly we loaded our cases into the cab and got one last photo at the entrance to Big White with a promise to each other that we are coming back to do it all again!