An unseasonal cold spell and occasional snowy days kept the ski area in great condition right up to the official closing date of 25th April. I skied roughly every other day. Right next to the camping area was a prepared piste, less than a kilometre, down to the cable car. I could put my skis on within a 20 second walk from Baloo. Perfect. The cable car was a double decker capable of carrying 180 people. Most mornings there would just be 20 or so skiers. We all had to wear masks and all the windows in the cabin were left were open.
Up on the slopes were half a dozen chair lifts servicing sixteen pistes. All of which were kept immaculately groomed. This is only about 1/3 of the skiable area but the rest was in Austria and closed. Most days there were very few other people skiing so there were some excellent opportunities for making fresh tracks on and off the piste. I got to know the mountains better and started to work out where the good snow would be and how the weather conditions would affect it. On a few good days, powder days, I was lucky enough to be able to ski some beautiful deep soft fresh snow before anyone else had got there.
At lunchtime there was a great run down into the valley from where I could catch a bus back up to the campsite. The same run, by late afternoon, was often getting a bit messed up. Tricky soft snow with the consistency of sugar. On the last few days the snow was not so much white as the colour of mud with an assortment of small branches and the odd rock mixed in. At the bottom of this run was the only grocery store in four villages. Very handy as I could nip in and grab a few supplies before catching the bus back up to where Baloo was parked.
On other days, Diane and I would walk or take the bike for a spin. The old road down the Swiss side of the valley was the only place we could ride. In the small tunnels there were icy patches so extreme care was needed. Once down the valley it was warm and sunny. This made for a few great days out.
Everyone and everything appeared to anticipate the official closing date, 25th April. Just two days earlier the marmots appeared. We had not seen a hint of them all the time we had been there and then, suddenly, there were marmots and marmot holes everywhere. Even up on the prepared skiing areas. They clearly knew when the lifts were closing and when they would be able to get on with whatever it is marmots do. A small group of ibex appeared near the top cable car station. The four of them paid no attention at all when the cable car went past. Unfortunately the windows were so scratched it that it was impossible to take photographs. Even the small piste from the campsite got in on the act. The day before closing I just managed to ski along it. A small detour through a bush was required and balancing on one leg was needed for another section. The next day it was completely impassable.
The day after the resort closed the valley was deserted. Even the bread shop closed. On the campsite the only other vehicle was an immense MAN coach based motorhome owned by Carston and Silke. It is even bigger than Baloo and they keep their Porsche in the back. We packed up, said goodbye and set off back to Germany via Covid tests, registration forms and quarantine.