Before long, rounds of schnapps were distributed, and the music’s drone would get louder. And louder. It was a celebration of life, and the beating heart of ski culture. Stewards of the fun from around the world joined in singing, spraying champagne, and reveling in a life well lived...

There were only a few variables left. Had Chevalier made it to our meeting point in Italy? Was Keith there to smooth over the initial lodging before departure from Sulden? And would Red Ryan let us talk him into a side trip to Kitzbuhel with the sole intention of finding the epic Big Bosna and seeing what was in store at the Londoner? The little joys of being in transit on an international ski epic...

There exists a very fluid component to skiing that is rarely verbalized. This is not surfing, where the relentless swell lulls the soul in a direct contrast to the encompassing strength of a breaking wave. As with all liquid that verges on a solid state, matter and time slow down relative to the world around. But the snow on which we travel is water in it’s most infant state on the perpetual cycle back to the ocean, and beneath our skins the trickle of summer’s gasp for breath reminds us that this will be the slogging swan song for our high-country ski season...

...Powder skiing is in itself an elitist venture. Not socially elitist, but more the calling of those who have felt the heart of skiing’s stoke. Equal parts daydream, surfing, and flying, the lure of deep snow is one whose source cannot be fully described. Nor should it be. But we, the hopeless devotees, will often conform our lives around the search...

...Because seeing snow drift lightly down from the sky awakens the primeval inside those mountain people who understand that instead of stocking the fridge with beer and milk, we should be rocketing over impossible passes before the Department of Rusty Plows decides to close them...

The road goes on forever, and the poutine never ends...

Dios mio, man. La nina and me? We're gonna f*$# you up. The first entry from an Andean epic.