Day 273

the top competitors from yesterday's round were back on the mountain today. some barely one hundred pounds, the little skier children shredded lines and shot rooster tails on a different and more gnarly slope than the first. my duty was similar to yesterday's- set up tent and fencing and audio equipment and then ride and run the official scoresheets from the judge's to the person waiting in the office below. apparently one or a couple of the judges were pro skiers and it didn't surprise me to hear it because my first impressions of them had definitely made me wonder why they seemed so cocky and terse.

and so, after a late night show on friday and a six am to six pm saturday on the mountain and now this eight am to four pm final day, i'm ready to chill. to montana.

me, nate, benji, and garreth, nate's visiting friend from new zealand, are heading down. the vibe is good and i realize that this trip with friends does not include any of the original camp crew.

four chill guys have packed a rusty and rattling two door jimmy with snowboards and follow southbound night mountain highways. dreaded and bearded faces peek out from in between boards and backpacks at the custom's officer at the border crossing. he asked if we had any weed. we didn't and don't.

Day 272

the elk valley night air smells of rolling mallow smoke. thick and smooth. i step into the night and imagine that a cabin dweller somewhere has kindled their stone fireplace and the grey ghost has caught another and then another's attention and inspiration and now, from down below in the middle of the valleybowl, the snow and ice and now my strides have noticed the full building of this drifting smolderscent.

i spent all day on the mountain today. our little events volunteer team was running a ski competition and we got there under early, starry darkness. besides set up, registration, and take-down, my main job for the day was relaying the scores from the judges' perch to the office below. to do this i would leave our spot on mid mountain and catch the lift to the top and ride down through the trees to where the judges were positioned. they were watching the competition from this side of the valley bowl while the contestants shredded down the opposite side. i'd pick up the cards for each round and ride down the whole mountain, swhoosh, and take the information to someone in some office. then i'd ride a lift back up and carve to mid mountain and repeat the same process as each round ended. is that even a job?

by the time we'd finished and left the sun was well gone from the sky and fading pink strokes stained darkening clouds.

fresh air. fresh snow. fresh life.


and i'm reminded.

'stand below the shadow of a mountain to be made small apart from my spiraling stride.'

Day 271

snow. finally. right now. heavy.

this comes to a perfect ending of a great friday night. after playing show and hauling most of the gear home, we returned and ended up starting a huge snowball fight in the street. some of the people inside the building emptied and joined to the party and there were big hits and shrapnel marks dotted against the brick walls of the structures next to the railroad tracks.

good times.

Day 270

pictures of today. downtown and on tops of roofs and between old buildings.







from rooftop




hitch pose for church use


back door of one of our venues




front door of same venue


greg. snowboard legend and fellow musician who drives a hearse that says 'not dead yet' on the back with an ad for his board shop as well.

Day 269

the 'moving forward' playlist is on his computer and shaun and paul have declared 'goodnight tim' for the last time, thus ending a long-standing tradition of theirs that continued and occurred no matter if tim was or wasn't in the house or even within earshot of the time they went to sleep. kiwi humor.

and yesterday i asked tim if he'd write up a post for vagabonded to tell a bit of his travels and experiences and reflections of his time here in fernie. i've never really had much trouble with punctuated ends and rarely do friendships seem to share extensive farewells, but this time there seems to be a little more weight to both of the poles of goodbye.

and now, to you six continents that visit this site and to friends and family all around the world as well, i eagerly step down from this little url podium and proudly present to you- in the last few hours of his residence here in our crew- tim heine.


"Its been three months here in this mountain town where 90% of the populations mood is majorly affected by the snowfall stats that pop up every morning on the ski hills website. This season has not been a bumper season. A whole month with no real snow to speak of, and this in FERNIE, the epic powder haven of the Canadian Rockies. Listening to conversations in coffee shops and around town you get the feeling that a lot of people see snow as their right, like add that to the UN human rights charter, “a right to food, a right to shelter, and a right to at least 1 foot of powder per week.”

With no real snow to speak of and no job, I found myself with plenty of time to think, and analyze what drives this attitude of being owed something from nature. The marketing machine, that tells us we have a God given right to our weekly powder dump plays a large part in our current snow culture, but there is a lot more at play here, and this is where it splinters off and each individual has their own reason for expecting something from mother nature. To borrow a phrase from Churchill we all are “mystery, inside a riddle, wrapped in an enigma.” In one of the most spectacular mountain ranges on the planet, with a ski hill and vibrant party scene on my back, and front door I found my focus was mostly directed to the people that call this place home, for however long that maybe. “Everyone has a story worth telling, you just need to find a way of getting it out of them.”

That statement made to me by a coworker a few years ago has made me realize that no matter how outwardly boring the person seems, there will always be a depth to that person that makes investing and searching out the person worthwhile. I had the honour of sharing a flat with 6 lads who have been incredibly blessed from on high with talents and abilities that, if used to their potential, could take over the world and I really mean that. Sometimes I would walk out of my room and just about burst with excitement at the sight of the boys ready to embark on some new adventure, knowing that they have what it takes.

And yet all of us are racked with insecurities that we don’t have what it takes to be the men we aspire to be. As I was thinking about this today the story that Jesus told of Peter walking on the water popped into my head and I remembered a part from a Rob Bell book that talked about Peter’s problem not being that he didn’t have enough faith in God, but that he didn’t have enough faith in himself. And it makes sense, Jesus knew Peter could do it, and Peter believed in Jesus as God incarnate, but Peter doubted that he had what it took, that with all his baggage and hang ups, God could use him. That is what my prayer is for the lads I have lived with over the last few months, that they will remember that not only do they believe in God, but that God believes in them, that when the temptation to sell short of their potential comes, that God is there hoping and knowing that they do have what it takes to choose the better path. The wandering and erratic path that this blog post has taken, I apologize for, but that’s often how life flies, not all things resolve, and in asking one question we may get an answer for something totally different.

So as travels and adventures continue, tuck away and remember the seemingly insignificant details of life, because in the future they may be the answer to one of life’s big questions, or at least an insight to it. I get on the bus very soon and embark on a 3 day journey to get back to New Zealand, taking with me the memories of a winter of great road trips, a few fantastic days up the mountain, an appreciation and loathing for New Zealand winters, but mostly of friendships formed and deepened. We humans are after all, the pinnacle of creation."

Day 268

spring is here. sort of. maybe. people are scared it will never snow again and others hold fast to the hope that 'the snow will come.' they've been reciting that mantra ever since november and i've heard it repeated again just after the new years melt down.

i've got something interesting planned for tomorrow's post. it will be a big change and, in a way, i'm not even sure what to expect but i'm excited for it so please check back tomorrow for sure.

Day 267

memories of tiny stages and crowded rooms and hardwood dance floors and sweat and music gear float in my mind now that i've had more than just a handful of hours of sleep since the weekend night shows and other regular routines.

today is a beatles day. that was evident from the moment of awakening. yesterday was 90's music day so the counting crows and the wallflowers and the verve were the choices for play.

i hopped out of a half-started shower to go for a run instead. impulsive. the streets are mostly clear of snow or ice and the air is warm enough to wear shorts if you don't stop moving. at least i thought so when i left. my body reminded me that i hadn't gone for a run since probably june, but now after a shower and a sandwich and some chilling with the boys at the house, my mind is clear and body fresh and i'm at the organic market coffee house. the beatles are playing on a sixties station and a dread head is in head-bent conversation with a girl near my usual seat. i'm happy to go to the other side of the shop and sit down with bob dylan, hunter s thompson, and then the handful of writers in the new new journalism book.

the sweater girl behind the counter confirms that i'm here for the usual. yep. she gave me a discount on organic coffee- some sort of gold coast, australian medium roast. smooth.

i wonder if there's some sort of deep synchronicity to life and happiness because sitting here i realize that for the first time in my life i'm able to be just one person and be living one vibe that is relevant and satisfying in anything that happens. there is no formal school performance zone or egotistic-swaggered baseball demand. no big city, drive-through thoughtlessness and no flatland restlessness.

there've been some ideas in my mind the past couple days that, to me, seems best for action because of the way previous deficiency and inabilities have now been turned into ability and stability, leaving me still aware of what i had been feeling and seeing not too long ago. vague, yes, but we'll definitely come back to this. its just a hard thing to explain- left hand, right hand kind of secrecy interactions if you catch my drift.


tim leaves very soon. here is his travel playlist, peppered with past road trip and adventure tunes and aimed at the best overall travel-motion-chill-memory flow as possible. i just finished so you'll see it first.

[click to enlarge]

Day 266

i got home today after six p.m. and was chatting the regular kind of arrival talk with paul, shaun, and jared. those three always seem to be home and in a chill vibe no matter what time it is and its a comforting expectation. there was a message from someone in the band- another venue had called our band and requested us to play tonight. the guys came by and we packed up and headed out.

now, after just returning, i am thoroughly excited and thankful and overall inspired. i chose to walk home from the gig because the dark air war fairly warm for winter but more so i knew i couldn't handle being dropped off at the house and sitting around after a night like tonight. the drummer lives near by and we walked the empty streets of a snow-lacking ski town talking about music and where we'd come from in our lives and we both shared the same vibe on the night.

i'm so thankful and stoked on all of this.