‘No one will see you,’ Will butted in. ‘There was literally no one on the slope last time. The aim of the game is to keep warm.’
I was torn between sunny ski time on an empty mountain and wearing a ski suit that gave me the ick. Henrik wasn’t back yet and everyone else was ready and raring to go.
‘You are coming?’ Kimi asked, sweetly.
‘Henrik won’t leave till we’re all ready,’ Will said a little too loudly, and ten pairs of eyes turned to stare at me, piling on the peer pressure.
‘Yes, yes, of course. Sorry, I’ll be quick.’
What else could I do, other than wait on my own while everyone else had a great time? I kicked off my Uggs, chose the least depressing pair of ski boots and took a onesie from the pile.No one cares, Sara, just get on with it.Fine. I gave the ski suit a final once-over, then slid it on over my thermals and zipped it up. It was like wrapping insulation around every part of my body: thick, cosy, full of feathers, and deliciously warm. Then the ski boots snapped on nice and snug and felt sturdy and comfortable. I bounced around the hut like an astronaut, and it felt amazing. Like one-wear fancy-dress. I knew I looked as ridiculous as the others, but I couldn’t see myself, so I didn’treallyknow. I’d just have to focus on how I felt inside instead.
Henrik bounded in already suited and booted. ‘Hei, OK!’ he said, looking around. ‘You all found what you need? The skis are at the bottom of the piste to save us carrying them, so if everyone is ready, we can go!’
We shuffled outside, boinging from foot to foot on the wooden floor. Henrik waited at the back to lock the door, then led the way to the locker to dish out the skis and poles.
The mountain was covered in fresh powder and looked beautiful in the sunshine. Perfect ski conditions, but I couldn’t see the lift. I was starting to worry it might be a button. The mountain was quite remote after all. The piste hadn’t been bashed, but the red flags were visible, so it would be just the right level of challenge for me to fly down.
Henrik clapped his hands together. ‘Please check your skis have fresh Velcro on the bottom and remember to strip it off before you ski down.’
‘What for?’ I asked, turning my skis over. There was a black sticker running straight down the middle. Weird.
‘Too much friction otherwise. You won’t get a speedy, smooth ski.’
‘Right.’ I wasn’t sure what he meant, but everyone was clicking on their skis, so I followed suit. We must have to ski to the lift, which would be a nice practice run as I hadn’t done any for a while.
‘Everyone ready?’ Henrik called, and we all clanked our poles together, like performing seals. ‘Good. Now, remember, don’t waste your energy talking. We can do this together, right? Let’s go!’
We formed a natural queue behind Henrik and followed him step for step, the twelve of us moving as one.Left, right, left, right…I had my head down, towards the back of the line, so it took me a second to realise the gradient had changed and we’d started walkingupthe piste.
‘Will?’ I shouted. ‘Can you hear me?’
‘Yes,’ he replied, marching on like a compliant Orc.
‘Where’s the ski lift?’
‘There isn’t one.’
‘What?’ I took another look at the unkempt piste. ‘Sorry, what are we doing here?’
‘Alpine touring,’ Will said. ‘The Norwegian way.’
‘It’s skiing though, right?’ I gasped, trying to breathe.
‘Yes! Once we get to the top,’ Will replied as it finally dawned on me what was happening. We were walking up the bastard piste and I was already too high up to break away and ski down. The Velcro comment suddenly made sense. Norwegian skiing.
‘Keep going!’ Henrik shouted from the front, as I dug in with my trekking sticks. ‘Heads down, focus on your breathing, stay mindful.’
My mind was full of something alright, and about to shut down entirely. I couldn’t feel my legs, and the mountain looked like Everest as it stretched up above us. No wonder the piste had been empty when they’d come last time: Alpine touring was only meant to be for those who were fit or determined enough to drag themselves up it in the first place.
I huffed and puffed my way along, using my outrage as fuel. Each little step was getting me closer to the top and there was nothing anyone could do to help the situation. It was my choice: either keep going or give up. And I was desperate for the skiing-down part. The cosy warmth of the onesie was a lot less attractive now, and there was a layer of sweat between my body and the material, making it even hotter, if that was even possible. I considered taking it off and climbing up in my thermals. If I threw it into the middle of the piste, I could pick it up on the way down.
‘Let’s hold it here!’ Henrik called, and everyone stopped, collapsing on the ground to regroup and rehydrate. There was no point complaining now – we were all in it together.
‘You know what?’ Celeste panted, leaning back on her elbows. ‘There’s nowhere else on earth I’d rather be right now.’
‘Agreed,’ Will said, putting his arm around her.
‘I could sit here all day,’ I said, turning my face towards the sun. It was absolute bliss now we’d stopped. I was just missing a deckchair and a cold, Norwegian lager.
