On Friday (3rd August) two vans containing 19 enthusiastic students set out for the first school ski trip of the season to Cardrona.

Our base for the weekend was to be the Cluden Station shearers’ quarters just outside the bustling metropolis of Tarras.

After an early start and the bonus of not having to fit chains on the access road we arrived at Cardrona before 8am. This allowed plenty of time for skis and snowboards to be fitted before the 90 minute lesson starting at 8:30am. Conditions were ideal with a good snow depth and a fine day. The only issue was that everyone else in the area had decided to take advantage of the great conditions that day too so queues for lifts were longer than we are accustomed to.

The boys were not quite as responsive to their 5:45am wake-up call on Sunday morning but an efficient pack and clean up saw us back on the ski field just after 8am. The weather started off a little cloudy and even a few flakes of snow but quickly cleared to another fine day. Skills learned the previous day were practised and impressive progress was made, with some of our total beginners conquering intermediate trails by the end of the weekend.