Our bus trip to Canada began with a Mid-Atlantic snow storm. Unfortunately, we had one auto accident, Paul and Diana ended up in a ditch on the way to meet the bus. Since they had to have their car towed, they emailed friends, letting us know that they would not be on the trip. We headed south and picked-up the St. Mary’s people. The farther south we traveled, the less snow, with just rain in California at our second pick-up. We headed north, driving through snow all the way into northern New Jersey. Our driver, Super Mario, lived up to his name, and safely transported us, in 14 hours, to Auberge Estrimont, our hotel for the week. On arrival, we were treated to a fantastic dinner with choices of Salmon Kabobs or Roast Pork. That was just the beginning of the great meals!

     Our days began with a huge breakfast, with a buffet of fruit and pastry’s. We then had a daily choice of eggs, pancakes, French toast, sausage, bacon, or ham, served to us by the wait staff. Dinners were always a choice of a fish or meat, with a salad appetizer, fresh bread, a soup, and a yummy dessert. Dominque our tour guide would then round us up for our daily excursions.

     Monday, we were off to Mt. Orford for our first day of skiing. With no lift lines, it was up and down the mountain all day! Our memories of the day include the blue trail- Grand Coulee. A blue that would have been fun to ski, if it had snow instead of ice! Emogene and Patti, decided that mountain climbing was preferable to ice skating, eventually arriving for lunch with us at the bottom of the mountain.

     Tuesday morning found us on the bus, traveling the hour to Mt. Sutton. We were disappointed to find most of the green slopes closed, due to lack of snow. Tuesday evening, we were off to the Normandy Sugar House, for a typical French Canadian dinner of eggs, ham, sausage, bacon, pancakes and fresh bread. All made with a touch of maple syrup and served family style. The entertainer, the same singer that we had the last time, kept us singing and laughing into the night. We could not do the sleigh ride this trip, as the mare had injured her leg the day before. Instead, we celebrated Mike’s birthday, with songs, and a chocolate birthday cake. Mike was called up to the front of the room, and given a birthday shot of Peppermint Snapps. He certainly did not object to that! He then serenaded us while attempting to impersonate Elvis.

     Wednesday we were off to Jay Peak in Vermont for a great day of skiing. The temperatures were warm, the slopes were empty, and we skied our legs off! Unfortunately, Bob H. injured his knee, and did not ski the rest of the trip. Wednesday evening was a quiet time at the hotel, with great food, a warm fire, and most people in the whirlpool!

     Thursday we skied at Owl’s Head, the smallest resort, but we had a wonderful time. The conditions were good, with everyone ending up on a long green in the afternoon. We saw the results of the ski lessons, as Luke, Noah, and Nicholas were flying down the mountain. Most of us went through the snow park a number of times. Some of the guys contracted testosterone poisoning, and just had to attempt to fly, but luckily, there were no injuries. That evening we hopped back on the bus, and were off to a local shopping mall in Sherbrooke, the closest city to the resort. The mall was large, and seemed to have, more coat and hat shops than any of us had ever seen.

     Friday, 18 people returned to Mt. Orford, for a few hours of skiing, with the rest lounging at the resort. We promptly left the resort at 1:30 PM for our trip home.

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