DuNord. With 14 boys.

Back in February we ventured up to DuNord in the middle of winter.  Well, retrospectively, it was only really the beginning of winter, as winter stretched out all the way to May this year.  But it was gorgeous there.  The cities were quite brown and drab at that point but we arrived at our cabins to find pristine ski trails passing right outside our doors.

We had gathered a group of 8 families for this trek.  It was some point before we left that this crew included 18 kids between the ages of 8 and 13.  And 14 of those 18 were boys.  Good luck girls.  The crew got along famously- bouncing from skiing to trekking out to the middle of the lake, to cards in the loft, to sledding, to board games.  And then they slept hard.

The skiing was downright perfect.  Tons of snow, beautiful forests and lakes, and even pictographs!  On the cold days the sun was so bright that at one point Eli proclaimed, "Man, if was any hotter, we'd be in trouble!"  It was 6.  Degrees.  On the snowy days the temps were warm enough to lure us out into the woods were the silence and beauty was astonishing.

A highlight, beyond good company, was the late night sauna.  Temps were in the single digits, the ski was full of stars, and the hole in the ice did look a lot like a watery grave.  But after roasting in the sauna I did jump in.  Surprised myself.  While sitting in the sauna I put my odds of actually launching myself into the icy lake at 5%.  But I did it.  Once. Probably never again.

It is hard to believe that the stars will align so perfectly again- everyone healthy and available, the combo of sun and snow and perfect trail conditions, but we are hoping so.