{My Bucket List} Snowboarding on Rocky Mountains in Banff, Alberta

Snowboarding on the Rocky Mountains has always been on my bucket list. When Will told me he wanted to do a snowboarding trip over the weekends, I actually hesitated at first. I didn’t think I was skilled enough to snowboard on "real mountains" yet (even though I’ve been boarding for quite some years already...) But like cool people always say, yolo right? We had two destinations to choose from, Whistler, British Columbia or Banff, Alberta. I’ve been wanting to revisit Banff as an adult, so I decided to head over there and gave it all I’ve got!!!

It was -22 degrees Celsius in Banff, so much colder than what we were both used to in Toronto! Good thing was we learned a great deal out of this trip. You could read more here.

Will was very diligent in prepping me for this trip too. We went boardin' almost every other weekend to get me warmed up and "better" in my skills. We even went boxing day shopping for new gears! And that's when I finally invested in a proper ski jacket and a pair of insulated snow pants. Ha-ha. I felt much more deserving to board on the Rockies.

We went to Sunshine Village and Lake Louise Ski Resort on two separate days where we got to hit some fresh pow. Wearing 5 layers of clothes and 3 pairs of pants, we thought we were pretty much set to embrace the cold. I kept reminding myself to stay calm and to be cautious of all the surroundings around me. I seriously did not want to end up having an experience like this guy.

We took the gondola up the mountains when I realized how massive these mountains are! The gondola ride literally took 20 minutes and that was only to the start of the slopes. We still had to take another ski lifts to get us to the top of the peak! The ride was very overwhelming and frightening to look down. I didn't want to move a single muscle.

The runs were huge and wide open. But the flurries made it hard to see where we were going. Everything was white! I still enjoyed the runs regardless. The music from my iPod really calmed me down a lot. Otherwise, I'd be listening to my own breathing and every single heartbeat in my chest. The mountains and the trees were splendid. We just wished the sky was clearer so we could have a better look at this amazing view. I also rode glades for the first time in my life. It was nerve-wrecking but very exciting! (And thank God, I didn't hit a tree!)

At the end of this trip, I felt that my snowboarding skills improved tremendously. The runs were so long that they could be tiring. The trip was definitely a memorable experience for me and I'm so glad I did it! One more thing off my list! Now I could say that I'm no longer an amateur snowboarder ;)

Check out my other bucket list activities!

Mountain Biking Fun in Durham Forest
Conquering Fear on High Ropes at YMCA
Ziplining and Winery Fun
Indoor Skydiving in Niagara
Surviving from White Water Rafting