This was our first foray up into the mountains for sledding, so it was a bit of a discovery trip. There are two ski areas (resort is much too strong of a word), with a third one (which might actually be a resort) under construction. Both of the current ones were built during the Soviet era, and Chimgan, the one we went to, was a lot less organized (as in, it wasn't organized at all) than the ski resorts I skied while attending college in Utah.
Brandon and I were very happy to discover that the road to was both paved and plowed - not to mention it was wide enough for two full lanes - all the way to Chimgan. After driving the rutted, icy unpaved road to Safed Dara in Tajikistan, it was a nice break. We had had a few inches of snow down in Tashkent on Wednesday, so when we went up to Chimgan on Thursday, there were about nine inches of fresh, beautiful powder for the children to play in.
The sledding was just a random hill with a collection of sleds for rent at the base of it. Since the snow was fresh, the sledding wasn't very fast - especially compared to our own hill back in Tajikistan. There also wasn't any rope or mechanical help for getting to the top. Which is probably why it was free. I did watch some people hiring snowmobiles to haul them to the top, so there was that.
But the children had a great time playing in the snow next to the hill. They were disappointed to discover that fresh powder doesn't pack into snowballs very well (or at all), but made do with powder fights. Brandon consented to being buried by Kathleen and Sophia, and didn't even curse when they got snow down the back of his collar.
Joseph and I took a little hike as I was getting cold and he was getting whiny, and I enjoyed the view. The area would be great for snowshoeing, with a fairly gentle incline and lots of open land. We don't have snowshoes and that sport isn't great for children under the age of ten, so I'll just have to imagine snowshoeing for now.
After a few hours, William decided that he'd had enough of this snow thing (I guess eating it had gotten boring) and refused to be calmed down, so we had to leave. No children under the age of three actually enjoy playing in the snow, so I was surprised that he lasted that long.
We all had some hot tea before bundling back into the car and heading back home. For a first excursion, things went pretty well, and now we have a better idea of how things operate (or don't) for next time. There are cottages nearby that we can rent, so we're planning a more extended time to come and play in the snow again after the new year. I'm already looking forward to it!
