Skiing in Canada.

I sip coffee facing a floor to ceiling window that opens up to a Christmas card alpine land scape. A deep emerald river gushes, forming the bottom third of my visual field. A snow sprinkled pine forest covers the rolling hills of the river bank.

In the distance, the trees advance on a mountain in shades of green, gray and white. The upper touches of the mountain are barren leaving large swaths of snowy terrain. The whole vista disappears in a thick mix of clouds and fog.

My ski vacation started in Banff with a adorable, swanky downtown (Canada goose stores) that supported a solid nightlife and punched above its weight class in cuisine.

I was traveling with my girlfriend and another couple (with expected Silicon Valley titles and stories). We braved 4 hours worth of questionable mountain passes from Banff to Revelstoke. My friend entertained us with anecdotes about how Bain (his employer) and their large corporate clients thought about innovation.

The rest of us (all in startups) rolled our eyes at the glacial pace of corporate America. The actual glaciers above us didn’t know or care about our short and unlikely existance.

Revelstoke is a heli ski destination, supported by an interesting mix of rasta Aussie hipsters. Revelstoke has a limited night life, as expected in a small ski town, but the snow conditions were superb.

In fact, according to Ski Canada Magazine, Revelstoke receives an average of 12-18 meters of snowfall each year, which is more than any other ski resort in Canada.

We got a good taste of that powder and the morning views.

I would probably do that trip in reverse next time.