Rain in Winter?

Sochi, Russia was suppose to be one of the most epic and awe inspiring stops on this adventure…..but instead of tons of snow, heli-boarding, and mighty terrain we were only met with cload ridden skies, rain and one huge wet mountain. This winter has been a major down year for Sochi in regards to snow. The max snow base they have gotten so far is 40 cm and that is at the highest peaks on the mountain. I guess you can thank the Black Sea because all of Sochi’s weather comes from the giant body of water directly west of this Russian Riviera town.

Riding the lift up from the bottom is like riding through time from autumn to winter. The lift is so slow and the scenery so different from top to bottom that it is unlike any other mountain we have been to so far. Luckily, it is a gorgeous ride as the entire landscape is plastered with deciduous trees covered in bright green moss all while the rainy weather carries in a subtle but soothing mountain fog. The bottom of this antiquated lift system is a cool 50 degrees and lush with green vegetation. During the next 10 minutes the first chair slowly creeps its way up as you gaze at the numerous natural springs flowing to the bottom. After you exit the first chair, you make your way 20 yards to the next lift in order to continue up the mountain. This lift seems to go even slower but the scenery begins to turn more winter-like. With the moss covered trees and green grass slowly disappearing and being replaced by patches of snow and leafless tress. The rain gradually picks up the higher you get…..which if it was cold out, would mean a good snow fall. Follow this process up higher and after changing lifts a few more times you finally get above the tree line and it begins to feel like winter. With the wet snow falling and the cold air you just wish it was a few degrees cooler so we could really get some good snow. Just try to imagine the rolling mountains of East Coast, USA; maybe Virginia or Pennsylvania; but once you get above the tree line there are huge rock faces and monstrous mountains.

As pretty as this all may be it is still a bummer that we did not get the snow we hoped for. We had our hearts dead set on heli-boarding here since they have some of the most accessible and affordable heli-riding on the planet. Plus the fact that they use de-commissioned Soviet Helicopters on these excursions, Sochi was destined to top our list of coolest places we boarded. Even though the rain means bad business for us snowboarders it does have one major positive. The lack of snow is allowing Russia to speed up its construction and preparations for the future Olympics…so maybe in their minds this down winter is actually a good thing. It just goes to show that each situation depends on your own point of view. We will be here for a few more days and who knows, maybe we’ll get lucky with a huge cold wave?