SKI MOUNTAINEERING IN VASILITSA - PINDOS

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It has been 13 years since I last had my ski adventure in the mountains. Career choices and personal circumstances, and my relocation from Greece to England, made me focus more on ultratrail running than ski mountaineering (Skimo).

For the past few years, my friend, Alex (Kambouropoulos), has tried to convince me to come back for a Skimo reunion in the Greek mountains, and finally in December of 2018, we managed to get together for that. My New Year’s resolution for 2019 was to spend more time on mountain adventures. So, it will be more skiing and climbing for me this year.

A few days after Christmas in Athens, the weather was forecasted to be sunny for 4 splendid days, and without any hesitation, Alex, Tasos (Mastrotheodoros) and I set off and headed to one of the wildest and most unique mountaineering area in North-Western Greece, a place called Pindos.

Before setting off to Pindos, we drew up a plan. It was a simple one : First 2 days of downhill ski in the Resort of Vasilitsa to refresh our skills and techniques, and the final 2 days of Skimo Crossing through the Mt. Smolikas Range (second highest Greek mountain).
It soon became difficult for us to stay confined to the area around the ski resort, when there was so much wilderness around us. So, on the second day, with ideal weather conditions to boost, we decided to venture out to the wilderness to explore the surrounding area instead of using the “boring” ski lift, and to ski downhill on the same slopes. Two friends, Sotiris (an old friend from Skimo Greek Community), and his son Dimitris, joined us on the second day, after our unexpected encounter the night before.

In this video, you can follow us on our first two days of fun around the Vasilitsa Ski Resort!