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The soldanellas do the same, but not till late in March, and with them come gentians and the whole glory of the Alpine Spring has begun. By this time the Ski-er has to oil and put away his Skis or climb to the glaciers and higher snow fields. A wonderful experience alternating between Spring and Winter as he changes his levels.
New plates can easily be fitted to the Skis when nails have worn through them, but nothing can help the Ski-er down a steep, icy path or across a hard frozen slope on smooth soles, unless he carries special contrivances to fix to his boots.
It is perfectly easy and yet I have known people who, after weeks of practice, dared not lift a Ski off the ground while moving, only because they had never tried it as routine practice. Whatever you do by way of practice do it first on one foot and then on the other, or you will become a right or left-footed Ski-er and it will take ages for you to feel equal confidence in either foot.
Ski runners shudder at the idea of meeting a bear while on a run, but they need not worry as the bears roll up and sleep through the winter so that unless the Ski-er took an unusually heavy fall into the bear's hole, he would be safe enough on the surface.
The tidy Ski-er who buries all his paper and orange peel and other debris will often find next day that the whole thing has been dug up by a fox. At many of the Alpine huts, the snow-finch has adopted the habits of the sparrow and is often so tame that he will almost take crumbs from one's hand. Another bird I love among the Alps is the dipper or water ouzel.
He rose slowly, balanced a moment, then, taking the angle of an immense zigzag, started down the awful slopes like an arrow from a bow. And automatically the splendid muscles of the practised ski-er and athlete saved and guided him, for he was hardly conscious of controlling either speed or direction.
If it is not a distant view of the Great Alps or of the valley below, it is of trees or rocks, which, if examined carefully, usually show some sign of life. I remember being snubbed by an ardent Ski-er because I ventured to ask "What are those black birds?" "Who wants to know about birds when he is ski-ing?" was the answer.
Whatever you do, avoid the hideous doubled-up position of a runner, who bends at waist and knees, with feet parallel and far apart, looking like a note of interrogation and leaving what we call tram-line tracks. By his tracks shall a Ski-er be judged! Look back and see the line you have left.
Needless to say this does not apply to a runner out of control, who may be dashing unwillingly into someone in front of him when, for both their sakes, a friendly warning is advisable! It is the business of every Ski-er to avoid obstacles and the slower mover may be looked on as such in just the same way as a rock or a tree.
Besides which it is said that a bear cannot traverse down a slope, so that the Ski-er could easily get away unless the bear rolled to the bottom, and then ran along and waited for him. As there are no bears in Switzerland now, perhaps it is waste of time to start a controversy about the best turn with which to circumvent a bear. Cows are much more dangerous.
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