Last prayer

“Do you think that it really makes sense to do the descent in this weather?”

“You don't need to worry. According to the last weather report, the weather remains stable. The pilot also confirmed to me that it would not start to snow, "said Philipp soothingly.

“There should be great powder snow in the upper half of the descent. The route is new and only opened up last year. It leads through a wonderful area. I hope you are rested and in good shape, because this descent is really only for experts. ”

John nodded confidently, although he wasn't really sure whether he would be fit today. But he didn't want to show himself naked in front of Philip and appear weak.

"Who else is there?" Asked John.

"Nobody, just you and me."

"Isn't it a little dangerous when only the two of us are on the road?"

"Come on, where is your sense of adventure?" Replied Philipp challengingly. "We're not wimps, we're real men," he continued euphorically and patted John encouragingly on the shoulder.

“But don't be afraid, I drove this route a few times last year. You can rely on me, I'll take you safely to the valley. ”

After they had had the coffee, John changed his jeans for his warm ski pants and reached for his black down anorak. But Philipp held out a bright red parka and said,

“Put this on. Should something happen, you are much more conspicuous than in your black one, ”he asked John. “It's just a precautionary measure. You see, I'm wearing it too. ”

“ A good idea. I should have thought of that too, "said John and gratefully accepted the parka.

"Also take this radio with you, just in case." Said Philipp and handed it to his brother. John took it and turned it on. Immediately the display lit up.

“You are in direct radio contact with me if we lose sight of each other. The cell phones don't work up here. ”Philipp continued regretfully.

“Let's have a drink and I'll show you the route on the map,” Philipp asked his brother and took off the parka that he hung on the cloakroom beam with his.

The flight didn't even take 10 minutes. When the sun was shining here, the view over this wild and snow-covered rock massif of the Rocky Mountains must be overwhelming, regretfully thought through John. Now he too began to feel that tingling sensation that he normally felt when he was out skiing. Kilometers of deeply snow-covered slopes between infinitely vast pine forests, where no skier had yet made his mark in the deep snow, revealed themselves to his unrestricted view. Only a small herd of elk elk trotted leisurely across a clearing in search of food. The loud engine noise of the helicopter didn't seem to bother them at least. Every now and then, small piles of snow fell to the ground from the long branches of the mighty Colorado firs. Otherwise this quiet ambience was only interrupted by the lonely flight of a golden eagle, which majestically flew its long laps over its territory.

John's anticipation of skiing in this beautiful area gradually drove his concerns. He took the time to enjoy and relax a little, provided that he could come to terms with Philipp.

The helicopter landed on a small plateau. Philip pushed open the door and an icy wind beat against them. It was damn cold up here. Before getting out of the car, Philipp pointed out to John that after almost two kilometers there was a fork in the road where John had to keep to the left. Otherwise, the route was always straight.

They quickly buckled on their skis, put on their hats and ski goggles and pulled the hoods of their anoraks over their heads. The helicopter slowly rose again and swirled the loose snow up below it, so that it disappeared completely into the white cloud for a moment. As a farewell, the pilot gave them another friendly wave before moving quickly back down into the valley. Then the two brothers were alone.

Despite Philip's confident assurances, John felt this slightly queasy feeling in his stomach again. Now they were really all alone and on their own. John put on his thick ski gloves and waited for Philipp to finish. One final check-up of the equipment and off we go.

Philipp hadn't promised too much. The snow was really fantastic; powdery, fine and light, so that you could waggle down the slope without much effort. An exciting feeling seizes John that he had not experienced in a long time. Although Philipp was the better skier, he always lagged a little behind John. In the end, he even fell, which had never happened before. John was already at least 150 meters ahead when he stopped to look for Philipp. Philipp slowly began to get up and waved to John with his ski pole that everything was okay.

But suddenly there was a loud bang and the ground began to vibrate under John's skis. At the same time, a dull thunder echoed down the steep mountainsides, and John turned in the direction from which the bang had come. As if spellbound, he saw the huge avalanche that was heading straight for him. Instinctively he looked up at Philip. Thank God. His brother was outside the danger area. But if he didn't act quickly now, he would have a mighty problem in the next few seconds. John quickly brought his skis back in the direction of travel and drove off as if ridden by the devil. In his panic, however, he had not paid attention to the fork in the road and drove down the right aisle at high speed.

Every muscle in his body was tense to the point of tearing. He had to concentrate on the path, because if he fell now, his life wouldn't be worth a penny. The thunder behind him grew louder and more threatening. John didn't dare to look back because he was afraid of falling and being overrun by the avalanche. Staring ahead, he looked for a way to escape this deadly mass of snow.

Despite the cold, John felt that every pore of his skin was perspiring. But then another shock hit him. The aisle ended in nowhere about 200 meters in front of him. John could not swing and stand, otherwise he would be buried under a massive blanket of snow within a very short time. In addition, the vegetation here was still far too high for trees to be protected in the forest. The low mountain pines and pine trees offered no protection against this enormous mass of snow, which was rapidly rolling towards him. But what followed after the end of this aisle?

To stand still would be to choose certain death. But if he jumped, he had at least a small chance of staying alive. With a last prayer to heaven, he drove as fast as he could over the end of the runway….