One Word: EPIC!

I do not use the word 'Eipc' lightly. As a matter of fact I tend to refrain from using it at all, until a day like Monday comes along.

The recent spring like conditions gave way to full winter by last Wednesday and softened up the mountain nicely. Stormy weather continued and really hit us hard on Sunday night with the Monday morning snow report boasting 15 inches up top. With the March crowds in town Ashley and I got to the gondola early at about 8am. By 8:15 the line was snaking through Gondola Square and getting bigger every minute. We met Ben, Joey and Michele at the top of the Gondola and skied Norther first thing down to 4-Points lift. The snow was 'blower,' about a foot deep, soft underneath and just blowing up and around your waist. The moguls were still visible and as you skied in the troughs face-shots abounded. We gathered at 4-Points with major smiles, snow still pouring from the skies. Up 4-Points and down to Sundown through the trees of lower Closets. Not a lot of turns...just moving through the trees with the snow flowing all around us. Up Sundown and into the trees to the right of 3 O'Clock. I could have skied the entire run non-stop. It was effortless. Our base is over 100" at the top. There is no concern about downed trees; most of the usual rocks and dangerous terrain features are well covered. The only things to really worry about are trees and lift towers. Since the snow is only blowing over your shoulders and head a few turns each run visibility is not an issue. What a day! With conditions this good in bounds I knew it would be twice as good backcountry. I convinced Ashley to take a hike with me before she got too tired.

We loaded Morningside lift at about 9:30 and hiked to the Microwave Towers. The snow stake read 136". I honestly don't remember the last time it read that deep. We skied Gate D right down the middle. Every turn was over our heads....like you read about (which you are right now). On to second pitch which was steep and fun. Through the gate to 3rd pitch, we skied right between Parker's (AKA Fish Bowl) and Clem's (AKA Lower St Pats). I picked the most open route I knew of so we didn't have to worry about the trees. Once we started skiing the snow rose over our heads. It was getting stuffed in our mouths, down our throats. We could not see at all. I couldn't even force myself to the surface to catch a breath and gain some knowledge of what lies ahead. The snow was that deep! Even though I mapped my route before I started skiing and knew there were no obstacles in the way, I was still scared. It was intense, crazy powder skiing; chewing on a mouthful of snow the whole way down. The hike out from the Bog was a major trail break. Snow up to our thighs in spots. Darrel came up behind thanking us profusely for breaking trail and took the lead for a while. Ashley and I continued to break trail over to the lower canyon while Darrel continued back in bounds. The hike took longer than expected and fogged my goggles pretty good. We got to the top of Endless Gully and I had to spend some time clearing them. Finally I realized that it just didn’t matter if I could see through my goggles. Once I started skiing the snow would be over my head anyway. I let Ashley go first and she ripped it like a pro. I saw her stop before the entrance to the lower portion of the gully. I called her name so she could watch my decent. I skied a steeper section than her and could feel my self come to the surface in between turns, but the snow continued to blow over my head. I stopped just below Ashley. She said it was like watching Bugs Bunny tunnel across an open field. The lower part of the gully was the same...bottomless! I wish I had my camera. It’s Larry I can thank for that, bummer. This was honestly one of the best days of the season. Not since Sunday, November 27th, my first day of the season, do I remember the conditions being so sublime.

Bizarre but Satisfying

Wow! Went to bed last night still anticipating the storm, but the stars were out and the temps hung around 35 degrees downtown. Didn't have a lot of confidence for a powder day at bedtime. As I rolled around in bed with the morning light creeping in the 6:50am snow report came on the radio: Surprise, Surprise, Surprise! 7 new inches at mid-mtn and 6 at the summit, 20 degrees with 10mph winds. That'll get me up and going.

As I hustled through Gondola Square at about 8:18am I saw the line condensing toward the glass doors with Ben, Matt, and a small posse toward the front. I sped past about thirty people (sorry folks) and caught up with them past the ticket checker just a handful of people before the first gondola car. We were all excited about the new snow but not sure what to expect: dust on crust, heavy sludge, wind raped?

We skied Concentration and were welcomed with sweet snow conditions. The warmth from last night softened up the surface before the snow fell allowing the new snow to bond nicely. The first few inches that fell were heavy also lending to a nice bond, but the last 5 inches on top were light and dry. You could feel the solid layer underneath, but it wasn't bad...slightly scratchy, but carvable. You could even tease up a face shot if you dropped the knee low enough.

We took up Thunderhead, then 4-Points and skied Nelson's Run (named after Nelson Carmichael, one of Steamboat's Olympic bronze medal freestylers). Nelson's has great terrain features, sweet rock croppings and various fall lines. The rocks are completely covered by our near 100 inch base, making it very fun to ski.. Up Storm Peak and over to Kuus' Cruise. Love this run! A great steep pitch in and out of the trees between Sundown lift line and Priest Creek lift line. Fun wind drifts that run across the tree lines. The surface was smooth and speedy, lots of excitement. Up Sundown and into the trees of 2:30. Untracked and awesome! After that I had to split from the crew and continue my commute to work taking Morningside up and skiing St Patty's Bowl and then Clem's down to the Bog. St Pat's was great! I took one of the steep lines to the left of the open face. All the new snow about 10 feet to either side slid along with me as I skied. The slide obscured my tracks when I peered up from the bottom. Clem's was the deepest run of the whole day. Several face shots as I shimmied through the well spaced pine glades.