We both skied yesterday, but we pressed glass this morning at the Gondola. It was "like" a powderday, there were 5-8" (scoped yesterday), and with no one around, it would be intact. In fact, there were 6 people in line behind us at the Gondola, that's how deserted it is around here.
We headed right for Four Points, down a buttery, gorgeous Rudy's, and eyeballed Tornado the whole way up. What was groomed was grabby underneath with 3-6" of heavier but still fluffy April snow on top. What wasn't groomed was deeper, up to 8" on top and of the bumps or in the trees, but unpredictable and lightly populated with "snow snakes."
From Tornado we hit Four Points again, and headed down Sunset to Moonlight trees - I found two snow snakes, but the trees were otherwise surprisingly soft and generous. Up Sundown through a thick thick fog, and over to Sundial to Ramrod, our boards gliding through the creamy top layer with no other tracks in sight - yesterdays tracks mostly covered.
Up Southpeak and down Westside, the right side of which (dubbed Craig's Ridge) was just the same, graceful and predictable. The view from Westside (left) was of the sky breaking apart finally to reveal what would become a bluebird afternoon... perfect the STARS employee ski day (2-4pm) and party.
Up Sundown again and down to One OClock and into 12:30, then over to Daybreak and ducking left into the trees (dubbed Andy's trees); a little less snow down in this section, but 12:30 takes the cake as usual.
From Sundown we took the Face's mustache - sketchy in the fog but if you could find the line it was lovely - to Rainbow and BC. I took Valley View down while the boys did another to-to-bottom. VV wasn't great, but it wasn't terrible - the snow losing its fluff the lower I got, until finally it was like spring skiing again.
The end is in sight, and yet the powderdays loom - the forecast is snow right on through Tuesday so you know there will be some hikers getting their turns in after the lifts stop churning. It's bittersweet, but we're all ready to break out the bikes and bag some raise...
Hopefully there will be one more In The Deep before then though -
We headed right for Four Points, down a buttery, gorgeous Rudy's, and eyeballed Tornado the whole way up. What was groomed was grabby underneath with 3-6" of heavier but still fluffy April snow on top. What wasn't groomed was deeper, up to 8" on top and of the bumps or in the trees, but unpredictable and lightly populated with "snow snakes."
From Tornado we hit Four Points again, and headed down Sunset to Moonlight trees - I found two snow snakes, but the trees were otherwise surprisingly soft and generous. Up Sundown through a thick thick fog, and over to Sundial to Ramrod, our boards gliding through the creamy top layer with no other tracks in sight - yesterdays tracks mostly covered.
Up Southpeak and down Westside, the right side of which (dubbed Craig's Ridge) was just the same, graceful and predictable. The view from Westside (left) was of the sky breaking apart finally to reveal what would become a bluebird afternoon... perfect the STARS employee ski day (2-4pm) and party. From Sundown we took the Face's mustache - sketchy in the fog but if you could find the line it was lovely - to Rainbow and BC. I took Valley View down while the boys did another to-to-bottom. VV wasn't great, but it wasn't terrible - the snow losing its fluff the lower I got, until finally it was like spring skiing again.
The end is in sight, and yet the powderdays loom - the forecast is snow right on through Tuesday so you know there will be some hikers getting their turns in after the lifts stop churning. It's bittersweet, but we're all ready to break out the bikes and bag some raise...
Hopefully there will be one more In The Deep before then though -