IN THE DEEP

Today inspired me to get back into documenting our powderdays in the 'Boat! It was arguably the best day all year (of which I've only had 6 days to Craig's 63, but he agreed!), with over a foot of new snow that mostly fell since the early hours this morning. 

 

Although it's overcast now, we spent the weekend skiing under cloudless skies and on great conditions. Sure they were April/Spring-like conditions, but Winter's not over, so we don't expect them to last. But you never know.

It was enjoyable none the less; I myself rarely get up to enjoy days like that, preferring the fresh stuff of course. Saturday, we took our first turns from the top down Buddy's, getting our legs under us, taking some footage of JK and his gang (below), cruising over to Rainbow and Moonlight. There was actually some snow to be had out there still, random small stashes of powder leftovers from Friday, just enough to get some giggles out of us.



Not as many giggles as Harold's throwback outfit brought (right), but giggles nonetheless. Yes, he brought that suit and vest all the way from MD just for fun; he wasn't wearing it on Friday. Good fun.

We also made great turns on Sunshine Liftline and Broadway, without the scraping sounds we heard on lower mountain; eg. Vagabond wasn't in bad shape, just a bit icy by the end of the day.

Sunday brought an incredible decrease in the on-mountain population, the full mazes from Saturday were all but empty on Sunday, despite similarly warm and hospitable conditions.

It was a boys day, with Craig, his dad, and BFF Keith, finding the freshly tilled runs like One and Two Oclock, Flintlock and Sunset, all quite nice.

Forecast unfortunately calls for snowlessness, but we're on our way to Houston and selfishly glad we're not missing any rare powder days. Hopefully we can bring some precip back with us!

We probably wouldn't have gone up today had it not been for Jeffrey Krauthamer (left) celebrating his birthday on the hill all the way from MD... we woke up to a 1" report and bad reports all week about the hill. Craig had been up once, made it to Thunderhead, and turned around because he said it felt like a skating rink. Our temps have been warm, too warm, and we just haven't gotten any snow for about two weeks. Some locals go up every day. Some, like me, are just way too picky for putting up with subpar.

But the skies were unloading by about 9am, and by the second report, there were 5 new inches to be had! We'll have to thank Jeffrey for getting us up there to appreciate it. He visits every winter since I can remember, and had his adaptive turns scheduled for 10am today. We met them at the top of the Gondy shortly after, and made some fabulous, and I'm not exaggerating, turns in Wally World.

There wasn't much to be had in the obvious places, but first turns in Sundial trees and I was in heaven, even on my short groomer day board. At least a half a foot and untouched, on top of a relatively grabby surface. A surprise from above. We kept searching for the stashes along the sides, and beelined down Ramrod for some more.

Sunnyside was the highlight (left), although the turns in Sideburns on our final descent was what we live here for as well. Light, fluffly, untracked, and deep enough to get some yips out of us!

Hopefully we'll get a few more turns in before we leave town on Monday, snow or no snow. With Jeffrey in from MD and Kevin in from Scotland, it's likely! ... video?

Today's tasty surprises were everywhere, and the skiers were nowhere to be seen. We had the place to ourselves this morning, and it was delightful. Craig's bff Keith insisted on the Gondy, even though Thunderhead is now open, and we got first tracks down Rudy's, fresh untracked cord with a few inches of butter on the side... tasty. Storm wasn't open so we rode up BC for a few turns down newly-opened Surprise for some fresh.

Up Sundown and on to High Noon for a top-to-bottom hauler, speedy, carvy, buttery, delight. I've literally never seen High Noon look or feel so good with one person on it, me! I lost the boys who headed down Sunshine Lift Line, reporting it to be identical conditions of course. We met up via Sundown and Sunshine lifts at the top- I can effectively confirm that Sunshine is only about 2 chairs slowly than Sundown now... remember when that lift took 15 minutes?

Then on to Tomohawk, with 3-4" of fresh along the side we surfed to the tunes and followed Craig down to Ramrod. This one was so nice, we did it twice. Ramrod was carvable, again with about 4" max in spots, definitely stiff from the wind but not noticable on the big boards; we found fresh tracks through the meadow. Second time around our buddy and guest photographer Jessie parked it at the cattrack at the bottom of Ramrod and took some shots. . . apparently however we don't get to view them yet today!

We took The Face (lovely) to Rainbow and Vagabond; they're blasting Vagabond still, filling in the holes. We checked out the sad empty forest removed from Rough Rider Basin, wow, talk about Beetle Kill Meadow. It looks so different, there definitely will be some sad kids missing their wood ferries in there this year.

The views from the top extended to the hazy Flattops, glowing blue under partial clouds, looking downright magestic today. The sun is trying to peek through but it's mostly overcast, and no, it's not snowing. We did in fact only get about 4" max, but don't let that stop you from tasting the goods from the Gods. It's unbelievable up there.

Halloween.

This is about the time of year it begins to snow. We've all been relaxed about it because last winter trickled out long and cold well into June, welcoming the warm sunny days and lengthy fall colors. But this week, we all started getting antsy. The snow we got about 10 days ago is melting off the peaks, the sun persists, and the Oak Creek Dowser's 08-09 prediction of 30% more snow over last year's epic and record breaking 550" season seems to be teasing us.

We know it will snow soon, but with 26 days left to build a base, our impatience has finally begun.
Perhaps part of the anticipation... Craig and I have begun to organize ourselves and our fundraising efforts for our 4th Annual All Mountain Ski Camp with Adaptive Adventures, Steamboat Powdercats and Steamboat Ski Area. By writing press releases about deep fresh snow and reviewing photos from last year, it's no wonder we've finally started chomping at the bit. We are also adding a new event to follow this camp (teaser) as well as a kids camp, so our hands will be full for the next couple of months as we grow what is already a proudly successful event. Stay Tuned...

-See you in the Deep