We got a late start at Targhee, not getting on the hill until 10:45AM. The base area looked busy on a Sunday but the high speed Dreamcatcher lift never had more than ~20 people or so in line. I later learned that Targhee only sees about 160,000 skier visits per season. This is a very low number for a 2000+ acre ski area, implying skier lower density than noted off-the-beaten track areas like Whitefish and Wolf Creek.
There were thin fog bands moving around the mountain all day. Sometimes we rode chairs through them.
Sometimes the clouds had interesting features viewed from above.
In general the top of the mountain was above any fog and it was quite warm up there so Liz had to dump a layer partway down our first run. The clear morning on the upper mountain yielded great views of the Tetons.
This was probably the first warm day, as they longest fall lines at Targhee face slightly south of west and there was no hint of crust or refrozen snow. The occasional patches of untracked from 5 days ago had set up. Here’s a view of the snowcat skiing area on Peaked Mountain.
Once those ~1000 acres are tracked up, Targhee realizes they can’t sell cat skiing and allow day skiers to traverse or hike into that terrain. We took a short foray in there and soon concluded that the skier packed terrain was better.
We took 4 runs on the Sacajawea lift before returning to the main area for a short lunch break. We alternated groomers and open skier packed areas and eventually made it over to the very quiet Blackfoot sector. Chief Joe Bowl there.
A high overcast developed mid-afternoon and some of the fog got denser, so out last run was in the Ugly trees for better visibility and soft snow.
This was a mellow day but we still skied 24,500 vertical by 3:30. I’m sure Targhee is busier on a powder day but not compared to the vast majority of areas.
There were thin fog bands moving around the mountain all day. Sometimes we rode chairs through them.
Sometimes the clouds had interesting features viewed from above.
In general the top of the mountain was above any fog and it was quite warm up there so Liz had to dump a layer partway down our first run. The clear morning on the upper mountain yielded great views of the Tetons.
This was probably the first warm day, as they longest fall lines at Targhee face slightly south of west and there was no hint of crust or refrozen snow. The occasional patches of untracked from 5 days ago had set up. Here’s a view of the snowcat skiing area on Peaked Mountain.
Once those ~1000 acres are tracked up, Targhee realizes they can’t sell cat skiing and allow day skiers to traverse or hike into that terrain. We took a short foray in there and soon concluded that the skier packed terrain was better.
We took 4 runs on the Sacajawea lift before returning to the main area for a short lunch break. We alternated groomers and open skier packed areas and eventually made it over to the very quiet Blackfoot sector. Chief Joe Bowl there.
A high overcast developed mid-afternoon and some of the fog got denser, so out last run was in the Ugly trees for better visibility and soft snow.
This was a mellow day but we still skied 24,500 vertical by 3:30. I’m sure Targhee is busier on a powder day but not compared to the vast majority of areas.
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