tseeb
Well-known member
Friday night at Whistler Lodge Hostel was quieter than Thursday when people were still going strong (and loudly) celebrating evening staff's birthday, even though he was passed out on the couch, when I got up. Friday night was much quieter although birthday boy was loud past quiet hour of of 10. Then when I was making coffee in the kitchen Saturday morning, I heard a loud crash and it turned out to be guest who fell down a couple of stairs when he woke up in the lounge and tried to make it to his room.
Another guest was also signed up for First Tracks and was planning to get in line about 6:30. I made it out of the place before 6:45, parked in lot 7 again (I was first car) and was on my skis before 7, skiing the 240 vertical foot run to Whistler/Backcomb base. The line was 200-300 people (they cut off breakfast at 650 people). I found it interesting how Canadians were too polite to call out line cutters. I can understand letting one person (back?) in, but when it's 4 or 5 getting in ahead of me, I speak up.
The nearly 4,000 vertical foot gondola ride got us above the clouds. Breakfast buffet was scrambled eggs, potatoes, bacon, sausage, french toast, baked items along with coffee, juices, oatmeal, cold cereal, fruit and yogurt. They rang a bell that may had been when you could start skiing, but it was about 8:20 before I started. I had my second boot buckling injury of the trip when I thought a bench along wall in lodge looked like a good place to buckle in. But the seat slanted back and I slightly strained my right-side lower back muscles while reaching to pull third buckle tight. I finished buckling boots using ski stand outside, then skied a couple of groomer laps on Emerald chair to try to loosen it up or at least not add to the pain.
I kept watching status board to see if Harmony and Symphony opened as it seemed like a lot of people were heading that way and was surprised to see light for Peak go green on status board first. I was one of the first 10 or 20 on it and everyone at the top was amazed by the view above the clouds. I was one of the first using tourist's entrance to Whistler Bowl so I got through it before rocks lurking just below poked through. Whistler claimed 1 cm new, but I found 1-2" in many place near the top. After avoiding as many moguls as possible in the upper bowl, I took an exposed traverse that turned into a smooth and sunny face. The next two times up I found the extreme entrance where it was easy to ski off cornice (as we did in clinic) then cut left to find mogul-free slopes, where the sun just reached where I made the first turn on my 2nd run. I continued down untracked smooth snow to very busy Red chair although the singles line was short. When I got to Peak chair about 10 the singles line was long enough that I used ski school line (it does not say ONLY) and took advantage of Canadian's politeness to get ahead. I wanted to ride T-bar, but that line also was long.
I skied off the back towards Symphony area which seems like a bigger version of Squaw's Siberia. It made me think that Whistler/Blackcomb is like Squaw and Vail had a baby that got the best attributes of both (steep/wide) although I was about to find out the worst. Snow got very firm towards base of Symphony and I timed my singles line wait at 14 minutes and it was growing. At least time went fast as I talked to a nice lady from Vancouver who had been skiing Whistler/Blackcomb since long before Blackcomb existed. I did not talk picture of that line or of even bigger mob at Harmony 6 which I skied past after skiing a long run with untracked 1" down Symphony. I skied to Garbanzo, which had no line as in was below the clouds and then followed the advice of very senior racer I rode lift with and skied Dave Murray Downhill. Light on Downhill got very flat and I continued to Whistler base to see it I could talk to anyone about possible defective product I received (T-shirt) as part of my clinic. Nobody was around although regular ski school staff found another T-shirt that seemed to be printed like mine with big logo on front and smaller one that I think should be on chest pocket on back.
I rode bottom part of Excalibur gondola to my car where I took three ibuprofen and picked up a beer for the rest of the gondola ride. After riding two chairs I realized I had taken Jersey Cream instead of Glacier so I skied blue run down and rode up correct chair. Singles lines were not bad, but T-bars at top had big lines and status board showed 7th Heaven at over 15 minutes as they and the top of Glacier were all above cloud layer. I hiked Spanky's ladder and skied the Garnett/Diamond bowl runs we had done in clinic although I took an easier and smoother route towards the bottom. The line for T-bar that goes to top of 7th Heaven had gone down, but Showcase T-bar that gets you to hike to Blackcomb Glacier was still moderate. I did two laps (riding Showcase, then hiking to top of glacier - return requires two chairs) starting with Blowhole, then traversing above cliffs to get to Sapphire Bowl where snow getting to and past the row of cliff signs was better than previous days as almost nobody had been through the 1" of new covering great base. I thought about ending my day with a high entrance to Ruby as on two previous days, but it was getting too late. I quit at 2:40 with 30.5K and drove past Vancouver and Seattle to huge mall near SeaTac where employee at Apple store was able to clean out charging port of my iPhone so I again have a smart phone I can use without worrying about battery running out and not being rechargeable. I thought about skipping Crystal due to windy storm hitting, but John, who was with us at Mustang, and friends will be there so I have to get out of here with no time for proofreading or adding pictures.
Another guest was also signed up for First Tracks and was planning to get in line about 6:30. I made it out of the place before 6:45, parked in lot 7 again (I was first car) and was on my skis before 7, skiing the 240 vertical foot run to Whistler/Backcomb base. The line was 200-300 people (they cut off breakfast at 650 people). I found it interesting how Canadians were too polite to call out line cutters. I can understand letting one person (back?) in, but when it's 4 or 5 getting in ahead of me, I speak up.
The nearly 4,000 vertical foot gondola ride got us above the clouds. Breakfast buffet was scrambled eggs, potatoes, bacon, sausage, french toast, baked items along with coffee, juices, oatmeal, cold cereal, fruit and yogurt. They rang a bell that may had been when you could start skiing, but it was about 8:20 before I started. I had my second boot buckling injury of the trip when I thought a bench along wall in lodge looked like a good place to buckle in. But the seat slanted back and I slightly strained my right-side lower back muscles while reaching to pull third buckle tight. I finished buckling boots using ski stand outside, then skied a couple of groomer laps on Emerald chair to try to loosen it up or at least not add to the pain.
I kept watching status board to see if Harmony and Symphony opened as it seemed like a lot of people were heading that way and was surprised to see light for Peak go green on status board first. I was one of the first 10 or 20 on it and everyone at the top was amazed by the view above the clouds. I was one of the first using tourist's entrance to Whistler Bowl so I got through it before rocks lurking just below poked through. Whistler claimed 1 cm new, but I found 1-2" in many place near the top. After avoiding as many moguls as possible in the upper bowl, I took an exposed traverse that turned into a smooth and sunny face. The next two times up I found the extreme entrance where it was easy to ski off cornice (as we did in clinic) then cut left to find mogul-free slopes, where the sun just reached where I made the first turn on my 2nd run. I continued down untracked smooth snow to very busy Red chair although the singles line was short. When I got to Peak chair about 10 the singles line was long enough that I used ski school line (it does not say ONLY) and took advantage of Canadian's politeness to get ahead. I wanted to ride T-bar, but that line also was long.
I skied off the back towards Symphony area which seems like a bigger version of Squaw's Siberia. It made me think that Whistler/Blackcomb is like Squaw and Vail had a baby that got the best attributes of both (steep/wide) although I was about to find out the worst. Snow got very firm towards base of Symphony and I timed my singles line wait at 14 minutes and it was growing. At least time went fast as I talked to a nice lady from Vancouver who had been skiing Whistler/Blackcomb since long before Blackcomb existed. I did not talk picture of that line or of even bigger mob at Harmony 6 which I skied past after skiing a long run with untracked 1" down Symphony. I skied to Garbanzo, which had no line as in was below the clouds and then followed the advice of very senior racer I rode lift with and skied Dave Murray Downhill. Light on Downhill got very flat and I continued to Whistler base to see it I could talk to anyone about possible defective product I received (T-shirt) as part of my clinic. Nobody was around although regular ski school staff found another T-shirt that seemed to be printed like mine with big logo on front and smaller one that I think should be on chest pocket on back.
I rode bottom part of Excalibur gondola to my car where I took three ibuprofen and picked up a beer for the rest of the gondola ride. After riding two chairs I realized I had taken Jersey Cream instead of Glacier so I skied blue run down and rode up correct chair. Singles lines were not bad, but T-bars at top had big lines and status board showed 7th Heaven at over 15 minutes as they and the top of Glacier were all above cloud layer. I hiked Spanky's ladder and skied the Garnett/Diamond bowl runs we had done in clinic although I took an easier and smoother route towards the bottom. The line for T-bar that goes to top of 7th Heaven had gone down, but Showcase T-bar that gets you to hike to Blackcomb Glacier was still moderate. I did two laps (riding Showcase, then hiking to top of glacier - return requires two chairs) starting with Blowhole, then traversing above cliffs to get to Sapphire Bowl where snow getting to and past the row of cliff signs was better than previous days as almost nobody had been through the 1" of new covering great base. I thought about ending my day with a high entrance to Ruby as on two previous days, but it was getting too late. I quit at 2:40 with 30.5K and drove past Vancouver and Seattle to huge mall near SeaTac where employee at Apple store was able to clean out charging port of my iPhone so I again have a smart phone I can use without worrying about battery running out and not being rechargeable. I thought about skipping Crystal due to windy storm hitting, but John, who was with us at Mustang, and friends will be there so I have to get out of here with no time for proofreading or adding pictures.
