Day 67: Oh my God, what a weekend!
This weekend will be one that I'll remember throughout the dog days of summer. After yesterday's untracked powder-fest, today delivered even more of the same, only this time under bluebird skies, and as hard as it was to believe, shared with even fewer people.
We caught the Baldy Shoulder opening.
We also caught the Backside opening from High Notch, which itself is about as benign as I've ever seen it. Filled with deep, loose, soft snow, mere mortals like yours truly can actually ski through High Notch instead of sideslipping it. That hike, however, still beats me up mercilessly every time.
Honestly, we couldn't find a bad run today. Every aspect, every elevation held either untracked powder or dry, cold, chalky, loose soft snow with no base to be felt at all. Zero crunch, nothing but plush. We couldn't go wrong if we tried to.
West Rustler, in particular was absolutely unbelievable. Cold, dry snow was being shaved off into sluff by everyone skiing it. Pool table smooth, the snow had so much resistance to it that you could lay into arcs so deep that your uphill hand was practically touching the snow on each turn.
They even surprised us with another unplanned opening of Wildcat for a couple of hours at mid-day, where the entrance to Waterfall was completely rock-free and barely tracked, something that seldom occurs during even the deepest of winters. Bumps were virtually non-existent.
It took until 2 p.m. for snow at lower elevations to even start getting heavier, but by that point my legs were toast.
This late season has vastly exceeded any expectations we may have had (and exceeded those from much of this winter as well!).
This weekend will be one that I'll remember throughout the dog days of summer. After yesterday's untracked powder-fest, today delivered even more of the same, only this time under bluebird skies, and as hard as it was to believe, shared with even fewer people.
We caught the Baldy Shoulder opening.
We also caught the Backside opening from High Notch, which itself is about as benign as I've ever seen it. Filled with deep, loose, soft snow, mere mortals like yours truly can actually ski through High Notch instead of sideslipping it. That hike, however, still beats me up mercilessly every time.
Honestly, we couldn't find a bad run today. Every aspect, every elevation held either untracked powder or dry, cold, chalky, loose soft snow with no base to be felt at all. Zero crunch, nothing but plush. We couldn't go wrong if we tried to.
West Rustler, in particular was absolutely unbelievable. Cold, dry snow was being shaved off into sluff by everyone skiing it. Pool table smooth, the snow had so much resistance to it that you could lay into arcs so deep that your uphill hand was practically touching the snow on each turn.
They even surprised us with another unplanned opening of Wildcat for a couple of hours at mid-day, where the entrance to Waterfall was completely rock-free and barely tracked, something that seldom occurs during even the deepest of winters. Bumps were virtually non-existent.
It took until 2 p.m. for snow at lower elevations to even start getting heavier, but by that point my legs were toast.
This late season has vastly exceeded any expectations we may have had (and exceeded those from much of this winter as well!).
