I was pleasantly surprised to find a couple of inches new snow even though only a trace was reported. Though a first run on Upper Primrose on dust over bumps was not a smart idea. It was snowing lightly but windy only in a handful of exposed spots and visibility on that first run was fine.
I next headed into Mineral Basin, now needing goggles but knowing the snow conditions there from 1/15. First time out Powder Paradise was pea soup, but there were 3 skiers ahead of me to provide orientation. Snow had drifted a bit deeper, and even though I hit the subsurface often it was the soft chalk and easy skiing. That was worth a return visit, but since it was a "low angle powder day" I also hit the Baldy Express 3 times. The chair was calm but there was a narrow wind tunnel through Sugarloaf Pass that stripped the upper part of the groomers. By traversing back under the lift I found a couple of mellow lines where the snow was soft for about half the vertical of that lift.
Heading down for lunch I remembered BobbyD's Middle Cirque recommendation and it was definitely a winner. There was quite a bit of blow-in and those were the most consistent powder turns of the day. After lunch I skied mostly Gad 2. There were a few decent shots but a lot of it was bumped up and there was not nearly enough new snow for smooth skiing over the moguls. I finshed the day by riding up Little Cloud and hitting Middle Cirque again.
I next headed into Mineral Basin, now needing goggles but knowing the snow conditions there from 1/15. First time out Powder Paradise was pea soup, but there were 3 skiers ahead of me to provide orientation. Snow had drifted a bit deeper, and even though I hit the subsurface often it was the soft chalk and easy skiing. That was worth a return visit, but since it was a "low angle powder day" I also hit the Baldy Express 3 times. The chair was calm but there was a narrow wind tunnel through Sugarloaf Pass that stripped the upper part of the groomers. By traversing back under the lift I found a couple of mellow lines where the snow was soft for about half the vertical of that lift.
Heading down for lunch I remembered BobbyD's Middle Cirque recommendation and it was definitely a winner. There was quite a bit of blow-in and those were the most consistent powder turns of the day. After lunch I skied mostly Gad 2. There were a few decent shots but a lot of it was bumped up and there was not nearly enough new snow for smooth skiing over the moguls. I finshed the day by riding up Little Cloud and hitting Middle Cirque again.
