Western Weather 2017-18 and Later
- Thread starter Admin
- Start date
To underscore the obvious, I was not prepared for those two slogs. I hadn't skied in eight months; I landed the previous evening at 9 pm from sea level; I was wearing cheapskate ski clothing from Costco, nothing remotely breathable.
It's amazing how warm one can get in temps that are below freezing level. I did some short hikes with a guide in Tignes last January. That combined with some adrenaline due to being out of my comfort level had me sweating buckets. So much so my prescription goggle inserts were fogging badly. I now keep a set of prescription sun glasses in my pocket in case that happens again.
EMSC
Well-known member
Most people don't ever think about it, but backcountry skiing is all about temperature regulation. No matter how cold out, within minutes you have to open zips and ditch layers.
I never wear googles while hiking uphill.
Yes, and in spring that often means uphill in a T-shirt for me.
Noted. Prescription sun glasses are my preference anyway but I get watery eyes without goggles in cold temps.
Likewise when skiing downhill -- sunglasses are a no-go for me (I can't understand how Tony manages it) -- however, are you saying that your eyes water when schlepping uphill? I would get fogged up almost immediately.
Last edited:
My eyes water when skiing downhill in cold temperatures. So I wear goggles for that reason. With prescription inserts. I find in spring they don’t water so can wear sunnies.
A seperate issue is heating up which causes the goggle inserts to fog up. I’m a sweater so this may be the cause. I can slide the goggles up onto my helmet and temporarily wear specs in this case. But I’ll remember to carry sun glasses instead of my usual glasses.
It’s a hassle being short sighted.
This will not be a good week per Open Snow:
The good news is that the storms overperformed in Utah, 50 inches at Alta and 35 at Solitude. The last phase was high water content, good for building the base. That's not so good for snow stability, so no surprise there are minimal new terrain openings today. But later this week there should be some. Utah is not what the Alps are, but it's better than December of 2011 or 2017.
Colorado got the expected 1-2 feet so look for some terrain expansion there too, though most of those ski areas still have a long way to go.
Today Alta is 45% open, Snowbird 14%, Brighton 12% and Solitude 22%. That's still in "pull the plug" territory, but I suspect Alta in particular is holding back some terrain until the weekend. Supreme, Backside and the High T are not open today despite a reported 56 inch base.
Evan predicts a scattered foot of snow this weekend for LCC/BCC but nothing next week. BCC base depths are not so high, 39 inches at Brighton and 33 at Solitude. In 2011 Solitude was 40% open on a 26 inch base on Dec. 17. What's open this coming weekend is what will be open the following weekend that James is scheduled based on that forecast.
If it's too much of a hassle at this late date to throw together something in Europe, I have a constructive suggestion. Defer that long weekend to the West until April like the Diamond Dogs did in 2017. When air travel and vacation days are involved, the bar is surely higher than the current status of BCC.
Evan predicts a scattered foot of snow this weekend for LCC/BCC but nothing next week. BCC base depths are not so high, 39 inches at Brighton and 33 at Solitude. In 2011 Solitude was 40% open on a 26 inch base on Dec. 17. What's open this coming weekend is what will be open the following weekend that James is scheduled based on that forecast.
is what I said on Nov. 21, and that's the way it looks to me now. If James isn't willing to spend most of his ski time next weekend at Alta (there's also the Eagle chair issue), he should be going to the Alps.
If it's too much of a hassle at this late date to throw together something in Europe, I have a constructive suggestion. Defer that long weekend to the West until April like the Diamond Dogs did in 2017. When air travel and vacation days are involved, the bar is surely higher than the current status of BCC.
Last edited:
Alta opened the High T today, which ups terrain to 64% open. SnoCountry continues to be useless for Alta, reporting the same 38% as the past several days.
There is no change in status of Snowbird, Brighton and Solitude. I decided it was worth a phone call to Solitude about the Eagle chair. The chairs have just been installed but have to undergo safety testing. The lady was hopeful that the testing would be completed by the weekend of the 16th but there are no guarantees. I also inquired about snowmaking on Eagle and was informed "There is no snowmaking except at the unloading area and the loading area of Eagle does not yet have adequate snow coverage."
OpenSnow deterministic model forecasts 10-18 inches for Solitude between now and Friday night, then nothing for the next 8 days. The phone call strengthens the case that James should relocate or defer this trip. Eagle is the key intermediate terrain pod. Due to the uncertainty about the Eagle lift and its natural snow coverage, waiting a few days longer to decide is unlikely to yield new information.
There is no change in status of Snowbird, Brighton and Solitude. I decided it was worth a phone call to Solitude about the Eagle chair. The chairs have just been installed but have to undergo safety testing. The lady was hopeful that the testing would be completed by the weekend of the 16th but there are no guarantees. I also inquired about snowmaking on Eagle and was informed "There is no snowmaking except at the unloading area and the loading area of Eagle does not yet have adequate snow coverage."
OpenSnow deterministic model forecasts 10-18 inches for Solitude between now and Friday night, then nothing for the next 8 days. The phone call strengthens the case that James should relocate or defer this trip. Eagle is the key intermediate terrain pod. Due to the uncertainty about the Eagle lift and its natural snow coverage, waiting a few days longer to decide is unlikely to yield new information.
Last edited:
tseeb
Well-known member
From https://opensnow.com/dailysnow/tahoe
"Finally, some good news Thursday morning as the storm that moved through Wednesday evening delivered a bit more snow than expected on the north side of the lake, and several inches for every mountain! We needed to get as much snow out of this system as possible as it could be a while before we see another good storm." and "On the north side of the lake above 8k' the ski areas are reporting 9-15 inches of new snow!"
"Finally, some good news Thursday morning as the storm that moved through Wednesday evening delivered a bit more snow than expected on the north side of the lake, and several inches for every mountain! We needed to get as much snow out of this system as possible as it could be a while before we see another good storm." and "On the north side of the lake above 8k' the ski areas are reporting 9-15 inches of new snow!"
Too bad only Mt. Rose has more than a small proportion of terrain over 8,000 feet among the north shore ski areas. Still 4-10 inches lower down though. There's a long way to go but every little bit helps.
Last edited:
Most recent SNOTEL map:
Notice how Washington and particularly Oregon got trashed by the rain vs. Dec. 3 map. Utah and Colorado improved.
Notice how Washington and particularly Oregon got trashed by the rain vs. Dec. 3 map. Utah and Colorado improved.
James is going to the Alps. He made the call a week ago.
ChrisC
Well-known member
Tony should have been a European ski guide.
They all seem to have an aversion to helmets and goggles. Skiing in practically a whiteout powder day, all our guide could manage/like was sungless and a hat.
Yes, the combination of below-average cover and a key lift at Solitude that won't be running when I was scheduled to be there were enough to dissuade me from going.
Absolutely. Our guide at Serre Chevalier: