tseeb
Well-known member
Edited to correct year as this was originally posted at 1/4/2003.
Even though it’s only one mile to Heavenly and 35 with two passes to Kirkwood, I did the longer drive. Not only is parking no longer free at CA base during this holiday week and snow much thinner, Heavenly announced during day that a bearing on gondola that runs from near Stateline to over 9K need to be sourced and replaced and is down. They should get Stagecoach (7500’ NV) base open for the season today or tomorrow. At Kirkwood, even arriving 10 minutes before 9 AM opening, I parked free across entrance road ~30’ from where I would end my skiing.
It was clear and cold and I warmed up with a couple of excellent Timber Creek groomers before moving to Cornice where SkiTracks shows I skied Sentinel (twice, some rocks at very top, but good packed powder and groomed partway up), Zachary and Monte Wolfe before moving to The Wall. They tried to improve the entrance but the road to it had many ‘chocolate chips’ and the only clean way in was about 6’ wide next to ropeline.
I didn’t have trouble with it, but many did and there was a small backup on my third lap and skis left in it by a fallen child on my 4th. It seemed like a place where someone was going to get hurt. My 3rd and 4th lap I skied the ropeline as narrow entrance was getting scraped off. If I’d gone up again I would have tried going around to the back and either enter from the Notch or go all the way to the corner also reachable by hiking ridge from Cornice. On previous day, I came down chute on that is just to right of False Peak on far left.
The skiing past the entrance was good packed powder. I twice came down this area once on the nose and once on right gully.
I went into Eagle Bowl once and once went farther skiers right towards Norms Nose. I’m not sure when Eagle opened but you had to be very careful at there were many rocks exposed and hidden.
At noon I took a break outside 7800 having a $3 Goose Island with sandwich and chips I brought while Reut line went down. After break, I tried unsuccessfully to scrape some P-tex sticking out of one ski on a sign then ran into Dave from England at the top of my 2nd Reut lap. We skied it once more, then next time up skied to and rode Caples Crest. We twice skied SE-facing chair 3, the easy way back from not yet open Sunrise and found the new snow was getting baked. We then skied W-facing Caples Crest in the sun twice on our way back to The Reut. I’d found good packed powder on both Wagon Trail and Conestoga earlier, but Dave thought race course that closed half of Buckboard would be gone so we went that way. Course was still there and the half of Buckboard open to public was scraped off although edges were still OK. Both times I went down it I skied a lot of the loose snow against ropeline throwing snow back onto course.
At 2:30 the intermediate chairs had moderate lines with sign showing Reut at 10 min and Solitude at 11. We did a last run on Cornice skiing Sentinel to Timber Creek which also had long line but at least is a high-speed quad. I got to my car a little before 3 with 20K and stopped at very busy Safeway before getting shop where guy always takes good care of me to scrape off P-tex that was sticking up even though he didn’t have time for overnight tune. I’m skipping skiing Friday to meet roofer at Mom’s rental above Auburn where tenant reported a leak to me when I was driving to Kirkwood Wed. AM and it seems like it will even busier. View from hot tub I poached.
Even though it’s only one mile to Heavenly and 35 with two passes to Kirkwood, I did the longer drive. Not only is parking no longer free at CA base during this holiday week and snow much thinner, Heavenly announced during day that a bearing on gondola that runs from near Stateline to over 9K need to be sourced and replaced and is down. They should get Stagecoach (7500’ NV) base open for the season today or tomorrow. At Kirkwood, even arriving 10 minutes before 9 AM opening, I parked free across entrance road ~30’ from where I would end my skiing.
It was clear and cold and I warmed up with a couple of excellent Timber Creek groomers before moving to Cornice where SkiTracks shows I skied Sentinel (twice, some rocks at very top, but good packed powder and groomed partway up), Zachary and Monte Wolfe before moving to The Wall. They tried to improve the entrance but the road to it had many ‘chocolate chips’ and the only clean way in was about 6’ wide next to ropeline.
I didn’t have trouble with it, but many did and there was a small backup on my third lap and skis left in it by a fallen child on my 4th. It seemed like a place where someone was going to get hurt. My 3rd and 4th lap I skied the ropeline as narrow entrance was getting scraped off. If I’d gone up again I would have tried going around to the back and either enter from the Notch or go all the way to the corner also reachable by hiking ridge from Cornice. On previous day, I came down chute on that is just to right of False Peak on far left.
The skiing past the entrance was good packed powder. I twice came down this area once on the nose and once on right gully.
I went into Eagle Bowl once and once went farther skiers right towards Norms Nose. I’m not sure when Eagle opened but you had to be very careful at there were many rocks exposed and hidden.
At 2:30 the intermediate chairs had moderate lines with sign showing Reut at 10 min and Solitude at 11. We did a last run on Cornice skiing Sentinel to Timber Creek which also had long line but at least is a high-speed quad. I got to my car a little before 3 with 20K and stopped at very busy Safeway before getting shop where guy always takes good care of me to scrape off P-tex that was sticking up even though he didn’t have time for overnight tune. I’m skipping skiing Friday to meet roofer at Mom’s rental above Auburn where tenant reported a leak to me when I was driving to Kirkwood Wed. AM and it seems like it will even busier. View from hot tub I poached.
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