Snow Valley 3/22/19

I arrived at the mountain and loaded onto the quad at 9 am (back in the 80's, this place would open up at 730 -- WTF is this Utah or something)? Pretty frustrating..........anyways...

Headed to some unskied areas off of chairlift #8/9 (defunct). As this area requires a cat track return, it doesn't get tracked quickly. IT had snowed about 6 inches the day before, so the snow was about 4 to 6 inches on top of kindof a spring surface. Definitely not bulletproof and considering the base is >100 inches, I didn't hit too many rocks/trees. Impressive for late March in SoCal!

After about 4 runs, although the "Slide Peak is closed" sign was still up, i decided to head back there for first chair. Sure enough, I was first chair with only a few other folks. Slide peak skied incredibly well, with about 6 to 8 inches on top of variable snow. Fun article here: https://www.dailynews.com/2011/02/24/sl ... -big-lift/ I skied no less than 12 laps on chairlift #11, considering the vertical is about 500 feet, well you do the math. The thrill is over quickly, so, it's back for another lap on the old old Yan triple. It's no High Boy but it sure is better than no skiing at all. I take what I can get living in LA.......Tony is spot on -- skiing in SoCal is, and always has been "perpetual spring."

I must say though, the views from Snow Valley far surpass Big Bear.

After a lunch break, I skied a few more of the groomers which were a blast. By 1 pm, the snow was definitely bogging down so I called it a day.
 

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Do you have some kind of multiday pass deal at Snow Valley this season?

That's a nice midweek powder score with Slide Peak.

But as I've noted before, it's not accidental that I have not skied Snow Valley since 1985 and not skied Slide Peak since 1982. When Slide Peak is open, Baldy usually has good coverage. Baldy's terrain is better even if only Thunder Mt. is open, and of course it's a closer drive.

Similar considerations are applying these days to Mountain High, with East open so infrequently. My last day there was in 2011.

SoCal's perpetual spring skiing is even more so in March. At this time of year in Big Bear, the lower mountain becomes marginal for skiing after noon because it's so slushy. Slide Peak is the only part of Snow Valley with adequate pitch for typical SoCal March weather. But nearly all of Thunder Mt. (plus chair 1 if adequately covered) at Baldy has ideal pitch for spring skiing.
 
totally agree on all points Tony. FYI , Snow Valley does the 4 pack for $100. It's 25 min drive for me from Arrowhead, so it's a no brainer to get away from the computer screen. When I lived in Claremont, Baldy was a no brainer - up and down.

The 4 pack of tickets can be used anytime. Great deal. Nobody is there midweek. I think the season passes run in the $200 range LOL.
 
I did wonder where one might live that Snow Valley would be a more attractive option than Baldy. That's a very small universe IMHO but Arrowhead is definitely part of it.
 
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