As you may remember from my previous two visits in 2008 and 2017, Monarch rates amongst my favorite locals areas in North America, so when Tony confirmed what I'd heard -- that Wolf Creek and Monarch had the deepest bases of snow in Colorado -- the decision was easy for a weekend trip. I drove up Friday night and when I left my motel in Salida the next morning, things were looking passable in the valley; however, this sign on Route 50 leading to Monarch Pass along with the heavy cloudbank over the mountains told a different story:
Halfway up the canyon, it looked like this:
By the time I got to the ski area, it was snowing sideways. The skiing all day was fantastic with knee-deep powder everywhere except a handful of trails that they'd groomed. Unfortunately, 30+mph gusts froze my hands whenever I took them out of my mittens and prevented me from taking pix. One of the main lifts, the aptly named Breezeway, never opened due to wind hold.
Sunday morning was looking much more promising and when I pulled into the parking lot at 8 am, a ski patroller's untracked run with his dog bounding through the snow after him was a sign of good things to come:
Not bad for December 15:
The skies never quite cleared up so the pix from my beater camera (which doesn't do well in flat light) aren't the greatest, but here's how it was:
Lots of relaxed meadow skipping:
Reverse shot:
Mirkwood Basin was closed for avy work, so I traversed left to Outback Bowl:
Three shots of this lady:
Three shots of her husband:
The groomers were skiing nicely too:
Given its modest vertical, Monarch has all fixed-grip chairs: one triple and three doubles. The latter bring a smile to upstate New York lift geeks:
I walked right up to the plaque to see the date of manufacture but it was rubbed off -- I'm guessing early 1970s?
My only regret was that I didn't bring my fat skis. A shame that I didn't see these guys doing demos until I was walking back to my car at the end of the day:
A nice start to my season.
Halfway up the canyon, it looked like this:
By the time I got to the ski area, it was snowing sideways. The skiing all day was fantastic with knee-deep powder everywhere except a handful of trails that they'd groomed. Unfortunately, 30+mph gusts froze my hands whenever I took them out of my mittens and prevented me from taking pix. One of the main lifts, the aptly named Breezeway, never opened due to wind hold.
Sunday morning was looking much more promising and when I pulled into the parking lot at 8 am, a ski patroller's untracked run with his dog bounding through the snow after him was a sign of good things to come:
Not bad for December 15:
The skies never quite cleared up so the pix from my beater camera (which doesn't do well in flat light) aren't the greatest, but here's how it was:
Lots of relaxed meadow skipping:
Reverse shot:
Mirkwood Basin was closed for avy work, so I traversed left to Outback Bowl:
Three shots of this lady:
Three shots of her husband:
The groomers were skiing nicely too:
Given its modest vertical, Monarch has all fixed-grip chairs: one triple and three doubles. The latter bring a smile to upstate New York lift geeks:
I walked right up to the plaque to see the date of manufacture but it was rubbed off -- I'm guessing early 1970s?
My only regret was that I didn't bring my fat skis. A shame that I didn't see these guys doing demos until I was walking back to my car at the end of the day:
A nice start to my season.
