Aussies tour the west.
- Thread starter Sbooker
- Start date
tseeb
Well-known member
Have fun. You may need to ask a local about drinking beer as it used to be the drafts in some places were weak compared to bottles.
Good thing you are skipping CA this year. I saw our odds for normal annual snowfall is down to 1 in 6. I’m at SEA and will be in Calgary this afternoon.
Good thing you are skipping CA this year. I saw our odds for normal annual snowfall is down to 1 in 6. I’m at SEA and will be in Calgary this afternoon.
Just a little busier now. Still less than 30 seconds wait for a lift.
The snow is beautiful. The whole mountain is soft. Our friends love the tree lined runs - a first for them. They are quite good and they handle the groomers very nicely. A couple of pics.
The snow is beautiful. The whole mountain is soft. Our friends love the tree lined runs - a first for them. They are quite good and they handle the groomers very nicely. A couple of pics.
Attachments
Always take pix in landscape (not portrait) format. 
jamesdeluxe":24ih9yok said:Always take pix in landscape (not portrait) format.
Ummm. Yeah. Thanks.
We finished the afternoon over the Collins side. We did a couple of runs out across the High Traverse. I don’t know exactly where we went down but I think it was once in the Sunspot area and once about Watson Line. The area offers breathtaking views toward the north west and is bathed in afternoon sunshine. The snow remained chalky right up until last run.
I’d put up a photo of the view from the High Traverse but some idiot took it in portrait.
We’ll probably go to Snowbird tomorrow. Our mates might hang at Alta I think as they have a preference for groomed runs.
As an aside I spoke to more people from the eastern states than locals or those from out west. I also chatted to a guy from Montreal that had his second day ever at Snowbird yesterday. His first was in 1973!
We spent the day at Snowbird today. Fantastic cool weather and the snow was in great condition though some places were better than others. We had four or five lifts on the Gad side so my friends could get their confidence. This reinforced my view that Snowbird has heaps of great terrain suitable for most skiers. I will concede it is fairly easy to get into locations that are a bit advanced if you don’t really know an area and you aren’t on a marked run.
We took them up the tram and through the tunnel to Mineral Basin. Fantastic views from there.
After we had lunch at the restaurant at the top we spent some time on the Peruvian side. Amazing that there were still areas of perfectly soft snow. That perfect snow really makes ordinary skiers seem like better skiers.
Tony C. I understand you know Snowbird well. Care to take a guess where the last photo was taken?
We took them up the tram and through the tunnel to Mineral Basin. Fantastic views from there.
After we had lunch at the restaurant at the top we spent some time on the Peruvian side. Amazing that there were still areas of perfectly soft snow. That perfect snow really makes ordinary skiers seem like better skiers.
Tony C. I understand you know Snowbird well. Care to take a guess where the last photo was taken?
Attachments
sierra_cement
Member
Sbooker":3mdrigtu said:
That is certainly encouraging to read for me!
That was my observation on my first trip to LCC in 1981.sbooker":2w3tl9w6 said:
With high altitude, low humidity and good exposure, it is routine for the winter snow to stay that way for awhile. By my experience even the sunny exposures often don't melt/freeze below 20F, Sunshine yesterday being a good example. That's why Jackson and Vail's Back Bowls preserve just fine in January/early February most of the time.
The upcoming weekend is a more borderline situation. OpenSnow says Jackson mid-mountain high temps will be 34F for a couple of days. After that the temperatures go back down and it will snow a few inches early next week. I think the 34F will likely melt/freeze the direct south exposures. The more widespread east exposures have a decent shot at remaining packed powder. I can't say for sure as other factors such as wind and clouds can also affect the snow surfaces.
So we’ve had a couple of days travelling and doing tourist things.
We skied at Jackson yesterday in nice conditions. The never ever snowboarders had mixed results. The fellow picked it up easily and the female........is not snowboarding today. She’s going to give skiing a go when we get to Big Sky in a couple of days.
The other couple are doing fantastic. They have been shocked by the skiing experience compared to skiing in Australia. We all took a ride up on the tram and to my surprise my mate Rod insisted he was going to ski back down with us. He did quite well but had a slight moment halfway down Rendevous Bowl but quickly got his skis back on and got to the bottom with some traversing and some genuine turns. My wife has come quite a way with her skiing. She skied straight down the bowl with no traversing and even came up for another tram run straight after.
Snow conditions have been nice and the top half of the mountain certainly hasn’t melted/refrozen yet. There’s some lovely soft spots of wind blown snow.
I’m wondering why Rendevous Bowl hasn’t had big moguls form when some of the other parts of the mountain has?
And for those that know the mountains - would my wife be able to tackle Liberty Bowl at Big Sky and Highland Bowl at Aspen if she successfully navigated Rendevous? Assuming decent conditions of course.
We skied at Jackson yesterday in nice conditions. The never ever snowboarders had mixed results. The fellow picked it up easily and the female........is not snowboarding today. She’s going to give skiing a go when we get to Big Sky in a couple of days.
The other couple are doing fantastic. They have been shocked by the skiing experience compared to skiing in Australia. We all took a ride up on the tram and to my surprise my mate Rod insisted he was going to ski back down with us. He did quite well but had a slight moment halfway down Rendevous Bowl but quickly got his skis back on and got to the bottom with some traversing and some genuine turns. My wife has come quite a way with her skiing. She skied straight down the bowl with no traversing and even came up for another tram run straight after.
Snow conditions have been nice and the top half of the mountain certainly hasn’t melted/refrozen yet. There’s some lovely soft spots of wind blown snow.
I’m wondering why Rendevous Bowl hasn’t had big moguls form when some of the other parts of the mountain has?
And for those that know the mountains - would my wife be able to tackle Liberty Bowl at Big Sky and Highland Bowl at Aspen if she successfully navigated Rendevous? Assuming decent conditions of course.
EMSC
Well-known member
First I love the upside down picture! It's not you, it the forum software. This is the only place I post pictures that doesn't read the underlying Exif data correctly to determine picture orientation, though I must admit I've never had one display upside down.
As to your question, I would rate the 3 bowls as Rendevous is the easiest of the three. Liberty might be possible for your friend especially if they are getting better as you go on the trip, but the hardest part will be the entry up top, some zig zag snow fences create a interesting entry section and can have a very exposed feeling (more so than Rendevous), especially if there is cloud around - which is often at Big Sky. That said it's a touch steeper, but usually less moguls. It also goes for much more vertical While I've never skied Highlands Bowl (will be there skiing it later this week though), my understanding is it is yet steeper then either of the other two.
What I do recommend is that everyone at least intermediate in your group to take the 'beer can' tram at Big Sky up to the top for the views (you can download it, then ski the moderate morningstar trail).
As to your question, I would rate the 3 bowls as Rendevous is the easiest of the three. Liberty might be possible for your friend especially if they are getting better as you go on the trip, but the hardest part will be the entry up top, some zig zag snow fences create a interesting entry section and can have a very exposed feeling (more so than Rendevous), especially if there is cloud around - which is often at Big Sky. That said it's a touch steeper, but usually less moguls. It also goes for much more vertical While I've never skied Highlands Bowl (will be there skiing it later this week though), my understanding is it is yet steeper then either of the other two.
What I do recommend is that everyone at least intermediate in your group to take the 'beer can' tram at Big Sky up to the top for the views (you can download it, then ski the moderate morningstar trail).
I fixed your pictures. I forgot that the Alta pictures had captions and lost those. You can add them back if you want.
I agree with EMSC about Liberty vs. Rendezvous, similar pitch but Liberty is longer and can have a rocky entry.
Highlands Bowl? Don't even think about it, any of you. It's a consistent 40 degrees for 1,000+ vertical. But more important is the lung busting hike of ~600 vertical at over 12,000 feet. You do not want to be tired skiing something that is a stretch for your ability/experience. The terrain needs to be in your comfort zone and is comparable to High Rustler at Alta, Great Scott/Upper Cirque at Snowbird, Lenin/Dictator Chutes at Big Sky. I've skied Highlands Bowl 3x, all after sleeping a full week at 8,500+ in Colorado, most recently http://www.firsttracksonline.com/boards ... hp?t=11685
I agree with EMSC about Liberty vs. Rendezvous, similar pitch but Liberty is longer and can have a rocky entry.
Highlands Bowl? Don't even think about it, any of you. It's a consistent 40 degrees for 1,000+ vertical. But more important is the lung busting hike of ~600 vertical at over 12,000 feet. You do not want to be tired skiing something that is a stretch for your ability/experience. The terrain needs to be in your comfort zone and is comparable to High Rustler at Alta, Great Scott/Upper Cirque at Snowbird, Lenin/Dictator Chutes at Big Sky. I've skied Highlands Bowl 3x, all after sleeping a full week at 8,500+ in Colorado, most recently http://www.firsttracksonline.com/boards ... hp?t=11685
Cannot be scouted in advance. Steep sections are not that long but there are choke points. The approach is blind and coverage varies by season. If you get there and find it's too much you're looking a tough hike back out. In January 2014 Liz got stuck in a Hanging Valley choke point for a good half an hour before ski patrol came by and coaxed her down. Best to ask an instructor or someone comparably qualified who has observed you ski. At Mammoth you skied terrain that steep but not where it was narrow, forcing turns to be made in very specific spots.sbooker":j6n13lsw said:
Yes the upper half of Rendezvous preserves snow better than the rest of Jackson. I suspect south facing Apres Vous is in spring mode already.sbooker":j6n13lsw said:
The first runs we did around Casper/Apre Vous areas on the first morning had frozen but quickly softened. I would say it was about 12 noon when it was ok to ski off the groomers. We skied around the Thunder and Sublette chairs in the afternoon and it was all winter snow.
The second day (after overnight snow) was overcast and lightly snowing so the whole mountain was lovely. I now regret not skiing the Hobacks that day.
Anyway we drove to Big Sky yesterday and will be on skis in a few hours. We’re staying at the mountain village. It’s a nice set up and a change from staying off snow like we usually do. My kids would love it as they have every time we’ve not had to jump in the car to ski. It reminds me a bit of Snowmass.
The second day (after overnight snow) was overcast and lightly snowing so the whole mountain was lovely. I now regret not skiing the Hobacks that day.
Anyway we drove to Big Sky yesterday and will be on skis in a few hours. We’re staying at the mountain village. It’s a nice set up and a change from staying off snow like we usually do. My kids would love it as they have every time we’ve not had to jump in the car to ski. It reminds me a bit of Snowmass.
Hobacks probably would have melt frozen on the warmer days and been dust on crust with just a few inches new snow. But overall you did well with groomers plus upper half Rendezvous in good shape. My 1995 trip in your time frame had a more widespread melt/freeze.