Heavenly, NV and CA 2/5/24

tseeb

tseeb

Well-known member
After what I hope was my worst day of the season on 2/4, I had what was my best day so far at Heavenly where they reported 12” new. We got to Boulder about 8:45 and were in back of 1st row parking. We were about 10th chair and started with a lap on North Bowl (chair and run). This was also our last lap at almost 3 pm when I had some good steep untracked in trees and gullies to left on run. Friend on first lap.
8179GregNB.JPG

We moved up to Dipper chair which we used to ski Milky Way Bowl, probably my favorite run, twice. The second time down, I had a great line, mostly untracked through small trees between main bowl and alternate to left where a couple people are coming down in this photo.
8184GregMWB.JPG

Looking down into Carson Valley from near same spot on previous run.
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Mott Canyon opened so I took two laps into Windowmaker. My friend did not join me as he was concerned about rocks. We got together for another lap on Dipper and he joined me for short hike into Lower Nova which was totally untracked for many turns. We moved to Comet and skied chopped up but still decent powder on both sides of Little Dipper run before taking 49er to Tamarack Lodge for a break. From there we rode Tamarack lift and skied California Trail to Maggie’s Canyon which held some great untracked. We then rode Groove chair and followed a couple into a high entrance above Gunbarrel that may have even been better untracked turns.
8192TopOgGB.JPG
East Bowl was excellent packed powder until World Cup where I jumped road into man-made hardpack. On our way back to NV we skied Outer Limits in Killibrew Canyon which they had been blasting heavily in the morning. It was my first time there this season and my friend’s first time ever in Killibrew or Mott Canyon. Outer Limits had some good spots, then the steep Meadows below were nearly untracked.
8197GregMeadows.JPG
We got too low and had to struggle along lowest catchline to Mott chair. After that we did skied to Stagecoach base, did an Olympic chair and run to North Bowl chair before finishing just after three with a lap into North Bowl. It started snowing while we were exiting Killibrew and the little bit of new snow improved the surface, making it much faster, towards end of day. Friend and I poached lakefront hot tub.
I had 20 lifts and 21.75K.
 
As of Jan. 31 Heavenly was reporting only 68 inches season snowfall, which likely meant very low tide conditions. That number is now up to 94, which seems to be adequate based on tseeb's TR. I find Heavenly a very attractive area on powder days if all the lifts are open. Tree spacing is excellent.
 
tseeb said:
After what I hope was my worst day of the season on 2/4, I had what was my best day so far at Heavenly where they reported 12” new. We got to Boulder about 8:45 and were in back of 1st row parking. We were about 10th chair and started with a lap on North Bowl (chair and run). This was also our last lap at almost 3 pm when I had some good steep untracked in trees and gullies to left on run. Friend on first lap.View attachment 39019
We moved up to Dipper chair which we used to ski Milky Way Bowl, probably my favorite run, twice. The second time down, I had a great line, mostly untracked through small trees between main bowl and alternate to left where a couple people are coming down in this photo.
View attachment 39020
Looking down into Carson Valley from near same spot on previous run.
View attachment 39021
Mott Canyon opened so I took two laps into Windowmaker. My friend did not join me as he was concerned about rocks. We got together for another lap on Dipper and he joined me for short hike into Lower Nova which was totally untracked for many turns. We moved to Comet and skied chopped up but still decent powder on both sides of Little Dipper run before taking 49er to Tamarack Lodge for a break. From there we rode Tamarack lift and skied California Trail to Maggie’s Canyon which held some great untracked. We then rode Groove chair and followed a couple into a high entrance above Gunbarrel that may have even been better untracked turns.View attachment 39022East Bowl was excellent packed powder until World Cup where I jumped road into man-made hardpack. On our way back to NV we skied Outer Limits in Killibrew Canyon which they had been blasting heavily in the morning. It was my first time there this season and my friend’s first time ever in Killibrew or Mott Canyon. Outer Limits had some good spots, then the steep Meadows below were nearly untracked.View attachment 39023We got too low and had to struggle along lowest catchline to Mott chair. After that we did skied to Stagecoach base, did an Olympic chair and run to North Bowl chair before finishing just after three with a lap into North Bowl. It started snowing while we were exiting Killibrew and the little bit of new snow improved the surface, making it much faster, towards end of day. Friend and I poached lakefront hot tub.
I had 20 lifts and 21.75K.
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That looks nice. Any chance you could send some snow to Europe?
 
Sbooker said:
That looks nice. Any chance you could send some snow to Europe?
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And up through mid-December it the was the other way around, when the Alps were getting pounded. I'm grateful that I was able to trade the SLC Cottonwoods for eastern Switzerland. That seems to be the only way to do it these days -- book a destination flight but be prepared to scrap it a few days out and use awards to go where conditions are better. Not sure that Sbooker has that option with those brutal 22-hour itineraries.

Tony Crocker said:
As of Jan. 31 Heavenly was reporting only 68 inches season snowfall, which likely meant very low tide conditions. That number is now up to 94
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Wow, California's fortunes seem to be tied to whether the atmospheric river shows up. Why did I never hear that term until recent years?
 
Sbooker said:
Regardless we’ve had a good time despite the lack of new snow.
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Between the high-and-dry conditions and my compromised physical state, I would've definitely joined @jnelly and cancelled if not for Tony's threats of legal action.
:icon-lol:

I'll never be comfortable with the downsides of industrial ski complexes; however, Val d'Isere earned its vaunted reputation -- I was glad I went.
 
I hit rocks, nothing very hard. If you ski off-piste powder in CA, you hit rocks even after 10' dumps in my experience. Heavenly still is thin below 8000', where S facing and at top of ridges and knolls. You have to be very careful. In first picture those mounds are probably rocks. I went in trees to lookers right, but still had to watch for rocks and avoid downed trees that are usually covered. Many other places that are skiable in powder in better years are not (yet?!).

My friend, whose family has had place at Kirkwood since early 1970s (that is ski-leased this season until April 15) does not have as much experience at Heavenly as me and hit a rock hard at Kirkwood early last season hurting a knee (when his place was ski-leased from only Dec 15 to Feb 15) and was unable to take full advantage of great last season.
 
tseeb said:
If you ski off-piste powder in CA, you hit rocks even after 10' dumps in my experience.
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It's really more area specific than region IMHO. However Heavenly has been tseeb's home area for 50 years and I'm sure he knows the minutia of its topography at least as well as I know Mammoth's. That can lead to complacency. I've twice hit rocks skiing too aggressively on Dave's Run on powder days. Nov. 18, 2015 I hit one, flailed and barely stayed upright. On Jan. 10, 2019 I had a very close call for a more serious injury, hitting a submerged rock and face planting into more of them. Details and picture midway through this TR.
 
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jamesdeluxe said:
Anyone? I can't remember if I asked before -- is this a relatively new phenomenon?
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I'm sure I heard it first from Larry Schick. First hard evidence from him is in an e-mail from January 2010:
I may have told you I am writing a scientific paper to be published ( hopefully this year, after proper peer review) on the Pineapple Express (aka: atmospheric rivers)
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the Pineapple Express
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When I lived in Tahoe in the early 90's Pineapple Express was a term that was frequently referred to in that area. Had never heard it prior to moving to Tahoe though.
 
Yes the Pineapple Express term dates much farther back, likely used for the first major event of that nature I recall in my ski career in February 1980.
 
Google found The term “atmospheric river” was first coined in 1994 to describe atmospheric water vapor transport across the mid-latitudes at https://cw3e.ucsd.edu/atmospheric-rivers-rising-interest-in-science-and-the-media/ which my antivirus software did not like but I figured ecsd.edu is probably OK.

Google search for Where did the term atmospheric river originate? gives
"The name came from research published in the 1990s by scientists Yong Zhu and Reginald E. Newell of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology."
 
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