Good, fight them I say. Sounds like Vail are destroying the vibe at a lot of resorts they have bought out and taken over these days....
USA 2021-22 snow conditions/reports/ramblings
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Good, fight them I say. Sounds like Vail are destroying the vibe at a lot of resorts they have bought out and taken over these days....
For those who know Mammoth, saw comments in a recent trip report on another forum about how staff shortages have impacted what lifts are open in the last few weeks. It hasn't snowed since late Dec, so it's mostly the regulars who are out for full days of skiing. When an employee tests positive, they are staying away from work for 5 days and then can return if they don't have any symptoms. I would guess most but not all are vaccinated. Chairs 7 and 25 have not been so far in January. Apparently Chair 13 was only opened at 3pm to allow people an easier exit path.
There are some groomed trails that are normally groomed daily that are getting skipped for a day because there aren't enough grooming staff. Not clear if that was just because of Omicron or if they couldn't fill all the positions.We will be skiing Park City Mountain in two weeks time ( COVID test -ve ). Anyone skiing there atm and any ski field reports?
Don't know any travelers at Park City, but the folks who flew to SLC this week are having a good time at Snowbird. Fair to say that the folks who post regularly on ski forums in N. America and fly to Utah are far more likely to have Ikon than Epic as their multi-resort pass.
What type of terrain do you like to ski the most? Might be able to get a report from someone I know who retired to Park City a while back.
The snowpack at PC is about average for late January. The potential strike by ski patrollers was recently averted so don't need to worry about that issue shutting PC down at this point. PC terrain is only about 90% open but I don't know if that's a function of staffing issues or snow conditions. I ski LCC/BCC when I fly to SLC.
Thanks so much!The snowpack at PC is about average for late January. The potential strike by ski patrollers was recently averted so don't need to worry about that issue shutting PC down at this point. PC terrain is only about 90% open but I don't know if that's a function of staffing issues or snow conditions. I ski LCC/BCC when I fly to SLC.
I would expect conditions on the groomers at Park City to be pretty good in mid-February. I hope you know that the Pres. Day week is likely to be pretty busy. The long weekend is Feb. 18-21, but there are some schools that have the entire week off as a winter break.
Will this be your first time at Park City? All adults or are there children in the group?
We are Park City Wed 2 Feb -> Tue 8 Feb then on to Jackson Hole for 8 days, maybe try a day at Grand T if its not too foggy
I presume we front up with our Epic passes the same as Beaver and Breck, and they will issue a US epic pass, I haven't heard if they have integrated their systems have they?
Thankyou for the info. Originally we were skiing that week but after finding out switched to 13-17 th Feb. We now are spending presidents week in NYC. Just 4 adults intermediate skiers.
Glad you will get to experience more than Park City. I like the vibe and lack of crowds at "old school" ski areas but have done that more often in the east. The driving distance between ski areas can be much longer in the Rockies.
Nordic Valley has night skiing if you just want to experience a ski area that is geared to local families.
Park city (and all ski areas in utah) have been pretty much high and dry (high pressure) since January 6. There’s been skiffs of a few inches twice since then but mostly dry. Some warm periods and some cold periods. Intermediate groomers will be okay. Not too dissimilar to
usual august surface conditions in Australia.
I actually skied south face of Mt superior today in conditions more similar to late March (corn and slush). Though the north side still has shallow cold snow.
There is meant to be a small number of inches again on or around Tuesday - Wednesday and then back to sunshine.
Enjoy your time in town and if the skiing isn’t up
to par do some other activities (homestead crater, snowmobile tour, ice castles).
If you are more advanced than just intermediate groomers, honestly park city powdercats (cat skiing) has had a pretty good run with snow quality given the general lack of snow the last 3 weeks but a lot of the intermediate friendly terrain is sun baked and your left with more advanced terrain that’s shady.
I assume you want to use Epic at Park City. But if conditions aren't that great, consider driving over to BCC to check out Brighton. Especially if the road is clear and it's a blue sky day. The views are much better than around Parley's Canyon.
The Olympic museum and Alf Engen Museum are worth half a day in my opinion.We are hoping to do a few of the mountains. Alpha was the very first place we saw snow/skied many years ago.
Alta remains my favorite in the Rockies even as I've had a chance to ski many of the destination resorts on Ikon and a few independent mountains like Powder Mountain.
Assuming you skied at Alta before 2010, while the terrain remains the same, the lifts have been updated quite a bit. For one thing, there are safety bars. The Supreme lift now starts at Alf's and is a high-speed detachable that makes getting it much easier to enjoy the blues in that area.
I can remember very little as it was over 30 yrs ago. It did inspire a love of snow skiing though, for that forever special in my heart. Will be going there for sure!
My first skiing at Alta was in 1970. Had a short powder run with the help of my friend's instructor at the end of her powder lesson that morning. Changed my impression of skiing forever. Before that I'd only skied in the northeast, plus a couple days on the Alta groomers. Being able to ride from the Wildcat base all the way to the top of Collins was a major plus the first time I took my daughter in 2008. She was 7 and after a day of ski school was chasing powder on the sides of groomers. Didn't take long after a few more spring break trips to Alta before she was skiing Devil's Castle. Took me quite a few more years after I starting taking lessons myself to get to that stage.
The best view of the High T and Mt. Baldy is off the Wildcat lift. Intermediates usually don't bother to ride that old double. It doesn't have a safety bar. Skiing down is not an issue if you go straight after unloading. That's a wide cat track that leads to a wide blue called Aggie's Alley. Great place to experience first powder turns.
Assuming you are willing to eat indoors, consider having lunch at Alta Lodge or the Rustler instead of on the mountain. Cost is similar but you get table service and great views. Usually a bit quicker at Alta Lodge. The Rustler is caters more to the luxury market who are more likely to not ski a full day. Alta Lodge guests are mostly people who are headed back out for a full afternoon until 4:00 at least. Collins and Sunnyside don't close until 4:30.
All the food service locations at Alta figured out how to serve guests safely last season, meaning before vaccination was an option for anyone. There was a severe staffing shortage starting in Dec 2021 and all during the holiday period, probably most because of breakthrough cases. Haven't heard much lately so hopefully the worst is over in terms of staff having to isolate after testing positive. I know at Alta Lodge most staff got vaccinated as soon as they were eligible in 2021.
Thought of a few other tips since you are driving over.
There are free cubbies and paid lockers at the Albion base. That's also where the greens are located, off the Sunnyside lift. Not really much reason to park at Wildcat. Keep driving all the way to the end of the road. There is a locker room near the ski school office on the top level of the ski school building. That's a different building than the one with the Alta Ski Shop and the Albion Grill.
Alta has implemented a paid parking system for 2021-22 for weekends and holidays. Check the website for details if needed.
In general, best to check about buying tickets online in advance. Sometimes there is a discount.
When riding up Sunnyside, look right to see Alf's. The base of the Sugarloaf and Supreme lifts are near Alf's. Look for the signs. If going to Supreme from the top of Sunnyside, you want to be headed left to avoid any uphill. The two long greens off Sunnyside after unloading to the left make for a nice warm up. You'll probably see tracks in the woods in-between them. The ski instructors take the kids in there and they love it.
Vail Ridge under Sunnyside is legitimate black terrain. Had a good time watching my daughter and her friend in a ski school class being introduced to deep powder in trees for the first time when they were tweens. It was thigh deep on the kids. Just happened to be on the lift at just the right time with the other mother. That was during a spring break trip so considered late season. Powder in April doesn't last long but it's great for a few hours at least before it warms up.
Thanks again MarzNZ have snapshopped all your info and put in my travel album for easy access!
Well kids, PB and I have been in Telluride for a week today.
We are absolutely loving it.
The combo of coming relatively straight in due to delays travelling, not taking diamox (because it didn’t occur to me) and recent Covid - the altitude has effected both of us. I didn’t think it would because I was on 98% sats all the way up Kili while others were crashing through the floor. But after a couple of days and next to no sleep I checked my sats and they were 82…at rest…in town. Yikes!
So we promptly got up and went snowboarding, taking the number 12 chair to the Prospect Bowl at 3600m
However we dropped into the supermarket that night and picked up a Boost Oxygen Can and I used that to get my O2 levels up over 90 for the next few days while I was hanging out at home. Had a few wobbly moments on the hill where I stacked it unnecessarily because I was functioning on low oxygen but every day is better and better.
We’ve probably only done half days up to 5hrs on the hill so far but the amount of riding we have got in is nuts compared to elsewhere we have been. A) High Speed Quad Lifts on most lift lines.
B) next to no queues - in fact on week days we are most often sliding straight on and catching our breath on the chair! It’s quiet. And because it’s quiet we can most often open it right up on the runs. Lotta miles under the board already, in an adjustment week
We started out ticking off all the runs off lift 4 and 5, as they were all blue and double blue - we left the bumps runs which just looked like heinous torture for a later date. The highlighter is working it’s way through the piste map!
Few runs through Ute Park, and up to lift 12 for a bit more challenging terrain. Still double blues, with a few single blacks thrown on. The Prospect Trees was a fave, but would be even better with some snow.
We had one snow day since we have arrived, and it wasn’t a heap, but added enough cover for us to add in bumps the last few days.
Prospect Bowl and Trees
Scoped out “Millions” on the way up the 14 Gold Hill Express. We were toast by that stage, but on a good snow day I feel like we will be back to play here. It’s an Expert Double Black, so we need to lift our game and play on some more double blacks this week in preparation. It’s not the top bit that will be an issue - it’s the bottom I believe…
But there’s no real bail out options.
Yesterday was a bumps day, just lapped them out over and over until our legs were cooked.
And here’s a couple of snowy day pics - end of the day - shattered.
So the High Altitude Fitness Training Camp has begun. Week one down. Here’s hoping for continued improvements, new runs to add to the highlighted sections every day, and to stay injury free (or injury minimal).
@LMB
Missed this post yesterday. I was just about to give you a bake for not having reported in yet! More photos of town please!Well kids, PB and I have been in Telluride for a week today.
We are absolutely loving it.
The combo of coming relatively straight in due to delays travelling, not taking diamox (because it didn’t occur to me) and recent Covid - the altitude has effected both of us. I didn’t think it would because I was on 98% sats all the way up Kili while others were crashing through the floor. But after a couple of days and next to no sleep I checked my sats and they were 82…at rest…in town. Yikes!
So we promptly got up and went snowboarding, taking the number 12 chair to the Prospect Bowl at 3600m
However we dropped into the supermarket that night and picked up a Boost Oxygen Can and I used that to get my O2 levels up over 90 for the next few days while I was hanging out at home. Had a few wobbly moments on the hill where I stacked it unnecessarily because I was functioning on low oxygen but every day is better and better.
We’ve probably only done half days up to 5hrs on the hill so far but the amount of riding we have got in is nuts compared to elsewhere we have been. A) High Speed Quad Lifts on most lift lines.
B) next to no queues - in fact on week days we are most often sliding straight on and catching our breath on the chair! It’s quiet. And because it’s quiet we can most often open it right up on the runs. Lotta miles under the board already, in an adjustment week
We started out ticking off all the runs off lift 4 and 5, as they were all blue and double blue - we left the bumps runs which just looked like heinous torture for a later date. The highlighter is working it’s way through the piste map!
Few runs through Ute Park, and up to lift 12 for a bit more challenging terrain. Still double blues, with a few single blacks thrown on. The Prospect Trees was a fave, but would be even better with some snow.
We had one snow day since we have arrived, and it wasn’t a heap, but added enough cover for us to add in bumps the last few days.
Prospect Bowl and Trees
Scoped out “Millions” on the way up the 14 Gold Hill Express. We were toast by that stage, but on a good snow day I feel like we will be back to play here. It’s an Expert Double Black, so we need to lift our game and play on some more double blacks this week in preparation. It’s not the top bit that will be an issue - it’s the bottom I believe…
But there’s no real bail out options.
Yesterday was a bumps day, just lapped them out over and over until our legs were cooked.
And here’s a couple of snowy day pics - end of the day - shattered.
So the High Altitude Fitness Training Camp has begun. Week one down. Here’s hoping for continued improvements, new runs to add to the highlighted sections every day, and to stay injury free (or injury minimal).
Yes Sir
Anything in particular you’d like a piccie of?
We are staying in Telluride town for another few weeks then we move up to Mountain Village. PB planning on some Ice Climbing in Ouray so I’ll plan to go with a get some pics of Ouray also.
Excellent, I was wondering if you were going to check out Ouray.Yes Sir
Anything in particular you’d like a piccie of?
We are staying in Telluride town for another few weeks then we move up to Mountain Village. PB planning on some Ice Climbing in Ouray so I’ll plan to go with a get some pics of Ouray also.
Yes Sir
Anything in particular you’d like a piccie of?
We are staying in Telluride town for another few weeks then we move up to Mountain Village. PB planning on some Ice Climbing in Ouray so I’ll plan to go with a get some pics of Ouray also.
My favourite (thus far) resort and town in CO. Amazing pics, thx for sharing.
It’s a bit of a drive but I’d highly recommend a day/half day trip to crested butte. We broke it up by spending a night in gunnison because I was too tight to stay in CB but the drive is also easily done in a day. The drive is a fascinating insight into small town Colorado and the terrain is top notch.
Hoping for some… so far just a dusting on the balcony.
The dirt patches on the run in this afternoon were pitifully Thredbo spring like
Some gnarly little rocks poking up through the snow in sections. There’s plenty of base higher up but it’s a bit marble like here and there. Certainly want to be paying attention.
I’d love a bit of hero snow for a bit
We don’t have a car at this stage. Was just planning on staying here and lapping it out, working on skills, fitness and living the ski life.
However the last few days we have been talking about getting a car later in the trip for some spring touring around the local region.
This pic below is a pano taken from our balcony in town. We are opposite the Marshals office but there’s been some bizarre work going on the last few days. All these poles going up, but in pots, not permanent, cranes… I couldn’t for the life of me work out what they were up to.
So we asked.
There is a town meeting tomorrow about a building proposal and this construction is just to give the locals a visual on how much room it will take up. Lot of expense and work - there has been a good dozen or more workers on it for days so far!
The development?
Inexpensive staff accomodation. GO TELLURIDE!!! After all the moaning we’ve had over the lack of staff accom in resorts finally to see somewhere trying to do something about it!
Colour me impressed!
Don't know about Colorado but rental car rates in Albuquerque have dropped in recent weeks. I and a group of friends are headed to Taos later this week. Those of us who had cars reserved months ago have all cancelled those bookings and re-booked at significantly lower prices. The lack of snow in the region is probably a factor.
Taos mid-mountain depth was barely 50 inches before the storm that's starting tonight. That's supposed to bring a couple of feet in about 48 hours. My first ski day is a couple days after the storm ends and the sun comes out again.
I’m sure the car hire here will be at a premiumDon't know about Colorado but rental car rates in Albuquerque have dropped in recent weeks. I and a group of friends are headed to Taos later this week. Those of us who had cars reserved months ago have all cancelled those bookings and re-booked at significantly lower prices. The lack of snow in the region is probably a factor.
Taos mid-mountain depth was barely 50 inches before the storm that's starting tonight. That's supposed to bring a couple of feet in about 48 hours. My first ski day is a couple days after the storm ends and the sun comes out again.
but it is what it is.
While we are happy walking around town and riding here we won’t bother. Once we are looking for something else to do we will consider a car.I’m sure the car hire here will be at a premium but it is what it is.
While we are happy walking around town and riding here we won’t bother. Once we are looking for something else to do we will consider a car.
Silverton and Kendall mountain also spring to mind if wanting to do some skiing in little non international ski mountains and have some time to kill. Havent been but would love to ride Silverton.Our ski holiday in Utah has taken a u turn. Friends that we were staying with can no longer offer their hospitality ( none of their doing!)
We originally were staying with them in Logan.
New plans need to be organised.
Do we rent accomodation in Logan, rent in Salt Lake City or abort the trip altogether? Snow conditions don’t look great, would be over there in a week.
We can cancel/ get flight credits for our airfare( Qantas we didn’t get cheap tickets )
I am reluctant to spend a huge amount of money if the snow is only average.
Any advise on snow conditions or where to go greatly appreciated.
Why not look at one of the Colorado resorts or Big Sky (MT)? If you can get up to Canada, they are having no issues at all with snowfall! https://www.onthesnow.com/epic-pass/skireport. These are looking way better for snow conditions than utah. Are you tied to any particular pass (epic or ikon)? Honestly though, if you are intermediates on groomers it is unlikely you'll be bothered by less than epic conditions. Others might correct me here of course
Thanks so much for the speedy reply! Epic and we have 4 days booked at Park City may still go to Utah and relive our first ski adventure at Alta! And yes we are only intermediate groomers so all should be good!
Sun Valley Idaho is worth considering. Also on epic and won’t have the epic crowds of the Utah resorts. about 4hrs from SLC pending road conditions.
For utah - It’s snowed a handful of inches in 26 days and there’s nothing in the forecast until possibly around mid Feb. Blocking high pressures . Your best shot for okay skiing is if it’s warm and you get to ski some corn/slush. But the high for park city base today is -7’c so warm isn’t guaranteed either.
I’d usually be optimistic and say to come anyway, but either cancel or get a flight up to Canada - revelstoke has gotten and will continue to get lots of snow in the next two weeks.First snow in a week.
The table on the balcony gauge said “get up there”.
PB and were in the first Gondola to unload at San Sophia station - so first tracks on a powder day it was! (Except for the mountain crews tracks of course!)
With some fresh snow cover, today was the day to tick off some runs that we’ve been coveting but cautious of because they were big bumps, steep AF and icy.
First one was Silvertop, the last run to be ticked off under the Polar Queen lift.
That needed doing a few times over - so much fun, including the trees at the side.
After getting our jollies down low we headed back to the Prospect Bowl and had another run through the Prospect Trees.
Fun enough, but really needs a bit more snow in there - both of us came unstuck on semi exposed tree roots or rocks. So once was enough for that one.
Massive run in top to bottom to Big Billies Restaurant for some Chilli for lunch and hot coffee to try and defrost! Nose was FROZEN.
Back up the Village Express for a couple of laps down Pick n Gad - more bumps - but so many untouched freshies.
And finally we had the balls to drop Cimarron from the top. It’s been rock solid, steep moguls until today, the coverage of snow made all the difference!
I know … looks flat.
Wasn’t.
After so many bumps today, all the independent leg action, I’m stuffed!! Lucky we have a massage booked!
Today was the most fun we’ve had here yet. Pls send more snow.
LMB if it helps I’ve previously used Peak Mountain Guides who are based in Ouray/Ridgeway. They were very pleasant and helpful. I was looked after by Dan Zokaites who is a highly qualified rock/ice/ski guide and a really charming guy.Yes Sir
Anything in particular you’d like a piccie of?
We are staying in Telluride town for another few weeks then we move up to Mountain Village. PB planning on some Ice Climbing in Ouray so I’ll plan to go with a get some pics of Ouray also.
Apart from ice climbing they also do a range of backcountry and hut to hut trips.Last edited:
Another place to consider is Wolf Creek. When US160 is open, it's about 3.5 hours drive to Pagosa Springs. The center of the old town has three big commercial hot springs venues. Many of the pools are outdoors, either a big one or a collection of little ones of different temperatures. My friends and I didn't take the time to go for a soak in Dec, but apparently good fun.I’m sure the car hire here will be at a premium but it is what it is.
While we are happy walking around town and riding here we won’t bother. Once we are looking for something else to do we will consider a car.
Wolf Creek gets more powder than most ski resorts in the region because it gets snow from more than one wind direction. Given it's location in terms of distance from major airports (Denver, Albuquerque), it's mostly locals and people who aren't completely influenced by Ikon/Epic when picking a destination for a ski vacation when flying to the Rockies.
Wolf Creek, powder tracks in Dec 2021
From what I'm hearing about snow conditions at Park City, not much point to fly all the way across the Pacific. Likely to be below average through February.
Do you know about OpenSnow? The Daily Snow reports are how I get a sense of upcoming weather for different regions. The reporters all mostly weather geeks with relevant professional and/or academic background who are also powder hounds. In the last few years, they have developed their own weather models with a focus on the most popular regions for lift-served and backcountry skiing/riding.
Evan Thayer is part of OpenSnow. He started reporting about Utah snow several years ago in his own blog (free). He's not seeing much hope for new powder in February in Utah.
Here's an example for Colorado the first half of February.
Colorado Daily Snow | Snow Forecast & Ski Report | OpenSnow
The Colorado Daily Snow provides the best snow forecast, written by a local Colorado forecaster. Find snow conditions at ski resorts in Colorado.opensnow.com
As for suggestions for alternative destinations, are you thinking USA only? Or is Canada an option?
BC seems to be having a good season from a snow standpoint.
For a 2-week trip starting from SLC, driving up to Driggs to ski at Grand Targhee, visit Jackson for the experience, and then head to Bozeman for Bridger and a week at Big Sky can be quite fun. I've done variations of this idea more than once. Helps to be comfortable driving in some snow and have the flexibility to delay travel by a day or two to wait out a snowstorm. Blowing snow that limits visibility can be a problem.
But I've planned trips to Montana from SLC based on getting the Ikon pass, which covers JH and Big Sky. Lift ticket prices at GT and Bridger aren't that expensive, relative to the amount of skiable terrain.
Bridger and Big Sky have very good terrain for intermediates. Like Alta/Snowbird, not just for experts even though can get the impression that it's all extreme terrain. Bridger is mostly locals because it's a non-profit. But it's not small with 1900 acres. Big Sky is a destination resort with multiple peaks. Very hard to get bored even if only skiing the long blue groomers. Bozeman is a growing city but the old downtown feels like a small ski town. Plenty of lodging options in Bozeman. For Big Sky, check VRBO for availability. Meadow Village is only a 10-min drive and is noticeably less expensive. That's where I normally stay. Enough restaurants and a good supermarket in the relatively new village that's been developed in the last decade.
That's a good idea. Ketchum is a very fun ski town. Lodging options range from the classic Sun Valley Lodge to motels to VRBO/AirBnB condos and houses.
For my one trip to Sun Valley, we only skied a couple days after driving from SLC. That was when Sun Valley was on the MCP, before SV switched to being an Epic Partner. Stayed at the Best Western that's one bus stop from the River Run base. Walking distance to downtown restaurants. Parking downtown can be an issue so we walked once.
Sun Valley Jan. 27-28, 2016
Spending a couple days skiing at Sun Valley to take advantage of it being added to the Mountain Collective Pass for 2015-16 before skiing Alta and Aspen with several friends. First day was mostly groomers since we did the free mountain tour. Turned out to be hosted by Allan Patzer, who has...
www.theskidiva.com
Thanks @Slowman
Yeah, I think that is the group PB has booked through. He is going ice climbing tomorrow. And we are looking at a hut to hut early March - he will discuss with him tomorrow and work out what will work best.
