Thursday morning looked ominous with clouds hanging over the peaks.  The Temp. in the parking lot was 50 degrees at 8:30, so no freeze today.  I was going to do another Twins tour but I thought better of it due to the temps. and the wind, which is no fun when balancing on a knife edge.  The Sun came out for first tram and the day became much more promising.  The Academy is still here and moved quickly to Mineral Basin with the first three Trams , where the softening was well under way.  The front side had not set up much and the generous grooming made for great skiing out of the chute.  The crunch cookies were lifting out of the till pattern and made the turning a tad skittish on the ball bearing surface, but they were smashed into butter as the morning warmed up and the traffic increased.  The wind is really picking up and the clouds were moving in, flattening the visibility, so we are in for another round of winter snow…I hope.   What do I mean hope… I’m betting on it.  Not to mention  the resurfacing of the big corn shots, which will be coming in the aftermath of this cycle.  I can see it all now!!!  Tomorrow could be an interesting day , but I know you are not afraid, so see you on first bucket and paddle into the line up!!!

Warm again in the parking lot this Wednesday morning, but the front side was frozen solid!.  Mineral Basin was good to go for first Tram and was ,certainly,  the call for the first runs of the day.  The grooming had been expanded significantly and was much more consistent compared with days earlier this week.  The shots were crusty, but were edgeable and fun.  A cadre of locals were running the back to back program, and that is always a good sign of FUN!.  For myself I got up early, rode the Fortklift chair until I mounted up for another Twin Peaks extravaganza.  A warmer night necessitated an earlier start to avoid hitting it late.  Perfect surface softness was the reward for the extra effort, and held up until the last 200′ of vertical coming out to the exit, when the supportability went away and survival methods became necessary .  If we had been later, the supportability would have been gone from the get go and a night mareish slog would have been encountered;   I have been there and it is not pretty.  Needless to say we avoided that handily and were treated to the sweet goodness of maize.  MAZOLA!!  Getting back in bounds found great spring conditions and light lift traffic.  Glue spots were beginning to become an issue as the snow became saturated, so care needed to be taken to avoid disaster.  I heard numerous stories of getting ejected by surprise due to the variations in glide.  A word to the wise is sufficient!!.  It looks like we can look forward to one more day of sun before the big change, though warmer temps. will accelerate the breaking point so plan accordingly.  Based on the excellent grooming this morning, I think it is safe to hit it early and often!! Be there!!!

Tuesday morning broke a bit warmer than past mornings.  The temp. was 39 degrees at 8:10 AM in the parking lot as I arrived.   The ” Extreme Groomer” had, once again, mowed the Big Boom Bah on the lower mountain.  Though you had to give it the proper amount of softening time, there it stood waiting for the break.  The timing on the softening was a touch earlier this morning with Mineral Basin going off early with the warmer start.  The front was still going to hold out until 10:30 plus to get good.  I took the opportunity to climb the American Fork Twins to take advantage of the succulent corn goodness that waited for the ambitious.  Pipe Line was off limits , but that left a plethora of options to chose from.  Timing is everything and too late is to be avoided.  Massive roller balls had come down in previous days so the big danger of a wet slide is very real and ominous.  Getting back in area found all systems go with softened corn wall to wall and areas of glue to negotiate, especially on the cat tracks.  Tomorrow will be a replay of today, but I think the South wind might start kicking up.  They have roped off lower Gad valley from the Bass highway down and are digging the snow pack out so do not venture below the line.  The shuttle is running a truncated route, so that is a big help getting back up from the Wilbre chair if you need that service.  I am still going ,personally, with a first Tram program , but that is me, you may want to wait for the larger softening to happen which I would target for 11:00AM.  Late afternoon gets too grabby for my knees so I have to bail, but go with what you like and I will see you in the AM…. or not!!!

As predicted, Monday was frozen solid.  Though the temp. in the parking lot was 39 degrees at 8:00 AM., there was no hint of softening on the hill.  The National Academy is here through Thursday so plan on getting in line a little early if you want to catch first boat.  They all went out to Mineral Basin first off so the Tram was not busy after the first wave.  The heat has affected all elevations and exposures so you will want to take that into consideration for the morning session.  I detected slight softening beginning at 11:00 AM on the front side, so there is a significant lag in the skiability.  The Cat crew has been cut back , so the grooming is not as extensive as before, though the main sections are being addressed and continue to be good, though firm, even during the morning noisy part.  The Forklift chair, again, offered a perfect venue to wait out the crunch.  Tomorrow will be a repeat of today, so no hurry if you want to arrive for the softening.   The canyon was also under a watch today, after Noon, due to warming and slide danger, bear that in mind as you plan.  I had to leave early to take care of my critters and I could not get caught by a closure.  See you early tomorrow !!!

Sunday is the beginning of the high pressure bubble, which is moving into the area for the next while.  I dressed for” how I wanted it to be” and was handed an ice cream headache for my assumption as the morning was rather brisk.  I took a run out in Mineral Basin, looking for the early softening, but was greeted by rather crusty conditions, which were quite a while from softening.  The Peruvian side was a touch more edgeable, but the lowest sections were BULLET PROOF.  I made a bee line for the comfort of the FORKLIFT CHAIR, which can always be counted on for goodness.  It seems that many others had the same idea and we all had a great time conversing and waiting for softening to occur.  By 11:00 AM the sections began to get softer making for very carvable lines.  The crud sections were going to require more heating to become negotiable.  The high north sections still had vestiges of cold snow , but the bumps were rising so care was required.  Full on sun is the rule today so the morning will revisit a similar scenario.  Let the hill soften and take your time as the spring cycle is here in earnest.  A bit of information you should be aware of:   the Gad Zoom chair will be closed for the season, beginning tomorrow, and the lower half of Big Emma will be closed due to work being done in preparation for the summer season.  You will have to exit Big Emma via the Bass highway to get back to the Tram.  Wilbre chair will still be open however, but , no doubt, there will not be shuttle service out of Gad valley, so don’t get stuck down there; it’s a long walk back to the center.  OK,  that’s about all for now, see you tomorrow.  I still have some time left before… well let’s not think about that shall we!!

Spring time has been held at bay for an incredible length of time, but there is no stopping the the inevitable march of time.  This week promises to give us a serious dose of high intensity sun, so we can look forward to a nice corn cycle, which can be another kind of perfect.   The morning sessions are most likely to be crusty and firm until softening occurs, but I like the quiet attendance and ground pounding speed.  Snowbird offers so many faces that softening events can be chased around the hill for hours as the sun takes effect.  Mineral, obviously, sees the first direct shot of warming so that is my favorite choice on such days.  I think the Peruvian side is still going to sport soft snow on the groomers down to 9000′ , but care will be needed for the lower aspects.  The forecast warmth will, perhaps, accelerate the softening on the Western exposures, so just keep an eye on the options and maybe do a recon run… somebody has to… and report!  We always appreciate a good tip… all for one!   It looked like, from the trailer, that the visibility was touchy during the AM. , but I feel certain that tomorrow will be stellar.  See you on first bucket!!!

Friday was my first day back after my trip to the brief encounter with the dark side, and glad I was to be back.  The Tram traffic was light, crowded only by the members of the Academy and National Ski Patrol, all who are here for sessions this week.  Walk of trams were the rule all morning, so no worries  The overcast and stout wind made the peak interesting and the high North aspects were picking up some transported snow helping to soften the existing crud.  The surface of the snow was covered with a reddish dust, which had blown in from the South as the storm moved through.  It gave the surface a kind of strange dullness in the variable light.  I opted for the groomers, which were soft and carvable, but jumped off into the crud just to check it out.  Though it was workable , it had been brought up to short choppy bumps which my knees did not agree with, so I made a hasty retreat back to the smooth and rippable parkways.  The visibility remained problematic , but got better toward the bottom and against the trees.  The Gad 2 area opened, but without the lift access so a long traverse was required.  The temps. were quite cold all morning and began warming up as Noon approached.  The lower mountain started to clump up as 1:000PM arrived leaving the groomers a tad lumpy, so I gave my knees a break and called it good to go.  Tomorrow should see improving and warming weather, so I anticipate great skiing.  Be aware of the groups on the hill and give them a wide margin as they are doing evaluations and there is no need to interfere with that process.  Go for first boat and get the most out of the morning!!!

I was not present at Thursdays festivities due to off world obligations,  but I have been advised, by highly placed sources, that the conditions were, again, note worthy.  The canyon opened at 8:00AM and the faithful were in full attendance.  Sunny skies gave way to overcast and then light snow later in the day.  Baldy, Mineral Basin , and Little Cloud opened with a full storm’s worth of product for those who attended.  The Tram line was full on until the other areas became available and the Tram was eased up considerably.  The snow quality was excellent and very skiable as the temps. remained rather cold.  I will be there tomorrow , so a more detailed overview will be forth coming.  I hope that those of you who did attend had a great time. No time to hang them up yet!!!

The rain pounded all night on the roof of the communications trailer, again, keeping me awake.  This was gonna be big, I thought, and I was right.  The faithful converged on the hill after holding off for x-many days and made up for lost time.  Yesterday’s high density product created the perfect foundation for today’s snow, which was deep and perfectly blastable.  There was at least knee deep shots wall to wall as each area opened in due course.  The bump features, having been flattened in the past days, left the big shots shredable and so those that could did.  I rode a Peruvian chair, due to a packed Tram line, and watched as the full court press was in full effect.  Cliff launching and hard driving was the game plan where ever I looked.  Quite a sight. The morning session skied much like a mid December storm, but with out the cold.  The relative warmth, however, began to set the product up toward noon, when the dreaded ratchet chop came up on the lower mountain.  The sun tried to poke out but was quickly obscured by continued snow, which intensified as the afternoon progressed.   The storm should continue to pile up the goods for tomorrow, so another epic morning is in store.  For myself, the long arm of the dark side has required my presence off planet for tomorrow so I will not be able to partake, but know that I will be keeping watch via the Hyper Space viewer;  I know you all will make me proud.  I must walk through the Star Gate now!! IBBY!!!

The weather Tuesday moved in much earlier than predicted. The rain resounded off the roof of the Air Stream off and on all night.  The precipitation, during the drive up the canyon, was rain and continued to be rain as I kept an eye on the temperature.  Finally , just before entry one, the rain turned to snow and that was a good sign.  Only 20 hearty members of the congregation were on hand for first Tram and fortunate they were to be greeted by boot top depth though marginal visibility.  The density increased as one moved down the hill, becoming a bit challenging in the last 500′.  After 3 runs the lower part of the hill had light drizzle falling which really set up the new snow to a gluey type consistency, however, by 11:00AM the temps dropped and the snow continued to fall once again.  This is just the first wave of the set and there are peaks lined up to the horizon so don’t get caught inside for this one.  This is just the first coat of cushion upon which the , increasingly light snow, will pile up to cover the crunch underneath, so this is an essential component in the product structure.  My , tip of the hat, to those who were able to stay and do the trowel work, but my knees could not take the wrenching.  Be sure to check the canyon status in the AM .  Winter is still trying to stick around and we can only oblige by helping it along.  Till tomorrow ; shaka!!