This morning’s drive up the Canyon revealed serious wind moving the clouds with surprising swiftness.  Up on the hill the wind was indeed cooking, but not enough to bother the Tram and not enough to move much in the way of product to the big lines.  The Grooming Crew had prepared the dance floor to make up for the lack of nature’s grooming, and it was sweet top to bottom with Lower Primrose Path once again going off in a perfect silky ride wall to wall.  I love that pitch when you can dial in the juice and really lay into it.  The Sun was out for the morning session, but a high cloud deck moved in and turned out the lights.  The visibility was good with nice detail, but the flat light made it a bit murky.   I have been staying on the smooth lines that I have been working all week as the off trial is building the interference patterns in a big way.  The wind may well start moving the product around overnight, so look for some lines on the South East aspects and the low lying guts.  The visibility will still be a bit of an issue again, but the Big Smooth can be counted on for consistency and goodness.   I will be looking there first in the AM.  Here is the cover art of Snowbird Secrets that I am putting up to call attention to the Book Signing that is being held at the Forklift Restaurant at 4:00PM on Thursday the 7th of March.  Jackson will be in town, so we figured it would be a great time to make it happen.  Hope to see you there.   IBBY!!

Today was a perfect example ofGreat holding up all day.  With the Powder Paradise and Road to Provo opening, really big smooth grooming, cool temps, and bright Sun made the day unfold with goodness from bell to bell.  The left over Essence stayed soft and blastable all day, and only got gummy on the most Southern aspects.  Wide spread interference patterns are building rapidly, but smooth lines are still to be had with a bit of looking.  The underlying rumble is reflecting through, but is now a bit more cushioned as the snow gets worked.  Tomorrow, look for another morning of rock and roll buffage, which includes some of the lower  mountain lines that hold on for just the morning sessions before chopping out.   We will have to see what the weather does, but I am looking for some wind to work the magic before we get the next installment.  There is enough loose snow for the wind to move, and you know how I love wind deposited lines.  Check that possibility in the AM.  We are in the perfect time of the season, where the cover is great, the lines are good to go, and traffic is light on the lifts.  Here is a shot I took today at The Beach where the tradition is still holding up after all these years.  You may remember some shots of The Beach in the 80’s a while back, well here is today.  Great times, Great friends.  See you for first Boat.  Ciao!!

There was a bonus accumulation of very nice Essence delivered overnight, with a full on snow storm continuing all day long.  The depth kept building up with medium density product that began to cushion the underlying rumble.  After yesterday’s exploratory runs, I was steering clear of the highly visited lines to take advantage of the smooth I knew was available. This was important as the visibility was marginal and you needed to get all the stability factors going to keep the variations under control.  As the day progressed, and the new accumulation got worked, the consistency got better, with sojourns out the traverses offering some special sections to find.  The Sun started showing through later in the day, but the snow continued to fall lightly. It was a nice surprise, with light traffic, no waiting, sweet blower accumulation that kept getting better with each run.  Now that is a powder day.  Tomorrow, look for the weather to clear off and a cold morning.  The Sun will be a factor with the quality, so get those South and East faces early to beat the heat, and then move to the sections out of the rays.  The Groomers will be offering some of the best quality imaginable on all sides of the hill.  Road to Provo and Powder Paradise remained close today, so look for freshness as they open.  Traffic should be light again, so get as much as you can with the easy uphill access.  Since the visibility was not photogenic today, I offer this image of my experiments with color and gravity over the Summer.   I never touched this in any way.  Universe driven.   Peace Out!!

After the big Powder weekend, it was time to get back to the quiet pace of a Monday morning.  The groomers were off the charts buffed and creamy, making me not feel bad about missing the fresh untracked. But the Groomers made up for that, as they were so rich and silky that they were offering perfect smoothness which was just as good as any powder day, and it did not get tracked out until after 1:00PM.  A few millimeters of perfect dust covered the corduroy sections, that seemed surreal as the Sun refracted sparkles into the air as you passed.  Nice.  Off trail was worked over solidly, and I looked for the residual smooth that was present last week, but the chop had built up, requiring a hard charging approach, or a slower, rounder gesture to the fall line.  I went out to the boundary areas to check out the last vestiges of freshness, only to find the interference patterns had been built up with the heavy traffic that had found it all.  Softness is still to be found out and about, and will be helped by any additional accumulation.  Tomorrow, look for some overnight accumulation, variable visibility, smooth prepared Groomers, and another day of February Fun.  While I was out in the hinterlands, a temporal anomaly appeared as I was going up the chair.  Here is a shot of the temporal rift as reality blurred around the edges of the portal.  You never know when these will appear, but when they do it is always interesting.  IBBY!!

Who could blame the faithful for being on deck early for this mornings offerings.  With the Canyon closed, it was going to be one of those mornings.   I gave it a valiant try to get up the hill, but the back up seemed over the top for me, so I bagged  it for the day and told my knees to take advantage of the situation.  Here is a shot of the  Canyon back up, which extended all the way to the freeway.  This is fully 11 miles of back up.  Doh!!! Up on the hill the conditions were  full on Utah Legendary, with 15” of fresh Essence in which to frolic.   Mountain Cams were showing postcard perfect images of the new installment, all bathed in bright Sun.  This is exactly what we all have been waiting for and it has been delivered in a big way.  I do not need to describe perfection to you, suffice to say it was all that and then some.  Tomorrow, look for continued excellent quality on the hill, though some of the old layer might be reflecting through in places, but all this new cover will cushion the ride wall to wall.  Aspect will be a consideration after today’s bright Sun has had it’s way with the direct exposures, so you will find some crunch on the South facing.  West facing might have caught a bit of heat, but I think that will hold up for another day.  Look for lines that remained closed today for freshness, but it will be a wait and see if it all gets opened today or not.  I love surprises and that will go a long way to make up for today’s absence.  This is it, get there and hit the goods.  Ciao!!

It seemed like the storm was going to be a no show when I got up to check  Andromeda’s download feed this morning, but by 9:30AM the front moved through the Valley killing the signal.  DOH!! Hard hitting wind and snow wailed here at the Trailer and it built up fast.   Up on the hill the accumulation was even faster and the road closed to deal with the snow fall later in the day.  It had to be a great day up there, and, judging by Facebook posts, everyone was getting into the energy of the moment.  Storm riding is a special time to be on the hill with the wind, vague visibility, mounting snow, and continually filling lines makes the experience a rare and tasty treat.  The harsh conditions sent folks heading down the Canyon ahead of the closure, leaving the rest of the faithful to work the Essence as it fell.   There was a brief period of clearing skies in the early afternoon, and  I took the opportunity to clear off the antenna array to continue that download feed that got interrupted by the front moving through, but clouds moved in quickly and more snow began to fall.    Tomorrow, look for Canyon issues in the AM, fresh accumulation on the hill, and another day of full on Deep Snow sliding.  We won’t have to hear the ” We need more snow” chant now that the Promise of the Wasatch has once again brought the goods.  “The Chef” would be pleased to be cooking with such great product.  Here is a shot of the Cliffs out there by Ski Patrol Gully gleaming in the morning Sun during our Lewis and Clark lap the other day, while on the front side of the hill the clouds were wall to wall.  This was the other dimension!!  Stay Frosty!!

It was snowing briskly as first Tram left the dock and the small accumulation was more that enough to sweeten the dance floor.  Snow fell all day off and on, with periods of Sun shining through from time to time, and I got to charge White Diamonds just as a window opened illuminating the line.  Seemed like it was just for me.  Mineral was very nice, with some great low angle lines being ignored in the fog.  The hill is getting softer everyday, and the forecast is for a significant installment to arrive in the morning.  The last arrival timing I saw indicates  that an early start up the canyon will pay dividends as it could get very greasy quickly, so get there and go for the coffee top off.  The wind is also expected to be an issue, so go dressed for the storm and riding chairs in big wind.  This could be the wind we need to fill in the Upper High North sections that have been rasty as of late, and I would love to just roll in there without having to tip toe.  Tomorrow will be a toss up in the sense that the wind, snow, and visibility will be challenging, but these extreme conditions so often offer some really special experiences.  I will be off tomorrow to recoup and work on the antenna array.  Here is a shot of the new run sign in commemoration of Glen Doherty that was officially opened this morning.  All his friends showed up to celebrate his life..  Thanks Glen!!   Ciao!

Well, all that positive visualization by the faithful paid off with an overnight accumulation of 6 inches of light density Essence that covered the hill wall to wall.   The inimitable “Kung Fu” characterized today’s installment as a High Voltage, Mouth Watering GIFT, and I had to agree!  The Tram line was backed up before first Tram left, so hitting the High Speed Quads was the call with no waiting and a fast ride to the top.  I took the Tunnel to Mineral Basin to take advantage of the Sun and get out ahead of the crowd that was sure to hit the bowls.  Here is a shot of the middle of the Tunnel where the ceiling is very high.  I used a flash this time to make the detail better, but the focus was iffy.   Doh!!  There was great turning on the low angle lines, as the light density made the bottom rumble a full on issue.  I was working from memory, looking for the smooth lines I have been working all week.  It was so great to have the fluff to dance around in.  The front side of the hill was very nice as well, with the sheltered sections collecting some extra depth that seemed much deeper than 6”.   Everyone was getting after it, and it got stirred up quickly, however, the harbor chop remained blastable and soft well onto the afternoon.  Clouds moved in later, with flurries falling continually.  Perhaps we will get some more of the Ultra Light if the instability continues.  Tomorrow, look for more fluff, smooth Groomers, and much better cushion to the ride as the new snow gets worked in.  Entrances are getting filled, but be aware of the first sections until you get fully into the line.   Nice forecast in store, so be ready for fun and epic turns.   IBBY!!

This morning had it all going, with a flash accumulation of 1” of medium density snow, which fell in the first 45 minutes after first Tram docked.  This flash installment made a huge difference in the ride, with a nice cushion and buff on top of the nicely prepared Groomers.  The flurry moved through quickly, clearing off and revealed some nice bright Sun to make the dance floor illuminated.  I took advantage of the light to get a look around at the lines I wanted to check out.  This came in handy as the clouds moved back in as the morning progressed, making the visibility problematic from time to time.  The smooth lines on the front of the hill were holding the smooth nicely and hitting the empty lines was a lot of fun, especially as back to back Trams were a given with the light traffic.  I left at 2:00PM, when an impulse moved in with large light flakes falling in profusion.  If it kept up like that for any length of time there would be significant build up.  I think we might get some additional accumulation with the unsettled pattern, and since anything can happen here, I am going to hold the vision of a surprise in the morning.  Who is with me?  Tomorrow, look for another unsettled day, with some periods of Sun perhaps.  The South facing aspects have become quite crusty, but most other exposures are still holding the cold, but are still quite firm.  Look for the Groomers to be offering the goods as usual and light traffic.  Here is a shot of the Porcupine hanging out just off the trail as I was passing by.  Cute cuddly little guy, but a hug would cost you, as he looked prickly.   Peace Out!!

The Sunshine held out for most of the day before the cloud deck moved in later in the day.  The morning session was still brisk even though the temps were warmer, the stout South wind kept the chill going.  Once again the Grooming Crew had prepared some smooth lines on all sides of the hill, but as the wind was cooking, it seemed they were bit firmer until the transported snow began to collect and the traffic shaved off the dust that built up for later velvet as the day progressed.  Lower Primrose was, once again, buffed out super wide and was even more consistent than the other day.  How do you choose when you have so many kicking choices?  Hit them all, and hit them often.  As anticipated, the wind began to fill the North East aspects as the day progressed and it was worth the time to go looking for the spots where the transported snow was landing.  I went out looking and found very nice lines way out on the boundary lines.   Tomorrow, look for a day of storm riding as the precipitation is looking like it will fill in for the day.  There are also numerous storms lined up for the week, so gird your grid for a big one. It is going to get deep.  The conditions are going to get soft again quickly, and the interference patters will mellow out as it gets deeper.  A few days from now the hard pack will be a footnote.  See you there for the storm riding fun!!!  Here is a shot to the South, with it looking like being in Heaven…. but there we are!!!  IBBY!!