Early morning clouds moved off just in time of the opening bell, with just 12 of the faithful waiting for the lift to open.  With a base temp. of 50Degrees one would think the pack would already have broken, but the pack was fairly crispy top to bottom.  Stout South winds were making the ride up the lift interesting, which persuaded the Morning Crew to forego a trip to the top to get a look at Gad 2.  There, we found Gadzooks to have been retilled, offering a Winter dry chalk that made the turns a bit more realistic relative to the more frozen lines.  The Sun would make short work of the freeze, and by 10:30 AM. the sorbet goodness was really happening,  though the upper elevations would have to wait for another hour or so.  Here is a great shot sent by Jake, which shows 3 Marmots basking in the morning Sun after a Winter of deep sleep.  The way they were playing was fun to watch.   After the lower elevations began to get soft, the Morning Crew headed to the top to get those wide open lines that had been prepared.  Here is a long shot of Regulator taken from the top of Mark Malu, which had just broken on the far left side. We followed the Sun, but kept going back to get that Zooks section that is such a rarity to see buffed out like that.  Steep, consistent, and buttery were the turns that were offered there, making the detour there well worth dialing in.  Here is a great shot of Jake and I standing at the top of Regulator, which still had not quite broken, so it was a lesson in shmooze and slide to get down the break over until the break made it a carving sensation.  Tomorrow, look for another corn fest during the morning session.  There may be some overcast skies, but they might move off like they did today.  We will just have to wait and see.  Look for more retilled lines to be happening, and look for the aspects that have had the Sun playing on them for the best early softness.  That Lower Bassakward line has been stellar from the very first chair, so don’t miss that piece of delicious.  See you there for the corn festival.  Syrup Won’t Stop ‘EM!!

It was a bluebird day all day long today, with no clouds building to shade the Sun.  The pack had the full freeze top to bottom and was very crispy, but had a crystal texture that gave a bit of tooth.  Regulator, however, was really firm and it was going to need quite a while to break. Over on Gad 2, Gadzooks had been retilled top to bottom, with lower Bassakwards offering the first break.  It would take until 11:00AM for any real significant break to begin on the entire hill.   While driving up this morning I stopped and got this shot of the fins at the mouth of theCanyon, with the Sun lighting up the mouth with a golden light.  Such an impressive wall of stone walled up there like a big breaking wave.   The Road to Provo was offering some very nice lines later in the day as the warmth began to break that North facing section.   The off trail was still a no go for most of the day with very tough sledding through the  short rumble.  I stopped on top of the ridge to get this shot of Lewis and Clark looking lonely.  We had some great times out there this season on those wide open lines that feel so good in the morning.  Tomorrow, look for another overnight freeze, with warmer daytime temps.  The break will be happening as it will, so follow the Sun for the first breaks.  That East facing aspect of Lower Bassakwards was going off first and was really a delight.  Of course, the entire hill is great when it goes off, but those early treats are worth getting there for the opening bell.  See you there for the morning laps.  Straight Ahead!!

A slight nip was still in the air this morning, as the Sun was shining and the very small turn out for the first chairs anticipated the first of the last week of the season.  Up on the hill, very nice Grooming had been done on the big drops.  Regulator and Mark Malu off the Road to Provo were calling with light dust that covered the dance floor from the overnight wind that transported the snow.  Here is a shot of Mark Malu calling the Morning Crew to hit the smooth lines that were waiting for the first run of the day.  Light traffic was a nice feature of the early morningsession.  Over on Gad 2, middle and lower Gadzooks had been prepared and had been softened by the Sun that left it sorbet sweet and also begging for numerous laps. We were putting together a top to bottom, round to Gad 2 to pack in all the exposure elements that had to be sampled as quickly as possible.  The break would have to wait until around 11:30AM. for all the North facing aspects, but whatever you hit had plenty of traction to make each turn easy and predictable.  Clouds moved in around 11:00AM., which put out the lights a bit, but visibility remained good as the cloud cover was way up high.  Tomorrow, look for another cold morning, with a freeze on the pack.  There will be plenty of Groomed lines to ply for the opening bell, so you do not have to wait for softening.  The off trail is quite stiff, difficult, and variable, so tread lightly.  Clouds may build in once again as the heating of the day rises.  Coverage is excellent, with no thin spots at all top to bottom.  The pack is as deep as it has been all season, and it is great to have this quality this late in the season.  See you for the morning session.  IBBY!!

The sky was clear and blue with the high peaks pluming in the high East wind that made the temps. Winter Cold.   The wind was transporting snow, which covered the dance floor with cold dry product that made the Groomers velvety smooth, that felt more like mid February than May first.  Here is a shot of the East Twin with the wind sending clouds of snow high in the air.  With a slight delay getting the Little Cloud chair open, the morning crew headed over to Gad 2, where very nice lines had been worked for the first time in quite a while.  Gadzooks was a real highlight, as it very rarely gets the Grooming nod, and today it was offered with steep smooth lines that were also covered with transported snow that felt deep Winter velvety.  Here is a look at the upper section with just a couple sets of tracks on it.  I had to lap this rarity a number of times, before heading over to the Little Cloud Chair to get the wide open smooth that was waiting there.  Again, the Winter conditions made the upper elevations feel smooth and arcable top to bottom.  Here is a shot of the extra wide treatment of Regulator.  The off trail was feeling pretty soft, but there was some residual rumble to deal with from all the traffic yesterday.  The Road to Provo opened a bit later, which offered a bit deeper accumulation of wind deposited snow in the bowls and some of the sections were developing wind lines.   Lower on the hill, there was some corn goodness beginning to break that felt great and made the top to bottom option a treat.  Tomorrow, look for another cold morning with wind still in the mix, so look for some transported product to be coating the smooth lines.  There will be some warming later as the Sun works the hill, so you can expect some more nice corn lines to crop up as the pack breaks.  Traffic should be very light after the weekend.  Speed Safely!!