Bits & Pieces

Trip Report (1/18/08 - Mt. Hood Meadows) - I was able to get up there for a few hours before I had to work Friday evening. It was sunny and warm (about 40 degrees); the groomed snow was nice and easy to carve, but the snow not groomed was frozen, choppy hardpack. After a couple hours of sunshine, Upper Heather Canyon (and other non-groomed areas with sun exposure) softened nicely -- a I had a great run down Silver Bowl in Upper Heather. And then I did another lap by dropping into A-Zone and traversing/hiking over into Clark Canyon. I was able to traverse across the huge, south-facing wall (which is often unskiable given its exposure) -- it was SO smooth and not too soft. Very nice! The top of that ridge was melting out, though, so there were quite a few small rocks rolling down the slope that I had to dodge. Overall, I had fantastic day.

New Ski Review - So I finally got to try my new Rossignol Zenith Z9 skis. In short, I LOVE them. They were so smooth on the groomed -- nice and stable even when I was flying down Boulevard as fast as I could. I have a pair of Salomon Scream X-hot skis that tend to chatter a lot on this type of snow; my Rossi's didn't chatter at all. The Z9s also did well in Heather Canyon, but not as well as on the smooth groomed. I have a pair of Rossi B2s that probably would've been better in the Canyon. Overall, I'm really happy with the Z9s -- they'll be a lot of fun in the spring when it's firm hardpack in the morning.

Weather Outlook - As you've probably heard, it's going to get very cold for a few days. There will be a little new snow Saturday afternoon/evening/night (maybe 4-8" at most), then after that it'll be dry again for several days. Temperatures will fall from the 30s into the 20s by later Saturday, and then into the teens by later Sunday. Monday's and Tuesday's temperatures will be 5-15 degrees. Brrr! And the wind will pick up too -- by later Sunday, it'll be blowing hard out of the northeast. Monday looks windy, but Tuesday and Wednesday look much calmer. Lots of sunshine, though... but with the extreme cold and wind, the snow surface will become boilerplate hardpack by Monday. The next chance for any new snow will be Thursday... but that weather system looks very weak.

I'm off to Montana - Ever hear of The Yellowstone Club? It's a private ski area (about the size of Mt. Hood Meadows) adjacent to Big Sky in southern Montana. I have friends who are members and have a house there -- and they've invited me to spend a few days with them enjoying the "private powder". The average number of people on the mountain each day is about 50! I'll be sure to write a trip report and post it here, as this should be quite an experience!

Have a great weekend...