Craig's Report - January 30, 1999

Very nice, but interesting snow

Polar Peak from Currie Bowl

I had planned a day of rest today, but about one o'clock I noticed little black shapes scurrying through Currie. That and the relatively clear skies were enough to convince Chris and I to grab a quick run up there before collecting the kids from their ski lessons.

(Currie Bowl and the Elk Valley from the top White Pass)

Even from the bottom it appeared that folks seemed to be sitting right on top of the snow, rather than sinking into the big fluffy clouds as you might expect given the 90 cm of snow received in the last week.

Sure enough the snow in Currie was very dense and you only sank in a few centimeters. It was almost like a crust except you stayed on top and it carved in the most delightful way. This was really the ticket for skiing steeps and while I really like powder, this rather strange stuff was right up there on my smile meter.

(Beginner Route Down Currie)

Since it was clear, I of course had to take pictures which I can't really fit into the narrative, so I'll just babble on about them for a bit.

This one shows a portion of the only beginner run in Currie. One didn't see folks exactly snow plowing down here and in fact the hill had posted a warning at the Currie entrance warning there was no easy way down. The Corner Pocket and Saddles are in the upper center of the picture.

(Currie snow close up)

While this picture might make you think it was crusty, it really wasn't. Well perhaps a bit farther down, but just a little bit. Certainly it was carving snow though and I doubt serious tail skidders would have enjoyed it.

(Timber Ridge, Currie side)

It was such a nice day that even my normally apathetic 11 year old was up for some more runs after we gathered the kids, so he and I zoomed back to Currie. I took this shot of the Currie side of Timber ridge as further evidence for the folks who sometimes ask if Fernie will have anything steep enough to challenge them. If the thought of skiing this stuff doesn't get your pulse up, I would suggest you check out either the defibrillator market or life insurance rates.

We finished off with a family run in the gentle trees in Siberia. This was perhaps a little more crust like, but responded nicely to a gentle touch or better yet, the feather weight of a 7 year old.

All in all it was a very pleasant afternoon for a non skiing day. <g>

At 6:10 PM it is just about 0 C at the house and a little too dark to tell if the sky is clear or not (I think so).

(Click on any picture for a larger version)