January 18, 2000

A Day without Fresh Powder

There are advantages to no new snow. The driveway needs no attention. The snowplows get a chance to start moving the snow banks banks on the ski hill road back so we might be able to walk up to the hill and back without fearing for our lives. The cats get a chance to groom the cruisers into a soft corduroy that provides a nice break from skiing all that fluff. Okay I made that last part up, but the cruisers were nice enough to provide even a die hard bark gnawer like me with a measure of pleasure in setting an edge.

There was some old powder to be had in places, but it was a bit dense and generally inferior in quality to fine stuff we have been getting used to. In places the chopped could even be said to approaching crud and while everything I skied held a good edge, I did notice areas on North Ridge where my skis made a bit of that ugly scraping noise. Of course these elitist quibbles are probably put in proper perspective by a sign at the top of the Boom chair which asked 'I wonder what life in the real world is like?'. :-)

Most reasonably accessible places, including Cedar Ridge, Concussion Chutes and of course Sunny Side, had been packed into moguls that were soft and generally round and friendly. I passed the Face Lift just before it opened around one o'clock, but somehow waiting in line for the minimal fresh vertical it would offer did not seem worth while to me. With it open, the avalanche boards were once again all green.

There was an unusual flaming orb in the sky for a while this morning, but the familiar gray cloak was once again overhead by the time I headed it. However I see a lot of blue up there now, so it is probably good that I practiced my edging while heading down Meadow; just in case the Real World comes calling.

At twenty to five in the afternoon, it is -2 C at the house.