April 03, 2001

When Powder Pigs Can Fly

And fly they did today, as locals invoking the sacred 20 cm rule came out of the wood work and seemed to be the dominant force on the hill. As you might imagine there are a lot of folks here that are pretty passionate about their powder and certainly able to make use of it when it comes, so there were a lot of spectacular turns happening out there today. On the other hand I don't know that I would have wanted to have been in town looking for a coffee. One overheard conversation went like - Voice1: 'Geez, you're here too! We must all be here. Who's manning the phones?' Voice2: 'I dunno, I guess no one.'

The snow ranged from boot high to over your knees all over the hill and was of excellent quality except for down near the base where it was a bit heavy. Groomed areas were rather limited so it probably wasn't a good day for beginners, but for those with their powder wings it was a day to swoop and soar. It is hard to believe that the official numbers only barely broke the 20 cm mark, for the slopes flew by in true Fernie form. I was once again reminded that powder skiing like this is to everything else like a Chateau Lafite Rothschild is to Welch's grape juice. Perhaps you get the impression of someone who was rather powder deprived and thus perhaps a tad over enthusiastic about this unexpected delight? ;-)

Avalanche control was a major issue of course and the morning started with everyone confined to the infamous Fernie triangle, but Cedar Ridge opened mid morning as did the stuff off of Siberia Ridge. Both were spectacular, but to my surprise the run of the day, and hence year, was down the Morning Glory trees. Too short to be sure, but the mix of pitch, glading and surprisingly deep snow only marked by a couple of tracks where I headed down, combined into a nearly perfect powder junkies rush. Ahhh!

At twenty to three it is just below freezing at the house with a few flakes still falling.