Stay Spoiled, Steamboat
Punxsutawney Phil failed to see his shadow yesterday. That means we’re hanging tight with winter until the Earth’s rotational axis lines up for spring’s official arrival on March 21. Enjoy the snow.: 228″ to date this season, with two 100+” months in a row under our belt…and winter is set to continue spoiling us with snowflakes throughout the days and weeks ahead.
Today, it’s a powder day in the ‘boat. Five inches of fresh overnight. You can thank the fat little aforementioned rodent for that.
You might not have guessed it by the size of the giant flakes floating peacefully out of the dark sky, but it was a little windy on Storm Peak last night. This morning, we have zero wind, clear skies and a thermometer lingering in the pure comfort zone.
With enough new snow to ensure everything is soft, the wind did a fine job of doing some deceptive “filling in” on the bumps. Priest Creek Lift Line looked like a sea of untracked pow, but crests of wind-blown snow and firm moguls underneath kept it interesting. On the other side of the mountain, a trip through Flying Z had a similar result — no snoring on the Zs today. The snow is fun — and it’s also the variety that keeps you on your toes.
On Cyclone, the snow cats left a nice stretch of freshies on skier’s right, and created a beautiful stretch of smooth down the center. By the time I got to Drop Out, I opted for the groom — smooth like velvet. And for the trip down…wow, Valley View may have been the most beautiful run of the day. Snag some fresh deep carves on that steeper terrain while you can.
Want a hot local tip for après ski this weekend? Head down to the Bud Werner Memorial Library from 3-5 pm on Saturday. They’re having a big huge 50th birthday bash. On the long list of fun to be had among the stacks of books: a ginormous cake, hot coffee, cool live music and a temporary tattoo station. This is not your average public library. If you haven’t visited, you are missing Steamboat’s best-kept secret – named for an epic local Olympic ski racer, no less.
Jennie Lay, Telemark skier
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