Category: Resort Skiing

Weekend Powder Stoke (21 & 22 Jan 2012)

Posted by Brittany – January 22, 2012

The town was buzzing on Friday, knowing that the first significant snowfall for months was quickly approaching. NOAA forecasted the storm would hit at 11 am on Saturday morning. Flakes began to fall from the sky at 10:30 that morning, and we were elated. We let the snow accumulate while we worked on a few projects in our apartment. But, when we looked glanced out the window at 11:30, we realized it had already snowed a couple of inches. It was time to grab the skis and go!

It dumped all afternoon, yet the lines were like this.
Photobucket

The snow continued to fall all day long. When I took a quick break, I came out and my skis had been quickly buried.
Photobucket

The skiing got better and better throughout the day. And during our last two runs, we decided to grab a few quick shots.

Frank sporting his tele-steeze.
Photobucket

Read more

What we’ve got

Posted by Brittany – January 8, 2012

We’ve been waiting for this. We’ve been waiting for far too long. On Saturday morning, we were awakened by the sound of a snow plow. The building shook as the mighty machine scraped the two inches of snow off the parking lot pavement and dumped it on top of our tiny snow banks. It’s been a bad snow year so far. There’s no debate about it. And while last year two inches of fresh felt like dust on crust, this year’s dry spell has made two inches feel more like two feet. It was declared a powder day.

We grabbed our skis and headed to the ski area. Yelps and smiles and shouts of elation were everywhere. Two inches became three inches and three inches became five as snow continued to fall throughout the day. I felt my edges carving through the newly fallen snow as if they were razor sharp, something I rarely feel on the man-made frozen congealed slop.

We made our way to the East River lift. “Scrape, scrape, brush, brush,” was the sound our skis made as we glazed over rock after rock and blasted through the small trees and bushes. The coverage was thin, but it was natural snow- natural snow with fresh snow on top of it. And that made it fantastic.

Last year we were spoiled. We would have either laughed or cried at the desperation we find ourselves in today, where skiing a black diamond bump run laden with rocks and bushes has been the highlight of our lift-served experience, where two inches of fresh is declared a pow-day. But, no skier on the mountain yesterday could deny that it wasn’t a good day. Because it WAS a good day!

Sometimes the best days are the ones that remind you what you’ve got :)

Guest Blog: Finding the Perfect Ski Resort

Posted by Brittany – October 10, 2011

Snow has fallen and many of us have made our first turns of the year. And for some, now is the time to begin thinking of the escape for a winter ski vacation. A guest blog from FindTheBest gives some advice for finding which ski resort is right for you and your vacation.

With over 1000 resorts across the country, choosing the destination for your next snow filled vacation can be a daunting task. From average snowfall to lift ticket prices to amount of skiable acres, there are tons of factors that can come into play when deciding where to hit the slopes next. Fortunately, this new Ski Resort Comparison helps sift through your options to find what resort fits your own personal preferences.

Looking for a Colorado Ski Resort with a Kid’s Ski School and lift tickets on the cheaper side? Just enter in your location, adjust the price slider to what your budget allows, and let the tool do all the work. Because the resort comparison includes all U.S. ski resorts as well as the major international ones, you can be sure that you’re not missing out on anything. Lastly, if you’re having trouble choosing between a few resorts, view all of the park information in a side-by-side comparison to really get down to the details.

Next time you’re trying to decide where to spend your next ski or snowboard vacation, get all the facts from this free resort comparison, and find the resort that’s truly made for you on FindTheBest.com.

Ski With The Bride (18 June 2011)

Posted by Brittany – June 23, 2011

Skiing is my means of escape. Many of you know that already. But, many of you don’t know to what extent I’ll seek that escape. Like the morning of my wedding. Instead of stressing about last minute decorations and getting my nails done, I went skiing. I invited any girl that I thought would be interested in joining. In the end, there was still just a small troop of seven- many of whom had joined me on my bachelorette outing last month. But, for a little group, we had a lot of fun :)

We began by meeting around 7:30 in the parking lot of my building and all piling into Ann’s truck for the short drive to the ski area. Headwall was our goal. Sonya, Gerlinde, Susan, Me, Pam, Kim.
Photobucket
Photo courtesy of Ann Driggers

The snow has been gradually melting. As a result, we had to hike about 15 minutes on a dirt road until we reached the snow.
Photobucket
Photo courtesy of Ann Driggers

Read more

TR: Headwall Happiness

Posted by Brittany – June 7, 2011

This spring has been unreal. The calendar says it’s spring, but most of our “spring” felt like winter. Storm after storm bombarded our weather and our small mountain town. Though frustrating at times because it was hard to venture into the high country, I can’t complain about the snow. I’ll take it, and I’ll assume it’s Mother Nature’s wedding gift to us :)

The snow has been slow to melt. I would estimate we are about 3 weeks behind recent snow melt levels. Because of this, I’ve been able to continue to easily do after work laps at the ski area.

The ski area on the last day of May.
Photobucket

Runs on the front side of the ski area are interrupted by plowed roads. But, head to the backside, and you’ll find perfect icing on cake. A lap on the Headwall can easily be done in two hours if you park at the ski area boundary on Prospect. Frank and I have taken advantage of this easy access and great skiing a few different times in the last couple of weeks.

May 25
Frank making his way on the road. After parking at the top of Prospect, there is a 5 minute walk on the road to the Teocalli lift.
Photobucket

The Headwall in the distance. It looks better than it does during the heart of the ski season!
Photobucket

Read more

TR: After work skin – CB Peak (5 Apr 2011)

Posted by Brittany – April 13, 2011

Okay I’ll admit it. I’ve got a bit of spring fever. But, when most people dream of beaches and bathing suits during spring, I dream of skiing. The longer days, the wonderful sunshine, and the blanket of creamy snow all around me make me want to head to the highest peaks and the gnarliest lines that I dream to ski.

While the peak of Crested Butte isn’t exactly gnarly or very high, it’s an ambition all the same when done as an after work skin. I usually make it a ritual to visit the peak during closing day every year. Well, last Sunday’s closing day the weather was poor and the peak never opened. Feeling sad that I was missing my annual ritual, I vouched to skin up to the peak later on during the week.

Tuesday was the day. It was bluebird and wonderful- the perfect day to be outside. I began at 5 pm and headed up International. The peak was still 3000 ft above me.
Photobucket

Getting closer, but not really.
Photobucket

I was enjoying myself.
Photobucket

Read more

Roadtrip 2011: Stevens Pass 2-17-11

Posted by Frank – February 27, 2011

As much as I love the skiing in Crested Butte, sometimes you just gotta get out of town and ski some different terrain. I’ll be spending the next 2-3 weeks up here in Pemberton, BC, but I needed to make a quick stop in Leavenworth, WA to visit my friend Stone Parker along the way. Stone makes amazing rings, and since Brittany and I are in the market for a couple of rings, I crashed at his house to talk shop and get guided around his home area of Stevens Pass while I was at it. First I had to check out the faux Bavarian village of Leavenworth. Nobody told me I was going to run into “Der Radhaus”, as the local ski shop is called, but everything in this town is named in some kind of “Germerican”, as I will choose to call this relative of “Spanglish”. Sort of cool and cheesy at the same time…
Photobucket

Photobucket

In any case, the skiing at Stevens didn’t disappoint. I’d long heard great things about the mountain, and as long as it isn’t raining, as it often does here in WA, Stevens sits solidly in my top ten list for North American Ski Areas. It never hurts to have an awesome guide like Stone, either. Some sampling of the terrain:
Photobucket

Photobucket

One of Stone’s friends:
Photobucket

Self-portrait somewhere in the vicinity:
Photobucket

It was hard enough chasing Stone around without stopping to take photos, so POV will have to suffice. Most of the video was a short hike from the area, although there is plenty of in-bounds terrain that is just as good. They’re just so spoiled here that the thought of skiing something with more than one track is nearly unthinkable.

Stevens Pass 2-17-11 from 14erskiers on Vimeo.

I tried to roll out of Steven’s with plenty of time to make it through the border crossing and arrive in Pemberton at a reasonable hour. Sometimes the border is a piece of cake, sometimes it’s a pain in the butt. Sadly, on this trip I got the latter, with a full search of the truck and accusations that I was moving to Canada. I tried to tell them I would have been taking a lot more skis and my bike as well if I was, but they weren’t buying it. Meanwhile, a storm was brewing in North Vancouver that continued all the way through Whistler. A couple of one-hour delays on the highway and a crazy game of “weave through the stuck cars” eventually got me to Pemberton around 3am- a 12 hour drive that usually takes half that. I snapped one photo during a good part of the drive- I’d have to call this drive one of the worst I’ve ever done:
Photobucket

In the end it was worth it, and we got to ski the beer spines (names will be withheld and made-up on this trip) the next day, but more on that later…

More Road Trip 2011 Posts:
Stevens Pass
No Sleep Spines
O Face
Pemby BC
Luna Creek
Trandem Trees
Whistler/Vancouver
Down Days and thoughts on snomo skiing
Dope Creek 1
Dope Creek 2

Support the 14erskiers habit: SEMI-ANNUAL SALE – 40% OFF at BACKCOUNTRY.COM (Plus Free 2-Day Shipping on all Clothing) Expires 3/1/2011

Random Pics

Posted by Brittany – February 17, 2011

It’s been awhile since we’ve posted. It’s not that we haven’t been out and about enjoying our snow. No, it’s been just the opposite. Our free time has been spent having fun:)

Frank left early Tuesday morning for the long drive toward Pemberton, just a half an hour away from Whistler. He’ll be enjoying life there for the next month or so. Thankfully, I will be able to join him for a week of it, as I fly north on Saturday. We’ll be joining up with (and invading the space of) our friends John and Susan. Thanks guys. Can’t wait for the fun :)

Of course, we’ll be posting up a few pics here and there, and hopefully several rounds of TR’s, from our adventures in Canada. But, until then, here’s a few random pics we’ve taken in the last couple of weeks to tide you over :)

CB Resort

Frank.
Photobucket

Me.
Photobucket

Read more

TR: Pow-Day Surprise – CB resort (22 Jan 2011)

Posted by Brittany – January 23, 2011

The forecast called for snow arriving Friday night and into Saturday. But, it only called for a few inches. Upon waking, we glanced out the window and saw what looked like a few inches of fresh on the ground. But, the pow-cam read nearly 9 inches and snow was continuing to pound down. It was a surprise pow-day. Yay :)

Even better- patrol had all the goods open. Phoenix/Spellbound and Third Bowl along with Headwall were all for the taking. I took the opportunity to hit up a couple of lines I haven’t skied in a few years, like Toilet Bowl. Here’s Frank charging down the upper part of the “bowl”.
Photobucket

Photobucket

Photobucket

Read more

TR: We’re going to Jackson – MLK whirlwind

Posted by Brittany – January 21, 2011

It’s Friday and I’m still recovering from last weekend’s whirlwind tour of Jackson Hole. A storm cycle was setting to hit up north and we timed it perfectly. With a floor to crash on and $59 tickets (a deal for all Crested Butte pass-holders), it was a low budget trip for us. After rolling into Jackson around 10:30 in the morning, we hit up the resort right away. Here’s what we found through the weekend….

Frank.
Photobucket

The new tram.
Photobucket

Read more