Predictably after my comments of yesterday, today they closed the Reverse Traverse on the New Side so we could not get out to Easter to ski down and the only way to get off the New Side was to down load on Timber Chair. We had to do that both at the end of the morning and at the end of the afternoon so I have to put my hand up to being a pussy twice over by my own definition although in my defence I had no choice in the matter,
It was +6 on the way to the hill this morning and light rain off and on. When we got to the hill things started to feel a bit colder and the precip started to come down as ice pellets. We went to the Old Side and found that things were pretty mellow with a softening surface all the way across the top of Lizard Bowl - Cedar, Boom, North Ridge etc. all remained closed as they have been for a week or so now. Well looped round waiting for the start of the Powder Peddle Paddle and had several good runs back down to the Bear load through Bear, Arrow, Bow, Cascade and Dancer all of which were smooth and softening.
The start of the PPP was delayed for over half an hour so drifted off to the New Side to try our luck. Our Luck wasn't up to much as Polar Peak was closed in strong winds and poor viz and Easter was closed due to "conditions" so we just had the White Pass loop and Currie Bowl back via Trespass Trail - needless to say Knot Chutes were also closed. We were ambushed by conditions in that we were dressed for spring skiing and what we got on the New Side was full on winter. Temps were at or about zero and stayed there most of the day. The wind howled in through Lost Boys pass and threatened to shut down the Timber Chair for a while. The precip came down as stinging ice pellets which never really settled to give any kind of cover. In the afternoon things brightened up a bit but for the most part it was freezing cold with poor viz and an ugly icy skiing surface.
We did a couple of White Pass loops which confirmed that the Gun Bowl was ugly refrozen crud and Quite Right was not much better. We down loaded for lunch.
After lunch we were back up the New Side dressed more for winter and of course as the afternoon progressed the sun came out and we became over heated - that just about sums up this crappy season. We did several loops back through White Pass with the Gun Bowl always being hard icy crud and the rest not much better. We did loop out into Currie where things were much better, Down Right (smooth new ice pellets and good skiing) 1-2-3s ( the new snow putting in an ok layer on some breakable crust) Currie Glades (the new snow giving some cushion on the refrozen crud) - unfortunately the only way out was through Trespass Trail which was not as bad as I have known it because of the cold conditions but still along push on a level track which really has no place in a day's downhill skiing.
We just had time for two more icy Gun Bowl/High Line White Pass loops and it was time to down load again on Timber. As the party ran on tonight's report is late but probably not as late as tomorrow's which will follow on from celebrating last day of the season.
Sunday, April 12, 2015
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