jamesdeluxe
Well-known member
- Joined
- Jul 17, 2020
Don't you love when a weather event overperforms?
Even through yesterday evening, the forecast for overnight snow here in the Mythen Region, where I'm headquartered through Friday, called for little more than a dusting: 3-5 inches. However, London-based Alps meteorological expert Fraser Wilkin mentioned that this was "one of those annoying (to forecasters) faintly unstable airflows that can swing either way." It certainly did -- we ended up with 12-16 inches and it's still coming down here in the early evening.
Until last summer, I had no idea that this ski region even existed, but I read on Alpinforum that it was a) way more extensive than you'd ever guess from looking at the trail map, b) like something from your ski childhood: uphill transport was predominantly via t-bars, c) it was cheaper than most places in Switzerland, and d) had a total "your own private ski area" vibe.
The photos were really convincing and the descriptions made it seem like a great place to check out, so I booked a room at a small very reasonably-priced hotel right at the base of the ski area, and this morning there were a total of six cars in the parking lot across the street at 9 am... on a powder day! Alta/Snowbird, this ain't.
First chair, I mean t-bar:
The next four hours were a blur with snow anywhere from calf- to thigh-deep, no wind, and occasionally tough visual orientation due to the driving snow and intermittent fog. The terrain was mostly double-blue in pitch, like a massive Grand Targhee:
My most difficult task was finding people as subjects for photos; the place was empty:
Here's a guy getting ready to launch off a boulder:
And landing in a powder cloud as his friends watch:
By noon, it was getting nuts. Even though the snow could hardly be called champagne powder, I had my first white-room experience in many moons: ten straight turns on a steeper pitch while being completely blinded by spray. There's a skier somewhere in there:
Later in the day: a couple barns, one to sell tickets, the other a lift shack:
Tomorrow is supposed to be bluebird, so I'm planning to take a big tour and try to see as much of Mythen as possible -- and hopefully come back with pix like the guy from Alpinforum.
Even through yesterday evening, the forecast for overnight snow here in the Mythen Region, where I'm headquartered through Friday, called for little more than a dusting: 3-5 inches. However, London-based Alps meteorological expert Fraser Wilkin mentioned that this was "one of those annoying (to forecasters) faintly unstable airflows that can swing either way." It certainly did -- we ended up with 12-16 inches and it's still coming down here in the early evening.
Until last summer, I had no idea that this ski region even existed, but I read on Alpinforum that it was a) way more extensive than you'd ever guess from looking at the trail map, b) like something from your ski childhood: uphill transport was predominantly via t-bars, c) it was cheaper than most places in Switzerland, and d) had a total "your own private ski area" vibe.
The photos were really convincing and the descriptions made it seem like a great place to check out, so I booked a room at a small very reasonably-priced hotel right at the base of the ski area, and this morning there were a total of six cars in the parking lot across the street at 9 am... on a powder day! Alta/Snowbird, this ain't.
First chair, I mean t-bar:
The next four hours were a blur with snow anywhere from calf- to thigh-deep, no wind, and occasionally tough visual orientation due to the driving snow and intermittent fog. The terrain was mostly double-blue in pitch, like a massive Grand Targhee:
My most difficult task was finding people as subjects for photos; the place was empty:
Here's a guy getting ready to launch off a boulder:
And landing in a powder cloud as his friends watch:
By noon, it was getting nuts. Even though the snow could hardly be called champagne powder, I had my first white-room experience in many moons: ten straight turns on a steeper pitch while being completely blinded by spray. There's a skier somewhere in there:
Later in the day: a couple barns, one to sell tickets, the other a lift shack:
Tomorrow is supposed to be bluebird, so I'm planning to take a big tour and try to see as much of Mythen as possible -- and hopefully come back with pix like the guy from Alpinforum.
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