jamesdeluxe
Well-known member
- Joined
- Jul 17, 2020
During this abbreviated (for me) season, it looks like I'm currently on my only destination trip, one where I'm taking advantage of the Powder Alliance on my Loveland season pass to visit two ski areas in northern Idaho.
While it was pouring that morning in NJ, the skies cleared up shortly after takeoff and I had a great view of Chicagoland from six miles up. I could even see a golf course where I used to play in the mid-90s in Hyde Park on the south side.
Arriving several hours later in Spokane, I was reminded how easy the airport there is to navigate, including the only free luggage carts I've ever encountered on this side of the Atlantic:
The car rental counters are just steps from the luggage carousels -- no schlepping your bags into a bus like in Denver -- and the cars themselves are literally 30 yards from the counters:
With my 12:30 pm arrival, I had plenty of time to go to Mount Spokane for 3 pm "night skiing" in the bright sunlight (it didn't get dark until 5:45) but I unfortunately left my phone in the car so no pix. A good deal at only $27.
The next day I drove 45 minutes east on I-90 to Silver Mountain, located right along the interstate with quite a back story -- originally opened in 1967 as Jackass Ski Bowl in honor of a stray mule, which was found on top of a huge vein of lead ore in the 1880s. Reportedly, the valley for many decades mined 45% of all the silver that was produced in the U.S. and had huge lead-zinc-silver smelters that polluted the air, poisoned the surrounding soils, and resulted in a monstrous Superfund site. In 1973, they rebranded the ski area as Silverhorn, and then again in 1989 as Silver Mountain, at which time they installed the longest gondola in the U.S. to transport skiers from the base area to the actual ski terrain, an almost 20-minute ride.
Arriving at 8 am, they'd already reached their weekend-day quota:
Sunday had nice conditions from the ten inches that fell Thursday; however, with overcast skies and fog up top I didn't take any pix other than this shot of the original 1967 Riblet double chair from its Jackass incarnation. For some reason, I was expecting Silver to have mostly newer infrastructure but once you're on the hill, it's actually a quasi lift museum. The newest uphill transport is the gondola at 32 years and all of the chairs are fixed grips that look to be 40+ years old.
The base area feels new with condos and hotels built in recent years. Looks like something I'd imagine in California or maybe Stratton in the east.
Here's the gondola building:
The website claims 1,600 skiable acres and a 2,200-foot vertical drop with annual snow in the low 300s.
I met up with an acquaintance from a different ski forum, a boarder who's moved all over the west and is currently living in McCall, Idaho near Brundage Mountain, so it was nice to have company as I usually ski solo:
On the far looker's right is Wardner Peak, which you have to cross into and/or bootpack up to the top. He wasn't happy about the "no snowboarders on traverse" sign; however, it entails some poling so I guess it makes sense.
He got a few shots of me:
A very nice early spring day and it looks like the rest of my stay will be equally sunny.
While it was pouring that morning in NJ, the skies cleared up shortly after takeoff and I had a great view of Chicagoland from six miles up. I could even see a golf course where I used to play in the mid-90s in Hyde Park on the south side.
Arriving several hours later in Spokane, I was reminded how easy the airport there is to navigate, including the only free luggage carts I've ever encountered on this side of the Atlantic:
The car rental counters are just steps from the luggage carousels -- no schlepping your bags into a bus like in Denver -- and the cars themselves are literally 30 yards from the counters:
With my 12:30 pm arrival, I had plenty of time to go to Mount Spokane for 3 pm "night skiing" in the bright sunlight (it didn't get dark until 5:45) but I unfortunately left my phone in the car so no pix. A good deal at only $27.
The next day I drove 45 minutes east on I-90 to Silver Mountain, located right along the interstate with quite a back story -- originally opened in 1967 as Jackass Ski Bowl in honor of a stray mule, which was found on top of a huge vein of lead ore in the 1880s. Reportedly, the valley for many decades mined 45% of all the silver that was produced in the U.S. and had huge lead-zinc-silver smelters that polluted the air, poisoned the surrounding soils, and resulted in a monstrous Superfund site. In 1973, they rebranded the ski area as Silverhorn, and then again in 1989 as Silver Mountain, at which time they installed the longest gondola in the U.S. to transport skiers from the base area to the actual ski terrain, an almost 20-minute ride.
Arriving at 8 am, they'd already reached their weekend-day quota:
Sunday had nice conditions from the ten inches that fell Thursday; however, with overcast skies and fog up top I didn't take any pix other than this shot of the original 1967 Riblet double chair from its Jackass incarnation. For some reason, I was expecting Silver to have mostly newer infrastructure but once you're on the hill, it's actually a quasi lift museum. The newest uphill transport is the gondola at 32 years and all of the chairs are fixed grips that look to be 40+ years old.
The base area feels new with condos and hotels built in recent years. Looks like something I'd imagine in California or maybe Stratton in the east.
Here's the gondola building:
The website claims 1,600 skiable acres and a 2,200-foot vertical drop with annual snow in the low 300s.
I met up with an acquaintance from a different ski forum, a boarder who's moved all over the west and is currently living in McCall, Idaho near Brundage Mountain, so it was nice to have company as I usually ski solo:
On the far looker's right is Wardner Peak, which you have to cross into and/or bootpack up to the top. He wasn't happy about the "no snowboarders on traverse" sign; however, it entails some poling so I guess it makes sense.
He got a few shots of me:
A very nice early spring day and it looks like the rest of my stay will be equally sunny.
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