jamesdeluxe
Well-known member
- Joined
- Jul 17, 2020
In early December, I usually try to kill off my remaining vacation days with a trip out west, where there's a generally higher chance of better conditions than back east. The majority of them have been fantastic, including last year's pow fest at Grand Targhee; however, the law of averages caught up to me. On my current five-day trip to Salt Lake City, I walked right into the jaws of a stubborn high-pressure system that shows no signs of letting up.
After starting out the season with a few huge dumps of snow, the faucet turned off and spoiled SLCers are now getting accustomed to the standard operating procedure of northeastern skiers: make do with whatever you've got or don't go skiing (there are plenty of people here in both camps). That's why you'll find variations of this slogan displayed all over town:
The Porcupine: Near Big Cottonwood Canyon
But in the glass-half-full department, thanks to the earlier storms, conditions are certainly better than back home, so who was I to complain. Although only a small percentage of Solitude is open (due as much to a lack of customers as to a lack of snow), it was enough for me to get my ski legs back under me. After the sun warmed things up by 10:30, conditions became, as he called them, "eastern excellent."
Overlooking The Eagle Terrain Pod
The Top Of The Apex Lift
We had a great time tracking through soft leftovers in lower Diamond Lane, on Alta Bird, and alongside all of the groomed trails. With only three lifts open, we even did a couple laps along the Moonbeam lift -- green trails that you'd normally only use to access the lodge at the base:
Reverse Shot: Cruising Into The Moonbeam Lodge For Lunch
While it was far from the superlative December trips that I've nailed in previous years, it's a good way to kick off the season. Moreover, I was happy to learn that my hip operation in April was a success. After two years of suffering from knife-twisting agony on every turn, it was great to be 100% pain-free again:
Peeking Into Honeycomb Canyon
After starting out the season with a few huge dumps of snow, the faucet turned off and spoiled SLCers are now getting accustomed to the standard operating procedure of northeastern skiers: make do with whatever you've got or don't go skiing (there are plenty of people here in both camps). That's why you'll find variations of this slogan displayed all over town:
The Porcupine: Near Big Cottonwood Canyon
But in the glass-half-full department, thanks to the earlier storms, conditions are certainly better than back home, so who was I to complain. Although only a small percentage of Solitude is open (due as much to a lack of customers as to a lack of snow), it was enough for me to get my ski legs back under me. After the sun warmed things up by 10:30, conditions became, as he called them, "eastern excellent."
Overlooking The Eagle Terrain Pod
The Top Of The Apex Lift
We had a great time tracking through soft leftovers in lower Diamond Lane, on Alta Bird, and alongside all of the groomed trails. With only three lifts open, we even did a couple laps along the Moonbeam lift -- green trails that you'd normally only use to access the lodge at the base:
Reverse Shot: Cruising Into The Moonbeam Lodge For Lunch
While it was far from the superlative December trips that I've nailed in previous years, it's a good way to kick off the season. Moreover, I was happy to learn that my hip operation in April was a success. After two years of suffering from knife-twisting agony on every turn, it was great to be 100% pain-free again:
Peeking Into Honeycomb Canyon
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