Temp6
Well-known member
- Joined
- Aug 6, 2020
While we certainly got lucky with timing, an educated guess was made while observing weather patterns about a month ago. I threw a dart for a weekend that seemed like it could be at the end of a longer stint of high pressure, BUT, all the stars really had to align for us to catch two mountains on “the best day of the season” (according to locals at each locale). My wife Helen has always wanted to join me on a western storm chase and while this wasn’t really meant to be that type of trip, it turned out that way in the end.
Elk and stormy skies on the long mesa drive toward the San Juans
Our first day at Wolf Creek was the last day of a 40” storm cycle, just when bluebird skies returned after a foot overnight.
First Tracks
Surprisingly I did not feel any anxiety for missing out on the steepest and deepest first track turns and I gladly followed Helen down a cruiser. It was supremely fluffy (thanks to the cold temps overnight) and had plenty of pitch enough to satiate the hunger for a floating descent.
Wolf Creek has a perfect layout for us two with wildly different skill levels. There are relaxing routes down from all lifts but as they snake their way and switch back to the bottom, there are plenty of steeper lines to tackle in between the flatter “benches” which allows us to stay together while both getting our fix.
A bit deeper for Helen than the rest of us!
She’s never seen any bowl skiing and was stoked to be able to ski down under the top section on cat tracks as I hiked up to tackle the short but steep and deep lines off the top. She snagged some phenomenal photos and it was awesome using walkie talkies to coordinate my drop-ins back down to her.
It really doesn’t get much better than that!
So we had a decision to make for the next day; back to wolf for leftovers or potentially follow the next piece of low pressure energy down to New Mexico for some desert storm skiing.
Since we were staying in Santa Fe the following evening, we decided to make the drive back in the morning to Pajarito which would save us a trek of a drive after skiing.
Based on storm timing, I knew that it would only get better as the day progressed so we took our time and didn’t get on the lift until about 11. There was already a couple inches down and it was just absolutely hammering.
Pajarito might as well be called Plattarito because the similarities between the two are uncanny; steep, uninterrupted fall line and ski-on lifts even on a Saturday!
It probably wasn’t the best for Helen but she champed it for a bit and tired quickly as she was already pretty dead from her first knee deep experience the day prior.
Once she retired for the day I pretty much lapped the place until I had my fill. Indeed, the last few runs were the best as by the end of the day an easy 8-10” of desert dust had coated the mountain.
Another cool aspect of Pajarito were the classic lifts; no safety bars, and the double chair was basically just a metal frame with a giant pole in between the two seats. It was wild holding on tight and bouncing up and down very high above the hill when it stopped on occasion.
Triple
Double
If you were not paying attention when loading you were getting mowed down in cold blood.
One side of the mountain remained closed and uphillers were feasting. I traversed far enough for my last descent of the trip to get a taste of that side, pure and untracked, reminiscent of Plattekill’s front 4. Good way to end it.
Closed side
By 3pm the parking lot was a scene. Dozens of cars were stuck and/or buried, 2wd tires spinning, and multiple accidents on the access road, glad I made sure to get a good 4wd rental!
When it was all said and done I just could not believe the two days we lucked into. I think it’s safe to say that Helen preferred bluebird over storm skiing but for me, what’s underfoot is more important than what’s up above and both days were just epic!
Given the state of east coast skiing with the crowds, prices, and conditions, the urge to ski back home is fading quickly. A couple days in real mountains is enough to satisfy my whole season. But at the same time, a nor’easter seems to be just around the corner, and it’s interestingly enough the same piece of storm energy we encountered at Pajarito….
Elk and stormy skies on the long mesa drive toward the San Juans
Our first day at Wolf Creek was the last day of a 40” storm cycle, just when bluebird skies returned after a foot overnight.
First Tracks
Surprisingly I did not feel any anxiety for missing out on the steepest and deepest first track turns and I gladly followed Helen down a cruiser. It was supremely fluffy (thanks to the cold temps overnight) and had plenty of pitch enough to satiate the hunger for a floating descent.
Wolf Creek has a perfect layout for us two with wildly different skill levels. There are relaxing routes down from all lifts but as they snake their way and switch back to the bottom, there are plenty of steeper lines to tackle in between the flatter “benches” which allows us to stay together while both getting our fix.
A bit deeper for Helen than the rest of us!
She’s never seen any bowl skiing and was stoked to be able to ski down under the top section on cat tracks as I hiked up to tackle the short but steep and deep lines off the top. She snagged some phenomenal photos and it was awesome using walkie talkies to coordinate my drop-ins back down to her.
It really doesn’t get much better than that!
So we had a decision to make for the next day; back to wolf for leftovers or potentially follow the next piece of low pressure energy down to New Mexico for some desert storm skiing.
Since we were staying in Santa Fe the following evening, we decided to make the drive back in the morning to Pajarito which would save us a trek of a drive after skiing.
Based on storm timing, I knew that it would only get better as the day progressed so we took our time and didn’t get on the lift until about 11. There was already a couple inches down and it was just absolutely hammering.
Pajarito might as well be called Plattarito because the similarities between the two are uncanny; steep, uninterrupted fall line and ski-on lifts even on a Saturday!
It probably wasn’t the best for Helen but she champed it for a bit and tired quickly as she was already pretty dead from her first knee deep experience the day prior.
Once she retired for the day I pretty much lapped the place until I had my fill. Indeed, the last few runs were the best as by the end of the day an easy 8-10” of desert dust had coated the mountain.
Another cool aspect of Pajarito were the classic lifts; no safety bars, and the double chair was basically just a metal frame with a giant pole in between the two seats. It was wild holding on tight and bouncing up and down very high above the hill when it stopped on occasion.
Triple
Double
If you were not paying attention when loading you were getting mowed down in cold blood.
One side of the mountain remained closed and uphillers were feasting. I traversed far enough for my last descent of the trip to get a taste of that side, pure and untracked, reminiscent of Plattekill’s front 4. Good way to end it.
Closed side
By 3pm the parking lot was a scene. Dozens of cars were stuck and/or buried, 2wd tires spinning, and multiple accidents on the access road, glad I made sure to get a good 4wd rental!
When it was all said and done I just could not believe the two days we lucked into. I think it’s safe to say that Helen preferred bluebird over storm skiing but for me, what’s underfoot is more important than what’s up above and both days were just epic!
Given the state of east coast skiing with the crowds, prices, and conditions, the urge to ski back home is fading quickly. A couple days in real mountains is enough to satisfy my whole season. But at the same time, a nor’easter seems to be just around the corner, and it’s interestingly enough the same piece of storm energy we encountered at Pajarito….
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