Solitude Wed 11/29

tirolerpeter · Nov 29, 2006, 11:23 PM

Solitude, Big Cottonwood Canyon

Wed 11/29

Conditions: About another 6" to 8" overnight on top of Monday's 20." Woke up to a few inches on the ground down in the valley (Sandy..about 10 mi south of SLC). Local TV was complaining about the 4 degrees cold. Decided on a "Grand Slam" at Denny's to "fuel up." Hit the mountain about 10 AM. Had to park all the way back in the 2nd row of the parking lot, nearly 100' from the door to the lodge. Today's powder was even lighter than the previous stuff. Solitude had groomed a number of runs so we took those to warm up the muscles. It definitely helped. Started working some of the ungroomed and edging in and out of some of the tree areas. Took my first "head over heels" of the trip after burying an edge of an uphill ski. No harm done except for snow in my goggles and down my neck. Even though temps were around zero early on, the absolutely BLUE sky, and the effort of working the powder runs had us sweating in no time. Solitude defines BLACK diamonds when it comes to pitch. Of course, when the snow is over your knees, and you really can't find the bottom at times, steep is a blessing. Locals keep bitching about "limited coverage." That means that the tops of some bushes are still peeking out of the snow in spots on the defined trails. Of course, that really doesn't mean much since very few people actually ski the trails. We ran out of steam a little after two and since my son and I are leaving tomorrow, and since conditions at Snowbasin don't really warrant a ski day there, I took him for a ride just to see the base lodge. He finally actually believes what I told him they were like. Those of you who have been there know what I mean. Since James is a snowboarder, we won't get to Alta this trip. So tomorrow we will toss a coin to choose between a return to "the Bird" as locals refer to it, or to go to Brighton since he has never been out to UT before.

andyzee · Nov 30, 2006, 5:47 AM

Poor guy, had to park in the second row, teach your to start getting there early! Good stuff Peter, glad you're enjoying it.

thebigo · Nov 30, 2006, 8:27 AM

Somebody has got to get this guy a camera!

Glad you are having fun, but no Alta yet?

I'll be there in two weeks, even setting up a couple interviews while im there. Maybe we could start the 'alpinezone west' chapter.

andyzee · Nov 30, 2006, 10:15 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by thebigo

Somebody has got to get this guy a camera!

Glad you are having fun, but no Alta yet?

I'll be there in two weeks, even setting up a couple interviews while im there. Maybe we could start the 'alpinezone west' chapter.

...........................................
......................

Quote:

Originally Posted by tirolerpeter

Since James is a snowboarder, we won't get to Alta this trip.

kingslug · Nov 30, 2006, 5:29 PM

It's 70 degrees here, which means I'm beyond jelouse. I'll just live vicariously through you for now.

Nov 29, 2006, 11:23 PM	#1 (permalink)
tirolerpeter Join Date: Sep 2004 Location: Draper, UT Posts: 778	Solitude Wed 11/29 Solitude, Big Cottonwood Canyon Wed 11/29 Conditions: About another 6" to 8" overnight on top of Monday's 20." Woke up to a few inches on the ground down in the valley (Sandy..about 10 mi south of SLC). Local TV was complaining about the 4 degrees cold. Decided on a "Grand Slam" at Denny's to "fuel up." Hit the mountain about 10 AM. Had to park all the way back in the 2nd row of the parking lot, nearly 100' from the door to the lodge. Today's powder was even lighter than the previous stuff. Solitude had groomed a number of runs so we took those to warm up the muscles. It definitely helped. Started working some of the ungroomed and edging in and out of some of the tree areas. Took my first "head over heels" of the trip after burying an edge of an uphill ski. No harm done except for snow in my goggles and down my neck. Even though temps were around zero early on, the absolutely BLUE sky, and the effort of working the powder runs had us sweating in no time. Solitude defines BLACK diamonds when it comes to pitch. Of course, when the snow is over your knees, and you really can't find the bottom at times, steep is a blessing. Locals keep bitching about "limited coverage." That means that the tops of some bushes are still peeking out of the snow in spots on the defined trails. Of course, that really doesn't mean much since very few people actually ski the trails. We ran out of steam a little after two and since my son and I are leaving tomorrow, and since conditions at Snowbasin don't really warrant a ski day there, I took him for a ride just to see the base lodge. He finally actually believes what I told him they were like. Those of you who have been there know what I mean. Since James is a snowboarder, we won't get to Alta this trip. So tomorrow we will toss a coin to choose between a return to "the Bird" as locals refer to it, or to go to Brighton since he has never been out to UT before.

Nov 30, 2006, 5:29 PM	#5 (permalink)
kingslug Join Date: Dec 2005 Location: looooooong island ny Posts: 1,584	It's 70 degrees here, which means I'm beyond jelouse. I'll just live vicariously through you for now. __________________ Lets go! I'll drive.

Thread Tools
Show Printable Version Email this Page
Display Modes
Linear Mode Switch to Hybrid Mode Switch to Threaded Mode

Nov 30, 2006, 5:47 AM	#2 (permalink)
andyzee Join Date: Sep 2004 Location: Home Posts: 7,583	Poor guy, had to park in the second row, teach your to start getting there early! Good stuff Peter, glad you're enjoying it.

Nov 30, 2006, 8:27 AM	#3 (permalink)
thebigo Join Date: May 2005 Location: NH seacoast Posts: 420	Somebody has got to get this guy a camera! Glad you are having fun, but no Alta yet? I'll be there in two weeks, even setting up a couple interviews while im there. Maybe we could start the 'alpinezone west' chapter.