How much snow do you need?

[JD]

How much of a dump does it take to get you up tp the hill with your gear?
For me, If there's snow in the lot, I'll prolly go up for a peak.
How much snow do you need to head into the woods?
Alot of folks talk about 40 inches being a good rule. I go into places with way less then that, If I know what it's like with no snow, other places need more....Like the 100 inch chute.

 

[dmc]

As long as the bones get coverred - I'll ride...
I've seen tons of injuries in slackcountry where people hit things under the snow..

 

[riverc0il]

depends on a few variables: snow consistancy, snow weight, type of slope, etc. for example, 4 or 5 inches of wet heavy snow will do it for most blue square/intermediate and well maintained slopes whereas the light and fluffy variety of precipitation i would feel more comfortable with 8 inches so i wasn't completely bottoming out. the woods are harder to call depending upon how boney and well maintained the woods are. without base, i would want two feet minimum on a well maintained trail that is known to have no blow downs or other issues. three feet plus for more suspect trails. last year i skied the bruce on only a foot and a half, that was interesting :lol: two to three feet for boney non-tree trails is solid, though i have earned turns in a foot and a half at cannon's not as well maintained slack country sections without much issue. a lot of it depends on how the trail looks like without snow to determine how much of what type of snow is needed.

 

[JD]

Yea, someone said 30 inches for the Bruce. Still a bit whippy in spots, but is pretty much good.

 

[andyzee]

Enough to keep my purty skis off the nasty rocks and snakes.

 

[thebigo]

Enough to make a lift turn.

 

[loafer89]

I skied on next to nothing early season at Killington in early October. They used to open trails in the early season with the guns going and the grass just turning white

Ah the good old days.

 

[Powdr]

My rule of thumb is that the unconsolidated snow has to reach 2/3rd of the way up my pole (about 36") when I push it through at the parking lot level. I'll XC or snowshoe in a lot less, but no way am I making turns in anything less.

Powdr

 

[RIDEr]

While in Telluride and ABasin last year I had some pretty thin cover on a few of the bowls and shutes I rode, but it isn't anything ptex won't fix...

 

[Greg]

Enough to make a lift turn.

What he said.

 

[Jonni]

What he said.

Ditto.

 

[loafer89]

This thread had me thinking of this picture of my brother on Bittersweet:

Is that enough snow?

 

[riverc0il]

i'd hit that. though consolidated snow is a much different beats. if there are no gaps, i would ski down to only an inch or two of consolidated snow no worries on many trails in the east. powdr highlighted that there is a huge difference between snow pack requirements for most east ski area trails compared to the rockier stuff out west.

 

[David Metsky]

Enough to make a lift turn.

Nah, you don't need that much.

-dave-

 

[Kerovick]

Seeing as I'm in Maryland I'll ski whatever I can!!\

Kero

 

[John84]

Seeing as I'm in Maryland I'll ski whatever I can!!\

Kero

Cool, someone else from Maryland.

 

[awf170]

I think it all depends on the density of the snow. 1 ft. of sierra cement is a lot better base then 3 ft. of utah pow. I have skied 3 ft. of powder over no base up Lynn woods and destoyed my skis, and I have skied 1.5 ft. of heavy wet snow over no base in the woods at Wildcat and did no damage at all.

 

[Kerovick]

Another Skins fan!! Sweet! I worked in rockville at not to long ago.

Kero