- Resort or Ski Area
- Big Sky Montana
- Date
- Mar 12, 2021
- Snow Conditions
-
- Packed Powder
Resort: Big Sky, Montana
Dates: March 12-14, 2021
Conditions: Sun, temps warming into the 40's; Spring Conditions/Variable Conditions
Report: Ten years ago we moved to Salt Lake. Though we had several great areas in our backyard, I quickly looked to see where other areas were outside the Wasatch and was thrilled to see that we were relatively close to many other areas in Colorado, Wyoming, Montana, and Idaho. In September 2011 we took a spur-of-the-moment trip to Jackson, Wyoming and was just blown away by those mountains.
At some point, probably on a late night of taking care of our new baby daughter, I Googled Big Sky and ran some numbers as to travel routes and times. From Salt Lake, it is a relatively easy 5.5 hour drive. Yet, it took me 10 years to finally get up there.
A few months ago I staked out this four day weekend as the trip. It was my daughter's parent/teacher conference weekend. As life goes, plans change. A work training was moved to that week and would end on Thursday afternoon cutting it to a three-day weekend. My daughter now has a "hot/cold" reaction to skiing and was more interested in staying home than skiing. My wife was not feeling like the drive or finding accommodations for the dog. So it ended up being a much-needed solo trip.
I drove up to Idaho Falls Thursday evening. As expected, the worst part of the drive was the first hour in which, due to traffic, I only made it about 20 miles. After that it was smooth sailing. I landed at my hotel in Idaho Falls right off of I-15. I'd been to this Fairfield Inn several times for work and it's a great location and a clean hotel. I fueled up, bought some few remaining necessities, and basically hit the bed early.
Honestly, I was too excited to sleep and was up at about 6am and on the road right after 7:15 am. The remaining drive was about 2:30 or so. From I-15, U.S. 20 heads north and east to West Yellowstone, where I banged a left onto U.S. 191 north into, and out of, Wyoming and Yellowstone National Park before coming to Big Sky. The drive from West Yellowstone to Big Sky is about one hour. It is an easy and scenic drive but watch out for NPS Law Enforcement who were out everyday stopping folks (the speed limit drops from 70 to 55 inside the park limits). Traffic was relatively light. I opted to stay in West Yellowstone due to cost, convenience, amenities, and to scout out that town. To give you an idea of cost difference--I stayed at a Holiday Inn owned by Delaware North Companies (the major concessionaire for Yellowstone) and got a first-floor King Bed Room with in-room jacuzzi for $140 a night. A basic room at the new Marriott property on the Big Sky access road was $600 per night.
Route 20 is straight, fast, and scenic. About an hour north of Idaho Falls it goes from a divided highway to a two-lane highway with a speed limit of 65-70. The road leaves the flatlands of the Snake River plateau and climbed up to Island Park and eventually to the edge of Yellowstone. The Centennial Mountains quickly take up your windshield and mark the Idaho/Montana border in this area. But Lone Peak is much taller and more imposing.
I arrived at the day lot at Big Sky just shy of 9:50am. Great time. After booting up, hitting the restroom, and getting my bearings, I opted to hit Ramcharger first as there was a considerable line for Swift Current.
March 12, 2021: First Impressions, Lone Peak
A couple years ago we all heard about Ramcharger--the first 8-person bubble chair with heated seats in the U.S. if not North America. I can say it is legit. I used it a lot during my three days because it never had a line. As a single I was able to pretty much ski on. The longest wait was 2 minutes. It is comfortable, fast, and impressive. That said, it is a lot of capacity going only to Andesite Side without any access to the Lone Peak/Moonlight Basin side. I lost count of how many locals told me how they can't wait for Swift Current to be upgraded. It was set to be replaced in 2020 with a 6-person bubble, but that was pushed to 2021.
First run was down Hangman's which was wide, steep, and fast. The views were simply amazing. After that I headed over to Swift Current and skied over to Powderseeker. This lift, too, was also a favorite of mine due to comfort, speed, and lack of a line. I lapped Morningstar, Ski Time, and Never Sweat. After those runs I chose to stand in the Tram Line for Lone Peak thinking that Friday would be the least crowded day. The line was about 30-40 minutes long and I had a bluebird day with unrestricted visibility off the summit. I took in the views and took lots of pictures before heading down Liberty Bowl to the top of Dakota. It was a long and satisfying run with snow that was not powder but not frozen granular. It had been hit by the sun but had a little bit of crust. I was still excited.
I got largely untracked snow on Cardio Trio due to the fact that Dakota was dead due to a bearing failure. I cut over to Hippy Highway and found myself at the base of Shedhorn that held lots of soft snow and nice sunshine. I skied Upper Sunlight/Sunlight, Yellow Mule, Shedhorn Liftline, Chicken Head Bowl, and Lupine. The porta-potty at Shedhorn Grill made for a nice pitstop. The crowd was pretty big at the Shedhorn Grill, a yurt on the side of the mountain.
From here I was still eager to check out more terrain. Since it was now about 2:15pm, I figured that I would close out by checking out the other side of the resort. I skied Skittles down to Ramcharger (a long run) and then skied down Ponderosa to Southern Comfort. The lines were a tad long for me so I ducked into the former Spanish Peaks area and skied Hook 'Em Hoom and then Take-A-Bough down to the Lewis & Clark High Speed Bubble Quad. There was NOBODY on this side and, honestly, Spanish Peaks was more about homes and the club rather than skiing and ski terrain. The new Montage is coming along.
It was now after 3:15 or so and I wanted to hit Thunder Wolf before closing out. I rode Southern Comfort and then struggled to find the "right" way to get to Big Horn. I say struggled because it was very easy to get disoriented and end up on the wrong run heading the wrong way. I cut through the trees and then headed down Ponderosa to Big Horn. Wow--the lower part of Big Horn is nothing short of impressive. It had consistent pitch right down to the lift and plenty of room. Wow.
By now the crowds were winding down and Thunder Wolf was pretty quiet. I did a spin down Elk Park Ridge, which was skied off at this point in the day, but still fun. Last run was down Safari to the base. According to the app, I clocked in over 33 miles of skiing with not much of a break.
Stay tuned for pictures from the first day and the next day report.
Dates: March 12-14, 2021
Conditions: Sun, temps warming into the 40's; Spring Conditions/Variable Conditions
Report: Ten years ago we moved to Salt Lake. Though we had several great areas in our backyard, I quickly looked to see where other areas were outside the Wasatch and was thrilled to see that we were relatively close to many other areas in Colorado, Wyoming, Montana, and Idaho. In September 2011 we took a spur-of-the-moment trip to Jackson, Wyoming and was just blown away by those mountains.
At some point, probably on a late night of taking care of our new baby daughter, I Googled Big Sky and ran some numbers as to travel routes and times. From Salt Lake, it is a relatively easy 5.5 hour drive. Yet, it took me 10 years to finally get up there.
A few months ago I staked out this four day weekend as the trip. It was my daughter's parent/teacher conference weekend. As life goes, plans change. A work training was moved to that week and would end on Thursday afternoon cutting it to a three-day weekend. My daughter now has a "hot/cold" reaction to skiing and was more interested in staying home than skiing. My wife was not feeling like the drive or finding accommodations for the dog. So it ended up being a much-needed solo trip.
I drove up to Idaho Falls Thursday evening. As expected, the worst part of the drive was the first hour in which, due to traffic, I only made it about 20 miles. After that it was smooth sailing. I landed at my hotel in Idaho Falls right off of I-15. I'd been to this Fairfield Inn several times for work and it's a great location and a clean hotel. I fueled up, bought some few remaining necessities, and basically hit the bed early.
Honestly, I was too excited to sleep and was up at about 6am and on the road right after 7:15 am. The remaining drive was about 2:30 or so. From I-15, U.S. 20 heads north and east to West Yellowstone, where I banged a left onto U.S. 191 north into, and out of, Wyoming and Yellowstone National Park before coming to Big Sky. The drive from West Yellowstone to Big Sky is about one hour. It is an easy and scenic drive but watch out for NPS Law Enforcement who were out everyday stopping folks (the speed limit drops from 70 to 55 inside the park limits). Traffic was relatively light. I opted to stay in West Yellowstone due to cost, convenience, amenities, and to scout out that town. To give you an idea of cost difference--I stayed at a Holiday Inn owned by Delaware North Companies (the major concessionaire for Yellowstone) and got a first-floor King Bed Room with in-room jacuzzi for $140 a night. A basic room at the new Marriott property on the Big Sky access road was $600 per night.
Route 20 is straight, fast, and scenic. About an hour north of Idaho Falls it goes from a divided highway to a two-lane highway with a speed limit of 65-70. The road leaves the flatlands of the Snake River plateau and climbed up to Island Park and eventually to the edge of Yellowstone. The Centennial Mountains quickly take up your windshield and mark the Idaho/Montana border in this area. But Lone Peak is much taller and more imposing.
I arrived at the day lot at Big Sky just shy of 9:50am. Great time. After booting up, hitting the restroom, and getting my bearings, I opted to hit Ramcharger first as there was a considerable line for Swift Current.
March 12, 2021: First Impressions, Lone Peak
A couple years ago we all heard about Ramcharger--the first 8-person bubble chair with heated seats in the U.S. if not North America. I can say it is legit. I used it a lot during my three days because it never had a line. As a single I was able to pretty much ski on. The longest wait was 2 minutes. It is comfortable, fast, and impressive. That said, it is a lot of capacity going only to Andesite Side without any access to the Lone Peak/Moonlight Basin side. I lost count of how many locals told me how they can't wait for Swift Current to be upgraded. It was set to be replaced in 2020 with a 6-person bubble, but that was pushed to 2021.
First run was down Hangman's which was wide, steep, and fast. The views were simply amazing. After that I headed over to Swift Current and skied over to Powderseeker. This lift, too, was also a favorite of mine due to comfort, speed, and lack of a line. I lapped Morningstar, Ski Time, and Never Sweat. After those runs I chose to stand in the Tram Line for Lone Peak thinking that Friday would be the least crowded day. The line was about 30-40 minutes long and I had a bluebird day with unrestricted visibility off the summit. I took in the views and took lots of pictures before heading down Liberty Bowl to the top of Dakota. It was a long and satisfying run with snow that was not powder but not frozen granular. It had been hit by the sun but had a little bit of crust. I was still excited.
I got largely untracked snow on Cardio Trio due to the fact that Dakota was dead due to a bearing failure. I cut over to Hippy Highway and found myself at the base of Shedhorn that held lots of soft snow and nice sunshine. I skied Upper Sunlight/Sunlight, Yellow Mule, Shedhorn Liftline, Chicken Head Bowl, and Lupine. The porta-potty at Shedhorn Grill made for a nice pitstop. The crowd was pretty big at the Shedhorn Grill, a yurt on the side of the mountain.
From here I was still eager to check out more terrain. Since it was now about 2:15pm, I figured that I would close out by checking out the other side of the resort. I skied Skittles down to Ramcharger (a long run) and then skied down Ponderosa to Southern Comfort. The lines were a tad long for me so I ducked into the former Spanish Peaks area and skied Hook 'Em Hoom and then Take-A-Bough down to the Lewis & Clark High Speed Bubble Quad. There was NOBODY on this side and, honestly, Spanish Peaks was more about homes and the club rather than skiing and ski terrain. The new Montage is coming along.
It was now after 3:15 or so and I wanted to hit Thunder Wolf before closing out. I rode Southern Comfort and then struggled to find the "right" way to get to Big Horn. I say struggled because it was very easy to get disoriented and end up on the wrong run heading the wrong way. I cut through the trees and then headed down Ponderosa to Big Horn. Wow--the lower part of Big Horn is nothing short of impressive. It had consistent pitch right down to the lift and plenty of room. Wow.
By now the crowds were winding down and Thunder Wolf was pretty quiet. I did a spin down Elk Park Ridge, which was skied off at this point in the day, but still fun. Last run was down Safari to the base. According to the app, I clocked in over 33 miles of skiing with not much of a break.
Stay tuned for pictures from the first day and the next day report.
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