For those who ski out west...

[Cheese]

Cool,. My prob..is that I can't figure out what the prob was.
I ended up at a different lift, didn't hear they where going to another one,Had to hear about that all day, met them the next run up. I just don't know where every area is, don't know the names of all of them,Probably should get The Powder Hounds Guide to Alta, they aren't all on the map/

Ah .. they had a plan and you missed a turn? I've had people do the same thing. Sometimes they weren't listening, other times they decided they didn't like my choice, went "around" and never made it back to the lift we were headed for. It's irritating but it sounds to me like they overreacted. Of course, we're only hearing one side of the story.

 

[bdfreetuna]

If you can ski Paradise @ MRG

or Rumble @ Sugarbush..

or rip it down Devils Playground @ Bolton Valley

or any gnarly East Coast shit like that... West Coast skiing is NO Problem... easy as cake...

West Coast skiiers should be coming out here to find some real challenges!

 

[kingslug]

Thats the plan..don't need to travel 2000 miles for aggravation..get enough of that at work..

 

[snoseek]

If you can ski Paradise @ MRG

or Rumble @ Sugarbush..

or rip it down Devils Playground @ Bolton Valley

or any gnarly East Coast shit like that... West Coast skiing is NO Problem... easy as cake...

West Coast skiiers should be coming out here to find some real challenges!

Easy as cake...mmmmk

 

[bdfreetuna]

IDK I've only skiied Banff, Lake Louise, and Sunshine Village..

I consider that easier skiing than MRG / Jay chutes / Sugarbush Castlerock or a lot of the lesser known classic east coast narrow trails and tight tree runs.. especially with a fresh glaze of east coast ice?

get real now.

Maybe if I had been to Jackson Hole my opinion might change.. but I think its obvious the best all-mountain-expert-style skiing is to be found in the Northeast

 

[abc]

Ok, sounds like you're seriously contemplating going solo! And here's the answer to some of your questions

1. Do you travel alone or go with someone.

I almost always travel alone!

It has to do with my schedule. So I fly out alone. Either rent a car or take public transport, depending on where.

3. Do you meet up with locals or wing it on your own.

I would start by winging it. Being a single, you'll be sharing chairs with others. Keep an eye out for locals. Say hi, how's skiing, where's good snow etc. You might find yourself invited to some secret stash.

Last year, first day of my at Jackson Hole. Said hi to the pair of 60+ guys on the chair. Turned out they were local and they were heading to their secret stash. They invited me to come along. I so so flattered! I was really sad to decline. I was coming out of an injury and knew I couldn't handle what they were taking me to...

I went with my local ski club out west once. I didn't fit in at all. But I somehow found other source for buddies.

If you're determined to ditch your buds, check out epicski.com. They're having a gathering once a year at different part of the country. This year is at Tahoe end of Feb, which I'm going.

 

[snoseek]

IDK I've only skiied Banff, Lake Louise, and Sunshine Village..

I consider that easier skiing than MRG / Jay chutes / Sugarbush Castlerock or a lot of the lesser known classic east coast narrow trails and tight tree runs.. especially with a fresh glaze of east coast ice?

get real now.

Maybe if I had been to Jackson Hole my opinion might change.. but I think its obvious the best all-mountain-expert-style skiing is to be found in the Northeast

I see what you're getting at but this isn't an honest assesment. The cornice at Kirkwood today was far from easy. There are chutes and steeps and both well known and deserted mountains out here that are far steeper than anything you will find at Jay, MRG, Stowe ect....

I'm not saying that the east is easy skiing, it's not. It makes hearty skiers that handle variable conditions better than most but go ski Taos, bird, tride, squaw ect....and tell me they're easy as cake...not the groomers either:roll:

 

[Bumpsis]

I almost always go out west with a friend. It's just more fun and cheaper. Get to share expenses that way, room, rental car, etc.

My biggest problem is altitude and it has got worse with age. I also have a natural predisposition to headaches, get them really easily and often, so anything, even just over 6000 ft, I feel it and it's misery for a day or two.
If the place where I sleep is at 6000 feet and I only travel to higher elevations to ski, that's not a big problem. Otherwise, I get a prescription of Acetazolomide (it's a diuretic) and start on that before I even get to high elevations. It really helps big time.
For places like Summit County, Colorado, it's a must. I waste a day being sick but afterwards, I'm good to go.

It also really helps to get conditioned, as much as possible, so the legs and lungs are ready to deal with the extra work. Although, I never really found a good ski preparation regiment. I usually burn up my legs on the first ski day and then have to either take it really easy the next day or just take a non-ski day. After that, I can push myself and be fine.

All the rest, such as steeps, powder, that's what I go there for. Local conatcts? I'm married now, so options are limited unless something just drops into my lap

 

[David Metsky]

Maybe if I had been to Jackson Hole my opinion might change.. but I think its obvious the best all-mountain-expert-style skiing is to be found in the Northeast

Not to be blunt, but you haven't got a clue.

 

[Cheese]

West Coast skiiers should be coming out here to find some real challenges!

:roll:
Dude, you're living in a bubble. The lift accessible couloirs of the west would have chain link fencing prohibiting entry in the east and that's just what's considered "trails" in the west. Once you go off piste, there is no comparison between above tree line extreme western terrain and it's lame wooded eastern competition. If you're comparing the level of skier/rider, remember that experience isn't just in one area. Charging deep pow at the speeds you brag about hitting on groomers around here and throwing inverted aerials off of large cliffs is a skill very few New England skiers have even tried let alone mastered. My hat is off to western experts.

 

[kingslug]

Ok Ok lets not get into the east west thing, both have their share of hard runs..I still have not gone down the front 4 at Stowe due to conditions..but have done chutes off Baldy which where the steepest things I think I will ever do. I am going to Big Sky with a ski club for the first time, I know one of them well so it won't be a total mystery...

 

[drjeff]

Ok Ok lets not get into the east west thing, both have their share of hard runs..I still have not gone down the front 4 at Stowe due to conditions..but have done chutes off Baldy which where the steepest things I think I will ever do. I am going to Big Sky with a ski club for the first time, I know one of them well so it won't be a total mystery...

I think that one of the things that very often happens when an East Coast skier heads West for a trip, is that 1st day on the hill, it's almost like being in a fantasy world between what are generally much softer conditions than in the East and at most places out West just the sheer vastness of the ski area they're at that day compared to what one is used to on the East Coast. That can very often cause some people to try and do too much too quickly and get a bit spooked confidence wise on that first day. The mentality being that snow is snow is snow and say an intermediate or an expert trail is just an intermediate or an expert trail, not taking into account the variance from one place to another (I think that anyone from the East Coast that has skied say Snowbird, would agree that what constitutes most intermediate rated runs there would be rated expert at a good deal of East Coast resorts - sometimes because of pitch, sometimes because of snow conditions, often a bit of both. This scenario I've found tends to happen more when you're skiing with some friends, or maybe even locals.

 

[lolkl]

It's tough to ski with a group. I prefer to ski with one or two people who are comfortable going thru the terrain. It's good to be on the same page. And there is a safety issue. Skiing with a lolkl can help you save days worth of wasted time. A real guide costs real money. Our Ski Hosts here are 70+ years old and ski like it. They will be friendly and show you where the bathrooms are. The best thing about skiing with a lolkl is that they will tell you when to let them run. It's not so much about " Watch out for that cliff." We are somewhere around 4000 acres and not all of it is steep. It only takes one wrong turn and you're pushing yourself 5 miles with your poles. There are many flat areas where you need to keep your speed up.
Our steeps are steep but like someone else said, if you can handle Eastern steeps then this stuff isn't death defying. Just don't fall. Simple. Most of it is so wide that you can attack it at your own level.
The great thing about our backcountry terrain is there is no hiking. All is lift served if you know how to get there and back. They don't have signs out there. People spend the night out there all the time... and they don't like it.
Altitude? Unless you are doing pushups on the peak it isn't too bad... if you're in decent shape and drink lots of water.
Powder? If that's a problem then you have a problem.

 

[snowmonster]

1. Do you travel alone or go with someone.

- I've done both the solo mission and travelled with a friend. I've been fortunate that, everytime I go out west to ski (usually at the end of a business trip), I end up in a place where a friend stays and offers to guide me around the resort to get the lay of the land.

2. How do you handle the altitude.

- Drink plenty of water. I oftentimes get winded when hiking while skiing out west. I hope to cure that this year by doing more cardio in the gym. Bring a Camelback.

3. Do you meet up with locals or wing it on your own.

- I'll only ski with locals I already know (like snoseek when he was a CO resident). They look out for you and are more interested in sharing the experience rather than pounding out the vert or shredding the gnar. Friends look out for you. I am done with striking up random convos on the lift with someone who'll show me the stash only to be left behind in the woods after I tag a tree.

4. how do you handle the steeps and deep powder.

- Use rockered fat skis. I train for the west by spending time at Tux.

5. How do you handle the huge areas which are so much vaster than ours.

- I carve up the mountain into zones. For example, if I have a 2-day trip to Whistler, I'll do Whistler on day one then Blackcomb the next. Or on a one-day in A-Basin, I'll do the Montezuma Bowl in the morning, the Pali Chair midday then cruise off the Lenawee lift at the end of the day. I also study the trail map beforehand so that I'm not spending most of my day either traversing or riding lifts. Sometimes, staying near one trail pod and exploring around it is the most efficient way to do things. And, of yeah, when patrol drops the rope after giving the all clear to a certain area, that's where you want to be!

 

[kingslug]

Think I might try some cat skiing, maybe in BC. I've been there before, vast areas! Kind of desolate though, we where the only ones staying in that particular area, 3000 sq ft house to our self..but now I'm on my own. I do think its time to start traveling around to different places. I like Alta and the Bird but have been going there for years..Then again when it pukes that is the place to be..and its so damn easy to get to.

 

[thetrailboss]

1. Do you travel alone or go with someone.

- I've done both the solo mission and travelled with a friend. I've been fortunate that, everytime I go out west to ski (usually at the end of a business trip), I end up in a place where a friend stays and offers to guide me around the resort to get the lay of the land.

2. How do you handle the altitude.

- Drink plenty of water. I oftentimes get winded when hiking while skiing out west. I hope to cure that this year by doing more cardio in the gym. Bring a Camelback.

3. Do you meet up with locals or wing it on your own.

- I'll only ski with locals I already know (like snoseek when he was a CO resident). They look out for you and are more interested in sharing the experience rather than pounding out the vert or shredding the gnar. Friends look out for you. I am done with striking up random convos on the lift with someone who'll show me the stash only to be left behind in the woods after I tag a tree.

4. how do you handle the steeps and deep powder.

- Use rockered fat skis. I train for the west by spending time at Tux.

5. How do you handle the huge areas which are so much vaster than ours.

- I carve up the mountain into zones. For example, if I have a 2-day trip to Whistler, I'll do Whistler on day one then Blackcomb the next. Or on a one-day in A-Basin, I'll do the Montezuma Bowl in the morning, the Pali Chair midday then cruise off the Lenawee lift at the end of the day. I also study the trail map beforehand so that I'm not spending most of my day either traversing or riding lifts. Sometimes, staying near one trail pod and exploring around it is the most efficient way to do things. And, of yeah, when patrol drops the rope after giving the all clear to a certain area, that's where you want to be!

Looking forward to our Utah Adventure coming up in a few short weeks. Alta, Snowbird, Deer Valley, and maybe some other places. It is going to be great. We just need more snow.

 

[thetrailboss]

If you can ski Paradise @ MRG

or Rumble @ Sugarbush..

or rip it down Devils Playground @ Bolton Valley

or any gnarly East Coast shit like that... West Coast skiing is NO Problem... easy as cake...

West Coast skiiers should be coming out here to find some real challenges!

Well, yes and no. Having spent my first full season out here, it is not that easy. While I could go for a hike in Vermont to earn turns and not generally have to worry about much, out here we have nasty things called avalanches. You need not just more equipment, but additional training for that.

And yes I agree that I am a better skier because of 20 some odd years of ice, narrow runs, thick woods runs, and technical terrain, but out here it is a different game altogether. Bigger vertical, higher elevation, deeper snow, different natural challenges and obstacles, real cliffs, and the same nasty weather (at times). The snow surface may be easier to ski, but I find plenty of great expert challenges out here and some things that make me look the other way.....

I also agree that we don't want to turn this into a west vs. east thing. Both have their advantages and disadvantages and the discussion is not really relevant to what this thread is about.

 

[David Metsky]

Ok Ok lets not get into the east west thing, both have their share of hard runs.

Hey, I'm a New England skier, I love it here and always will. But the hard runs out west are much more difficult than anything back east, and once you go off piste the comparison is even more dramatic. And that's before you add avy danger and altitude.

 

[Nick]

Not to be blunt, but you haven't got a clue.

Wasn't blunt at all :lol:

 

[kingslug]

Another thing to get used to..whiteouts. These damn things happen very suddenly, something we don't really get here..skied right off the side of Snowbird once, ended up clinging to Tiger Tail..now I ski it..but then...oy. As far as avalanchess go..I encourage anyone who wants to go off piste to take an avi course. They have them here, I believe in NH, but the one I took at Alta was reasonably priced and the terrain is killer...