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i got bored and booked a 2 week ski trip

MadPadraic

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the cozy brown snows of the east
A couple I know had this Ford custom built out this summer. I don't believe it has an indoor kitchen, but perhaps a porta potty. Knowing them, they'll use it fairly frequently with their 3 year old during summer and probably will do some ski trips rarely and just for the adventure of it and further justify the investment.

Interesting vacation guidance you are getting here. We've gone from

1. Why are you in a motel instead of an Airbnb in Jackson?

To

2. Well really you should be in Europe eating haut Michelin cuisine with only the best off piste guides

To

3. Yeah, maybe just buy a van dude and camp out at Walmart
Can't we merge them all into eating staying in an R.V. in a Walmart parking lot, but eating 7-star Michelin cuisine from a food truck. Clearly, one should stay in the R.V., but pay for an Airbnb to have a nice shower,.
 

abc

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Interesting vacation guidance you are getting here. We've gone from
"Interesting" of course. Because they are all valid options. Each option has its pros and cons.

By and large, one gets what one pays for. There's balance point of value vs cost. Each person chooses a different point on that scale.
 

KustyTheKlown

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I don’t mind skiing alone, except in the woods. Do you risk getting stranded with an injury, try to latch onto a group at the top of the run, etc ? I am old and slow and antisocial, so I am reluctant to cramp anyones style with the second option. Meaning I often miss out on the good stuff when skiing alone.
Hell no. I’d be so annoyed if someone followed me and my friends like that. I ski what I want to ski. I have a fully charged phone, a portable charger, water, a multi tool, and a whistle. Being alone has never made me turn away from any terrain except for the big c at big sky which you aren’t allowed to ski alone.

I won’t really go outside resort boundaries out west alone. In the east I don’t mind sidecountry alone but prefer to know the routes. Like I’ll do slidebrook or the birthday bowls alone since I know them and they feed me back to the base or a shuttle, but I’d be much less likely to do big jay alone
 
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KustyTheKlown

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i've skied sidecountry routes extensively at sugarbush, mad river glen, stowe, and smugglers with other people and those are the primary places i go out of bounds.

aside from that, if i understand where a route is going to take me and i know i wont need to hitchhike or slog for miles at the bottom, then i am fine going by myself in the east after doing some investigation and map review myself. the risk is just not nearly as significant as out west. like i am pretty confident i am not going to get into trouble straying off the map at f'in plattekill. just gotta avoid the farmer and his shotgun.
 

crank

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Yes to above.

First time I skied the Dip at Jay I sussed it out beforehand on google earth and could easily see exactly where to go.

At Smuggs my wife and I did some exploring knowing where we would eventually be funnelled out to. We skied into some gully where we had to duck blowdowns barring the way and had a ton of fun picking our way down.

Like KTK, I wouldn't do something like Big Jay without others. Especially helpful with doing the car shuttle thing.

On the other hand, I much prefer company when exploring the woods on skis.

Out west, like they say on JH 's tram, "If you don't know don't go!"

The little I've skied France and Italy, I found a lot of the off piste terrain that is sort of in-bounds but isn't patrolled or controlled... and there is also a lot of stuff you really should hire a guide for.
 

KustyTheKlown

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right? fuck me for managing my student debt while still having a life.

its also technically 5 figures. i have an extremely fat payment sitting earning modest interest that will be deployed the second uncle joe lifts the pause. ain't no reason to pay it until that pause is lifted. that will cause the debt to change from 'shitty house' level to 'decent car' level. no other debt except $10k owed on my car. no credit card balances. I'm fine. I'm going skiing.
 
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abc

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6 figure debt really isn't much. It also depends on the interest rate.

Lots of people "manage" their debt in favor of investing the spare cash. There's always the danger of the investment not working out and the debt doesn't get paid (with all the bad consequences). But it's a risk many take when we take out a mortgage rather than paying it off.
 
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Hawk

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i'm aware that its less gnarly than what i typically am chasing, and that its even kind of overly groomed, but its still an important and historic american ski destination i should experience and have an opinion on for myself. and i want to check out ketchum. its also after 4-5 days at jackson so I'm sure i will appreciate dialing it back for a few days. and then its back off to utah where i can surely get into good trouble. i know powmow is on the mellow side, I've been already, but its so sprawling and chill. snowbasin will be new for me. i like the mix of new and old destinations at play here. beaver mountain utah is also an option on indy
I have a buddy that skied there for a winter. He told me that there is plenty to keep you entertained in the side country and between trails if there is good snow. I wouldn't worry. You seem like you know how to sniff it out. ;-)
 

KustyTheKlown

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I have a buddy that skied there for a winter. He told me that there is plenty to keep you entertained in the side country and between trails if there is good snow. I wouldn't worry. You seem like you know how to sniff it out. ;-)

totally. and if i am actually bored I'll just go back to utah. or even further into Idaho to tamarack/brundage, but that would make the eventual drive to utah very long.
 

jaytrem

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Pebble Creek is pretty cool, and not really out of your way. Not on Indy/Ikon/Epic, but only $62.
 

KustyTheKlown

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Pebble Creek is pretty cool, and not really out of your way. Not on Indy/Ikon/Epic, but only $62.

interesting. thanks. cool little trail map. love that there are 2000+ vertical drop 9000 foot elevation mountains i haven't even heard of. that's one of the reasons i love this kind of trip with lots of driving.
 
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Spent two months on the road this past winter driving out to Taos then meandering up to Canada. Figured with Ikon and Epic going at it on price that it'd never be cheaper to do a trip like that. Aimed for around $100/night for lodging (avoiding shitholes) which was very doable considering I was generally looking to ride during the week and avoid the crowds on the weekend so didn't have to deal with ski town weekend surge pricing. Other than a historic lack of snow and surprisingly testing positive for Covid before crossing the border it was an amazing trip...and with gas prices falling I can't say I'm not thinking about running it back this winter.
 
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