Hey folks, imagine you want to go skiing, but no one posts open trails online, and the only way you can find out is if you drive up there and buy a ticket. Only then can you see if there's a trail to ski on. But, if there isn't, you've driven all that way and spent all that money only to find out you can't ski. Seems absurd, but that's kind of how it is for me. I don't get the sense that it's like that for many other people here, but I mostly only want to go up if there are moguls. I'm fine doing a lot of groomed run practice, but there's more than enough of that always, because top to bottom mogul trails are rare around here. I'm also ok to ski whatever with friends and family, but to go up by myself, it's moguls or nothing. Sometimes I put all that effort and money getting up there only to find out there really aren't moguls. I'm so alone in this approach to skiing that the resorts do not help me out much. Maybe some will give the grooming report, but that's a far cry from telling the mogul conditions to determine if that's how I want to spend my day. I don't think many of you will give me much sympathy, because you're happy to be up there without moguls. Even so, I hope for some empathy and some help. Consider it a civic duty that helps out just me.
Through the season, if you spot some moguls somewhere, please report it to this thread. It's possible that there won't be much for a while, and this thread will bury, but please remember it and post to it. I would appreciate as much detail as you are willing to give; size, shape, regularity, surface conditions, length.... but just a trail name is fine too.
Stephen,
Thanks for starting this thread. Hopefully the weather will cooperate and we will start to see some bumps forming soon.
Whitetail with Exhibition does a great job of supporting moguls, and with the web cam looking at it, I can determine the situation. I've looped that trail many times. If all the resorts were like that, I wouldn't have any problems.
7S often has moguls. A lot of good mogul skiers go there.
I would like to get on that Lower Wildcat with bumps.
Timberline had bumps once upon a time. It's so sad that they don't seem to have them anymore.
Often a line will show up somewhere that's just a sliver down the side, and that's good enough for me.
Stephen wrote:
From Timberline's website this morning: "All open terrain has been machine groomed except for Off the Wall and The Drop, which are ungroomed with snowmaking mounds for a more advanced terrain option." Is this a sea change in philosophy?
I hope so. Maybe our efforts of complaining to Timberline over the past several years are finally being addressed. However, I’m not optimistic and I bet they will push them out after this worm spell and the place will remain groomed to the rest of the season.
Stephen wrote:
From Timberline's website this morning: "All open terrain has been machine groomed except for Off the Wall and The Drop, which are ungroomed with snowmaking mounds for a more advanced terrain option." Is this a sea change in philosophy?
I boarded down the ungroomed rock hard mounds last week (bad decision :-), 'twas a bad decision. Hopefully they get some soft days.
Whales aren't ideal, but I'll take it.
"for a more advanced terrain option.", that part gives me hope.
From Mnut today (12/29)
"It is coming! A front is expected to push through today, helping the warm air to make a (well wished for) exit and welcoming colder temperatures back to the Valley. Snowmaking crews are ready to fire guns back up on majority of open terrain today, aiming for a 4 PM go – time. Due to warm temps, Slot has been left ungroomed for our off-piste and bump enthusiast to enjoy! (Thin cover conditions will be present)"
I am guessing this is a today-only deal - once they make snow later today they will probably groom it out. And I was unexpectedly able to get out for a few hours yesterday morning and bumps had not really started forming on the Slot yet by the time I left.
Timberline is doing great this year. How were the moguls?
MRPLOW wrote:
Skied Timberline Jan 3rd/4th. Was pleasantly surprised to find moguls and no grooming on "The Drop" and "Off the Wall". They should leave the "The drop" as an ungroomed mogul run the whole season. They have a bunch of other similar slopes that go straight down the face, so was awesome to have the added variety of a fun mogul run.
Timberline - Off the Wall from today. Skied beautifully, super soft and lots of fun. Think the bumps are going to stick around also. They did groom The Drop.
Perfect! You lead with the good news.
AaronS wrote:
Timberline - Off the Wall from today. Skied beautifully, super soft and lots of fun. Think the bumps are going to stick around also. They did groom The Drop.
AaronS wrote:
Timberline - Off the Wall from today. Skied beautifully, super soft and lots of fun. Think the bumps are going to stick around also. They did groom The Drop.
...........................
That looks every bit as good as anything in Utah right now!
I see moguls on Exhibition at Whitetail on their web cam.
Wintergreen still hasn't opened Outer Limits. That's messed up. Something's going on there.
Looked like there was a pipe repair going on a few weeks ago (very early Jan) but the OL guns were on last weekend before and during the snowstorm. Conditions on the rest of the Highlands have been absolutely delightful the past couple weeks.
Related to your bumps interest -- there were some bumps forming on Eagle Swoop of all places on Sunday. I hated it but you probably woulda loved it!
Stephen wrote:
I see moguls on Exhibition at Whitetail on their web cam.
Wintergreen still hasn't opened Outer Limits. That's messed up. Something's going on there.
In the early 90s they let Eagle Swoop bump up. I haven't seen bumps there since then.
natehurst wrote:
Looked like there was a pipe repair going on a few weeks ago (very early Jan) but the OL guns were on last weekend before and during the snowstorm. Conditions on the rest of the Highlands have been absolutely delightful the past couple weeks.
Related to your bumps interest -- there were some bumps forming on Eagle Swoop of all places on Sunday. I hated it but you probably woulda loved it!
Stephen wrote:
I see moguls on Exhibition at Whitetail on their web cam.
Wintergreen still hasn't opened Outer Limits. That's messed up. Something's going on there.
I'm thinking hard about where I should go, and if I should go. At some point I stopped skiing in the mid Atlantic when it was cold, because the bumps were just like skiing on rocks. Though last two years I went to Massanutten even though it was cold, expecting not to ski bumps, and I ended up having some good bump days. They've been doing a great job of blowing snow and making good cold mogul conditions.
Here are my rules: If there's been a snow storm, and it stays cold all day since that storm, it's good. If it's above 35-40 degrees, depending on shade, it's good. The mystery is how much snow they make. Many places years ago would develop a mogul field and then leave it untouched with no snow making which made for some terrible conditions.
Also, this last snow storm around my house changed to rock hard ice even though it never got warm. There was just too much water content when it fell. I don't know how much that varied across the region. So, my first rule might not be applicable.
Does anyone have any info about the surface conditions?
Laurel Hill Crazie wrote:
If the patrol opens the natural snow trails at Laurel, half the mountain is moguls. Early morning yesterday the trail report listed them as closed but later in the day 100% of the mountain was open. It makes sense that they aren't listed as open until patrol checks conditions first.
