Today is the 2nd day of my Spring Break and what better way to spend it than to go skiing? I couldn't think of any, so at 6:00 AM I was loading up the car for another day on the slopes. Going into it I knew that today was not going to even compare to the great skiing on Thursday (just ask Craig if you weren't able to make it out), but I didn't care. I wasn't sitting in Botany or Chemistry and that alone makes me happy!
With all of the talk about Global Warming and the time us skiers all dread (resorts beginning to close), I figured I would write up a little report and share a few pictures to give everyone a glimmer of hope and show them that we may still have some time left. Yeah today's skiing left a lot to be desired, but I also believe that I will in fact get to make at least one more trip after today.
At 9:10 AM my buddy and I were dressed and ready for our first day at Snowshoe this year. Thanks to a $10 off coupon we only spent $25 each for our lift tickets. I checked the trail report and saw that the Western Territory was scheduled for a 10 AM opening. This was good for both of us because we wanted to make a few runs to get acquainted with the snow.
We made a few runs in the main basin (not quite sure of the exact name) area and then made our way over to the Western Territory. We were lucky enough to be some of the first people on either Cupp or Shay's. The snow was soft and broke away very easily as you skied on it. It kind of reminded me of skiing the fresh groomed powder on Thursday, except it wasn't as soft, it clumped together, definitely wasn't as enjoyable....ok you get the point! Despite all of these it still made for some nice skiing. We made at around 5-7 runs down Cupp and Upper Shay's/Lower Cupp. My buddy doesn't ski moguls at all (I am not the greatest), so I went over and tested out Lower Shay's. It had whales on the skier's left and moguls on the skier's right. I skied into the moguls and made a few turns before deciding that I had enough. The troughs were very deep (as usual) but there was a lot of grass showing through, so I opted for the whales. Overall I felt that it was a good run. We left the Western Territory because it was starting to get extremely over-crowded and heavily skied over. The rest of the day was spent on Choker and Knot Bumper practicing in the soft moguls, which was actually enjoyable for a change.
We had a really good time today and I am very glad that I went. I felt that they had a decent base which will probably last for some time longer. Some trails could use a good smoothing over to cover up any patches that are starting to get thin. The snow IS there, it is just a matter of getting it in the right places of the slopes. I understand that this is Snowshoe that I am talking about, and it is way higher in elevation than most others, so I can't really speak for other resorts. I just want everyone to know that in my opinion Snowshoe will be open for skiing (maybe not 100%) until skier visits are too long to sustain business. I hope that everyone can get another day or two in before it does close!!
Here are a few pictures. They aren't that great because it was cloudy and dreary the entire time we were skiing. I will post a few more when my buddy emails me his. Enjoy!!
From the top of Cupp
The sun was trying to peak out
Still trying!
Top of Lower Shay's
Shay's
Shay's
Shay's from the bottom
See the lake is even still froze...there was a guy doing donuts on it in a Buick just to the right of the picture...ok now I am stretching the truth a little..
Nice shot
I don't know what trail this but it seemed like a good time to take a picture
In some places the north facing woods with moderate tree cover had over 1 foot of natural snow still there.
I skied in cloudy & dreary conditions. This picture was taken on the drive home....just my luck!
