Thread: 11/12 Tahoe Weather, Conditions, Stoke, and What's Up Thread... IT'S BAAAAAAAACK!!!

A friend posted this video on Pain McShlonkey Classic. Guaranteed to make you laugh. NSFW or kids.

Last week at Alpine Meadows:

we got 8" of new at DR today - skiing was fun, but I was stuck at the race course

Owen placed 7th yesterday and 9th today in the J6 category.

Powdork's beta was spot on. Great windblown and edgeable crust underneath that wasn't bulletproof (breakable in places but no worries on one plank) out in north facing areas around Deso this weekend. Way better weather and snow than anticipated.

Some pretty continuous 6 to 18" crowns all along n ridge of Ralston in almost every steep area ... Looked like they cracked Friday as they were fresh looking Saturday morning and partly rounded/filled in on Sunday from continued wind transport and the 2" of fresh that fell Sunday morning. So, look out for windslabs on crust below ridgelines.

Winds yesterday on Ralston were about 30 to 45 but never up to the 70 to 90 gusts forecasted, at least not while we were out there. Great snow in protected areas and also in the Aloha basin but we didn't want to mess around with Crystal Range stuff yet between being out of shape and the windslabs and crowns out there. Those bowls are fully filled and looking good though.

Also, carrying 7 pounds of camera gear out to Aloha just to take camping and meadowskipping photos sucks!

Fun at the wood this weekend. Friends accused me of liking to hike... up to the t-bar. Gotta go where the snow is, that's all I'm saying. I didn't hear any complaining on the second hike up covered wagon.

And I'm calling out marketing on the 1-2 inches lie. There was 4ish on the front, more on the back, and the wall proper even started skiing nicely near close. Often I had to be ready for the crust, but had a good day given Ullr's feeble effort.

Tanuki says: hit the groomers with a fresh (and still balls-deep) 2" inches on 'em:

Yep, yesterday was a sleeper day at the wood. Follow the wind and you were rewarded. No crowds either. Gotta like it.

Heard folks bitch'n about the dust on crust. I smiled and agreed. All while wiping snow out of any open spot in my vents and helmet. Good day for fawn ridge, huckin the wave and the normal glory of thunder saddle to fresh tracks under the Cirque.

I'm out of town for the next few weeks so I'm sure it will only get better.

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^ nice dude. Seems like Today should be just as good (though I'm back at the flatlands office) with the overnight snow and wind transport. Lemme guess ... split swallow inbounds too?

Naw, split swallow was last weekend. Went with an old resort beater board expecting dust on crust.

Good thing as I ended up doing a bit more billy goating than planned. Even pulled a bone headed move and missed my line into the chutes on norms nose on the only run I made solo. Cliffed myself out on the thin rocks there. Bit of a sketchy scramble to get back up to where I needed to be but the chutes were nicely loaded...

Photo before our second lap in there... Had to go back after screwing up my entrance the first time..


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^^^^Ah "Post Nasal" & "The Drip". One of my favorite lines anywhere @ Kirkwood.

This morning was really great. it may qualify as dust on crust for some, but if you find the smooth base below it will ski swift, silent (with headphones on) and deep (for a lil kid). Snow was blower this morn and approached 12" deep above 8,500' on wind loaded aspects. Best to get after it before the Friday heat wave sets in.

Nice venture back to Deso Shralph. I've been eyeing that Crystal Range fat snowpack myself lately. Could be some awesome cornocopia in a few weeks. I think access is the big question. Fastest access to Aloha (Aggassiz & Price area) tends to be Glen Alpine out of FL Lake, but that is low and could be a total CF if there's no snow left. The highest access is Echo Lakes, but what a slog. Twin Bridges is closest to Pyramid (that's how I accessed in a much bigger snow year), but you really could only hit Pyramid from that approach. Two days and one night at Aloha is a pretty sweet quick trip to get a lot of those familiar faces off your tick list. If you took a few photos of the Crystal Range I'd love to see them. It is amazing how little snow there is at lake level now. Even after the big storm last weekend there is still far more dirt and bush around the basin than there is snow. And it's still March. Up high is packed, but you gotta be able to get there relatively pain free.

HEY! Is anyone here planning on going to the Mammoth Mini, and also considering going to Longboard Day 2012 if we have one?

We haven't had a big spring LBD since 2009. I blame newborns, epic spring powder, and sand-in-people's-you-know-whats. Anyone want to do this at KW or Alpine on an upcoming April Saturday???

FYI Mammoth Mini is April 21 weekend. Probably better if we don't cross-schedule, but it's an option. How about 4/14 for LBD?

Originally Posted by SchralphMacchio

Some pretty continuous 6 to 18" crowns all along n ridge of Ralston in almost every steep area ... Looked like they cracked Friday

After looking more closely at the photos they probably cracked before Friday. Anyways I thought it was a pretty impressive set of full-width fractures along the ridge to share here. I also saw a really sizable crown on the E face of Pyramid - vis wasn't so great to spot the NE bowl, but it looked fracture-free, filled and ready to go. For more info or larger photos click the link.


http://www.sierraavalanchecenter.org/node/2717

Originally Posted by Sierra Cement

If you took a few photos of the Crystal Range I'd love to see them.

I'll get them up midweek in a TR ... access to the Xtal range is definitely an issue. Lower Echo is melting out fast, might not be safe after next weekend unless you sidehill the slopes. I haven't peeked down to FL lake since the latest storm but I'm sure it's bone dry schwackfesting from down there, or Twin Bridges. It did look like snow down to the Glen Alpine resort from our vantage, but I'm not 100% sure.

LBD at the Mini? Just thinking it could be fun. I think my LBs need some new bindings.

LBD ? This is probably obvious, but between this place and working in the tech industry, I think my brain has reached its AMC (Acronym Memory Capacity).

Originally Posted by TahoeJ

LBD ? This is probably obvious, but between this place and working in the tech industry, I think my brain has reached its AMC (Acronym Memory Capacity).

Originally Posted by SchralphMacchio

HEY! Is anyone here planning on going to the Mammoth Mini, and also considering going to Longboard Day 2012 if we have one?

I think that's it.

I'm down for the 14th.

Originally Posted by Sierra Cement

If you took a few photos of the Crystal Range I'd love to see them. It is amazing how little snow there is at lake level now.

I'm sure Schralph's are of better quality and certainly more up to date, I took a boatload from above Echo a week ago today. If I get time I'll post a link to a big pano, if interested PM me your e-mail and I can send you a few. At that time Lower Echo only had open water near where the channel links both lakes but I have my doubts on the safety of crossing it, is that how you approached Schralph?

I think a lot of those fractures went during the Big storm after the rain turned to snow, I observed plenty of slides in the Deso that looked like some snow had fallen on the aftermath, but not enough to smooth it out.

Hey TahoeBC, was there a visible crown on the e-face of Pyramid last week? Just wondering when those ripped - seemed like enough visible debris that it must have happened at the tailing end, or after the storm, but just hard to tell. We didn't want to mess with anything steep off the ridgelines though with the constant wind transport the last few days.

We were still able to skin Lower Echo alongside the docks on the S-side. Open water downstream from the channel that increased in size from Saturday to Sunday, and also visible bare ice thin spots further down as well. Not much snow/crust cover in some thin spots on the established track - I even brushed the snow aside and punched through to water with my whippet without serious force in places. So Lower is definitely thinning out, but no signs of cracking or sinking and there were quite a few parties on it on Sunday, even a big 6 person group (we didn't see if they spaced out or not). Upper seemed a lot more covered, crusted, thicker. We stayed on the thicker drifted/crusty parts of the lakes.

yo, GiBo!

sorry to tell you that today was another EXCELLENT day at the Dodgy-est Place on Earth - I managed to get the day off - the 10" in 24 hours skied like more - fast and danger - still lots of mystery meat underfoot - I saw 1 other track out where I was skiing today, and I made a dozen laps before noon

looks like April 15 closing

I have a ticket for you and a ticket for Caleb.

Back after a successful San Juan trip...here are some instagram stoke shots. Full TR someday as I cram for my RE Brokers Exam

Silverton delivered...

Laps with Mr. Aaron Brill...



WUZ GOOD...



Good times...



Saturday laps at T-ride...I was the only guys sessioning this, heh.



The little guy is now killing double greens without assistance...

Sleeper day on West Shore. Was talked into going by Buffy not expecting much and was pleasantly surprised by 5"-10" of blower on the upper 2/3:







Photographer fail. There's a snowboarder in that cloud somewhere:

yeah BG and liketoride, looking good!


4/14 is passholder appreciation day at the Wood - seems like all the more reason to bring back LBD on that day?

if the tahoe mags do not get a lbd, the kind folks at Alpental Washington would be glad to have you as our guests.
we will probably be in pwder for a few more weeks then the comittee will set a date, fluid as the snow and able to re-schedule on demand.
we will keep in touch
bobby

666jr rocking!