Protected and Preserved Powder Hunting in the West

**panchosdad** · 01-07-2022, 03:27 PM

Originally Posted by HotSchmoo

Heh. More proof that vail sucks.
Backside of Stevens hadnt opened yet either even with more than ample snowfall.
So I'd recommend:
Stevens backside
Round mountain between crested butte and almont
Glory bowl at teton pass
Definitely tincan at turnagain
Anywhere on vail pass too

High Avalanche danger, Glory Bowl is a perfect call. Fuck all those commuters.

**pajamas** · 01-07-2022, 03:30 PM

Originally Posted by sillybunt2

I agree this is a dumb thread. Besides Vail's legendary back bowls, much of the intermountain west can and typically will reliably provide powder or aged snow thats facetted and skis like powder for weeks after a storm. It just needs to not get wind jacked or toasted by the sun, so aspect and elevation are important. There are a ton of options some roadside and some requiring a sled. Read the reports, try and figure out what zones are looking good and go after it. Of course things are far from static and will more often change in a matter of hours. Figuring all of this out yourself is a necessary part of the learning curve.

I thought it was dumb too right before I posted. I know conditions are way to fluid to glean much good info from day to day. But when you are willing to drive 10-12 hours to ride a new range, you want to at least feel like you're making an informed decision and asking sure can't hurt, can it?

I'll try really hard to figure this out all by myself.