SNOW IN THE PNW 2016-17: Return of the Shred-i

[RockinB]

Great pictures Foreal! That picture tipping into 4 has me drooling. Everything looks so much more covered than I ever remember it. You lucky bastards are going to have a fun spring!

[TAFKALVS]

Shin Deep powder and graupel if you knew where to look at the windy hill. Fun. Chair 2 stopped running once while I was there.

[XavierD]

Rumor has it the slot was all time on Saturday.

[MagnificentUnicorn]

I'm amazed at how well the snow is holding up. Great tour East of Mission today. Most aspects but due South were holding cold powder and graupel. Even the return to the ski area down Lunar Chutes and through the Outback was great, no rocks were harmed. Still feels like winter.

[cloud cult]

Is there cell coverage/4G at Paradise on Rainier, or just above it?

Also, what happens if you are skiing Rainier and, say, don't get back to your car until the gate has closed for the evening? Can you just car camp at Paradise? Are you ticketed?

[PNWbrit]

Is there cell coverage/4G at Paradise on Rainier, or just above it?

Also, what happens if you are skiing Rainier and, say, don't get back to your car until the gate has closed for the evening? Can you just car camp at Paradise? Are you ticketed?

I wouldn't rely on getting cell coverage up there. Sometimes yes sometimes no.. atmospherics? varies by carrier.

There's an overnight parking lot at paradise you might want to use just in case.

Keep an eye on this blog - Information on Climbing in Mount Rainier National Park. Maintained by Park Service Climbing Rangers.

[Norseman]

Coverage is very poor up there in general.

I use Verizon and have been able to get a few texts out, but only in a couple of ridgeline locations (Cowlitz Rocks, Wapowety/Wilson). Cell service shouldn't be expected.

If you're late for the gate closure, drive down to the gate and walk to the inn. The desk clerk can let you out, so I've heard. May or may not escape ticketing/warning.

Edit... Brit beat me to it.

[Buster Highmen]

Coverage is very poor up there in general.

Geez, I think the coverage this year is great.

;-)

[NW_SKIER]

Geez, I think the coverage this year is great.

;-)

I like muir for sightseeing in the summer when there is far less coverage.

[pipedream]

Well, this explains some things regarding season pass benefits and reciprocity at Boyne resorts for the southern resort:
https://crystalmountainresort.com/bl...stal-mountain/

[PNWbrit]

It's been common knowledge for a while.

Good for him. Hopefully the east peak chair and bike park plans will move on more swiftly.

[cloud cult]

Thanks.

[raypruit]

A few pics from Sunday. Rode Frosty Mtn, a stone's throw away from the american border:

rode this NE face:


some other big lines in the area






on our way to the summit, trying to stay away from cornices


this was pretty fun


snow got a bit pinwheely lower down but still pretty fun


it's spring!

[Zeedashbo]

Nice work. Always wanted to ski the Canadian North cascades

[oftpiste]

no one believed me when I stated that so many pages back.

It's been common knowledge for a while.

Good for him. Hopefully the east peak chair and bike park plans will move on more swiftly.

[ACH]

Nice post Ray, that zone looks really fun.

[The AD]

Well, this explains some things regarding season pass benefits and reciprocity at Boyne resorts for the southern resort:
https://crystalmountainresort.com/bl...stal-mountain/

Article in the Seattle Times:
http://www.seattletimes.com/business...gtime-manager/

I see "extended hours" is mentioned. I'm assuming this means night skiing?

[PNWbrit]

I see "extended hours" is mentioned. I'm assuming this means night skiing coming back?

Yep.

[skimaxpower]

I'm interested to see what the future holds for Xtal. Lowering season pass prices is a good way of ingratiating locals to the new ownership.

On the other hand, without outside capital this single mountain is extra vulnerable to the economic impact of a bad snow year.

I suspect night skiing holds little draw at a resort so far from the city and with so little on-mountain lodging. Wishing them luck.

[pipedream]

My only hope is that w/o a Gold pass in play this year, folks who used to purchase them will tip towards Crystal and therefore relieve a little pressure from the padded seats on big days. It's wishful thinking, but when every person you get ahead of in line saves you ~45 seconds

I'm stoked to hear Xtal is going to push for some extended hours, even if it's only until like 6-8pm and only Quicksilver, Disco & Gold Hills. That should be enough to mitigate the junkshow on 410 in both the morning and evening. Speaking of extended hours... I've heard rumor that the lights The Summit purchased last summer may, in fact, get installed on Silver Fir this summer. We'll see... a boy can dream

[SorryBro]

Speaking of extended hours... I've heard rumor that the lights The Summit purchased last summer may, in fact, get installed on Silver Fir this summer. We'll see... a boy can dream

That would make me and my kids pretty happy. They really like bouncing around all the little hits on the sides of Silver Fir proper, and doing this under the lights would blow their minds.

[bfree]

CMC was most excellent on Sunday.

Big views early, clouds and wind came in a bit sooner than expected in the afternoon.


Fantastic skiing up high, the whole couloir was either ankle deep pow or smoooth carvable styrofoam. No crust found on this north facer.


Down low was much more adventurous with low coverage in the trees under 5k. It sure beats booting down, but involved a variety of bushwhacking, tree hopping, dirt patch stepping, etc. I managed to ski to the creek, but sadly one of my G3 Synapse Carbon 101 skis did not make it I hopped off a log and slowed myself down into a compression with some brush and it overflexed SNAP. I really liked them too, but I guess a lightweight backcountry ski isn't meant for that kind of abuse. The broken ski is also quite a bit thinner than the other in the broken region - I'm guessing they were blems (purchased as demos last year) and that probably contributed to the failure.

[MagnificentUnicorn]

Cannon Mountain Couloir?

[Buster Highmen]

colchuck?

oh boy! night skiing! Now that will surely create more customer satisfaction than a lift from B lot to Right Angle.

[Toadman]

How about they just extend Gold Hills chair another 1,600'. But I hear they are going to add a few more gondolas, so we have that to look forward to. (Not to mention a bunch of state of the art snow making thingamajigs!)