MarkO Posted January 20 Share Posted January 20 Just got back from Japan last night. It was part of a Japan/Taiwan vacation, but we squeezed in a couple days at Shiga Kogen. It's on the Ikon, so my lift tickets were free, but cost $57/day for my son (adult window price). We essentially had the entire mountain to ourselves skiing weekdays. The lifts and hotels are a bit dated, but you can't beat the price. $200/night for a hotel room on the mountain that included a full buffet breakfast and a 7 course dinner. We stayed at a traditional Japanee lodge, so we slept on futons on the floor. They had a nice natural fed onsen in the lodge which was nice to soak in after a day in the deep pow. It was an overall awesome experience, and we'll probably go back next year. The only thing that sucks is the 12 hours of a flight, but when you add it all up, it's a better deal than skiing out west and a waaaaaay better experience. As for the snow. Not sure if they average as much snow as they've been getting this winter, but they got dumped! If you're not used to skiing deep, deep pow, Japan might not be for you. They do a good job grooming, but if you duck into the woods, or seek the higher elevations, do not stop! But if you do, do not get out of your skis! The pow is so dry and light you will sink down to your thighs. 5 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Boston Bulldog Posted January 21 Share Posted January 21 Had the privilege to hop around New England this past weekend to sample the Mid-January snowpack in various locations of NNE and CNE. We began with a Saturday morning in Pinkham Notch. Dreams of a high alpine romp along the eastern ravines of Mt. Washington were quashed early Friday morning as MWAC issued a Considerable avalanche risk for the zone, citing highly reactive slabs present across all easterly aspects. This elevated rating persisted into Saturday, and with new snow loading on the slabs it was clear the snowpack would be touchy. Nevertheless we decided to poke around the zone, test the snowpack in safe locations, and make a judgement call from there. Honestly I knew it was unlikely we would successfully push into the alpine, but saw value in dusting off avalanche safety protocols in preparation for future missions. Arriving at the base of Hillman's Highway we were greeted by hollow "whoomphing" beneath our skins, likely emitting from buried crust collapsing onto further buried layers. This was a sign that not only could a slide occur up high, but it could step down and release older weak layers deeper in the snowpack, generating a much larger avalanche. My party dug a pit, found reactivity, and turned around - opting for a scratchy but safe run down the Sherb. Good thing we turned around when we did. Just to the north Tuckerman Ravine came alive at around the same time, ripping a large natural slide under Chute which stepped across multiple weak layers... exactly what we were worried about. Our backup plan was to investigate the Gulf of Slides, hoping that the SE aspect was shielded from slab formation. Unfortunately Main Gully looked spooky and unskied despite several groups in the area. We backed off once again, this time enjoying a much softer ski on the dynamic GoS trail as a consolation prize. Later in the day the Gulf of Slides underwent a small natural Avy cycle, once again reaffirming our decision making. With the high alpine of the Presidentials a no-go, next up was an even more dangerous endeavor: Killington on MLK weekend Sunday. Ropes dropped for the season on the top pitch of Devil's Fiddle, offering boot top powder and pillowy drops through saplings - a welcome reprieve from the human slalom taking place elsewhere at The Beast. Solitude could be found on Monday. A favorite stash of mine, bathed in views of one of NH's most underrated monadnocks, brought some low angle powder turns (and steeper loud powder) just off the Interstate. A moment of bliss before I too had to join the holiday traffic conga line south back into the flatlands. 8 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EMontpelierWhiteout Posted Monday at 11:12 PM Share Posted Monday at 11:12 PM Unbelievable ski day today. Quality of the powder was equal to western high alpine. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GCWarrior Posted Tuesday at 01:23 AM Share Posted Tuesday at 01:23 AM Great day out at the local hill. Best skiing in several years. Snow was dense enough to cover a lot of the rocks. Cliffs were dropped, lots of trees were skied, and fun was had! Did get really busy but the stashes stayed stashed for the most part as they say. . 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brewbeer Posted Tuesday at 02:36 AM Share Posted Tuesday at 02:36 AM Hit Jiminy Peak with my son this afternoon into the evening. Great snow, cold and windy at the top. First time out in a few years. 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
snowgeek Posted Tuesday at 03:23 AM Share Posted Tuesday at 03:23 AM Skied Jiminy this evening with a couple of freinds. Amazing snow quality. I have never skied soft powdery bumps while night skiing. It was fantastic!!! 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
powderfreak Posted Tuesday at 03:47 AM Share Posted Tuesday at 03:47 AM Love the Jiminy Peak stoke. Growing up, that was our Sunday spot into the evening night skiing. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
snowgeek Posted Tuesday at 04:12 AM Share Posted Tuesday at 04:12 AM Love the Jiminy Peak stoke. Growing up, that was our Sunday spot into the evening night skiing.The vibe was great with powdery slopes, bumps, upslope snow lit up by the lights, the moon visible through the snow and we even saw an owl eating a squirrel under the lift. Just enough people to make it festive but with short lines. Magical night. .Hard to see the owl feasting but pretty cool thing to see while night skiing!! 5 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fozz Posted yesterday at 12:22 AM Share Posted yesterday at 12:22 AM I headed to Berkshire East for the first time yesterday after having a rare day off. It was moderately cold (in the teens) but the snow was excellent. 4 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Angus Posted 1 hour ago Share Posted 1 hour ago Skied at SLoaf yesterday with my college buddy commemorating our first trip there together 44 years plus a week ago. We were going to ski today but temps looked uninviting which was correct decision. Very chilly and temps dropped and wind picked up throughout the day. Happy to be wearing the full face mask. There was a big U21 race - downhill yesterday - going on with participants from US and Canada. Made me reminisce on the chairlift with some unsuspecting, captive racer about the 1984 Junior World Championship held there and skiing with some Austrian or Swiss skiers. Poor kid! Getting old! Conditions were pretty good, they have a very solid base of natural and manmade. Bubblecuffer skied well - one of their natural, steep trails off the top was very nice and well covered but on the other side of Gondi Line, Winterway was closed with stuff still sticking out of the slope. They need more natural snow. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Layman Posted 1 hour ago Share Posted 1 hour ago Had a few random questions that I figured would fit best in this thread if anyone has knowledge about it: Was curious if snowguns/snowmaking equipment can be dialed in for water content if needed. Or, is it simply air pressure and water forced through a nozzle? Is there a standard water content for man-made snow? Is there a prime percentage resorts go for when making snow? i.e.: 10:1, 15:1, etc Is there any core data from man-made snow? Do resorts ever have a need to check that? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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