I never knew 15 inches of snow could result in such an unsatisfying day.
We got to Baker just as the lifts opened. A pretty big crowd resulted in a 15 minute wait to get on a chair.
Did Baker actually get 15 inches last night as indicated by the telemetry? Possibly, but it was so wet and heavy that it was quickly settling down to more like a foot -- today defined cement snow.
Many people were struggling badly with the heavy snow. During the course of the day we saw at about ten skiers lose at least one of their skis beneath the snow. Several ultimately gave up looking and just walked down (I don't get it, aren't those things expensive?) Even with my big powder snowboard it was a challenge to stay on top and have a good time.
Pan Dome opened a bit late due to control activities. It didn't take long for the whole place to get cut up to the point where trips down the hill were more of a struggle to survive than a relaxing day on the mountain. If you knew where to look there were stashes to be found (chairs 1 and 6 offered several good lines). As you'd expect, a little elevation made a big difference in terms of snow quality.
In terms of stability it's difficult to say how good or bad things are. There was certainly lots of sluffing going on, but I didn't see any major crowns from the control activity (visibility was poor).
Even though the day didn't live up to my expectations it's always good to remember that a day on the mountain is better than a day anywhere else.
