2/8/15 - Crystal

What started out as a low-expectations day turned out to be quite okay - 8" new in the past 24 in GV made for tasty turns in the morning in the right places. Found a few knee-deep pockets of goodness out towards Northway and visited the whiteroom several times before the warming temps turned the fluff to the kind of snow we're more familiar with around here. Blew a BOA cable on my 10th lap in GV which worked well as the clouds were lowering and closing in and my stomach was rumbling on empty. Fortunately I was able to get the cable fixed at the repair shop while I wolfed down a PB&J and we were able to salvage the afternoon riding soft, spring-like snow on FQex. By 1430 the legs were barking and after an adventurous top-to-bottom via Lucky Shot & Queens in which we experienced all four seasons of skiing, we were on our way back to town. Crowds were light, we parked just a few rows back from the pay zone in A lot and if I had to guess, A lot filled and spilled a little bit over into C lot, but really nobody down in B except for the campers and employees. Speaking of which... starting tomorrow there are a lot fewer of. Talked to at least half a dozen seasonal folks who'd been laid-off today - incl. a young snowboarder who we downloaded the gondola with at lunchtime who was off to clean out his room in employee housing after making the best of a bad day

Other: patrol opened up the hiking route to PB (but not Ch6 ???) in the afternoon, but had few takers - likely because of the decreasing visibility, increasing wind, and unappealing exit down an ungroomed Lucky Shot which had set up overnight and despite sun early on, had not softened appreciably during the day. When trying to redeem my "Boyne benefits" this morning as a Summit passholder, I was asked to cough-up $35 at the ticket window. I balked and went into Guest Services where they informed me that the ticket seller was wrong, gave me a comp pass and added access to the gondi for no extra charge to make up for the inconvenience. As we walked to the back of the line for the buckets, we noticed that Chinook was loading and decided to give that a go instead of wait for the buckets to load. As a result, we ended-up on top before the first bucket had deposited its contents

Soup of the day was mashed taters in the park in the early afternoon - turns out you two-planking folk avoid that place like the plague even when it's full of fresh snow

Thanks for the report....Made me even less happy about having other things to do...ouch oh me oh my....

Cheer up, ddk. Another 4" overnight in GV and a few more on the way before the ridge rebuilds mid-week.

Might catch you for a lap or twelve tomorrow

"8"new"
"knee deep pockets of goodness"
"visited the Whiteroom"

Space/Time warping must have transported you to a different Crystal that the one I skied all day ,on the same day.
Your optimism goggles must be distorting your measurements.

But I agree.. it still was good...... in places.

It's a lot easier to visit the whiteroom when you're sliding on one plank instead of two. But I did visit it a few times between the top of Northway and the SnElk valley - it was worth the "hike".

Rainier was looking tasty in the morning, but with the winds increasing and ceiling decreasing, I was glad to not be over there in the afternoon. More snow falling today, hopefully tomorrow will deliver on high. If not, perhaps a tour into the Southback might. The lack of ski-out, however, makes that a daunting proposition...

I did that particular "hike" as well, as did the wife.

Glad you go some whiteroom action.

With the recent problems revolving around the beloved Brain Williams of NBC, it behooves many of us to ensure that the reporting and journalistic standards of TAY are kept to the highest standard.

Thank you for your report.