Crystal - 12/13

Arrived early, but not early enough to get first CHex chair, pretty good sized early for the powder frenzy (and FQex opening?), biggest weekday crowd
I've seen this season - duh! Snow nice and coverage has improved, but its still pretty thin and as the morning progressed the rocks started popping
out in some of the high use areas. Got some first tracks in spots, but didnt last long. Fair sized lineup on FQex at times. Lots of nice sun (not SUNDAY).
Muscles showed their lack of exercise this year. #1 had a mostly good day, other than the busy crowded at times slopes. Should be a real frenzy
tomorrow when the open the top! Other plans will keep us away. Short day, I'll use #1 as an excuse.

Other - CB lodge sort of open today, but no food when we passed through - soup? Forgot to check the soup of the day at the base - rest of the food options
looked iffy. New tables in CB lodge a lot smaller than the old ones - will be interesting seeing 4 people and all there food using them this season.

Other other - Pay lot to big as usual, but the snow pile in the middle of it was impressive. Rest of the lot was full with 2/3 of B lot and 3/4 of C lot
packed. Drive up and down was mostly okay.

A surprise 4** out of 5 day. drove up a little on the early side for a week-day.  A long line of cars going up, but everyone drove at the limit.  No problem getting into A-lot.

A lot of blue skies for most of the day and great visibility and temps.  2 out of 2 for weather.

Expected to be skiing FQ groomers all day, but on the ride up, noticed McGoo wasn't groomed and had a few tracks down it.  Poached?  Nope...open and ungroomed and 8 inches of powder.  Nice.  Next run was down a groomed Downhill to Rolling Knoll.  The knoll also was not groomed and very nice powder.  Then the surprise.  Decided to ski Queens to check out the rumored re-grading of CMAC (or is it now lower Chapelles?).  Queens wasn't groomed and so more powder.  And CMAC is still the same.  I wonder where the re-graded CMAC is?  Downhill was the only run groomed.  As the day wore on, the ungroomed snow turned into soft packed powder bumps with the favorite run being Rolling Knoll dodging all the little trees.  Unfortunately, a lot of rocks cropped up and my rock skis took a 4 inch core shot.  Anyway, 2** out of 3 day for snow.

** The high score was slightly influenced by the first day pump-t-tude.  Also, I didn't deduct anything for lack of skiable terrain.  What I skied was very nice, if not a little thin.

As for Campbell lodge, the food kicked in around 11:30.  They have new very nice LCD screens for their menus they can update as they change.  I didn't see what the soup was, but burgers (and they have fries this year!), pizza, rice bowls, and sandwiches looked good and the prices didn't go up too much.

Very nice drive down.

My first day also. I agree with all the above. Note for those going Sat & Sun, bring your rock skis. Downhill was getting some sharks and gravel. Chapelles [CMAC] had a lot of rocks later in the day on the steep places. To CD it seems to me that the main steep about 1/2 way down had the lip knocked off. This made the skiable run wider and spread us out more. Good visibility in the am. Mild white out in the pm. We rode the Gondy for lunch. GV looked nice but thin, thin. Front side needs a lot more snow.

"Forgot to check the soup"....!!!??????
What is going on?......can't get the day right and now no soup report.
Jeeeez .
Very disappointing!

As reported, good although thin snow and weather all morning. Traffic took a toll and the rocks / dirt started to show by noon. Good day for noggin protection, the whizzies (straight liners that use others as slalom gates) were here and there. More snow is desperately needed. Patrol folks were reluctant to (and didn't) issue us an uphill card in the morning but they had the lights going. Different vibe in their office from what I've experienced in the past but it's early season and they're busy getting things set up.