Tag Archives: snow reports 2010-11

Snow Reports from Canada, USA and Japan ski resorts for 2010-2011

Steamboat – 400 Inches of Snow

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28 March 2011: Jen’s Steamboat Update

Jenny and Lev with Buddy

When my buddy Lev pointed out early this morning that the snow gods have set their Steamboat clocks back to winter and asked to borrow my camera for his Straight Talk report, I of course selflessly offered my assistance. We headed down Rudi’s Run from the top of the Gondola and knew immediately we were in for a treat: 7″ of new snow with an ever-so-slightly dense texture that provides a perfect powder carvy ride on our snowboards. As we approached the top of the Storm Peak chair, low visibility helped us choose the Triangle 3 trees to Cyclone, and what a ride it was, with deep powder and some surprising drifts to get us off the ground.

Back up Storm Peak we giggled our way down The Ridge/Big Meadow. Few lucky riders had gone before us, and we were able to both keep each other in sight and make wide sweeping virgin tracks all the way down the slope. Next we crossed over to the woods off skier’s left of Buddy’s Run, where we played around in the aspens in deep snow, and then we eased our way down Tornado Lane and back to the lift. For a last upper mountain exploration on behalf of our esteemed readers, we crossed Highline from Storm Peak over to Sunshine Peak to see what was happening in Wally World. We traversed High Noon – sweetly groomed with a thick layer of frosting – and the top of Flintlock – ditto – and let gravity funnel us down Quickdraw, playing around the soft and deep edges of the run and in and out of the trees. Next we hit Rolex, beautifully groomed overnight, but ended up in the trees to the right for most of the descent. The snow was a bit less forgiving here, but the perfect spacing of the trees confirmed this spot as one of my favorites on the mountain, despite another upside-down in the snow moment. Then it was Elkhead lift up and on to Valley View, where we found the sun just starting to light up the Yampa Valley in a most extraordinary way. Lev and I have always been big fans of this steep lower mountain run, and as we surfed our way in tandem in gorgeous powder down skier’s right, we actually paused for a contented fist bump.

 

Amazing Snow

You know it’s a fantastic day on the mountain when even the final turns down Stampede are fun and fluffy, assuming you stay somewhat tight to the base area fencing…

I feel truly privileged to have snowboarded in Steamboat today. For the 3rd time in four years we’re celebrating a 400″ season, and snow is forecast through the entire week. You’ve got another 14 days to enjoy some amazing Steamboat turns this winter – see you here?


Ski Holiday to Steamboat from Australia »

Record Breaking Snowfall at Sun Peaks

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March 21, 2011 – Sun Peaks, BC – This season’s snowfall is shaping up to be one of their best since 2005-06! Total snowfall as of Monday, March 21, is over 6 metres (602.1cm). They are 43.1cm over their annual average snowfall (559cm) with three weeks to go!

 

Ski Sun Peaks from NZ »

Ski Sun Peaks from Australia »

 

Word of the Week – Pillow Lines

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Pillow Lines

Unlike that comfy place you rest your head each night, these types of pillows lead to many early mornings and sleepless nights for skiers and riders. Pillow Lines refer to those amazing clumps of soft snow that accumulate, just pleading to be jumped off or plowed through. Nothing beats the feeling of floating through a pillowy powder field with no other sound than the wind whistling past and the faint cheers of joy from others on the hill.

With 49cm of fresh snow falling in the last 48 hours, and up to 70cm expected by Monday it looks like there is plenty of pillowy soft fun in store.

Amazing

 

Amazing

 

Amazing

 

Ski Whistler Blackcomb from NZ

Ski Whistler Blackcomb from AU

Steamboat Records Four-wire winter. Hits 350 inch snow mark.

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Over a Foot Falls At Mid-Mountain During First Week of March. Nearly 30 Feet of Champagne Powder Stacks Up At Ski Area This Season

STEAMBOAT SPRINGS, CO-March 8, 2011-With nearly 30 feet of snow this winter, Steamboat has reached another snow milestone, recording a four-wire winter, when the snow stacks up past the fourth row of fence wires. Yampa Valley ranchers have traditionally measured the severity of a Routt County winter by how high the snow stacks up against their four fence wires.

“Steamboat is enjoying some of the best snow in the Rocky Mountains and is the only major destination resort in Colorado with a summit base over 100 inches,” said Chris Diamond, president & chief operating officer for Steamboat Ski & Resort Corporation. “Steamboat is notorious for big storms, and this storm is just the beginning of what will be an incredible spring mountain experience in Ski Town, U.S.A.®”

Steamboat is in a storm cycle that as of 5am yielded 2 inches at mid-mountain and the summit in the past 24-hours; 8 inches at mid-mountain and 9 at the summit in the past 48-hours; and 14 inches at mid-mountain and 18 inches at the summit for March. The resort is reporting an 82-inch base at mid-mountain and 110-inch base at the summit on powder/packed powder conditions.

A winter storm will continue to impact the area bringing widespread snow over western Colorado with the mountains along the Continental Divide receiving the highest accumulations. A Winter Weather Advisory remains in effect until 6pm MST Tuesday for the Steamboat area with periods of moderate snow and accumulations ranging from 6 to 8 inches.

This season, snow has surpassed the fourth row of fence wires across the Yampa Valley. As Sureva Towler writes in her book, The History of Skiing at Steamboat Springs, “By January or February of a typical winter, snow will cover the third fence wire, usually 30 inches high.” Four-wire winters, generally more than 350 inches at the resort’s mid-mountain location, were recorded in 1983/84, 1989/90, 1992/93, 1995/96, 1996/97, 1999/2000, 2005/06, 2007/08, 2008/09, and again in 2010/11.

Steamboat has seen 21 inches in October; 90 inches in November; 73 inches in December; 68 inches in January; 84 inches in February; and 14 inches in March for a combined mid-mountain total of 350 inches (29.1 feet). Since October 23rd, snow has fallen 86 out of 137 days with 38 of those days recording four or more inches. In March alone, snow has fallen 5 of 8 days with 2 days recording four or more inches.

Still 1 Month left in the 2010-2011 ski and snowboard season with a settled base of 83″/210cm at mid-mountain and 114″/289cm at the summit.

Best snowfall in 5 years at Banff-Lake Louise

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The snow is continuing to fall in Banff-Lake Louise, with almost half a metre of snow in the past week. This follows the best January in five years for snowfall. Last month, 167cm of dry, light snow blanketed the area – well above the 30 year average.

Best Snowfall in 5 years

Bright blue skies between the snow storms and mild temperatures have produced amazing conditions for skiers and riders at Mt. Norquay, The Lake Louise Ski Area and Sunshine Village. And there’s plenty of time left to enjoy it with three and a half months of skiing still to go in Canada’s Protected Playground, Banff National Park.

Jenny’s Steamboat Snow Update for 7th Feb 2011

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With 7″/17cm of new snow reported overnight and the weightlessness of the abundant fluff I cleared from my driveway this morning, I knew there would be some product testing involved in my Monday morning. I found a willing and eager companion in James, one of my best snowboard buddies, and we headed out late morning to work in our outside office, the White Room. I commented on the Gondola that despite 27 days on mountain so far this winter, I’d not yet ridden up the Pony Express over in Pioneer Ridge, so James chose our first run accordingly. We took Norther from the top of Thunderhead down to Blizzard and then down to the lift, and we knew we were in for a treat! We followed our noses down through the trees between Longhorn and the Pony Express lift, whooping and hollering as we found the deepest patches of the freshest powder and twice meeting up unexpectedly coming around the same stand of trees; I’m glad James has fast reflexes! We celebrated back on the lift again and at the top decided to make our way over to Storm Peak via Flying Z and the Four Points Lift Line. Another excellent choice!

We then rode up Storm Peak and visited the Buddy Werner statue at the top, as you do, only to find that he’s lost a lot of stature of late: he’s over 14 feet tall in summer, and with all of the Steamboat snow, he now hits me right about shoulder level.

James and I then headed off to the right of Buddy’s Run onto the Ridge, where we found more perfectly untracked deep snow on a favorite steep hillside. A happy skier approached and announced he had no idea where he was, so we took him with us on one of THE BEST runs ever: from The Ridge we rode through my precious little munchkin forest, crossed over Buddy’s to the trees on skier’s left, turned right down the Bar UE lift line, crossed over the bottom of Cyclone into the woods above Tornado Lane, back down Four Points lift line and through the trees above Storm Peak Lift back down to the chair. What a long, random, crazy, playful ride – we just leapfrogged along making decisions on the fly and having a blast. (Our tag-along skier accused us of trying to kill a flatlander, but he was smiling as he said it and then skied away with a wave.) James and I next decided it was our duty to inspect the Shadows/Closet trees and share our findings, so for our final upper mountain run we entered the forest just at Side Burn and stayed right most of the way down, where to our delight we found plenty of untouched and bottomless stashes. We traversed gradually left as we descended and came out of the trees midway down Moonlight and then headed down to the Elkhead lift. We chose upper Valley View for our last big run, where I enjoyed the on-piste messy snow, and James rode the trees, and then we eased our way down Sitz/See Me/Stampede and back to the office. WOW!

Here are the numbers for today, February 7 , 2011:

  • Cumulative snowfall to date: 287″/729cm
  • Snow base at mid-mountain: 81″/205cm
  • Snow base at the summit: 108″/274
  • New snow 24 hours: 7″/17cm
  • New snow in 48 hours: 20″/50cm
  • Current conditions: still DUMPING snow (I’m going to have to clear the driveway again when I get home…)

Wish you were here!

Jenny

Latest Snow Update from North America & Japan

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Sun Peaks Resort

The snow reports are flooding in with some exciting news – take alook at the snowfall for the past 24hours – and its still falling!!

Canada

  • Sun Peaks – 17.1cm
  • Big White – 35cm
  • Whistler – 14cm
  • Fernie – 12cm
  • Marmot Jasper – 11cm
  • Red Mountain – 12cm

USA

Aspen Snowmass

  • Vail – 13cm
  • Aspen Snowmass – 11cm

JAPAN

  • Niseko – 10cm

Now is great time to be there.

Thanks to all the resorts for keeping us updated daily!