Was it windy again today? Yep! Was Summit Chair closed again today? Yep!
The good news was that the other lifts were open. Although TLC was closed for a time in the morning, it opened later. Scott, Sherwood, and Lakeview were open for the day. I believe the high winds that were swirling around on the ridge tops, and even on the lower slopes, were blowing from the North/East, allowing some lifts to remain open as they are not as affected by winds from this direction.
I only skied until 11 am as I had an appointment in Reno that forced me back into the locker room early. However I was able to experience the winds blowing snow up Rock Garden and other trails accessed by Roundhouse. In addition, I was able to make some fresh turns in the thin lay of snow left in certain spots by the wind. These small areas on the level, as well as in the troughs of moguls, were soft and just lovely for making a few happy turns. I left tracks behind me as I skied over the snow dune (also known as sastrugi). By the time I returned from the next chair ride my tracks were gone (filled in by the blowing snow).
Yesterday, the air warmed up enough to melt south facing slopes, at least some of them. Overnight, they froze eliminating some of the beautiful wind buff we enjoyed yesterday. Firm, roughed up, skier tracks on these slopes was not a reason to smile. North or east facing slopes remained very nice offering winter pack for skiers. God’s Knob, Rolls and Knolls, Sympathy and others skied well this morning. We tried Gentian, but it was not as good as other raved it was yesterday. The lower portion was icy while the upper areas remained a nice winter surface.
I am sure High Yellow Gully (Our Father) remained excellent today, but I did not have time to give it a try.
I hope you enjoy the photos I attempted to take this morning to show the winds blowing snow into the air and up the ski trails. It appeared as if the winds were dying down this afternoon.
Enjoy your day,
Andy
Our Father was in fact excellent.
Excellent but a long lap even when TLC is open. Going back via Scott to Mountain View to the Rut and back up Sherwood is dedication.
I would not call a “snow dune” and “sastrugi” as being the same thing. Both are caused by the wind, but different. Snow dunes are the result of snow being deposited by wind. Snow dunes would eventually be called a snow drift, allowed to build big enough. Sastrugi is the result of snow erosion. It’s those more oddly shaped eroded features left when the softer snow is eroded away by wind. Just sayin’.
Agreed
I can no longer ski those slopes but I am really enjoying your photography!