Favorite Storm Ski Chairlift

[agreen]

Criteria:

1. Doesn't get wind held very often/sheltered
2. Services lots of good quality terrain with trees for viz
3. Doesn't get huge lines on a midweek pow day
4. Steep enough to get some speed when deep

2 + 3 = doesn't get tracked out in an hour/tracks have time to refill

Thanks for playing!

 

[Monique]

Breck: E Chair

 

[Crank]

Jet Triple at Jay Peak, VT.

 

[cantunamunch]

Gad 2 Snowbird

 

[x10003q]

Burnt Ridge Quad at Gore Mtn - a HSQ that serves more glades than trails. It is at a lower elevation out of the wind, mostly serves harder trails and glades and is never crowded.

 

[Philpug]

MRG Single comes to mind. Otherwise, the one where the storm is

 

[Doug Briggs]

Breck: E Chair

Winner, Winner. Chicken Dinner.

 

[johnnyvw]

Jet Triple at Jay Peak, VT.

Ever ride the Jet T-bar?

 

[pchewn]

Cloudchaser at Mt Bachelor. Specifically designed for skiing during storms.

https://www.mtbachelor.com/info/cloudchaser/

 

[Tony]

Cloudchaser at Mt Bachelor. Specifically designed for skiing during storms.

https://www.mtbachelor.com/info/cloudchaser/

Not sure that a press release is the best place to get accurate info. I skied Bachelor on consecutive storm days at the end of Feb. 2017 and went to Cloudcatcher both days. The two main problems with it are that it is flatter than many other lifts there and the wind can wrap around the mountain and cause it to run slow. See http://www.firsttracksonline.com/boards/viewtopic.php?f=3&t=12326 for my report.

Using Bachelor's nummbers, I found Cloudcatcher is 1 foot of vertical for 4.54 feet of length which is slightly flatter than intermediate Skyline that is 1:4.47 and much flatter than Pine Marten at 1:3.51 and Northwest (my favorite storm lift at Bachelor with 2,365 vertical!) at 1:3.54. Bachelor's steepest lift is Summit at 1:2.77, but my luck at being there when it is running is low at only 2 or 3 of my 10 days since Bachelor added it.

For the Vail Tahoe resorts, I find it hard to beat Cornice at Kirkwood for a storm lift. As long as wind is out of SW, which is typical for Sierra storms, I've seen them run it into 50 mph winds which you only experience at the top. It has trees nearly to the top, gives you access to runs along almost 2 miles of ridge and is over 1,300 vertical with less than a 5 minute ride.

While Northstar has had a tough season with rain most of the way up their mountain in most storms, the Backside lift is rarely shut down from winds that will totally close many other Tahoe areas. It is also one of Northstar's steepest lifts, has 1800 vertical from a fairly short ride and a lot of tree skiing all the way to the top.

At Heavenly, Stagecoach can be the only lift you get in a windy storm and can have good skiing in the trees if there is a better base than this year. But the groomed runs are not very exciting and the bottom is flat. If you have low enough snow levels and a good base, storm skiing the lowest lifts in CA, Gunbarrel chair and the Tram, can be great as they were in some January 2017 storms on days the top lifts did not open and mid-level lifts were jammed.

 

[Sibhusky]

Chair 11, Whitefish.

..... Gets lassoed and gagged by fellow skiers, shut in a shack..

 

[Mike Rogers]

I really like the Boomerang Chair at Fernie. It never really closes, and it serves excellent, sheltered tree skiing. If the Alpine is closed it can get a bit busy, but midweeks are usually okay.

 

[Crank]

Ever ride the Jet T-bar?

I have never even seen or heard of the Jet t-bar!

Burnt Ridge Quad at Gore Mtn - a HSQ that serves more glades than trails. It is at a lower elevation out of the wind, mostly serves harder trails and glades and is never crowded.

I love The Cirque glade off Burnt Ridge. It's more like a mini back country adventure than a standard tree run.

 

[SSSdave]

Used to storm ski Tahoe resorts much more. Reading responses some lifts suggested are too exposed thus windy so have doubts posters are getting out in serious storms. West Coast resorts get numbers of big storms. I won't ski any with windy forecasts as even most protected lifts tend to shut down. Scary being on any shaking swaying lift that keeps stopping due to high wind gusts with sub freezing temps low wind chill as even bundled to the max is easy to imagine dying if stuck. And that is why resorts just shut down.

Agree with Tony about backside Northstar and Stagecoach at HV if one can ski trees. HV Nevada side best about Tahoe if good base low and not too windy because huge area of trees. Cornice Exp at KW tends to shut down due to wind but as noted exc if not too windy. Also trees are really where one should be because flat light visibility is also an issue. Also Homewood if snow level is low or Sierra-at-Tahoe as both are in forest.

Last year as the biggest coldest storms moved out highways closed so tried Dodge Ridge that I had not skied in 2 decades. New lifts 7 & 8 to top and backside open up huge areas of trees. Topography weird so lots of secret slopes for someone that studies a topo plus trailmap. Best thing is not many strong powder or tree skiers though numbers of boarders so untracked lasts way longer especially places boarders cannot easily reach. Generally not as windy as Tahoe resorts because well west of Sierra Crest where winds peak flowing over the range and highway is not likely to close.

 

[Mike King]

This

 

[Eleeski]

Olympic Lady at Squaw.

Except it is Squaw so the powder disappears quickly no matter what. The lower mountain is in a reasonable wind shadow so it can be excellent in the midst of a storm. KT earns its reputation in storms but the lines are outrageous. At least we get quick building of really soft bumps...

Eric

 

[YolkyPalky]

Any Gondola sounds cool to me during a storm lol! If its not too bad a storm for it to be running anyway.

 

[cantunamunch]

Any Gondola sounds cool to me during a storm lol! If its not too bad a storm for it to be running anyway.

Problem is they usually drop you into a whiteout, in moonscape-looking terrain that generally doesn't have trees or even significant other navigational features. Not that that's not fun in its own right, but it doesn't meet OP's criteria.

Except for the ones like Red Pine that basically take you from one swarming hive of people to another, of course.

IV at Sutton
Dreamcatcher at Canyons
Wildcat at the Basin

 

[johnnyvw]

I have never even seen or heard of the Jet t-bar!

The Jet T-bar was before the triple was installed. It ran up what is now the Jet trail (it was widened to make it a trail). I assume you have skied that trail, so just imagine riding a T-bar up that run

This is a trail map from 1976, the year I first skied at Jay and rode that T-bar
https://skimap.org/data/202/2205/1473113171.jpg

 

[Chris Walker]

When the wind starts blowing at Copper, I head for the A lift.