First time snowcat?

[James]

Aside from the technique discussion, deep powder is a very different beast from shallow powder.

At 6 inches, you can mostly ski on the layer under the new snow, with the powder just providing a wonderful silky feel. (I will go out of my way to ski an inch or two of new snow just for that feeling.) In deep snow, you have to ski against the platform created by the float. And of course there is an in-between range that has aspects of each. I think the transition is complete at slightly over knee-deep, so maybe two feet?

You don't usually get days like that, you get runs like that (unless it's snowing or blowing enough to get free refills). Not only because of traffic, but also because of wind drifting.

I don't keep track, but probably somewhere around a dozen truly deep days lifetime.

Deep powder adds the problem of falling. Or rather getting up. It can present ptoblems. Definitely for kids.
If a ski comes off, there's another problem, getting it back on. If you can find it.
Plus, if you fall, close your mouth! It's really no fun to start choking on snow.

 

[HardDaysNight]

Plus, if you fall, close your mouth! It's really no fun to start choking on snow.

Not only no fun, it can be fatal. There was an inbounds death in Japan last season when someone fell face first in deep snow at the edge of a groomed run and couldn’t release the skis from the bindings in order to roll over/get up and he suffocated.

 

[KingGrump]

Hmmm... looks like a gathering of the good news bear for the weekend.

 

[Pequenita]

Skied at Copper, Keystone, Tahoe, Whistler, but most of my trips have been at Wolf Creek and Purg (and a few trips to Taos/AF/RR/Ski Rio/Santa Fe, Lookout Pass, Dartmouth, but since we're talking powder, no point in even mentioning those). Every trip was 3 days or longer, most were 6 days on the snow.

Dude, who takes ski trips to the Dartmouth Skiway??? Sorry. I couldn't help myself.

 

[CS2-6]

Dude, who takes ski trips to the Dartmouth Skiway???

Hahaha, well I was in the neighborhood. I was interviewing for grad school at Dartmouth in late January and when I was planning my trip I saw they had a mountain (editor's note: he means "a lift") with a couple runs. I thought "well, here's a great chance to cross New Hampshire off my States Skied list so I'll never have to come back here!!"

I didn't want to lug a whole set of ski gear, so I decided to just pack an extra set of long johns and my ski jacket. Back then I thought I was pretty tough and figured I could stand a few hours with that, the jeans and flannel shirt and hat I wore on the plane, my wool gloves, and a pair of sunglasses. That was as cold as I've ever been in my entire life.

When I got there, I went into the rental shop and got some gear. I was the only person in the building not paid to be there. I went to the ticket office, and as the teller was handing me my ticket, she told me I was the only person to buy a ticket that day. If there was anyone else on the mountain, they had a pass.

I skied a few runs (editor's note: he means he slid/skidded/fell down the icy, frozen, glacial face of the slope) but my hands got so cold I completely lost feeling in them. They didn't even warm up on the lift. When I was skiing I had to keep glancing at my hands to make sure I was even still holding poles. So I got to the top of the lift and trudged over to the ski patrol hut, opened the door, and stumbled into a group of about six ski patrolers huddled around a heater and sharing a box of pizza. They all stared at me, mid-bite, and didn't say a word (I assume this was out of shock). I asked if they had any lost-and-found gloves I could borrow. One of them just pointed to a box full of (well) used gloves that smelled like a locker room, I dug out a pair that would suffice, said thanks (they still hadn't said a thing to me, or resumed their pizza lunch, for that matter), and I walked out the door.

I probably skied about four hours. Got stopped three times by the lift operator for frostbite check and had to sit inside his little hut for a few minutes each time. I don't think I saw another soul the entire time I was out there on the slopes.

 

[KingGrump]

Hahaha, well I was in the neighborhood. I was interviewing for grad school at Dartmouth in late January and when I was planning my trip I saw they had a mountain (editor's note: he means "a lift") with a couple runs. I thought "well, here's a great chance to cross New Hampshire off my States Skied list so I'll never have to come back here!!"

I didn't want to lug a whole set of ski gear, so I decided to just pack an extra set of long johns and my ski jacket. Back then I thought I was pretty tough and figured I could stand a few hours with that, the jeans and flannel shirt and hat I wore on the plane, my wool gloves, and a pair of sunglasses. That was as cold as I've ever been in my entire life.

When I got there, I went into the rental shop and got some gear. I was the only person in the building not paid to be there. I went to the ticket office, and as the teller was handing me my ticket, she told me I was the only person to buy a ticket that day. If there was anyone else on the mountain, they had a pass.

I skied a few runs (editor's note: he means he slid/skidded/fell down the icy, frozen, glacial face of the slope) but my hands got so cold I completely lost feeling in them. They didn't even warm up on the lift. When I was skiing I had to keep glancing at my hands to make sure I was even still holding poles. So I got to the top of the lift and trudged over to the ski patrol hut, opened the door, and stumbled into a group of about six ski patrolers huddled around a heater and sharing a box of pizza. They all stared at me, mid-bite, and didn't say a word (I assume this was out of shock). I asked if they had any lost-and-found gloves I could borrow. One of them just pointed to a box full of (well) used gloves that smelled like a locker room, I dug out a pair that would suffice, said thanks (they still hadn't said a thing to me, or resumed their pizza lunch, for that matter), and I walked out the door.

I probably skied about four hours. Got stopped three times by the lift operator for frostbite check and had to sit inside his little hut for a few minutes each time. I don't think I saw another soul the entire time I was out there on the slopes.

It's good for us to be able to look back and laugh about our experiences* once we get a little distance.



*Experience is simply the name we give our mistakes. - Oscar Wilde

 

[David Chaus]

Hahaha, well I was in the neighborhood. I was interviewing for grad school at Dartmouth in late January and when I was planning my trip I saw they had a mountain (editor's note: he means "a lift") with a couple runs. I thought "well, here's a great chance to cross New Hampshire off my States Skied list so I'll never have to come back here!!"

I didn't want to lug a whole set of ski gear, so I decided to just pack an extra set of long johns and my ski jacket. Back then I thought I was pretty tough and figured I could stand a few hours with that, the jeans and flannel shirt and hat I wore on the plane, my wool gloves, and a pair of sunglasses. That was as cold as I've ever been in my entire life.

When I got there, I went into the rental shop and got some gear. I was the only person in the building not paid to be there. I went to the ticket office, and as the teller was handing me my ticket, she told me I was the only person to buy a ticket that day. If there was anyone else on the mountain, they had a pass.

I skied a few runs (editor's note: he means he slid/skidded/fell down the icy, frozen, glacial face of the slope) but my hands got so cold I completely lost feeling in them. They didn't even warm up on the lift. When I was skiing I had to keep glancing at my hands to make sure I was even still holding poles. So I got to the top of the lift and trudged over to the ski patrol hut, opened the door, and stumbled into a group of about six ski patrolers huddled around a heater and sharing a box of pizza. They all stared at me, mid-bite, and didn't say a word (I assume this was out of shock). I asked if they had any lost-and-found gloves I could borrow. One of them just pointed to a box full of (well) used gloves that smelled like a locker room, I dug out a pair that would suffice, said thanks (they still hadn't said a thing to me, or resumed their pizza lunch, for that matter), and I walked out the door.

I probably skied about four hours. Got stopped three times by the lift operator for frostbite check and had to sit inside his little hut for a few minutes each time. I don't think I saw another soul the entire time I was out there on the slopes.

OK, you win. That’s about the best ski story I’ve ever heard.

 

[CS2-6]

OK, you win. That’s about the best ski story I’ve ever heard.

That's a hell of a compliment. I'm flattered.

Experience is simply the name we give our mistakes. - Oscar Wilde

I very desperately want to put that quote on my resume, but I'm afraid most folks wouldn't see the humor in it.

 

[David Chaus]

That's a hell of a compliment. I'm flattered.

I very desperately want to put that quote on my resume, but I'm afraid most folks wouldn't see the humor in it.

Or you could use another Oscar Wilde quote, going through Customs when he visited America:
“I have nothing to declare except my genius.”

That could go over well.

 

[jseeski]

I went to Big Red Cats and can vouch for them as a top notch operation. The people were all great, both incredibly nice and professional, and they did a good job of finding some semi-decent snow for us. But that last part was the problem. 2 years in a row we had pretty poor snow conditions. The first year was so bad with refrozen conditions that they weren't even sending cats out. They gave us a rain check and we came back the next year to try again. The conditions that year were marginal, they offered us another rain check if we wanted, but we didn't want to come back a third year so we went and skied.

I haven't skied Red Mt. other than those two trips, so I have no idea if we just got unlucky or if their location is prone to temperature fluctuations (and therefore issues with snow conditions). Because of this, I'd be hesitant to book there again. It's not a fault of the people or the terrain but it is the experience I had, so take this one anecdotal data point for what it's worth.

Red Mountain (and the Big Red terrain) does have some trouble with rain. Base elevation not high enough. This may get worse with the passage of time.

If you're coming as far as Rossland, there are many other cat operations in the area, but many of them are booked a year or more in advance. Look for higher elevations.

 

[jseeski]

I've taken ski trips at least once every year since I was 4. I've had exactly three opportunities for powder, I had to pay for a cat trip to get one of those.

You have my sympathy!

It is hard to learn to ski powder when you don't ski it very much. In addition, how much you struggle with powder will depend heavily on your basic skill level and your grasp of fundamentals. As others have said, it is a Good Thing if you can get some resort powder - but that's a matter of luck for most people. Targhee might be a good option, with lots of snow and few people. Try for late March.

 

[jseeski]

True, but there's a difference. In deep untracked snow, you are not likely to be able to push the skis around to an edge. When you ski powder on top of compacted or groomed snow, depending on depth, it is still possible to do so and get away with it.

Mike

No pushing! When I was teaching (PSIA-RM L3 - but it's been a long time), I didn't even like to use the word. Tip 'em and wait. They'll turn.

 

[DanoT]

It is hard to learn to ski powder when you don't ski it very much. In addition, how much you struggle with powder will depend heavily on your basic skill level and your grasp of fundamentals

I am originally an eastern skier and I never struggled much with powder even when I first moved west. No carving or edging required, which means more forgiving conditions and less precision required. Tree skiing is even better as there are no style points in the woods because when that tree is coming up fast it becomes "turn 'em any way you can".

Also the powder slows you down so less turning to control speed and a lot softer landing when crashing which also makes it easier to take some risks re: speed, terrain and taking an aggressive line.

 

[jseeski]

I am originally an eastern skier and I never struggled much with powder even when I first moved west. No carving or edging required, which means more forgiving conditions and less precision required. Tree skiing is even better as there are no style points in the woods because when that tree is coming up fast it becomes "turn 'em any way you can".

Also the powder slows you down so less turning to control speed and a lot softer landing when crashing which also makes it easier to take some risks re: speed, terrain and taking an aggressive line.

I would suggest, then, that you were a reasonably skilled "tail follows tip" type of skier by the time you moved west. Your balance was accurate and you did not ski by shoving the tails around. Just a guess on my part, but still...

 

[Ogg]

I would suggest, then, that you were a reasonably skilled "tail follows tip" type of skier by the time you moved west. Your balance was accurate and you did not ski by shoving the tails around. Just a guess on my part, but still...

Skiing on eastern boilerplate makes you acutely aware of your edges and even skid turners have to have good balance.

 

[DanoT]

Skiing on eastern boilerplate makes you acutely aware of your edges and even skid turners have to have good balance.

This is why by comparison I have always found powder so much more forgiving vs hard pack.

 

[mdf]

I learned to ski powder in 1981 or 2 on straight skis. I did not know it at the time, but I was a heel pusher on hardpack. Fortunately, back then powder from mid-week storms lasted nearly all day, because it took me about four hours and lots and lots of falls to get the hang of it.

(In retrospect, it would have been good to back-propagate my new found powder skills [minus the bouncing] onto the hardpack. But I didn't get that memo for about 20 years.)

 

[Big_Al]

If I remember correctly, someone posted about a cat skiing trip they did in Washington? Oregon? Idaho? I think they said it was close to the Idaho border, small resort with cat skiing on the side . For $99 / day!
And if you want to stay in Michigan , Mt Bohemia does cat skiing.

When I lived in Oregon, my buddies and I looked in to cat skiing operations (aka poor man's heli-skiing). There were 2 outfits in the area, one down by Crater Lake, one on the Idaho border. I think that is the one you are referring to. We gave it a shot. Very affordable. Snow was good, although the vertical wasn't huge.

https://anthonylakes.com/cat-trips/

 

[pchewn]

I just booked a 2-day cat skiing and overnight yurt for 12 at Soldier Mountain Idaho. Probably the least expensive cat skiing in N. America. They have a very generous refund policy (full 100% refund up to 48 hrs before trip). So if the conditions totally suck on Feb 16-17 2020 I can cancel by Feb 14 for a full refund. Looking forward to this.

 

[DanoT]

Soldier Mountain Idaho. Probably the least expensive cat skiing in N. America. They have a very generous refund policy (full 100% refund up to 48 hrs before trip).

What was the price/day? And does it include meals or just the Yurt accommodation?