The Difference a Couple of Inches Makes
February 12th, 2009Posted in Skiing in the Tetons
This morning’s snow reports for the Tetons were pretty universal in their agreement that about 6″ of snow fell in the preceding 24 hours. That was good news, by recent stadards, 6″ is a decent snowfall!
On Monday they had reported 4″ and few of the usual powder junkies showed up. Today, they reported 6″ and lots more people were there early to get the goods. Is there a big difference in the skiing between 4″ and 6″? The snow both days was the light and fluffy, cold powder that skis easily, but doesn’t buffer the older harder snow underneath it very well. The reported extra 2″ didn’t make any difference under our skis, but it looked like it made a difference in people’s perception of the type of skiing they would find today. There is no way I can guess at attendance numbers, but it sure seemed like there were many more people skiing today, and the mountain was ripped up faster to day, by far.
It didn’t take long for us, and many others, to decide that Mary’s Nipple was the place to ski today. Instead of getting bounced around on the lift served terrain by the hard and uneven old snow beneath today’s fresh topping, Mary’s was knee deep and smoooooth! There was even a class “A” boot pack today, nicely spaced steps which didn’t collapse- almost as good as marble staircase. Face shots and fresh lines on every lap were the order of the day. The west facing trees, the A-chutes, the north facing center of the bowl; it was all deep and all good.
powderjunky commented:
Right on, I think four inches is that magic number that is really fun but doesn’t draw the crowds. It’s really amazing how fun four inches on crust can be. Super fast but forgiving!
mongo commented:
“Couple of inches”? Um, maybe it’s the 2 feet of snow that fell this week that brought people out. Just a hunch.
snowman commented:
You may be right. Perhaps today’s 4″ report will draw a crowd for the same reason.
snowman commented:
You’re easier to please than I am! But that’s good, since there are far more 4″ days than 4′ days. Enjoy them all.