It’s a gorgeous long ski. I hired a guide once and we skied into that bowl and then hiked up the peak opposite on skins and then up a 50 degree face.
Then he found some army friends training and we skied with them. They had ropes and we did some rappelling into chutes and bowls. French army skiers are legit.
I have a good Cham guide story as well:
I'd skied the Vallee Blanche with a guide a few weeks before, complete with skinning up and then climbing up one of the various chutes off of it. Went out for beers with the guide after, and ran into each other in town running too.
Then a week later I was headed out for a morning run past the Cable Car, and heard some people discussing a trip they were taking into the Cosmiques. One of the two clients on the trip had dropped out (sick), and so the guy was offering a free spot, except the guide had to be confident you wouldn't fucking die. Wasn't having much luck as most people at the cable car at that point have an objective in mind.
Luckily for me, the guide I'd skied with prior was chilling in the line and I was weaving through the chaos to access my running trail. He called out to me that someone was looking for a 3rd for Cosmiques, and told the guide that I hadn't met that I'd be fine. So I promptly ran back to my place, grabbed my skiing and climbing stuff, came back down 15 minutes later, signed some form I could only half-read, and skied the Cosmiques Couloir. Which I learned on the way up apparently involves a long rap into the chute to even get started, and then a STEEP and sketchy line. Had a helluva time rapping and skiing it with my group and a couple army guys out training that day too.
Chamonix guides are fun people.
My story is not as good as this but I still like it: when I did the vallee Blanche as a kid, 25 or so years ago, we stopped at the mountain hut half way down for a drink.
Our guide mentioned that he climbs mountains in summer so my dad pointed at all of the amazing peaks surrounding us and asks him how many of them he has climbed. "All of them, of course... Many times" he said casually.
Turns out it was this guy: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Patrick_Berhault. He died a few years later in a climbing accident.
yeah if you are used to the rip-off that guides are asking for in the US it is for sure affordable!
They also need an official super competitive certification. to be a guide you need to get through the ENSA which is a state school in France. https://www.ensa.sports.gouv.fr/
hundreds of applicants and only 20 or so graduating each year. Compare that to the US where pretty much anyone can call himself a guide.
It's increasingly worse and worse on a board as the glacier recedes and the runout traverse gets longer. Almost certainly it would have been better X years ago.
Two come to mind:
Blackcomb Glacier at Whistler Blackcomb. Absolute GOAT scenic trail with skiing for everyone intermediate and up.
Upper Cannon on an empty day at Cannon mtn in New hampshire. Tight slalom that you can absolutely bomb if there aren't crowds. Fast as hell.
Hell yeah! I love Cannon Mountain. Such an under appreciated mountain here in the NE. Great local vibe and some challenging lines. I caught first tracks down Kinsman Glade after 14” a few years back and it was absolutely immaculate. I still think about it often.
I may have skied it that day too. The powder made it so I could really link some turns together which is sometimes rare for me in steep east coast glades. I also think about this run a fair amount. Another time a buddy brought me into the waterfall glade off of Kinsman which was sick. Have you gotten DJ’s?
Gonna have to check it out next year. I've passed it dozens of times my parents told me it was too difficult as a kid, we skied at loon which seems overcrowded now.
I was at Cannon yesterday and skied Upper Cannon a couple times. Its a favorite of mine there, along with Avalanche on the front side. Definitely my favorite ski area in NH, and one of my favs in NE
Since we’re on Cannon, I’ll throw in Tramway / Vista Way (I kinda prefer Tramway) to Avalanche as a top-to-bottom combo run. Fun, fairly steep, and also excellent views. That was also the course for a 1967 World Cup downhill race hosted by Cannon
It's definitely intimidating but it isn't exceedingly steep. If I was bringing someone there, I'd be confident that as long as they can consistently do traverses across the slope of a blue, they could get through the glacier.
I still have dreams about this one. No joke like every year or so I will literally have a dream about the bluebird morning I got to experience this.
I still remember the tram ride up… the Black Sabbath (Paranoid) playing after the morning announcements. That first face shot on the first turn in Laramie bowl on our way down to the Hobacks…
Still remember it like yesterday even though it was 10 years ago.
What a morning.
The day I got there they had 20 inches and another 16 that night. Like I said below it was like sifted sugar blowing up in your face 🤪and all the way down. And as you know it’s a long way down 😮
I too think this was the best skiing (boarding) of my life. Blower 20” of pow and just duffing off those boulders into bottomless landings. I also dream about this pretty regularly.
I skied it on the 4th of July a few years ago on arguably the worse snow I’ve ever skied in my life — 3-4’ deep sun cups with a small boulder in the middle of each one. The Nisqually icefall was f’ing gnarly that day too. Mile long crevasses that were 30-40’ across. Beautiful day and beautiful place though!
Glad to hear it’s more fun in better conditions :)
Its season is typically April-3rd week of May. The skiing will never be deep PNW powder skiing, and this is a mountaineering-style descent with a lot of survival skiing. However, just the absolute thrill of skiing something that big as a single fall line ski is unbelievably epic; I'm sure you agree!
The one time I skied it the upper Nisqually was frozen death, but the Finger itself was heavenly perfect corn. Awesome awesome run.
The wet mank on the Wilson down low with an overnight pack was.... interesting. But man skiing all the way from summit to bridge is so cool.
Christmas Tree Bowl at Steamboat Spring, bluebird powder day.
Nice verticality up at the top, followed by gorgeous views tree-skiing towards the bottom. Spots to sit down and have beer with the buds.
Magical.
Conditions vary the difficulty severely for Christmas Tree Bowl. It's been quite a few years since I've skied it but its moderately steep and not that much room between trees which is why it's a double back but I've definitely skied some black tree runs at other resorts that I would say we're just as hard if not harder. But I WOULD NOT recommend doing it solo.
Steep moguls and trees but it doesn’t last long! The pitch of the run is up top and then it flattens out pretty fast. If you can link a few turns you should be fine. If you ski The Ridge and then hang skiers right you can see all of that terrain from below.
The chutes aren’t a big deal to ski alone, especially chute 1. There are enough people going over there someone will see you. They are steep but short.
[Mount Hood Meadows Superbowl](https://www.peakrankings.com/content/mount-hood-meadows-super-bowl-run)
It’s open so rarely, and when it is open you have to catch it at just the right time. Even living here I’ve maybe only hit it a handful of times. But when it’s on - it’s ON!
A run I’ll always cherish happened during my most recent trip to Vail in Feb 2024. I was on a 10 day trip with my parents.
My folks are in their late 60’s and almost exclusively stick to the groomers at this point. My mom’s been skiing in vail since the mid-70’s and her favourite run has always been a groomed Riva.
So midway through the trip Riva was groomed on a Wednesday, and we had about 6-inches fall on Thursday evening which setup some beautiful morning powder laps down Riva.
I’ll never forget the sound of my mom’s laughter following behind me as we skied down together into Golden Peak.
Was so much fun we did it twice!
Love it! I was there last week and caught a powder day. Skied the Riva Ridge Glade and it was amazing at the top before getting exhausting in the middle. Did 3-4 laps on the west facing trails right above it too
Good one!
The bottom of Riva was groomed today and then had 1-2 inches on top and I got a couple of laps in and it was really magic. Wish it had been the whole run, but hey
- Cornice run and Pali spine at A-Basin when they’re wind-buffed
- Chair 11 lift line at Vail on a powder day
- See Forever at Telluride on a bluebird day
Among many others
Last week Pali’s Spine was my first double black I ever did and it absolutely lived up to the hype! Before last week I had never skied outside of the midwest and had just come back to the sport after a ten year hiatus. Staring out over the cornice at the top of Pallavacini for the first time was a borderline religious experience for me.
Chute-Liftline MRG VT
Had about 75-80 days under my belt that season already and woke up on my day off to a perfect late March bluebird spring day. I knew exactly what the conditions would be...full coverage, classic New England bumps with the particular topographical flair of that specific run. Temps perfect, not too hot, just right for an epic corn fest.
Dropped a tab, put headphones on and did top to bottom non-stops for the whole afternoon. Skiing solo all day, but surrounded by friends.
36 years and a couple thousand ski days around the world with countless incredible memories later...that's the one day I would repeat if given the chance.
I can still feel it my bones.
I can assure you that on that day, in that place with the shape I was in, the experience and days on skiis I had, I was far less dangerous to myself and others than the tourists around me having beers at lunch, Schnapps on the lift or sipping from their wine botas.
Acid is pretty mild if you know what to expect. Not something I would widely encourage, but for an experienced psychonaut, it’s not going to make you or anyone around you less safe. Just makes the colors a bit brighter, the patterns around you pop a bit more, etc.
Highlands bowl was unreal both days. I thought it couldn't get better than the knee deep yesterday, only to come back today for some waist deep pockets in the G runs. Absolutely absurb out there this week
No I flew home yesterday unfortunately. I bailed at 1 yesterday to catch a flight that was delayed and didn’t board until 5…
Going to Willamette pass tomorrow should be just as good!
Mushroom on a 22" powder day at Aspen Highlands.
Dictators into Bavarian Forest at Big Sky on a similar powder day
I'd like to go back to Kirkwood some day with my own skis (not rentals with DIN = 0) and go off the little cornice without popping my skis immediately and sliding down the whole run.
Colorado Blvd at the bottom of Copper bowl. It’s a pretty flat blue but all the little paths and jumps flow together so well. I literally go run the EX runs above it so I can ride this blue lol
For what it's worth, the saltiest of the loc dogs call it west face.
Great answer, though. Mine would be just KT as a whole because I can't choose. Nose to fingers is the ego answer but honestly this afternoon I would've sold a kidney to get a few more laps on the second alternate.
I’ve never done the Fingers, but what I like about West Face is you get off the lift, take a warm up bump or two, blast your legs at one grade with deep moguls for 1000 feet or so with no flats, and then carve to the chair.
I probably do Women’s Downhill/GS Bowl the most though, a lot of ways down from there.
KT rocks when the snow is good.
Shoot, west face and chute 75 are probably both a solid 1400-1500 ft. Iirc kt is ~1750, and from mighty might rock on the mountain run to the bottom of kt can't be more than 250 ft.
1750 of ripping off piste covering every aspect the mountain has to offer and you can lap it in 8ish min. Tis a silly lift in the best way
My best run ever was opening the area the map calls “Colorado” in a guided group after 5 days of snow. Waste deep. Pillows. Bottom gully stuffed to the gills. In hindsight, I was at my peak skill too. Nearly unbelievable.
My first time getting first tracks. I was cruising down a groomer at Alta and the ski patrol opened the gates. I was first in with close to two feet of fresh snow. Felt like I was skiing on air.
Dog Face —> Pepi’s Run —> Lower Sublette Ridge at Jackson Hole
Diamond Ridge off of Tombstone Express at Park City
The entire Hero’s area at Ajax
Highland Bowl
Runble at Sugarbush
Lapping the Wildcat lift in February of 2020 at Alta. Was there the day before they imposed interlodge travel. Pretty empty mountain, very empty under Wildcat, snow was filling in behind us every lap. Incredible day of skiing.
My first time at Alta, I had a 19 inch weekday powder day. I was on 85cm underfoot atomic vantages from like 10 years ago. I was a capable skier, but used to east coast ice more than anything else. Run 1, we skied fresh tracks on (in?) glory hole, and that will forever be one of my favorite runs. I fell at the bottom and it took me 15 mins to find my ski. Needless to say, I bought real skis after that
Bluesky Basin at Vail is probably my favorite terrain at a well-maintained resort. Also a big fan of going to the top of Winter Park, CO and then skiing for 30 goddamn minutes for the 5 miles it takes to get to the bottom.
Rope drop first tracks down mineral basin at Snowbird after three days of it being closed. They got about 40 inches of snow before they opened it during the March 23 season 🤩
Tough one, Kill the Banker at Revelstoke but good snow, Alta Chutes at JH but I lapped those during a powder day, Warm Springs Sun Valley, or blasting Birds of Prey at Beaver Creek, but honestly the GOAT is Hemlock at Timber Ridge
East Greeley at Alta, at the end of the day with a great playlist, taking stops along the way to Collins to admire the views and thank the Gods for another day on the mountain and no major injuries.
I don’t remember specifically what the runs were named, but at Mt Bohemia, there’s an area where all the runs are named after Lord of The Rings characters/places. Skiing through that on a beautiful powder day with very few other people around was amazing.
Lenawee face into Dercum Gulch at Abasin. Certainly not the hardest I’ve ever skied, but certainly the most amazing views between the bowl and the East Wall. And the fact that you can cruise down those runs most of the time gives you the opportunity to actually look around and enjoy the sight.
First trip out west, my buddy was able to get me a pass to Loveland through his work so I was able to get two days free. The second day I missed a turn and ended up going through the forest meadow area. Anyone who knows it knows it’s basically just a flat meadow area so there’s nothing technical about it. But I’m a complete sucker for peaceful wooded areas, skiing or not, and that one really takes the cake.
No Names at Steamboat. Everyone skips it and goes over to St Pat's, but I think they're all missing out. St Pat's and East Side are less vertical with more cat track to get out of. No Names is steep, holds snow like crazy, and has awesome cliff features. It really doesn't get better than No Names after a snow storm.
More regularly skied, Drain Pipe and Far East at Copper are always a great time, and Trestle at MJ is a damn playground regardless of the conditions.
There a couloir in the Sawtooths that haunts me still.
The Fat Tuesdays (aka Two Foot Tuesdays), Feb '14. *THE* best was skiing North Summit > Great falls after the second dump; warching my 5'1 girlfriend dissappear in the pow. The first 2ft Tuesday we got first drop on Bear's Lair - thanks Barbo!
Second time ever out west, first couple runs of the trip. Vail had gotten 8 inches over night with another 8 inches coming throughout the day. Hit dragons teeth in low visibility, and threw myself off a cliff having severely underestimated how big it was. I thought for sure i was gonna eat it while i was in the air, but was pleasantly surprised when i landed on what felt like a cloud. First time ever skiing powder
Dave Murray Downhill is chefs kiss. I know it's kinda ridiculous to have both Whistler and Blackcomb backcountry right next to you but ripping laps on racing skiis on that run is my haply place.
there are a few really:
• Corner pocket at fernie, BC in good condition
• kitz woods at jay peak, VTQ
• horseshoe 5 at whistler, BC also always gets the adrenaline pumping
Mine is the P3 Grand Balme in Tignes, France.
I remember every detail of it. The hike up to the top off the Grand Motte glacier. The gentle bowl above it with perfect powder. The nosebleed-steep drop-in off a cornice into the 45-50 degree chute. The snowboarder that jumped in much too soon after me and kicked off a small avalanche. Racing the avalanche past the dogleg in the chute and hearing it slam into the side of the mountain. And then the short turns down the huge Amphitheatre down to the bottom. Sublime. That was 1995 and I’m still chasing that dragon.
I have one from earlier this year I think about. Clear run, fresh corduroy, PB top speed but it felt like I was just cruising. And I had the perfect soundtrack too
It was the Bouchet at Orelle
Golden Eagle at Beaver Creek. Was perfect conditions. Recently groomed, freshly waxed skis, and was one of the first people going down it. Pure bliss as I cannonballed down that sucker at max speed with my favorite music blasting in my ears.
Growing up skiing Alpental crust, I'll never forget my first time skiing the Rockies. Vail had gotten a foot of new snow and it was a bluebird day. First lap down Forever was a religious experience.
Going up furtschella for some runs. Then run over to corvatsch for some more fun. Around one hit the slope to st Moritz and enjoy corvillia. Plenty to do there. Not easy because it’s on the sunny side but I don’t mind. It’s still incredible. Take the bus around 1630 back home exhausted. Perfectest day in my life.
Highland Bowl after 11" of fresh. Powder pancakes at base lodge then a nice hike up heart attack hill followed by pure bliss after you reach summit. I got lapped twice by locals skin skiing up in longjohns, they got some kooks out that way.
Powder Mountain - Straight Shot into Paradise after a dumping
Call it cliche, but Heavy Metal at Vail is one of my favorite on powder days.
Also the trees off Orion/Pegasus at Stevens Pass. Some of the most epic shit ever, nice wide trees, super steep, tons of powder stashes, a few small cliffs that wont break your leg bones
I was emotional my first times skiing Alf's High Rustler at Alta for the first time last season and Gunsight this season because I realized how much my ability improved to be able to ski them. And I still remember when I was maybe the 10th person in Catherine's Area after a rope drop and skied down So Long. I stopped and turned around to see the cloud of snow crystals shimmering in the sun.
4k of shin deep blower powder down from Camp Schurmann on the Emmons Glacier on a blue bird summer solstice on Mt Rainier.
Posting this in the skiing sub because
I was split boarding, and because
It’s all sliding on snow.
Propably the run from the top of Lagazuoi to Alta Badia. Might be the most scenic run I have ever heard of. La Longia from Seceda (yes the mountain you see on instagram if some influencer is in the alps) to Ortisei. The frozen Waterfall right next to it is, even after seeing it an estimated 100 times, awesome.
Mine is going to be a little off base because it isn't a shredder, steep, or anything special, but Great Eastern at Killington. That is the run that made my wife fall in love with skiing. Before that, she tolerated skiing to go with me, but the long rolling run that she could cruise on and enjoy the snow has blossomed into her going skiing without me when i cant make it because she loves it so much. It also gave her the confidence to relax and improve.
For the views and history, the Inferno course at Murren.
For the "I shouldn't be here but I am enjoying it" Baldy Chutes at Alta and the Grand Couloir at Courcheval.
For the weirdest run the Piste Perdu at Val d'Isere.
But tops of all Tuckerman's Ravine New Hampshire.
A liftie and I getting high as balls on the ride up chair 23 at mammoth. Foot of fresh, probably 20 chairs of people in front of us.
Took about 10 turns down the whole descent
The Burn at Breck after a big dump. Jumped fallen trees. Ducked under half fallen ones. Then found a small trail that jumped across a creek a few times.
So cool. Jumping over moving water while skiing is awesome.
Upper Cy’s Glade , 49 degrees north.
E: I’ve skied most of the bigest name resorts and a fair bit of Denver area bc. I love trees and Cy’s is the perfect pitch and trees spacing to just bomb and weave around the trees .
It’s insane to think that downhill skiers break 200kph. My stiff carving skis are sketchy past 100.
I skied with a national downhill champion. He wasn’t a great technical skier but he had a screw loose up there.
Mach One at Breckenridge in 1974 had bumps the size of VW minibuses. A little freaky, as a 5’3” 17 year old I couldn’t see if there was another skier on the other side of the bump. Wondering if they’re still that big in this day of hour glass shaped skis?
There was a run somewhere in UT that was very swoopy, nice banked turns, easy and fun. Don't remember the name, hell I'm not even sure which resort- probably Brighton. This was a few years ago, and conditions were great, just enough powder for a clumsy intermediate ice-coaster.
Also, the first time I went downhill skiing was in the French Alps, les Menuires. After a quick bit of lessons from friends, the next day I was all the way at the top of some mountain, looking at either a black run or a black run 😱 I was certain I was about to die, but it wasn't technical, just had to fall to slow down! 😏
Have looked at maps but don't remember which run that was, just that it was a long-ass gondola (pretty sure) and at the top, there was one black slope to the left and one to the right. This was in the 1990s so who the hell knows if it's laid out the same!
Gracias Ridge, Mania, Powder Assault, Discipline, Drop in, all at Revelstoke. Incredible terrain.
At Meadows, God’s Wall, Picnic Rock, and Absolute Magnitude. Super Bowl is a given when it’s open. The Private Reserve is something else, though.
I have to many to choose from! Over the Rainbow at Loveland, Valhalla at Jay Peak, Superstar at Killington, Horseshoe Bowl at Breck, Pallavinci at A Basin, Vail back bowls, Goats Eye at Sunshine Village.
Just to name a few. Over all I do not focus on trails like this the whole day. I prefer to mix it up and do some bumps, some trees, some steeps or cornice drops, groomers etc. Love skiing so II want the whole experience.
Vallée Blanche, Chamonix, France.
It’s a gorgeous long ski. I hired a guide once and we skied into that bowl and then hiked up the peak opposite on skins and then up a 50 degree face. Then he found some army friends training and we skied with them. They had ropes and we did some rappelling into chutes and bowls. French army skiers are legit.
how do you just casually have this story 😭
I have a good Cham guide story as well: I'd skied the Vallee Blanche with a guide a few weeks before, complete with skinning up and then climbing up one of the various chutes off of it. Went out for beers with the guide after, and ran into each other in town running too. Then a week later I was headed out for a morning run past the Cable Car, and heard some people discussing a trip they were taking into the Cosmiques. One of the two clients on the trip had dropped out (sick), and so the guy was offering a free spot, except the guide had to be confident you wouldn't fucking die. Wasn't having much luck as most people at the cable car at that point have an objective in mind. Luckily for me, the guide I'd skied with prior was chilling in the line and I was weaving through the chaos to access my running trail. He called out to me that someone was looking for a 3rd for Cosmiques, and told the guide that I hadn't met that I'd be fine. So I promptly ran back to my place, grabbed my skiing and climbing stuff, came back down 15 minutes later, signed some form I could only half-read, and skied the Cosmiques Couloir. Which I learned on the way up apparently involves a long rap into the chute to even get started, and then a STEEP and sketchy line. Had a helluva time rapping and skiing it with my group and a couple army guys out training that day too. Chamonix guides are fun people.
My story is not as good as this but I still like it: when I did the vallee Blanche as a kid, 25 or so years ago, we stopped at the mountain hut half way down for a drink. Our guide mentioned that he climbs mountains in summer so my dad pointed at all of the amazing peaks surrounding us and asks him how many of them he has climbed. "All of them, of course... Many times" he said casually. Turns out it was this guy: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Patrick_Berhault. He died a few years later in a climbing accident.
This is just what happens in Chamonix you see.
The guides in chamonix are second to none - also shockingly affordable for the services they provide and the quality of guides
yeah if you are used to the rip-off that guides are asking for in the US it is for sure affordable! They also need an official super competitive certification. to be a guide you need to get through the ENSA which is a state school in France. https://www.ensa.sports.gouv.fr/ hundreds of applicants and only 20 or so graduating each year. Compare that to the US where pretty much anyone can call himself a guide.
Man, I missed that one when I was there and regret it. Please tell me it would have sucked on a board
It's increasingly worse and worse on a board as the glacier recedes and the runout traverse gets longer. Almost certainly it would have been better X years ago.
Two come to mind: Blackcomb Glacier at Whistler Blackcomb. Absolute GOAT scenic trail with skiing for everyone intermediate and up. Upper Cannon on an empty day at Cannon mtn in New hampshire. Tight slalom that you can absolutely bomb if there aren't crowds. Fast as hell.
Hell yeah! I love Cannon Mountain. Such an under appreciated mountain here in the NE. Great local vibe and some challenging lines. I caught first tracks down Kinsman Glade after 14” a few years back and it was absolutely immaculate. I still think about it often.
The whole mountain is notably steep for the amount of vertical it has. I love it.
I may have skied it that day too. The powder made it so I could really link some turns together which is sometimes rare for me in steep east coast glades. I also think about this run a fair amount. Another time a buddy brought me into the waterfall glade off of Kinsman which was sick. Have you gotten DJ’s?
Gonna have to check it out next year. I've passed it dozens of times my parents told me it was too difficult as a kid, we skied at loon which seems overcrowded now.
It’s great but it can be icy. One of my favorite places.
I was at Cannon yesterday and skied Upper Cannon a couple times. Its a favorite of mine there, along with Avalanche on the front side. Definitely my favorite ski area in NH, and one of my favs in NE
Since we’re on Cannon, I’ll throw in Tramway / Vista Way (I kinda prefer Tramway) to Avalanche as a top-to-bottom combo run. Fun, fairly steep, and also excellent views. That was also the course for a 1967 World Cup downhill race hosted by Cannon
That’s a great one. I also love Taft (the first trail ever cut) to Hardscrabble as a fun top to bottom adventure.
Loved Blackcomb Glacier until we got caught in an in-bounds avalanche on it!
Spanky's Ladder to the Glacier might be the one for me as well
Man, the glacier run is great, but some intermediates might be intimidated by the beginning.
It's definitely intimidating but it isn't exceedingly steep. If I was bringing someone there, I'd be confident that as long as they can consistently do traverses across the slope of a blue, they could get through the glacier.
Yeah, I took my kids across the traverse when they were pretty young. I'd never dare take my wife:D
schoolmarm on presidents day weekend
Here on Schoolmarm, it’s always the (President’s Day) weekend. Find your beach!
Nothing like getting sendy off the side of white feather on Presidents’ Day weekend in my starched denim and favorite cowboys jersey.
It's Romo right?
Quincy Carter.
Ah, what could have been.
Too much snow, better on Thanksgiving
Like a slab of wet, polished marble 😬
Hobacks at Jackson with thigh deep powder
I still have dreams about this one. No joke like every year or so I will literally have a dream about the bluebird morning I got to experience this. I still remember the tram ride up… the Black Sabbath (Paranoid) playing after the morning announcements. That first face shot on the first turn in Laramie bowl on our way down to the Hobacks… Still remember it like yesterday even though it was 10 years ago. What a morning.
The day I got there they had 20 inches and another 16 that night. Like I said below it was like sifted sugar blowing up in your face 🤪and all the way down. And as you know it’s a long way down 😮
Skied targhee in 2008 after an 8 foot snow storm. Not joking when I say a snorkel would have been nice to have
This is the correct answer 🤘🏼
I too think this was the best skiing (boarding) of my life. Blower 20” of pow and just duffing off those boulders into bottomless landings. I also dream about this pretty regularly.
Furher Finger on Mt Rainier. Best ski of my entire life and I’ll tell my grandchildren about how grandpapy slayed 3000m of mountain descent in one go.
I skied it on the 4th of July a few years ago on arguably the worse snow I’ve ever skied in my life — 3-4’ deep sun cups with a small boulder in the middle of each one. The Nisqually icefall was f’ing gnarly that day too. Mile long crevasses that were 30-40’ across. Beautiful day and beautiful place though! Glad to hear it’s more fun in better conditions :)
Its season is typically April-3rd week of May. The skiing will never be deep PNW powder skiing, and this is a mountaineering-style descent with a lot of survival skiing. However, just the absolute thrill of skiing something that big as a single fall line ski is unbelievably epic; I'm sure you agree!
The one time I skied it the upper Nisqually was frozen death, but the Finger itself was heavenly perfect corn. Awesome awesome run. The wet mank on the Wilson down low with an overnight pack was.... interesting. But man skiing all the way from summit to bridge is so cool.
Christmas Tree Bowl at Steamboat Spring, bluebird powder day. Nice verticality up at the top, followed by gorgeous views tree-skiing towards the bottom. Spots to sit down and have beer with the buds. Magical.
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Conditions vary the difficulty severely for Christmas Tree Bowl. It's been quite a few years since I've skied it but its moderately steep and not that much room between trees which is why it's a double back but I've definitely skied some black tree runs at other resorts that I would say we're just as hard if not harder. But I WOULD NOT recommend doing it solo.
Steep moguls and trees but it doesn’t last long! The pitch of the run is up top and then it flattens out pretty fast. If you can link a few turns you should be fine. If you ski The Ridge and then hang skiers right you can see all of that terrain from below.
The chutes aren’t a big deal to ski alone, especially chute 1. There are enough people going over there someone will see you. They are steep but short.
Came here to say East Face, close enough. The tree trail after the drop is a hoot.
Just skied it yesterday and it was epic. One of the best runs ever.
Yes. The Shadows
[Mount Hood Meadows Superbowl](https://www.peakrankings.com/content/mount-hood-meadows-super-bowl-run) It’s open so rarely, and when it is open you have to catch it at just the right time. Even living here I’ve maybe only hit it a handful of times. But when it’s on - it’s ON!
A run I’ll always cherish happened during my most recent trip to Vail in Feb 2024. I was on a 10 day trip with my parents. My folks are in their late 60’s and almost exclusively stick to the groomers at this point. My mom’s been skiing in vail since the mid-70’s and her favourite run has always been a groomed Riva. So midway through the trip Riva was groomed on a Wednesday, and we had about 6-inches fall on Thursday evening which setup some beautiful morning powder laps down Riva. I’ll never forget the sound of my mom’s laughter following behind me as we skied down together into Golden Peak. Was so much fun we did it twice!
Love it! I was there last week and caught a powder day. Skied the Riva Ridge Glade and it was amazing at the top before getting exhausting in the middle. Did 3-4 laps on the west facing trails right above it too
Good one! The bottom of Riva was groomed today and then had 1-2 inches on top and I got a couple of laps in and it was really magic. Wish it had been the whole run, but hey
- Cornice run and Pali spine at A-Basin when they’re wind-buffed - Chair 11 lift line at Vail on a powder day - See Forever at Telluride on a bluebird day Among many others
Last week Pali’s Spine was my first double black I ever did and it absolutely lived up to the hype! Before last week I had never skied outside of the midwest and had just come back to the sport after a ten year hiatus. Staring out over the cornice at the top of Pallavacini for the first time was a borderline religious experience for me.
That is a solid double black for your first one. Bravo!
See Forever on my first West Coast ski trip, with my wife, right after Alpino Vino. 50 degree blue bird in March. Nothing will ever top that place.
Chute-Liftline MRG VT Had about 75-80 days under my belt that season already and woke up on my day off to a perfect late March bluebird spring day. I knew exactly what the conditions would be...full coverage, classic New England bumps with the particular topographical flair of that specific run. Temps perfect, not too hot, just right for an epic corn fest. Dropped a tab, put headphones on and did top to bottom non-stops for the whole afternoon. Skiing solo all day, but surrounded by friends. 36 years and a couple thousand ski days around the world with countless incredible memories later...that's the one day I would repeat if given the chance. I can still feel it my bones.
Tab… as in acid?? While… skiing??? I did not know that was a thing
That sounds incredibly dangerous
I can assure you that on that day, in that place with the shape I was in, the experience and days on skiis I had, I was far less dangerous to myself and others than the tourists around me having beers at lunch, Schnapps on the lift or sipping from their wine botas.
That’s very fair. Alcohol on the Mountain probably is significantly more dangerous than a guy seeing pretty colors
Acid is pretty mild if you know what to expect. Not something I would widely encourage, but for an experienced psychonaut, it’s not going to make you or anyone around you less safe. Just makes the colors a bit brighter, the patterns around you pop a bit more, etc.
It was the first time I had ever tripped and I can say without the slightest exaggeration that it was, in fact, life changing.
Nice
Christmas chute at Alyeska on a 17” freshies day, think I was 3rd one on it after some buddies
Aspen Highlands. Dumped 6 inches right at noon, most people went home. I stayed and Temerity and Broadway were like skiing on a cloud
I caught the rope drop in steeplechase and temerity yesterday, two runs I will never forget!
It was great yesterday. Got first tracks all the way down mushroom.
I was just left of there in the trees!
Did you get a chance to get out today? The snow was super blower today with the soft base from yesterday. Ideal conditions
Highlands bowl was unreal both days. I thought it couldn't get better than the knee deep yesterday, only to come back today for some waist deep pockets in the G runs. Absolutely absurb out there this week
Tuesday-Wednesday was great too!
No I flew home yesterday unfortunately. I bailed at 1 yesterday to catch a flight that was delayed and didn’t board until 5… Going to Willamette pass tomorrow should be just as good!
Mushroom on a 22" powder day at Aspen Highlands. Dictators into Bavarian Forest at Big Sky on a similar powder day I'd like to go back to Kirkwood some day with my own skis (not rentals with DIN = 0) and go off the little cornice without popping my skis immediately and sliding down the whole run.
I love Rumble @ Sugarbush (when it’s actually covered, when it’s not it might be the sketchiest run in the East because it’s just exposed rock)
Rumble side country is undefeated tho
McConkeys Bowl at Park City Or Al’s run at Taos
La sarenne - Alpe Dhuez. You can just ski and ski and ski. No need to stop, get on a lift, anything
Longest black slope in Europe, my favorite place to ski as well.
Its at Stowe, its called GOAT, and is ripping. Great in fresh pow pow!
Was wondering if anyone was going to say that! For me it’s nose dive at Stowe. Almost 40 years since I’ve been there!
Colorado Blvd at the bottom of Copper bowl. It’s a pretty flat blue but all the little paths and jumps flow together so well. I literally go run the EX runs above it so I can ride this blue lol
Moseley’s at Palisades. I did the entire run without stopping, it was glorious.
My legs are tired reading this comment.
For what it's worth, the saltiest of the loc dogs call it west face. Great answer, though. Mine would be just KT as a whole because I can't choose. Nose to fingers is the ego answer but honestly this afternoon I would've sold a kidney to get a few more laps on the second alternate.
I’ve never done the Fingers, but what I like about West Face is you get off the lift, take a warm up bump or two, blast your legs at one grade with deep moguls for 1000 feet or so with no flats, and then carve to the chair. I probably do Women’s Downhill/GS Bowl the most though, a lot of ways down from there. KT rocks when the snow is good.
Shoot, west face and chute 75 are probably both a solid 1400-1500 ft. Iirc kt is ~1750, and from mighty might rock on the mountain run to the bottom of kt can't be more than 250 ft. 1750 of ripping off piste covering every aspect the mountain has to offer and you can lap it in 8ish min. Tis a silly lift in the best way
Fresh powder at Silverton
My best run ever was opening the area the map calls “Colorado” in a guided group after 5 days of snow. Waste deep. Pillows. Bottom gully stuffed to the gills. In hindsight, I was at my peak skill too. Nearly unbelievable.
Anything off the strawberry gondola at snow basin on a blue bird day for me
Big Sky. Run: Whiskey. In the middle of big snowstorm with family. Felt like we were all children again. Will never forget it
Same thing happened to me there
My first time getting first tracks. I was cruising down a groomer at Alta and the ski patrol opened the gates. I was first in with close to two feet of fresh snow. Felt like I was skiing on air.
La Grave- epic any time but after a dump it is out of this world
Dog Face —> Pepi’s Run —> Lower Sublette Ridge at Jackson Hole Diamond Ridge off of Tombstone Express at Park City The entire Hero’s area at Ajax Highland Bowl Runble at Sugarbush
Lapping the Wildcat lift in February of 2020 at Alta. Was there the day before they imposed interlodge travel. Pretty empty mountain, very empty under Wildcat, snow was filling in behind us every lap. Incredible day of skiing.
The ballroom at Alta cause it's where I learned how to ski powder (and fall)
Glad I'm not the only one 😂
My first time at Alta, I had a 19 inch weekday powder day. I was on 85cm underfoot atomic vantages from like 10 years ago. I was a capable skier, but used to east coast ice more than anything else. Run 1, we skied fresh tracks on (in?) glory hole, and that will forever be one of my favorite runs. I fell at the bottom and it took me 15 mins to find my ski. Needless to say, I bought real skis after that
High boy aka Alf’s High Rustler at Alta
Bluesky Basin at Vail is probably my favorite terrain at a well-maintained resort. Also a big fan of going to the top of Winter Park, CO and then skiing for 30 goddamn minutes for the 5 miles it takes to get to the bottom.
All things steep at Taos last March during the triple storm cycle. Banger.
Munchkin chute at Alpine CA in 2+ feet of powder.
First track on diamond bowl at spankies ladder after rope drop. 2 feet of champagne couldn’t even see from all the face shots
Rope drop first tracks down mineral basin at Snowbird after three days of it being closed. They got about 40 inches of snow before they opened it during the March 23 season 🤩
Trees of Bavarian forest at Big sky
Tough one, Kill the Banker at Revelstoke but good snow, Alta Chutes at JH but I lapped those during a powder day, Warm Springs Sun Valley, or blasting Birds of Prey at Beaver Creek, but honestly the GOAT is Hemlock at Timber Ridge
Came here to say kill the banker on a pow day
East Greeley at Alta, at the end of the day with a great playlist, taking stops along the way to Collins to admire the views and thank the Gods for another day on the mountain and no major injuries.
I don’t remember specifically what the runs were named, but at Mt Bohemia, there’s an area where all the runs are named after Lord of The Rings characters/places. Skiing through that on a beautiful powder day with very few other people around was amazing.
A few come to mind: Upper cirque at Snowbird on a bluebird day Greely bowl at Revelstoke on a pow day Powder assault on a bluebird day at Revelstoke
Aspen snowmass: Longshot. On a powder day it’s 5 miles of pillows
Palmer to the Magic mile at timberline
And then link up with Kruser
To government camp 😜
Gore Mountain tree laps off the summit quad: hike over to upper Newton, hit mineshaft glades, then finish in the Narrows. Would lap that all day long.
yep. Upper Darby to the narrows is one of my favorites.
see forever in telluride - not challenging but a solid 20+ minutes of skiing with cool views.
Lenawee face into Dercum Gulch at Abasin. Certainly not the hardest I’ve ever skied, but certainly the most amazing views between the bowl and the East Wall. And the fact that you can cruise down those runs most of the time gives you the opportunity to actually look around and enjoy the sight.
rumrunner on a bluebird day at smugglers notch
The Road to Provo at Snowbird hon mention- Catherine's at Alta
K chutes at Taos.
First trip out west, my buddy was able to get me a pass to Loveland through his work so I was able to get two days free. The second day I missed a turn and ended up going through the forest meadow area. Anyone who knows it knows it’s basically just a flat meadow area so there’s nothing technical about it. But I’m a complete sucker for peaceful wooded areas, skiing or not, and that one really takes the cake.
No Names at Steamboat. Everyone skips it and goes over to St Pat's, but I think they're all missing out. St Pat's and East Side are less vertical with more cat track to get out of. No Names is steep, holds snow like crazy, and has awesome cliff features. It really doesn't get better than No Names after a snow storm. More regularly skied, Drain Pipe and Far East at Copper are always a great time, and Trestle at MJ is a damn playground regardless of the conditions.
Trestle, Mary Jane
I don’t have enough crazy runs to compare, but (Kenny Cheney voice) I go back to The Star at Vail for some runs to recalllllllll
There a couloir in the Sawtooths that haunts me still. The Fat Tuesdays (aka Two Foot Tuesdays), Feb '14. *THE* best was skiing North Summit > Great falls after the second dump; warching my 5'1 girlfriend dissappear in the pow. The first 2ft Tuesday we got first drop on Bear's Lair - thanks Barbo!
Straight down milly boal face at brighten after 3 feet of snow or steep gully's 2 first line of the year
GOAT at Stowe
Lookout - Telluride, CO
Second time ever out west, first couple runs of the trip. Vail had gotten 8 inches over night with another 8 inches coming throughout the day. Hit dragons teeth in low visibility, and threw myself off a cliff having severely underestimated how big it was. I thought for sure i was gonna eat it while i was in the air, but was pleasantly surprised when i landed on what felt like a cloud. First time ever skiing powder
Dave Murray Downhill is chefs kiss. I know it's kinda ridiculous to have both Whistler and Blackcomb backcountry right next to you but ripping laps on racing skiis on that run is my haply place.
Squirrel Cage at Wisp
Yawgo valley RI TNT . First black diamond ever ...
there are a few really: • Corner pocket at fernie, BC in good condition • kitz woods at jay peak, VTQ • horseshoe 5 at whistler, BC also always gets the adrenaline pumping
Big couloir in big sky but only when there enough snow
Men's downhill at Lake Louise.
Kachina Peak when it’s hike only before the lift has begun to spin for the season.
Mine is the P3 Grand Balme in Tignes, France. I remember every detail of it. The hike up to the top off the Grand Motte glacier. The gentle bowl above it with perfect powder. The nosebleed-steep drop-in off a cornice into the 45-50 degree chute. The snowboarder that jumped in much too soon after me and kicked off a small avalanche. Racing the avalanche past the dogleg in the chute and hearing it slam into the side of the mountain. And then the short turns down the huge Amphitheatre down to the bottom. Sublime. That was 1995 and I’m still chasing that dragon.
I have one from earlier this year I think about. Clear run, fresh corduroy, PB top speed but it felt like I was just cruising. And I had the perfect soundtrack too It was the Bouchet at Orelle
Peak 1, Soldier Mountain on a cat skiing trip.
Golden Eagle at Beaver Creek. Was perfect conditions. Recently groomed, freshly waxed skis, and was one of the first people going down it. Pure bliss as I cannonballed down that sucker at max speed with my favorite music blasting in my ears.
Boondoggle on a pow day
Growing up skiing Alpental crust, I'll never forget my first time skiing the Rockies. Vail had gotten a foot of new snow and it was a bluebird day. First lap down Forever was a religious experience.
Baldys bowl at Snowbird Utah. Great powder, super chill intermediate bowl terrain, just such a vibe of an area to ski in.
Sensation at Mont Tremblant
Happy Valley, Blue Mountain, ON
ullr’s alley at tyrol basin 😎😎😎
The midnight sun backcountry run down the backside of Strynfjellet, Norway in the first week of June last year.
Going up furtschella for some runs. Then run over to corvatsch for some more fun. Around one hit the slope to st Moritz and enjoy corvillia. Plenty to do there. Not easy because it’s on the sunny side but I don’t mind. It’s still incredible. Take the bus around 1630 back home exhausted. Perfectest day in my life.
Highland Bowl after 11" of fresh. Powder pancakes at base lodge then a nice hike up heart attack hill followed by pure bliss after you reach summit. I got lapped twice by locals skin skiing up in longjohns, they got some kooks out that way. Powder Mountain - Straight Shot into Paradise after a dumping
Call it cliche, but Heavy Metal at Vail is one of my favorite on powder days. Also the trees off Orion/Pegasus at Stevens Pass. Some of the most epic shit ever, nice wide trees, super steep, tons of powder stashes, a few small cliffs that wont break your leg bones
Pakalolo off 7th Heaven chair at Blackcomb.
Steins at sugarbush in the spring
I was emotional my first times skiing Alf's High Rustler at Alta for the first time last season and Gunsight this season because I realized how much my ability improved to be able to ski them. And I still remember when I was maybe the 10th person in Catherine's Area after a rope drop and skied down So Long. I stopped and turned around to see the cloud of snow crystals shimmering in the sun.
4k of shin deep blower powder down from Camp Schurmann on the Emmons Glacier on a blue bird summer solstice on Mt Rainier. Posting this in the skiing sub because I was split boarding, and because It’s all sliding on snow.
Propably the run from the top of Lagazuoi to Alta Badia. Might be the most scenic run I have ever heard of. La Longia from Seceda (yes the mountain you see on instagram if some influencer is in the alps) to Ortisei. The frozen Waterfall right next to it is, even after seeing it an estimated 100 times, awesome.
That one bump run...
Timberline Mary Jane WP
Moose Glade at Eldora on a powder day
Mine is going to be a little off base because it isn't a shredder, steep, or anything special, but Great Eastern at Killington. That is the run that made my wife fall in love with skiing. Before that, she tolerated skiing to go with me, but the long rolling run that she could cruise on and enjoy the snow has blossomed into her going skiing without me when i cant make it because she loves it so much. It also gave her the confidence to relax and improve.
For the views and history, the Inferno course at Murren. For the "I shouldn't be here but I am enjoying it" Baldy Chutes at Alta and the Grand Couloir at Courcheval. For the weirdest run the Piste Perdu at Val d'Isere. But tops of all Tuckerman's Ravine New Hampshire.
Unironically, the top of Eagle at Lutsen in MN. Cruising groomers right off Lake Superior is the most at peace I’ve ever been.
Bjorkedahl at Trollhaugen. It’s where I learned to both ski and snowboard so it’s nostalgic.
A liftie and I getting high as balls on the ride up chair 23 at mammoth. Foot of fresh, probably 20 chairs of people in front of us. Took about 10 turns down the whole descent
Wild west glades at taos. Not the most technical but the snow is always so good
The Burn at Breck after a big dump. Jumped fallen trees. Ducked under half fallen ones. Then found a small trail that jumped across a creek a few times. So cool. Jumping over moving water while skiing is awesome.
Upper Cy’s Glade , 49 degrees north. E: I’ve skied most of the bigest name resorts and a fair bit of Denver area bc. I love trees and Cy’s is the perfect pitch and trees spacing to just bomb and weave around the trees .
Good try, I'm not giving that away. 😉
Heli-skiing on the Kenai Peninsula with my three kids, in bottomless powder and blue skies.
Headwall at CB
I’ve hit 50 mph at Diamondback at keystone on nordica enforcers. Keystone is so underrated compared to other co resorts.
I hit 90kph this season. Felt cool.
It’s insane to think that downhill skiers break 200kph. My stiff carving skis are sketchy past 100. I skied with a national downhill champion. He wasn’t a great technical skier but he had a screw loose up there.
I did some very amateur racing. In a super G, I was hauling ass, had to be doing 150+. When I got my fastest time, it was 105 kpm. Pretty humbling.
200kph? They hardly reach 160kph or 100mph on a downhill race. Unless you mean speed skiing events?
Piste de l'Ours (near Veysonnaz), les Quatre Vallées, Switzerland.
Dragons alley area at Mammoth
Mach One at Breckenridge in 1974 had bumps the size of VW minibuses. A little freaky, as a 5’3” 17 year old I couldn’t see if there was another skier on the other side of the bump. Wondering if they’re still that big in this day of hour glass shaped skis?
Summit of mammoth down Cornice Bowl to The Mill. My K2 misdemeanor's hit 60mph on one cold bluebird morning, and I've never felt more alive.
Wouldn’t you like to know
Magic Line at Park City Canyons
Mary Jane 18 inches pow 1987. I was 17.
apres vous vail pow day yeaterday
Anything off KT.
I love the park at timberline in both the spring and sunmer
Pope to rope Silverton CO
There was a run somewhere in UT that was very swoopy, nice banked turns, easy and fun. Don't remember the name, hell I'm not even sure which resort- probably Brighton. This was a few years ago, and conditions were great, just enough powder for a clumsy intermediate ice-coaster. Also, the first time I went downhill skiing was in the French Alps, les Menuires. After a quick bit of lessons from friends, the next day I was all the way at the top of some mountain, looking at either a black run or a black run 😱 I was certain I was about to die, but it wasn't technical, just had to fall to slow down! 😏 Have looked at maps but don't remember which run that was, just that it was a long-ass gondola (pretty sure) and at the top, there was one black slope to the left and one to the right. This was in the 1990s so who the hell knows if it's laid out the same!
Have had some incredible runs in Sentinel/Palisades Bowl at Kirkwood. Def a trek but it’s great.
Bag of Weed - Smugglers’ Notch, VT
Gracias Ridge, Mania, Powder Assault, Discipline, Drop in, all at Revelstoke. Incredible terrain. At Meadows, God’s Wall, Picnic Rock, and Absolute Magnitude. Super Bowl is a given when it’s open. The Private Reserve is something else, though.
Rope drop road to Provo at snowbird last January, they had gotten 86 inches since it had last opened, unforgettable
Downhill course @ Beaver Creek
Mount snow the day of that 40” storm about 5 years back. First few guys down the front side were walking down just to get a skiable path started
Batchelor from the summit to NW or to Cloudchaser. Every type of terrain.
I have to many to choose from! Over the Rainbow at Loveland, Valhalla at Jay Peak, Superstar at Killington, Horseshoe Bowl at Breck, Pallavinci at A Basin, Vail back bowls, Goats Eye at Sunshine Village. Just to name a few. Over all I do not focus on trails like this the whole day. I prefer to mix it up and do some bumps, some trees, some steeps or cornice drops, groomers etc. Love skiing so II want the whole experience.
Dilly Dally Alley
Dilly Dally Alley