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Cabbages and Kings posted:Yeah, and it's made me go into full on ski psycho mode. I worked until 10pm to timeshift my work yesterday, and here I am, up at 430 and planning on hitting those glades again 830-11 and then come work another 8-9 hours and... maybe do the same thing tomorrow?
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Feb 28, 2023 13:33
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Cabbages and Kings posted:It didn't say "nevermore" I do believe that's a raven, but harder to tell if they don't call or fly.. especially in the winter when birds like to loft their feathers! I get them around here and they are badass
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Feb 28, 2023 14:04
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bobz0r posted:last year IKON passes went on sale late march/early april and were valid in the current season starting at the end of april My man interstate 80 has been closed since yesterday morning. I think Caltrans gets some slack with historic storms like this, especially down there where this amount of snow is less typical. Closed highways are part of the package. I’d also wonder whether the local towns are keeping up with snow clearing enough to support the traffic that’d be coming in on state routes anyway
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Mar 1, 2023 04:34
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Like do you realize how much snow they got up there
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Mar 1, 2023 04:38
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Also Chamonix is real neat and this dude in the green is a pretty good skier. I’ll maybe make an effort post about the trip in a few days. At any rate he convinced me to replace my Pieps with a Barryvox
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Mar 1, 2023 05:04
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That's a hell of a view, looking forward to the effort posting
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Mar 1, 2023 05:18
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chamonix is full of the best and worst skiers on the planet
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Mar 1, 2023 06:51
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After what feels like one of the worst seasons in a long time, we finally got a decent dump of snow.
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Mar 1, 2023 16:44
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Spime Wrangler posted:chamonix is full of the best and worst skiers on the planet yeah, and you don't really see the best ones. I didn't, anyway, aside from the one I was skiing with (Ian) and meeting his friend for beer (Tof Henry) Anyway, here's the rundown of the skiing. Buckle up for a fuckload of photos. First day was chill, just a warmup for everyone to get their legs under them. Resort laps at Flégère, south facing, warm spring conditions.  This is from the resort, looking south towards Mer de Glace, which you can ski down into from the top of the Aiguille du Midi (more later) that goes up to ~12k feet from town. You can see the railway that goes up (almost) to the toe of the glacier on the hillside to the right. On the left side of the photo is Grand Montets (more next day)  Looking up towards the resort; this one wasn't huge, and basically none of the off-piste stuff was any good, all low tide and crusty with the southern exposure. Not a huge area and not where I would probably choose of the resorts we went to for good skiing, but nice views and a good vibe, and provides access to good skiing off the backside (more later). Highlight of the day was seeing a guy wearing a helmet with integrated visor, jeans, bright orange gaiters, and a monoski. https://www.strava.com/activities/8587773864 The second day we went to Grands Montets, across the valley from Flégère and a little ways further up than Chamonix proper. Mostly resort skiing again, we did do a little bit of skinning, but didn't do the bigger mission we had hoped to due to firm conditions and me being the only one besides the guide that had ski crampons.  This is the view from the top of the topmost operating lift there. Mer de Glace in the foreground. You can see the top of the Aiguille du Midi, the sharpest point in view, with Mont Blanc visible behind it.  Here's the little bit that we skinned; you can see the top terminal of a tram , no longer operating, that goes a good bit higher than the currently operating lifts. A fire in the midstation has shut it down since 2018.  Looking back across the valley. Flégère visible on the right side, and Brévent, which we didn't ski, but is connected to Flégère with a tram. Conditions were chalky, not terrible, being on the north face and it having been fairly cold since the last snowfall (like, a month prior) it hadn't gone through the melt freeze cycles that the south facing slopes had. This is what we skied from the short skin. Had to dodge some rocks.    Lunch.  Looking from the resort up towards a tower from the defunct tram, and (I think) Aiguille de Chardonnet, which is on the opposite side of the Argentiere glacier.  With a skiable line down it https://www.strava.com/activities/8593183464 The third day we rode up the Aiguille du Midi and skied down the Vallée Blanche on the Mer de Glace. Lots of exposure up top, and crevasse covered glaciated terrain. So we had crampons on for the initial descent down the arete from the top terminal, harnesses on the entire time we were skiing, and roped up to at least one other person with a bit of tension whenever we were skinning. That said, the terrain/skiing was not really at any point terribly steep or difficult; the most challenging part was just that due to the crowds and lack of snow a lot of the choke points had moguled up a good bit. Backcountry moguls were a first for me on this trip.  The view up to the top from the start of the second section of the tram. In bigger snow years there are skiable lines here apparently, but I don't think right now. We did see a bootpack up the face under the tram, which we later found out was for a film segment (TGR, I think).  The view of the arete from the top terminal. The ropes they put up fairly recently made it a lot less intense. If you fall towards the bottom of the photo you're falling down the face in the previous image.   The top terminal   walking out onto the arete  The exposure is serious  Once you're passed that, though, it's a very wide, open, and fairly mellow slope.  Views of Mont Blanc were pretty unreal. Photos definitely do not do it justice.   and this is why we wore harnesses and had a guide.  This is just about the end of the glacier; we stopped on a large rock way at the bottom for lunch; the brown slope to the left had some pretty consistent rock fall; a bit later on another slope we saw a car sized boulder tumble down onto the glacier.  There are ice tunnels with sculptures in them dug into the very bottom. At this point, you take a train down that was built to go between the bottom of the glacier and town; however, the glacier has retreated a bunch since then so there's also a gondola to take you from the glacier up to the train station. However, the glacier has retreated a bunch since then so you have to walk up about ~400 vertical feet of stairs to get from the glacier to the gondola.  https://www.strava.com/activities/8598479247 Day 4, we went back to Flégère to go for a ski off the back side.  That involved a skin and bootback up and over this; you can see about 1/3rd of the way in on the left where other people are heading up already.  This snow is _not_ soft, and ski crampons were extremely handy.  Bootpack was pretty well established, but quite firm at that time of day, so I was pretty happy to have boot crampons as well. Once we got off the backside, the clouds rolled in and started to impact viz.  The Grand Massif is on the other side of that cliff band. We skied down and traversed right, had lunch and threw skins on again to go up to the Col de Berard. We were fully inside the cloud at this point.  We then went down the other side. It would have been much nicer with less flat light  and then all the way down the valley out to another town, which involved some skiing in some pretty thin coverage in a narrow valley: https://imgur.com/xqXmNPN https://imgur.com/iZryMfx https://www.strava.com/activities/8604118466 Day 5 we went back to Grands Montets, armed with ski crampons this time, and out to the Argentiere glacier. We were blessed with an inch or two of dust, which turned into some half decent skiing higher up where the wind had filled things in a bit.  More or less the same photo as earlier.  hi dog around the other side, the glacier:  which made for some interesting terrain navigation  Here's the top of a little chute/couloir I skied:  a few inches of fresh on top of grippable ice, which meant a lot of slough and a few stops to manage that. I was the first one to go through it which meant it was basically garbage for everyone else. Also I got to the bottom and realized I'd left my pocket open and my phone had fallen out. We managed to recover it using the find my phone feature on my garmin watch; the second time I've lost my phone that way this year. I need to tape a beacon to it or something. Or learn lessons about my pockets. The view from below:  The glacier flattened out for a bit and then plunges down a cliff right at the toe:   At that point we traversed out back into the resort for a few more laps there. https://www.strava.com/activities/8609836746 Day 6, final day, we went through the Mont Blanc tunnel to Italy to ski Courmayeur. Some pretty good terrain there, rather rustic lift operations. We did a good handful of resort laps in the morning, then did a run off the top/backside twice with a nice break for pizza in between.  The approach into the lines we skied off piste:  The south side of Mont Blanc / Monte Bianco is a good bit rockier  and the skiout again had some interesting low-tide skiing   https://www.strava.com/activities/8614846002 Overall, a great trip despite the subpar snow conditions; I'm all about adventure skiing and this fit the bill nicely. It would be rad to go back with better snow sometime. The one thing I would have done differently for this particular trip is have a more downhill oriented touring setup: my Moment Wildcat Tour 108s with the voyager pin bindings are great as an all around touring ski in Tahoe where I do minimal sidecountry; I'm either entirely in resort or entirely earning my turns most of the time. On this trip my resort skis wouldn't have worked since we did at least some skinning most days, but we did far more descending than we did climbing and something like a shift or duke PT would have been much nicer. Ian was skiing on Duke PTs and Dalbello Krypton TI boots (basically resort boots with toe inserts; no walk mode). Pizza.
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Mar 1, 2023 17:26
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so sick
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Mar 1, 2023 17:56
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Very cool. Snow situation looked pretty drat bleak.
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Mar 1, 2023 18:10
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Mar 1, 2023 20:25
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I80 is still closed, probably through this afternoon. Over 48 hours now
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Mar 1, 2023 20:30
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Several slides ran across 395 north of Mammoth as well, some nearly watching Mono lake. Gonna be awhile before everyone digs out of this storm cycle. But man oh man what a spring we are in for!
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Mar 1, 2023 21:01
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bawfuls posted:Several slides ran across 395 north of Mammoth as well, some nearly watching Mono lake. Gonna be awhile before everyone digs out of this storm cycle. From what I've heard it sounds like they're expecting to be open into August this year
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Mar 1, 2023 22:34
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For many years the unofficial goal at Mammoth was to make it to Dave McCoy’s birthday on August 24th, which they never quite did. Making it that long likely requires not just a near-record snowpack but also a relatively mild summer. I think the latest I ever skied lifts there was late July.
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Mar 2, 2023 01:54
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Steve French posted:I80 is still closed, probably through this afternoon. Over 48 hours now And holy poo poo I think I have this closure to thank for minimal lines skiing the 6+ feet of fresh blower at palisades today. Amazing.
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Mar 2, 2023 02:41
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Steve French posted:And holy poo poo I think I have this closure to thank for minimal lines skiing the 6+ feet of fresh blower at palisades today. Amazing. From what I could tell they never opened upper mountain today, yeah? Sounds like tomorrow could be another epic day.
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Mar 2, 2023 04:26
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Steve French posted:And holy poo poo I think I have this closure to thank for minimal lines skiing the 6+ feet of fresh blower at palisades today. Amazing.
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Mar 2, 2023 04:40
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I'm both extremely annoyed that my gf and I didn't pick this year to spend the winter in Tahoe while also being very happy I'm dealing with this constant barrage of blizzards
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Mar 2, 2023 04:54
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Splinter posted:From what I could tell they never opened upper mountain today, yeah? Sounds like tomorrow could be another epic day. Yeah, mostly. They opened wa she shu and the funitel but nothing else. My thought was the same: make tomorrow a “work from parking lot day”, though 80 is back open over the pass so it might be a poo poo show (unless it being March magically means people have forgotten about skiing already). And then the school district already called a snow day for tomorrow. So I might still go skiing… just with the kids on the easy slopes
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Mar 2, 2023 05:11
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The Glumslinger posted:I'm both extremely annoyed that my gf and I didn't pick this year to spend the winter in Tahoe while also being very happy I'm dealing with this constant barrage of blizzards Not ski-related but in Lake Arrowhead by Big Bear they got 77 inches and the National Guard has been called because apparently there are people that haven't been able to leave the house in over a week. gently caress that.
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Mar 2, 2023 18:49
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waffle enthusiast posted:Just ordered some Truck M1 gloves. Saw 'em in a booth on the hill the other day and decided to pull the trigger since they're relatively cheap and well reviewed. Looking forward to giving them a shot and/or using 'em as a backcountry backup glove. That said, does anyone have a glove liner they like? Right now the frontrunner is probably the smartwool liner, but I'm interested in alternatives. Trip report: These gloves are the bee’s knees. I paired them with some smartwool merino liners and they’re good down to 15-20º depending on how cold your hands get. I usually have to go with Hestra mittens below 25º or so, and the M1’s did a solid job of keeping my hands warm in 20º temps. When I was bootpacking or really getting after it, I even had to drop the liners. The dexterity of these things is fantastic and it doesn’t hurt that they look pretty steezy It looks like they’re back up to $40 now, so YMMV, but when they’re on sale for $30 they’re a steal.
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Mar 4, 2023 00:36
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I bought the truck glove "skinning glove" and it just didn't l did not fit good or feel good. The M1 looks good though. Really did my free the powder stuff though.
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Mar 4, 2023 02:54
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Loosely planning next year's trip, I've been poking hotels around Val Thorens for prices, and they're sure something.  Doesn't seem solo friendly in that regard. At least if you want a room entirely for yourself. Heh.
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Mar 5, 2023 20:09
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spwrozek posted:I bought the truck glove "skinning glove" and it just didn't l did not fit good or feel good. The M1 looks good though. Really did my free the powder stuff though. Yeah. Not sure about the others, but the M1 definitely fit looser than Hestras or Backcountry/Stoic brand gloves I rocked for 10 years. Similar to Kincos as I understand it. It was a little weird to get used to at first, but it seems like the fit really helps with overall warmth, and I don’t notice it at all while skiing (gripping poles, adjusting zippers, buckles, etc). The only time it was a little awkward was when trying to use my phone, but I took that as a reminder to not use my phone while outside  In fact I liked the M1s so much, I just got some M1 Pros in the mail. They seem almost identical to the M1s with additional insulation and all leather construction. Looking forward to seeing how they compare. waffle enthusiast fucked around with this message at 23:34 on Mar 5, 2023 |
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Mar 5, 2023 23:32
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man Tahoe is getting nuked still?
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Mar 5, 2023 23:37
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kiimo posted:man Tahoe is getting nuked still? It looks like its gonna keep going, models are start to line up for another atmospheric river end of next week
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Mar 6, 2023 00:22
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    I don't get to Sugarbush much but this is the nicest I've ever seen it, did around 14k feet today, mostly in the woods. Everything was in real good shape, though and I had some fun on piste too.
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Mar 6, 2023 03:35
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Decent last week of skiing Last sunday I went and did one of the more popular local tours with some friends. Downside is it's more convenient to access with a snowmobile but not that terrible without. Just like a 4-5mi skin in on a road but it didn't take us much more than an hour to start getting into skiing terrain. we got up to the long ridgeline and took a few runs down some of the bowls and had a nice time although strong wind had kind of hosed the snow on any open slopes. It had blown in multiple directions so not a lot of big cornices or dangerous windslabs and the skiing in the more sheltered areas was still pretty good. Forgot my phone in the car but the other guys took a couple of pictures. Our round trip wound up being like 13.5mi  Thursday a few of us did a night skin up the ski hill and it started snowing pretty good. Just one lap but it was still fun and then night tele racing was still going so we were able to go into the bar and get some pizza  Due to the fresh snow I decided to head up friday and it was really good. Not very crowded, nice turns all day. I skied pretty hard until last chair and have been feeling it the last two days because I'm old now apparently.  
jamal fucked around with this message at 04:47 on Mar 6, 2023 |
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Mar 6, 2023 04:06
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kiimo posted:man Tahoe is getting nuked still? Ayup. Drove to Tahoe City from Truckee today at 6am to help set up for a TNSAR fundraiser ski race. Roads hadn’t been plowed for a while and it was fun blasting through 1-1.5 feet of blower in the truck… until I got to TC and couldn’t see a goddamned thing. Same deal on the way back with viz. I cleared a bunch of snow off the roof yesterday anticipating more snow today and worried about furnace vents getting blocked. Wife texted me at 9am that the furnace wasn’t working. Already blocked. I live in the banana belt of Truckee and get substantially less snow than other areas of town, which in turn get substantially less snow than the resorts.  This is after I did more shoveling up there today
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Mar 6, 2023 04:14
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Decided to pop up to Sunapee for a quick Sunday morning after the snow and apparently most of greater Boston had the same idea. Long lines and crowds. Still the best skiing of the season, which is sad. Supposed to go to Powder this weekend for a long weekend and of course like 60% of the terrain is closed because Paradise is down. Can't win.
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Mar 6, 2023 14:47
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Skied at Winter Park this past Saturday/Sunday. Saturday was a glorious powder day and Mary Jane on a powder morning was fantastic. Later on Saturday/Sunday we ended up skiing the Eagle Wind lift which was awesome. Snow held up pretty well there. Still don't love Winter Park as much as other places, but it's growing on me.
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Mar 6, 2023 17:53
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KYOON GRIFFEY JR posted:Decided to pop up to Sunapee for a quick Sunday morning after the snow and apparently most of greater Boston had the same idea. Long lines and crowds. Still the best skiing of the season, which is sad. The snow was top notch at Sugarloaf this weekend. Along the best I’ve skied in the east. I skinned up Burnt Mountain which is less than idyllic with the cats running, but even if it was just one run it was all-time. Easily boot-top powder. It’s been a frustrating winter but the snow has been good when we’ve gotten it.
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Mar 6, 2023 18:52
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Jay Peak was still pretty good today after the storm they had on Saturday, despite all the upper mountain lifts closed for wind. There was enough in the trees to have fun with only the Bonnie quad running. Supposed to get an inch or two for tomorrow morning, hopefully I can get on the tram!
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Mar 7, 2023 00:04
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That kind of wear with Boa and speedlace boots is to be expected, because rubbing due to the motion of the whole boot when wrangling them around? My older Rulers have some of that, and my newer Photons, that have actually more mileage on them now, do too. Not to the degree of the following not-mine image: (I put some supersticky electrical tape kind stuff there earlier today to take the wear.) 
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Mar 7, 2023 23:52
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Tahoe people (Steve French?), does anyone know if you're still able to sleep in your car in parts of the Palisades parking lot? I've been seeing mixed info on this: sounds like Placer county made this illegal at some point but that it's not necessarily actually enforced (at least when it's not snowing)? And if not, are there any other spots in the north lake area where this is possible?
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Mar 8, 2023 00:21
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Splinter posted:Tahoe people (Steve French?), does anyone know if you're still able to sleep in your car in parts of the Palisades parking lot? I've been seeing mixed info on this: sounds like Placer county made this illegal at some point but that it's not necessarily actually enforced (at least when it's not snowing)? And if not, are there any other spots in the north lake area where this is possible? Hasn't been allowed for a number of years AFAIK. I don't know what the enforcement is like, what I've generally heard is that it's not a big deal if you're not interfering with snow removal overnight. That said, it's been clear that some people are doing it anyway  sorry, dirty windshield. No idea if there were any consequences for those people, or if they just got lucky, or just nobody wanted to deal with towing a big rear end truck camper. I'm not aware of any actual legal overnight parking areas except dispersed camping areas of the national forest, which are gonna be hard to access right now. All the campgrounds are closed for the season as far as I know. There's coachland and hirschdale rv parks in Truckee, but I don't think they have much if any availability.
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Mar 8, 2023 01:19
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Vail released epic pass prices for next year. I don't see any end of this season benefits for the guy asking earlier. Oh goodie...I can use my phone as my pass... spwrozek fucked around with this message at 01:58 on Mar 8, 2023 |
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Mar 8, 2023 01:53
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Varg posted:Jay Peak was still pretty good today after the storm they had on Saturday, despite all the upper mountain lifts closed for wind. There was enough in the trees to have fun with only the Bonnie quad running. Supposed to get an inch or two for tomorrow morning, hopefully I can get on the tram! Update: Got blessed by the Jay cloud all day, everything was open, loving amazing day finding some knee deep stuff until the last section of the last run I was doing I fell out of pure exhaustion avoiding a tree, dug in my tail and tweaked my knee. I think it's ok.. I mean it didn't feel the same as when I tore the ACL in my other knee twice before playing soccer lol.. ugh my body isn't gonna allow me to do this for much longer is it
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Mar 8, 2023 06:29
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