SnowBrains Header logo
  • Store
  • Podcast
  • Snow Forecasts
  • Conditions Reports
  • Gear
  • Avalanche Forecast
  •  
SnowBrains Facebook Page SnowBrains Twitter Page SnowBrains Instagram Page SnowBrains YouTube Page SnowBrains RSS Feed

Joseph Phillips

Anybody else like to ski? Cuz I certainly do. Recent college grad and snow aficionado.

Yes, You Can Actually Ski in Hawaii

You read that right, Hawaii’s tallest mountain gets a dusting of snow most winters. Mauna Kea towers over the ocean at 13,796 ft. The “ski area” has no lifts, but a road to the summit provides access to the world-class observatory as well as skiable terrain. When it snows, a 4-wheel drive vehicle is required to reach the summit. Riders […]

Post Tag for Industry NewsIndustry News
Joseph Phillips | December 3, 2021
8 Comments

Thinking About Being a Ski Instructor This Winter?

ski instructor

Becoming a ski instructor or snowboard instructor is easier than you think! Especially this season since the ban on work visas will likely leave ski resorts short-staffed. On June, 22nd, the US put a hold on J-1 visas (the most common visa used by foreigners to come work at US ski resorts). Even as ski resorts are taking measures to […]

Post Tag for Industry NewsIndustry News
Joseph Phillips | November 6, 2020
0 Comments

The World’s Top 9 Ski Towns

Aprè

Après-Ski: a French term that translates literally to after-ski. This beautiful term encompasses the glorious post-ski beer, the needed post-ride snack, and the required unwinding of an epic day. Nothing beats hitting up the go-to happy hour bar and enjoying a local brew in a mountain town. Ski towns often get a bad rep for being overly expensive, too touristy, […]

Post Tag for Industry NewsIndustry News
Joseph Phillips | May 12, 2020
2 Comments

Ikon’s Alternative Transportation Campaign

View this post on Instagram A post shared by Ikon Pass (@ikonpass) Crowded resorts have been a huge area of complaints recently. Many blame the newer collective passes (Ikon Pass and Epic Pass) for the crowds. A couple of pictures of congested traffic and horrific lift lines drew tons of attention online and more hate for the passes. The Ikon […]

Post Tag for Industry NewsIndustry News
Joseph Phillips | February 8, 2020
2 Comments

Why Your Phone Battery Dies in the Cold

phone in snow

So why do phone batteries die in the cold? The short answer: type of battery. Phones and small electronics usually use a popular type of battery called Lithium-Ion. Side note: there are actually lots of different kinds of Lithium-Ion batteries (the ones in a Tesla or a power drill are made from different metals than the ones in phones and […]

Post Tag for BrainsBrains
Joseph Phillips | January 21, 2020
0 Comments

Sugar Bowl, CA Report: Big Storm Hitting, but Letting Up Tomorrow Morning

Report from 16th January 2020 – Brought to you by Visit Reno Tahoe Sugar Bowl’s Instagram video for the day, captioned “Complete whiteout right now!” was spot on! The storm rolled in around 10 am this morning and it hit hard causing some lifts to go on and off of wind hold. I stuck to 2 lifts that stayed open […]

Post Tag for Conditions ReportConditions Report
Joseph Phillips | January 17, 2020
0 Comments

Mt. Rose, NV Report: Great Snow and Even Better Weather

Report from January 15th, 2020 and brought to you by Visit Reno Tahoe The wind let up today at Mt. Rose, NV and it was a great day! Clear skies all morning and a recent storm (and on a weekday too) provided some amazing runs. Certain wind prone mountains can be plagued with icy, windswept runs and weather holds, and […]

Post Tag for Conditions ReportConditions Report
Joseph Phillips | January 16, 2020
0 Comments

Australian Ski Resorts Using Snow Guns to Fight Fires

Perisher snow gun fire

Some Australian Ski Resorts have been deploying their snow guns to fight off incoming fires. Thredbo Ski Resort and Perisher Ski Resort are hoping to survive the brush fires ravaging Australia. The highest and largest ski areas in Australia, respectively, hope to avoid the fate of Selwyn Snow Resort, which succumbed to the fires at the beginning of January. Nobody […]

Post Tag for FireFire
Joseph Phillips | January 14, 2020
0 Comments

Youth Winter Olympics Begin Today

Lussane views

The opening ceremony for the Youth Winter Olympics began yesterday (Thursday the 9th) with events beginning today, until January 22nd. The events will be held in several venues across Switzerland (with Lusanne being the hub), and they even dabble over the border to France. The ski jumping, nordic combined, and biathlon will all take place at the French venue Stade […]

Post Tag for OlympicsOlympics
Joseph Phillips | January 10, 2020
0 Comments

Tamarack Ski Resort, ID Opens New Quad

Tamarack Ski Resort of Idaho celebrates the new year with a brand new high-speed quad, Wildwood Express. The ski area lays about 2 hours north of Boise, Idaho and has 2800 vertical feet (almost as much as Squaw Valley, CA) on 1100 skiable acres. This brings the ski area up to 3 quads with 7 total lifts. Although it is not […]

Post Tag for Industry NewsIndustry News
Joseph Phillips | January 6, 2020
0 Comments

Man Dies in Tree Strike at Killington Resort, VT

vermont, killington, east

On Sunday, during the busy holiday weekend, Jason Vitale passed away after colliding with a tree at Killington Resort, VT. The 58-year-old resident of New York went into cardiac arrest on his way to the hospital where he later died. He was reportedly riding without a helmet and traveling at fast speeds. According to a National Ski Areas Association study, helmet […]

Post Tag for Industry NewsIndustry News
Joseph Phillips | January 3, 2020
0 Comments

Alternative Ski Areas for the Holiday Season

Santa ski down mt. Rose

The week between Christmas and New Year is the busiest ski week of the season. The combination of school breaks, work vacations, and the start of winter is the perfect combo to bring the crowds to ski towns. Below are a handful of lesser-known resorts that are in proximity to some of the most popular ski areas in the western […]

Post Tag for Industry NewsIndustry News
Joseph Phillips | December 27, 2019
0 Comments

Interstate-5 Grapevine CLOSED for Icy Conditions

cal trans webcam snow

As of the morning on December 27, the Grapevine remains closed due to snowy conditions. Above is a snapshot of Caltrans CCTV camera at Frazier. The elevation pictured is a mere 3836 ft. and has a forecasted high today of 36 degrees. The grapevine is a major artery connecting northern and southern California. Not only for commuters, but thousands of big-rigs make […]

Post Tag for Featured ArticleFeatured Article
Joseph Phillips | December 27, 2019
0 Comments

Bogus Basin, ID Report: Nothing Bogus About Bogus Basin

bogus basin views

Report from Sunday 22nd December 2019 Bogus Basin is a 501(c)(3) charitable organization, meaning that they are a non-profit enterprise, hence the slogan “Non Profit. All Good”. All of the revenue is invested straight back into the resort and the community, and the board of directors are all volunteers. The resort changed owners 6 years ago, and have since invested […]

Post Tag for Conditions ReportConditions Report
Joseph Phillips | December 23, 2019
1 Comment

Cockaigne Ski Resort, NY to reopen!

austrian pavilion lodge

  Cockaigne Ski Resort is back! After a 9-year hiatus, this quaint ski resort is reopening for the 2019 – 2020 winter! Located on the western edge of New York State, almost to Lake Erie, this resort gets crazy snowfall for an east coast resort. It averages about 275 inches per year on its summit (thanks to the lake snow […]

Post Tag for Industry NewsIndustry News
Joseph Phillips | December 20, 2019
0 Comments

Bear Valley Ski Resort, CA Report: Bluebird Powder Day and the Slopes to Myself

bear valley powder

Report from 14th and 15th December 2019 Nestled at the end of Highway 4 in Northern California lies Bear Valley Ski Resort. It is a quaint mountain town with about 200 year-round residents and plenty of space for guests. It is only 40 miles south of Tahoe as the crow flies but features none of the crowds. The first lift started […]

Post Tag for Trip ReportTrip Report
Joseph Phillips | December 19, 2019
0 Comments

Tangible Solutions to Climate Change

climate change, traffic, pollution, gas, British Columbia

Climate change, while very complicated in nature, has grown more tangible in recent years. Especially for skiers and boarders, abnormal snowfall has been widespread over the last several seasons. Mitigation seems complicated. Scientists agree that reducing emissions is key, but so many sources of pollution leave so many areas for improvement. Related: Understanding Climate Change vs. Global Warming An August […]

Post Tag for WeatherWeather
Joseph Phillips | September 11, 2019
0 Comments

The Double-Edged Sword of Climbing Chalk

chalk on wall

There is a double-edged sword of climbing, and all outdoor activities really. The world is covered in beautiful and well-preserved parks, forests, and untouched swaths of land. These lands attract hundreds of thousands who want to experience the beauty, but every mile driven and hour flown is slowly destroying the lands we seek out. Slowly but surely altering the world’s climate […]

Post Tag for ClimbingClimbing
Joseph Phillips | September 6, 2019
0 Comments

Amazing Glamping at Bear Valley, CA

Bear Valley, California has the best glamping setup this summer. Bear Valley, located on Hwy 4 in California’s Sierra Nevada mountains, is just 32 miles south of Lake Tahoe as the crow flies. The quaint mountain town has great year-round activities: cross-country and alpine skiing in the winter then mountain biking, kayaking, fishing, and hiking in the summer. “Imagine waking […]

Joseph Phillips | August 29, 2019
0 Comments

Mountain Swings, Thanks to #AspenSwingProject

aspen swings

A few spots around the ski town of Aspen, Colorado got a special gift. Random swings have been popping up in the forests that surround the city, and nobody knows who’s doing it. Several swings, covered in a deep-red coating of paint, dot trails around Aspen. The only clue about them is the etching in each swing: #AspenSwingProject. Related: Several […]

Joseph Phillips | August 29, 2019
0 Comments

Posts navigation

Older posts

Share your story:

Submit A Link

Top 10 Trending right now:

  • The 9 Highest Elevation Ski Lifts In the World
    The 9 Highest Elevation Ski Lifts In the World
  • Top 5 Hardest Ski Lifts to Get On or Off
    Top 5 Hardest Ski Lifts to Get On or Off
  • Is There Such a Thing as 'Left' and 'Right' Skis?
    Is There Such a Thing as 'Left' and 'Right' Skis?
  • [UPDATED: June 20] NOAA Winter 2025-26 Outlook: Long-Lead Seasonal Outlook Gives Sneak Peek of Next Winter
    [UPDATED: June 20] NOAA Winter 2025-26 Outlook: Long-Lead Seasonal Outlook Gives Sneak Peek of Next Winter
  • 11 Ski Areas are Still Open in the Northern Hemisphere
    11 Ski Areas are Still Open in the Northern Hemisphere
  • [PHOTOS] 12" of Summer Snow Blankets the European Alps
    [PHOTOS] 12" of Summer Snow Blankets the European Alps
  • Olympic Vice Champion Accused of Sexual Harassment of Minors
    Olympic Vice Champion Accused of Sexual Harassment of Minors
  • Chihuahua Saves Owner’s Life by Guarding Crevasse at Saas-Fee, Switzerland
    Chihuahua Saves Owner’s Life by Guarding Crevasse at Saas-Fee, Switzerland
  • Landslide Blocks Access to Cortina d’Ampezzo, Italy, as Olympic Host Prepares for 2026 Winter Games
    Landslide Blocks Access to Cortina d’Ampezzo, Italy, as Olympic Host Prepares for 2026 Winter Games
  • Town of Nederland, CO, Signs Letter of Intent to Purchase Eldora Mountain From POWDR
    Town of Nederland, CO, Signs Letter of Intent to Purchase Eldora Mountain From POWDR
  • Meet the Team
  • Contact
  • Privacy Policy
  • Editorial Policy
  • Artificial Intelligence (AI) Policy
  • Site Map
SnowBrains
Proudly powered by WordPress Theme: SnowBrains Child Theme.