Conditions Report
With 5″ of new snow again last night it looks like Grand Targhee is still stacking up snow this season. A season total of 390″+ is as impressive as the incredible backside views of the Grand Teton that greeted us after a short traverse off the top of the Dreamcatcher high speed quad. We were lucky enough to get out and sample the product this past Thursday the 13th of March and it would be a lie to say that we didn’t have a blast shredding Targhee.
The sun was out in force allowing us to take in the breathtaking views and get a good picture of the overall resort layout. The sun and warm temps from the previous day had cooked up much of Targhee’s famous wide open powder fields, so we had to do some exploring to find the leftover soft snow. Quick North facing shots off the Dreamcatcher and Sacajawea quads provided a dose of powder and some sweet cliff lines. There are enough cliff options along the ridge North of Sacajawea, varying from 10-40 ft, to keep even the hungriest huckers out there filled to the brim with air time.
Something we did not expect to find at Grand Targhee were top notch groomers. Well, imagine our surprise when we found some of the most fun groomers of all-time blazing straight down the front and center part of the resort. Runs like Crazy Horse, Slim’s Shot and Wandering Moose had these Snowbird skiers shaking their heads at how steep a blue square can be. These runs seriously rip and I would put them up against any fall-line corduroy out there.
Another surprise that make us smile were the “Snow Monsters” that are sprinkled around the upper mountain. These objects are simply tough little pine trees that are absolutely caked in rime ice from the cold Wyoming wind. In addition to putting a smile on your face they tend to be surrounded by jumps and are fun as hell to ski around, over and through:) If you have never played around in features like this it is worth the drive just to get your inner little kid mega grin on:)
We didn’t end up doing the short hike up to Mary’s Nipple and Peaked Mountain, but we were able to see the wild looking terrain over that way and plan to check it out next time. It appears that 20 minutes of booting up the ridge opens up a whole new world of powder skiing opportunities. There is some serious looking terrain off the top of Peaked Mountain that will warrant another adventure to Grand Targhee before too long. Cat skiing is also offered in a separate dedicated zone for the folks that really want to sample the freshest goods without all that pesky uphill walking.
A modern base area that perfectly balances the old school small ski area vibe with full service resort amenities is located at the bottom of the Dreamcatcher. I would recommend the custom hand made chicken nachos strongly to any hungry skiers looking to chill out and refuel. There are some fantastic lodging options right at the base area as well. Check out Grand Targhee’s website for more info.
Want to day trip it from Jackson? It is easy to catch a shuttle to Grand Targhee from Jackson everyday! Check out All Trans daily shuttle that includes round trip bus and lift ticket for $99 per person.
Check out the snow forecast and upcoming events here.
