Jackson Hole, WY Conditions Report: A Bit Of Sun & Powder Train A'Rollin'

So yeah, it was good today. Photo: Angelee Aurillo Feb. 18, 2017

With about 6 inches of fresh snow having fallen throughout the course of last night and the morning between opening and the snow report, today could certainly hold it’s own in the “mini powder day” category. It was one of those days where I took a deep breath every once in a while and thanked the universe for fat skis, which provided just enough float to pump out some really smooth, flat turns. All day. Why all day? Because there was nobody at the resort. It is the Saturday of President’s Day Weekend, and yet there we’re the fewest denizens I’ve ever seen at the mountain, on any day, ever. At some points there were walk-on Trams.

Angelee skis a chute. Photo: Sergei Poljak Feb. 18, 2017

First tram was a blast, with a few laps on Sublette to lap up the powder. Conditions were variable, with some exposed crust and some icy sections. Rendezvous was downright terrible, as the sun crust had refrozen particularly hard there and most of the new snow had been blown off. Excellent turns below the most wind affected snow, where ice could not interfere, reinstalled hope (Sublette trees area). After a few, we checked out some off-piste and it was flat and surprisingly deep. This was to be home for four or so trams. The sun crust here was less extreme, and with less skier compaction the new snow felt great.

At the end of the day it began snowing and we rode the gondi up and checked out Teton lift, just for some different vibes. With big flakes coming down, the turns were beginning to get softer and I could feel tomorrow’s powder day creeping up into my loins.

In other news, the past week has been sunny with warm, sunny days, and cool, dry nights, perfect for groomers. I’m talking’ groomers baby! And maybe some ungroomed where nice moguls had formed. Soft moguls prevailed, and my off-piste powder skis could grip the snow from about 10 a.m. to 2:45 p.m., at which point a refreeze would usually begin.

Really feeling it on those groomers, man. Photo: Angelee Aurillo, Feb. 17, 2017

And of course, happy birthday Angelee!

Angelee experiments with a petite hitter. Photo: Sergei Poljak Feb. 17, 2017

The biggest news of the day is that this place is about to go off, again, with several feet of snow expected over the next week or so. It is currently raining heavily in town, with snow level at about 7K, just about halfway up Snow King. That means at least 3,500 feet of vertical pow turns on the mountain tomorrow. Possible lowering overnight. If you’re not aware its going to be deep tomorrow you just don’t know anything.