Surprise! Blower Pow Day at Kicking Horse, B.C.

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Lucas Wachs sends it off a wave in Dare off of Terminator Ridge.
Lucas Wachs sends it off a wave in Dare off of Terminator Ridge.

Sunday, January 18thย was a classic day at Kicking Horse Mountain Resort. Only a few centimeters is predicted. You wake up and check the snow report; 1cm. Disappointed, you look outside and see nearly 20cm on your car. Surprise! Pow Day! This is what happen when a storm rolls in at 6am and drops a load after all the snow reports have gone out. To top it all off, no fair weather skiers show up and the lifts are empty.

North End Trees on CPR ridge. Lucas Wachs getting shacked.
North End Trees on CPR ridge. Lucas Wachs getting shacked.

Despite being caught off guard and showing up an hour after the lifts crack, first tracks could be had line after line. North facing chutes were skiing a touch deeper than the south because of wind deposits. This also made the reported snowfall dramatically underwhelming when compared to the actual skiing quality. Having not been on resort for a week, I was pleased to see that the sprinkle of snow before the main dump made the hill ski as plush as a Cadillac El Dorado.

Hairy trees and blower snow.
Hairy trees and blower snow.

The lower mountain is skiing well but has not reached mid season conditions. Roads are prominent and some faces are still unable to be groomed. Although you can get freshies top to bottom, be mindful of the trenches down low and keep the rad-o-meter down a touch.

Mellow pillows and tits deep snow preserved by the North facing aspect of CPR Ridge.
Mellow pillows and tits deep snow preserved by the North facing aspect of CPR Ridge.

As always, deep pillows can be found on the north end trees off CPR ridge at the end of the day. Terminator Ridge had plenty of runs left, North and South, as the 10 minute boot pack does wonders keeping the gorbs away.

Warm temperatures are making the Horse get snow and ski great. A forecast of -5, mixed sun and soft ground makes for some of the best skiing at Kicking Horse; good vis and fast laps.

The advanced weather data. Straight from the source at Kicking Horse Mountain Resort.
The advanced weather data. Straight from the source at Kicking Horse Mountain Resort.
The current snow conditions for Kicking Horse Mountain Resort. Remember kids, numbers lie.
The current snow conditions for Kicking Horse Mountain Resort. Remember kids, numbers lie.
Snow Forecast predictions for Kicking Horse Mountain Resort.
Snow Forecast predictions for Kicking Horse Mountain Resort.

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