Howdy enjoying a run in the sunshine on Sunday.
Sunday was a day for hunting. After Saturday’s snow much of the resort’s off piste had been attached, but with a little bit of patience and some hunting “freshies” were enjoyed! Howdy found a nice one at an undisclosed location!
Powder Pigs - Mike, Pam and Howdy
Saturday was another nice surprise with the morning ski news reporting only 2 inches of new and upon our arrival at Snowbasin we found at least 4 inches at the top of the Needles Gondola. After three hours of skiing another 6 inches had fallen and the snow conditions got better with each run.
We enjoyed Valentine’s evening with a visit to Ogden’s Egyptian Theater and the annual tour of the Banff Mountain Film Festival. We saw 8 great films with topics that ranged from base jumping in China to climbing in California. The tour is a fund raiser for the Snowbasin Alpine Team and lots of fun!
Janifer Larson, Banff Festifal local organizer and tour director Liz enjoy a pre-screening toast.
Cindy, Connie, Nancy and Jan moments after moon rise.
What is it with the full moon anyway? It visits each month, 12 months each year, over and over so why is it so fascinating?
For me it’s about the passing of time and with each full moon another month is gone, never to return. It’s a reminder that each one of us must take FULL advantage of each day so when that full moon visits again we are reminded that we have spent our time well (maybe not always wisely).
Last night a few girl friends enjoyed a great snowshoe under the February full moon. We toured Middle Inlet on Pineview Lake with dogs and dining on Valentine dessert after the tour. What a wonderful place to enjoy the intoxicating power of that big round orb in the night time sky!
Last run of the day proved to be worth the traverse it took to find this spot.
The weather people certainly got this one right, storm after storm hitting the Wasatch. What they don’t know is exactly where each storm will present its precious gift of powder. Snowbasin reported 1″ at 6:00 this AM but by the time we reached the slopes there was a healthy 4-6 and it was still snowing hard. Of course, it was a typical storm day in Strawberry with an abundance of wind, snow, drifting, crust, fog! It becomes a bit of a game to search out the most protected spots, attempting to find the perfect line of snow. Our success rate today was about 90% finding the best snow on north aspects! Good luck with your searches.
Fun, fun, fun day in the powder
Yesterday was one for the top 10 list of 2008/2009 powder days. With 12 inches of new snow overnight and the storm still in full swing skiing was a blast! It was tough weather for the camera so only got a few pictures. Weather forecasters are predicting 5-7 storms between now and the end of February - YEAH!!!
Pam playing on her new skis!!!
The new issue of Ski Magazine is out and features a very detailed article on the Northern Wasatch Back’s hidden gem - Snowbasin. It’s a well written article and doesn’t give away too many of our secrets. Check it out.
If you are considering Mountain Green or other areas in Mountain Green as a spot to relocate or have a vacation of second home you may want to check out a few items on the county website. The first item is the Mountain Green-DAT (Design Assistance Team). The local chapter of the American Institute of Architects selected the community for a 2008 project and the results are very interesting. The ideas that were presented for a town center generated lots of excitement from the local citizens and interested developers. It’s worth a look.
Also, Envision Morgan has been hard at work helping the county create an overall masterplan with input from hundreds of citizens. It has moved along very well and a final report is due out soon.
These proactive planning movements will help insure the county remains a very inviting place to live, play and visit.
Snowbasin representatives recently met with officials from Morgan County about the resort’s future plans. The Standard Examiner reported on the meeting and the article follows:
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Snowbasin officials reveal ‘base village’ vision in Morgan Wednesday, January 21, 2009
MORGAN — Snowbasin officials are allowing the public a taste of their vision of future development on the 8,000 acres it owns in Morgan County. In coming decades, the area could tout 2,950 dwelling units, including single-family homes, townhomes and four-story condos. Plans call for a new resort gateway for visitors traveling from the south over Trappers Loop Road, complete with condos, a hotel, ski lodge, parking, golf courses, restaurants, tennis courts, trails and retail establishments. From the new “base village” in the northwest corner of Morgan County, visitors could purchase ski passes at the base of the Strawberry ski area and ride a chairlift to the Strawberry gondola. “The thing we love about the Morgan County side is the southern exposure,” said Clint Ensign, vice president for government relations for The Sinclair Companies. “People love the sun.” Ensign emphasized in a Tuesday night work session with the Morgan County Council that the plans are merely a “draft vision” and not a proposal. He said the company plans to eventually file a rezone application with the county. “It’s not a proposal, just our current thinking,” Ensign said. “We have no timetable for construction,” although he said it may take decades to see their visions come to fruition. “The current economic climate is challenging, to say the least, but it is doable, sustainable and would help maintain the character of the area.” He said that Snowbasin officials would make sure to let the land determine appropriate amounts of development. The resort would operate year-round at its Morgan County digs, Ensign said. “To succeed as a resort, it needs to be year-round,” he said. “We want a successful destination resort, a meaningful, sustainable economic factor for good in this county.” Snowbasin owns 4,200 acres in Weber County, and resort officials propose to develop just 23 percent of the 8,000 acres on the Morgan County side. The remaining 77 percent of resort property would likely remain open space, Ensign said. He said Snowbasin’s master plan does not include plans for a gondola into Ogden. Images and text copyright © 2005 by Ogden Publishing Corporation. Reproduction or reuse prohibited without written consent. |
Pam and Howdy enjoy winter again after a recent kayak trip to Chili.
Sometimes you just get lucky. On Friday morning at 6:00 a.m., Snowbasin was reporting no new snow. What a bummer since several of us had some morning time to spare and were hoping for some new snow. Things changed rapidly and by 8:00 a.m. the storm was dumping snow on the mountain with 5 plus inches and no sign of stopping, so off we went to check it out.
It was not ideal weather for photography with lots of snow falling and very limited visablity but I was able to capture a few action shots of Mike and the Mitchell’s in Strawberry. The conditons were a bit challenging in some areas where we were bumping the crusty base, but overall it was excellent. More storms are expected the first of the week so stay tuned!
Mike in Moonshine