USA 2005 - PART 2

April 2nd - Powder Mountain

Saturday morning and it was time to head to one of my favorites. I had been introduced to the delights of Powder Mountain(2005ft, 5500a) by Mike Richards the previous winter. Even with a large part of the mountain closed I had still had so much fun that I wanted to see the entire mountain.

The sun was again in the sky and I arrived at 9.15 to find the last parking space available. With lift tickets at $43 a day I decided that for an extra $7 I would buy one pass for the Lightening Ridge cat skiing area.

Despite the cars the mountain was incredibly quiet and I had to laugh when I got to the bottom of the Hidden Lake lift and suddenly it stopped as I waited for the next chair. Turned out the liftie had forgotten to plug in an electric socket and the bar that triggers a stop button if a skier comes back down the mountain. After a bit of digging about and calls to the top he realised what had happened and we were on our way.

This resort rocks and I stuck to the brilliant groomers all morning before I made my way to the cat skiing pick up point. The cat pulls 2 long bits of rope with around 10 or so loops in each. Skiers put their poles thru a loop and then stand over the rope and put their poles behind them. For boarders it is a matter of hanging on! A young boarder in blue denim shorts took my eye. I don't know how old she was, but boy she had a great set of pins.

Once up to the drop off point I decided to hike to the summit of James Peak(9422ft) which must be a climb of around 600 feet up a fairly steady pitch. Working off my lunch I eventually got there and met a young snowboarder who was lying in the sun. It was great to meet him there as he was able to point out all the mountain ranges and resorts that I had been to in the previous week.

The corn-snow was fairly heavy but totally untracked and the climb was made all the more worthwhile as I was able to see my tracks all the way down. A few beers in the bar were required to quench the thirst a little.

Utah was over for another year. I had a quick visit to Nordic Valley(now Wolf Mountain) for a look around. The coverage was fantastic and I wish I had hiked to the summit for some turns. Tomorrow I would be heading to Idaho and the realisation was that I was in the final stretch....

April 3rd - Ice Skating

Leaving Ogden early on Sunday morning it was sad to be leaving Utah after an epic couple of weeks. Its was tempered a little by the fact that I was heading off to Idaho and Montana, two of my favorite states.

Pomerelle(1000ft, 500a) is ideally situated on a route between SLC and the resorts of Boise, Idaho. I had heard about this place for a long time and although it has limited terrain throughout this winter it continually appeared in The Ski Resort Guide's daily snow dumps with amounts often in the 18-24" bracket.

I arrived at about 9.30am to a totally deserted parking lot. There would have been around 20 cars maximum and most were surely staff. The mountain itself has 2 main lifts but only one is required to access everything and with nobody around it was clear only one would operate.

I bought my ticket and even the girl in the sales office admitted that I had the whole mountain to myself. The piste bashers were out working their magic and the piste patrol were stopping anyone exiting the lift to the left. I had to laugh when the guy said that it was because conditions were so bad(VERY ICY) and once the trails were all pisted they would be open. All I could think about was skiing at the Lecht as a 10yo on sheet ice(always described as Alpine). These Americans really just don't know what bad conditions are!

Anyway, the skiing was on packed powder and consisted of mainly intermediate terrain, although they listed some as black. Decent views and deserted slopes made the day pretty worth while.

By 2pm it was time to head on my way and I got back to the car but could not get in! Pressing the alarm button did nothing and I eventually gave up and used the key instead. My fears were confirmed when I turned the ignition, dead. I had left the bloody lights on.

Its one of these funny things looking back. I had left early in the morning and put the lights on but by 9am it was bright and I forgot all about them. When I parked I parked head first against a snow bank so that I could get my skis out of the boot. At home I know exactly what to do, handbrake off, push it back and a rolling start downhill. In the automatic car, this was not possible. I could only get it out of 'park' if the engine runs, I needed to reverse back to get leads on. Shit, I thought this could be really tough to get out.

Luckily when I summoned help it turned out that I had parked next to a girl from the lodge and after getting her we used her truck to start the car. Embarrassed but mobile, I headed to Boise.

I had no accomodation booked and no concrete plans for the week, or that matter for Monday morning. I headed to the Super 8 in Boise.

April 4th - Bogus "Bonus" Basin

Bogus Basin(1800ft, 2000a) had closed in early March for the season. I had heard rumours that it had been opened again in the previous week, so I decided that I would take a look and see. Any skiing would be a bonus.

Heavy rain overnight and the fact that the resort is so close to Boise made me think that Bogus may not be too good. How wrong could I be. Bogus 'Bonus' Basin was simply brilliant.

I headed up the windy road which was under a thick blanket of fresh snow with a handful of tracks infront. By the time I reached the parking lot it was under 6" of snow and it was coming down thick and fast. With the exception of the Pine Creek lift the entire mountain was open and there were less than 50 cars in the lot. I had scored yet again.

I spent the morning on the Deer Point Express area skiing 12" of pow before heading for a 1/2lb burger and large fries. The fries came in a box that quite simply scared me but I made a galliant effort. After lunch I headed to the Superior lift which was absolutely amazing. Snowing hard, the turns in the trees with only the occasional 'hoot' from fellow skiers and boarders.

Heading north to McCall I knew that Bogus would be visited again in the future. A real locals favorite with great facilities.

My base for the next couple of nights was the scenic town of McCall. The Super 8 again my motel of choice. I had left Bogus in enough time to get there by 6pm which gave me an hour to have a shower and get ready for a night in the pub to watch the final of the March Madness Basketball. Walking into town it took a LONG time to find the only bar but I was just in time to see the tip-off. The McCall Brewing Company brewpub served up around 7 decent beers and I had a pint of most during the game. Back to the ranch, tomorrow I would head to Brundage.

April 5th - Give Me Peace

Tuesday morning arrived and I set off early for the short 15 minute drive from McCall to Brundage(1800ft, 1340a). Its a scenic drive through McCall and past Payette Lake up to Brundage and I passed Payette Lakes Ski Area or as it is otherwise known, The Little Ski Hill.

Once up to Brundage I was immediately hit by how deserted the place was, how good a terrain park they had(I know nothing about terrain parks though ) and also the fact that the main lift was a modern high speed detachable lift. This would give me maximum time on the snow.

One of the constant factors of skiing and boarding in late March and thru April is cheap lift tickets. Brundage was no different with a ticket coming in for $19 or a shade over £10. Still the parking lot had less than 50 cars.

Brundage is a locals favorite with two main lifts serving the entire mountain. As Brundage and Tamarack are over 100 miles from Boise and the nearby towns of McCall and Donnelly have a combined population of less than 2200 with a limited amount of visitor beds these places are never going to be busy. The two lifts are almost parallel to one another and both serve a mix of terrain. The area between the lifts is a combination of trails and lightly gladed terrain. I ducked in and out of the trees all day searching for untracked, boot deep 2nd day powder. I noticed that apart from the off duty instructors and a few piste patrol, I was one of a handful doing this. Each to their own, but for me this is what its all about.

I like my sleep, although I have always struggled to get any, and tonight was going to be one of these nights that I did not get any. I always find that the slightest noise keeps me awake and having a TV on until 3am in a motel is both unselfish and completely unacceptable. I work on the basis that if I can hear my TV without straining then the people in the adjoining rooms will too so by 10-11pm I either put it off or so low that I can barely hear it. Idiots shouting in the corridor at 1am ! Perhaps I am just getting old but my prime aim of this trip was to ski and I can't ski hard if I don't get much kip. Driving long distances also is not great on a couple hours sleep.

April 6th - An Early Start

Anyway, I was heading to Tamarack(2800ft, 700a) on another beautiful day. I was up and away early and it was eating on my mind that The Little Ski Hill(405ft) had complete coverage, was 5mins away and it was only 7.30am. Fuck it, I'm hiking to the top and havig a run down just to say I've been.

I did feel like a bit of an idiot as people passed me in their cars as I was getting into my boots in the deserted 'layby'. What the hell is he doing must have been the thought! Anyway the short 400ft vertical climb was fairly easy but at 8am I was sweating a bit but the view was worth it. Brundage would have been there, somewhere and the view down to the small collection of houses with the sun just about poking over the top. Brilliant. Anyway, the snow was firm to say the least and my turns must have echoed for miles. Offering night skiing during the winter I would say that as long as you don't expect great things then a visit here would be a fun alternative to a night in the bar.

Arriving at Tamarack at 9am with the sun beating down I was met by around 10 cars. The base village is under construction and the signs on the access road are all in place but most point to foundations, nothing or a partly constructed building. Currently the lodge, ski tickets etc are all located in a series of massive domes and I have to say that I found it quite a nice alternative to the usual concrete and timber clad mess.

Tam is a brand new resort that is the 1st 4 season resort in the US for over 20 years. It was hot and the snow was sticky, but the friendliness of all the resort staff was absolutely 2nd to none, and having been to over 50 North American resorts I think that that is a pretty good acheivement. Eventually they will add more lifts and they already have Idahos only superpipe(Hells Canyon - 400ft long 18ft walls and a 16' pitch) which is visible from the base.

I skied the upper mountain all morning with easy hiking left and right of the chair giving access to some bowls which had deep untracked corn snow. The view from the slopes was absolutely stunning and one of the best in a mountain range that there is not a craggy peak in sight. It was so hot and sticky that at one point I pointed my skis downhill(on a decent pitch) and I barely crawled downhill. Amazing, and it reminded me of Tourette Syndrome where people have in-voluntary movement and swear a lot. This was me, as hitting a really sticky patch was met with strange movements and the occasion fuck, bastard, bloody hell and wanker! Very funny looking back!

Stopping for lunch meant a long run down the mountain and although the snow was much wetter lower down it was actually easier to ski. I walked into the dome for lunch and the Canoe Grill offers a range of speciality lunches. I stuck to a burger and fries and although not cheap, the value for money was excellent. Funny to see, but 90% of the people having lunch were all the construction workers in there muddy jeans.

Heading back up top for an hour or so in the afternoon I skied under the lift for a run and saw nobody until I was around 100m from the bottom. 'Queueing' up the liftie told me that there were only 4 other people on the upper mountain! Getting skickier I decided to head to the bar at 3pm and caught the final 5 minutes of the Chelsea v Munich match that was live on ESPN2. A couple of pints and I was on my way.

My next resort was Sun Valley and I had no accomodation booked. Feeling that Ketchum would be a little expensive I had failed to find any alternative on the internet although the town of Fairfield seemed to have a motel.

Driving thru Fairfield(don't blink) I passed a bar and then a motel. After a u-turn up the road I was in the reception of the Prairie Inn. I booked myself in for the night, dumped my bags and walked along the highway to the Iron Mountain Inn.

The locals were some of the friendliest I have met and they were interested in my stories of Scotland. The barmaid was particularly interested as her ancestors came from Nairn which is a small town 60 miles or so from where I stay. By midnight I was pretty well oiled and made my move.

April 7th - Nothing Better Than Beating The Locals

I was supposed to meet a local guy for a day at Sun Valley(3400ft, 2054a) but our plans got a little muddled and I set off on Thursday morning alone. Before I left though I changed my plans and booked into the motel for another night. The locals, beer and scenery combined to make another night worthwhile.

My immediate reaction of Sun Valley was that Dollar Mountain, "the finest teaching mountain in the world" was nowhere near Bald Mountain. Also yet again, how badly signposted it was to get to the mountain through Ketchum. Poor, but I got there.

There is also a little problem with parking but luckily the parking lot was barely 1/4 full when I arrived. Instantly I could see that the snow was soft and there was not much of it. I headed to the summit of Baldy and found that the trails had limited coverage. Today would be about seeing the mountain and concentrating on technique on the groomers. I had a superb chilli up at the Seattle Ridge Lodge(voted the best in North America a couple of seasons back) and then headed over to the Warm Springs area, finishing off with a blast from the top down to the River Run Plaza and the car. The main thing that sprang to mind was the top-to-bottom snowmaking, long cruising runs and the lack of skiers and boarders. Would go back, but not in a hurry as it does not get the pow days that by now I crave.

I headed back to Fairfield for the night and decided to head up to Soldier Mountain(1400ft) and take a look. 10 miles from Fairfield this places looks like it could be fun. Some day I will be back and get some skiing.

After a shower I headed to the bar. Playing pool with the locals I actually managed to granny one of them and missed the black in the following game for back to back granny's. The banter was superb and I was turning on the style for the ladies. Bethany finished work early and we had a few shots and a game of pool. My only regret is that I did not extend my stay even longer.

April 8th - The Long And Winding Road

The locals had said that the quickest way to Whitefish was to head east to Idaho Falls and then take I-15 north. It was 100 miles+ longer but an hour or 2 quicker. Knowing it was a boring road I decided to take the 10 hour route thru Sun Valley, Salmon, Lost Trail, Missoula and then north to Whitefish. I took a detour to the Shoshone Ice Caves but they don't open during the winter.

The long drive was extremely scenic following the path of the Salmon river. It was amazing to see hundreds of people fishing all along. Could not help but feel that with salmon disappearing quickly in Scotland's river that so many people fishing could not be a good thing. We may see the results in another decade or two. Also the amount of hiking terrain. Some day maybe I will return and put in some lines.

Snow was falling around Lost Trail Ski resort on the Montana/Idaho border and I could see a few fresh tracks on the slopes of the mountain.

I arrived in Whitefish at about 7pm and booked myself into the Super 8 and headed into town for a few jars. The faces were familiar but none of the guys I really knew were about. I headed to the Remmington for a final beer and as I ordered one an Irish voice next to me asked how I was going. I thought this was strange as you rarely hear a UK accent never mind an Irish one in Whitefish. We played pool and I began to notice that he would change between Irish and US accents.

Its not often that I ever lose my cool but we played doubles, the Irish guy and a mate v me and Brian, a local who had moved from Seattle to the tranquility of Montana this winter. It was then that the Irish guy dropped the bombshell that he was a supporter of the IRA. I basically lost it and told him exactly what I thought of his false accent and the fact that he had only been in Ireland once in his life yet supported an organisation he knew nothing about. I really went to town on the poor guy, but he just rubbed me up the wrong way with his 'Scotland never stood up to England line'!!

Anyway, Brian was in his mid 40s and could not believe that I had skied all over the US and we swapped e-mail addresses as he knew all about the Seattle resorts that I want to visit and he wanted to know about Utah, Idaho et al. Should be able to get the inside info for a future trip.

April 9th - Canadian Road Trip

Saturday morning I packed up and made the decision that I would ski at Blacktail on Sunday and head up into Canada for a day trip. I had hoped, although not expected, to get some skiing at Pass Powderkeg, a short drive from Fernie on the road to Calgary. I passed thru Fernie during the annual ski, bike and paddle race but headed up to take some photos of Wapiti ski hill in Elkford. The access road gate was locked but I took some pictures from a distance and some day I will be back.

I took a photo of the biggest dump truck in the world on my way thru Sparwood. It was amazing to see a 6ft guy stand next to it and barely be up to the wheel nuts :lol: On to Pass Powderkeg I took a look up to the base lodge. I was a week too late as the 3rd had been the end. My route took me down thru Pincher Creek and then Glacier National Park stopping at the Frank Slide on the way. Amazing but sad story(One of the youngest survivors died around 2000 when I was in Fernie)

Unfortunately during the winter months it is not possible to drive through the park but skirting along the edge gave a real impresson of the beauty of the area with large rugged peaks. Wonderfull.

I headed into the Dam Town Tavern in Hungry Horse and grabbed the one remaining seat at the bar. Beside me was an old woman, and I have to say it was one of the saddest things I have seen as there is every chance that she would have grandchildren my age or younger. She had a bottle of beer but also a cup of coffee. It was only 5pm and she just sat there and mumbled to herself. The barmaid took great delight in offering her more coffee for her 'Miss Milly' which I thought was sobering her up, but only then did I realise that the 'cream' was infact a bloody large slug of cream liquor. Sad, and as much as I like a drink I never want to land up like that.

The toilet was a step back in time with a urinal and toilet bowl within 1ft of each other. I was standing having a pee when another guy comes in and says 'bet you have'nt seen anything like this before and I'll try not to pee on your leg' He immediately recognised my accent and was able to pinpoint that I was from the north of Scotland.

Turns out that he had worked in Scotland for years in the US navy. I spoke to him for a good while about golf and his memories of the country. He shouted to the barmaid to get the tins of Tennents out. Behind the bar was 3 tins dating back to the early 80's when the cans still had the photos of the sexy ladies. Eventually I headed to Kalispell for the night.

I checked into the Motel 6 for 2 nights and headed across the road to the Sawbuck Casino for a beer. Turns out the hall was busy with a karaoke so I had a few beers and listened to the locals turn their hand to singing.

April 10th - The Final Day

My final day was a visit to Blacktail(1440ft, 1000a) which I had visited a few years ago but had forgotten my camera. A chance for some photos and my 3rd resort closing day of the season.

A lack of snow meant mid-way loading on one lift, a closed lift and one fully open lift. This did not matter, the sun was shining, the views were incredible, I had had an incredible 4 weeks and there were more staff than customers.

Blacktail opened as a resort in the late 1990's and is one of a handfull of resorts with the parking lot at the top of the mountain(Powder Mountain is another one I have visited). The slopes are mainly intermediate and have a good pitch all the way down. Its certainly worth a visit if anyone ever hits Big Mountain.

The realisation now was that the holiday was over. Bags packed I headed out at around 7pm for a couple of beers at another casino, the Double J Gambling Hall. Although a keen gambler I detest bandits and the like, primarily as I have no clue what I am doing and what the buttons do!

Ordering a Busch beer I was surprised to learn that it was free as long as I played Keno. The barmaid showed me the score and I stuck a dollar in. I had about $25 of change and at one stage 4 pints looked like costing me $25 but somehow I managed to match 6/7 numbers and then in quick succession twice 5/7 which meant I had about $40 in the kitty which I cashed in. I sat for another hour or so, had a few more beers and lost $10. Still an evening in a bar had cost me nothing. A nice end to the trip.

April 11th - Homeward Bound

The flights went smoothly and I had a few drinks in Minneapolis airport in a bar the size of a cupboard. It was the same barman who rips the piss out of most customers that was there last winter. The bar wall is covered in bank notes from around the globe and is across from a 'noodle bar' $7 a beer but worth it for the sharp comments.

Back into Aberdeen on Tuesday afternoon it struck me how poor our system is. Despite 300 folk on a plane, finger prints and the works it was still quicker passing thru Minneapolis customs and immigration than getting back into my country off a plane with less than 100 people.

Wednesday and it was back to work to pay for the next trip. Chile and Argentina with my dad, brother and Mike Pow is already arranged for August 20th for 3 weeks and the maps and internet are looking for next years trip to the USA.

I had been extremely lucky!

This article was written by Quintin Chalmers, a 30-year-old skier from Aberdeen in the north of
Scotland. Quintin has skied at over 50 North American resorts and is in the process of setting up
www.offthebeatenpath.co.uk designed to help like minded people find the best turns in some of the
more unusual resorts in western USA. He has over 20 years skiing experience and enjoys nothing
more than seeing new places that many people write off as being not worth the hassle.