serfryydr

There are very few things I will gladly get out of bed for in the morning.  In no particular order they list as, fresh powder, clean waves, and lucky charms (my favorite marshmallow and cookie cereal made by a cute little leprechaun of course).

Let’s just say that this winter has seen many an early morning for me, and not because of the Lucky Charms.  The western-United States/Canada from Whistler to Big Bear, Washington on down to Arizona have been getting absolutely dumped on.  We are talking the big guy upstairs seriously puking snow on us!  Light, fluffy, shredable snow.

Los Angeles’s premiere local resort Big Bear is reporting a base of 3-5 feet, while Northstar at Tahoe is reporting a summit base at 8.5 feet.

It seems that every weekend it snows and every week  the unemployed, self-employed, wanderers are riding freshies.  The snow gods truly are upon us out here on the left coast.

I spent a week in Lake Tahoe California and had a wind-burned, chapped lip smile on my face the whole time.  The runs had super carvable packed pow while the trees were filled with light, soft fresh tracks you only dream about.  It was relatively warm most of the time, with temperatures in the high 30s a few days.  The storms gave way to bright bluebird skies, and unzipped jacket riding.

I stood on top of Diamond Peak with one of my best friends in the world, staring at the light diamonds sparkling off the top of a placid Lake Tahoe.  The sun was hanging, huge and orange just over the peaks of recently dusted mountains.  My muscles were tight from a great day of riding and I had just eaten part of a chocolate chip cookie.  Life was indeed good at that moment. 

I rode 4 days at Diamond Peak in Incline Village and 1 day at Northstar in North Lake Tahoe.  Northstar is definitely the star of the area, especially for snowboarders.  The mountain boasts every type of terrain you could ever want.  They routinely hold pro-contests in their parks and half-pipes, that you can ride on a day-to-day basis.  The steeps are plenty and there is every type of tree run in the book.  I found myself linking long 10-15 minutes runs together with steeps, trees, bumps, and if I opted (though I didn’t) parks.

This however all comes with a price tag.  And a fairly hefty one at that.  A day pass at Northstar with set you back $76 with only a $10 discount for a half day.  Normally, I would suck it up, strap in and go ride without giving it a second thought, because honestly, where else would I go?

In Tahoe, there’s a clear cut answer to this question: the smaller mountain resorts.  I chose Diamond Peak right in Incline Village this time.  Another good choice is Alpine Meadows in South Lake.  The snow is exactly the same.  The lift lines are shorter.  There is plenty of terrain.  I found more than enough bumps, trees, and steeps for 4 days of riding.  They even had a series (4 to 5) of very well groomed jumps.  Off the side of a long blue there were two or three different types of jibs. The only draw back is that since the mountains are smaller you actually ride to the bottom on almost every run, but since lift lines are so short it’s not a problem at all.

…Now for the drum roll please, the big bonus is that the tickets are much less expensive: $48 at Diamond Peak and $58 at Alpine.  For the whole day.

I found myself cruising in ankle deep pow, on a wide open steep that rivaled anything at Northstar, screaming “Don’t Stop Believing” by Journey at the top my lungs.  I was flying.  No one was in front of me, no one was behind me, it was just me, my terrible voice, and my trusty board.

I met one of my best friends at the bottom of the mountain. We rode the lift up together, and then easily parted ways at the top, her down a blue with Paul Simon, me down a variety of blacks with bad 80s hair bands.

Maybe I was listening to Journey for a reason…I’m just workin’ hard to get my fill…

Next up: Mammoth, California this weekend, and much more Big Bear to come!!!