Crystal - 11/17 Big Day

Day Three Big....My Oh My Big!  My first run down GV Bowl was Heli Big Nice!  Did a few more laps in the Valley till I decided to show my incredible niceness and headed over to FQex (via Lucky Shot) to meet #1 for her first ski day...Everywhere I went was fun and from what I saw in the early afternoon sunshine it looks like almost everywhere I did not go was even greater.  Missed out on the early day front side of REX fun, but SunnySide was JD big fun left over powder screaming (my last two runs of the day - and I still had quads!  Yee Haa the legs are getting into shape).  Great day, relatively light crowd for the real first day of ski season at Crystal.  Never a real line were I was today - definitely not on FQex which made #1 very very happy (and she had a big day for her first one...which made me happy).  Talked to and saw a lot of the regular hard core locals, plus a few visitors from way down south.  Light snow falling during the morning, with lots of filtered sun breaks and real sun breaks early afternoon for my finish.  Snow quality is excellent and rocks are not a problem on the main runs (don't know about MiddleIceFerkBerg...but expect to hear something).  Rocks in places that those that know don't go.  Great day. Nearly doubled my vert total from the first two days - and I can still walk. 

Other - Forgot to check for the soup of the day again at the base lodge (anyone?).  Pay parking was holiday big and typically empty, rest of A lot full, B lot maybe half wide spaced full, C maybe 2/3 full....so there was a few folks at Crystal today....

Ready for more!

Best opening day in a long time. Good coverage on the upper mountain, especially since it was mostly untracked. The ridges, normal thin spots, and choke points ground down pretty fast, but were easy to avoid. Fluffy boot to knee-deep powder was excellent till it tracked up and got thick. Crystal's a little behind the mountain opening curve - no Gondy, no Green Valley grooming, and no Frontside gates. But, the late opening of The Frontside was in our favor as it saved the snow for us. The snow ended up pretty thick and variable on lower Rex and aspects that got what little sun there was. Shaded slopes ended nice packed pow. Upcoming weather and crowd patterns don't look to do any favors to the snow.

Ken

And if you want to see what perhaps was my best first lift served run of the year in 40 years looks like, here ya go:

vimeo.com/243399955

Yes, early morning Green Valley was sweet. Some other places that were not mentioned, MIFB off piste toward Upper Bull was a bit thick and windblown with hidden pucker brush. Snorting Elk did not open. The traverse from the Green Valley chair toward the Gondi face was very bony. The main runs in Green Valley got skied up to very fine packed powder. Lucky shot held up very well. Rolling Knowles was a lot of fun for an early morning warm-up run and an afternoon warm down run. The Campbell basin Lodge only had water from the drinking fountain and the bathrooms, no soup, no coffee, no nothing, and not much heat. The afternoon sucker hole sun breaks were a real treat. Five elk including a couple of bulls on the drive up. A fine fine day