March 12, 2006, MRNP Mazama Bowl Birthday Bash

Thanks Stefan for getting another year older and planning your very own birthday ski in the Mazama Bowl  ;D.  Several of us met at the Tall Timbers in Eatonville before heading to Paradise for some fun.  The gate at Longmire opened before 9:00 a.m. with clear skies, sun, no wind and lots and lots of new snow  ;D.  16 of us gathered in the parking lot, prepared our gear and headed down the lower Paradise road to the bowl.  We skinned across acres and acres of fluffy new snow, arriving at the sun filled bowl only finding a couple of tracks.  South facing aspects started out with good skiing, but crusted up quickly as the sun was partialy covered and the temps dropped.  We were scattered in all directions of the bowl getting our fill of fresh, light, and some crust conditions.  North facing aspects seemed to survive skiability throughout the day better than south facing.  Several layers, beginning about 4 inches down and 6 inches apart with varying degrees of bonding between the layers, down to about 18 inches with no easy shears noted.  No releases noted except natural point releases on very steep slopes.  We set up party central at the base of the bowl, and met there occasionally, for some great food, wine, and peanut butter pie.  You can see some of our fun here  ;D.