Snowbowl will be open this weekend, April 10-12, for those of you looking for one last blast on the lifts. We got up last Saturday, and it was one magnificent powder day off the Lavelle chair. We got two totally uncut runs on Grandstand and a couple of spectacular rides on Whipped Cream before the top got skied out.

Without a calendar, you’d have thought it was mid-January, but for one thing:The Bowls, Longhorn and Paradise sucked pretty hard. That’s what happens when it stays cold in spring. Those west-facing slopes freeze up overnight and don’t really have time to thaw unless it gets really warm. That wasn’t the case on Saturday, so it was rough going.

Let’s hope this weekend is warm and sunny so we can get a sweet spring day filled with corn and roostertails!

Michael Moore

I almost ditched work today after hearing that Discovery Ski Area got hammered with 30 inches of new snow over the weekend, and I’ve been lamenting my decision not to go skiing all day.

The conditions were pretty bony when I spent the weekend at Disco last month, and while it’s always a fun mountain, I’d hoped for powder. Based on the weekend reports I’ve heard from colleagues, that’s all there’s been in the past 72 hours. From now on, I’m going to obey my instincts.

Here’s hoping that some of y’all took a personal day today. If you did, send some photos my way - tscott@missoulian.com

Tristan Scott

We’re reaching that time of year when skis and snowboards starting turning into bikes and climbing ropes. It’s just inevitable. Still, the snow is still with us, and we should get a few more weeks of lift-served skiing. Gone, perhaps, are the days of deep December powder, but there’s something about a sunny day at the Bowl, Lost Trail or Discovery that brightens and lightens the mind.

Those days should be coming, although this last weekend wasn’t much of a harbinger, with gloomy fog covering the upper mountain at the Bowl for much of the day on Sunday. Still, spring is spring, so hope, uh, springs eternal.

The backcountry is still in great shape, and getting there gets a little easier in spring as lower elevations melt out.

The news isn’t so good for ice climbers, as most of the local spots are no longer in. And that means climbing is out. This is the time of the year when ice can “look” pretty good, but climb like crap. It’s also time when towers come tumbling down, as seeping water starts to separate floes from rock walls. Still, when the ice goes out, the rock comes in, and that means the brother and sisterhood of the rope is getting ready to rock.

Michael Moore

Here’s some good news from the Forest Service:

DILLON — March 16, 2009—It’s mid-March and despite being that time of year when trail groomers start considering shut down, Chief Joseph Pass still offers cold temperatures and snow conditions that keep the motors running and the Bitterroot Cross Country Ski Club busily preparing trails for cross country adventurers.
Since last report, three new inches fell atop the trail system, bringing the total snow depth to 60 inches.  “Spring skiing looks good.  We’ve got more snow right now than at this time last month,” reports one volunteer.
The cross-country ski trails at Chief Joseph Pass are along the Continental Divide in the Beaverhead-Deerlodge, Bitterroot, and Salmon-Challis national forests.  A warming hut is one mile in from the parking lot and offers skiers a chance to take a break inside next to the fire.
For more information call the Forest Service in Wisdom at (406) 689-3243.

While we were too busy clamoring for freshie – and finally getting some! – we forgot to make mention of those who make their own fun in the sun: the freestyle skiers.

Many of the region’s top teenage freestylers, including several Missoula Freestyle Team members, finished off their seasons at the 2009 Northern Division Championships Feb. 27-March 1 at Lost Trail Powder Mountain. The end-of-year event determines state champs in events such as slopestyle, moguls and dual moguls.

Missoula’s Ian Hamilton repeated as the male slopestyle champion, by posting a score of 76.3 on his second run through the course. He beat out teammate Jay Corti, whose best run was a 75.3. MFT’s Darian Stevens won the female slopestyle.

Missoula’s Cody Tempel turned in the best score during the moguls comp, a 24.45 on his second run of the first day. Tempel was second on Day 2, while Jordan McMannis of MFT was third. For complete results check the Northern Division Freestyle Web site.

Some of the top finishers at the divisional level (more…)

When the snow drought finally broke last week, we were literally chomping at the bit to get up to Snowbowl. Unfortunately, we couldn’t get free of work on Friday, so we missed the major freshies. Still, we made our way up on Saturday for a bluebird day that offered both sun and the occasional uncut pow-pow.

During the drought, the bowls had gone rotten, crusty and icy with the occasional rock cropping up. Last week’s dump took care of that, softening up the entire mess. So we whooped and hollered through the East Bowl, down Redbud, through the West Bowl and down the West Ridge.

Just phenomenal. The day warmed up toward the end and the snow got a little heavy, but after the long drought, it was still just heavenly.
I spent the day with my daughter Kate and my friend and her stepdad, Jack Sturgis. We’re a close extended family, what can I say?

We picked up another friend, Nancy Pickhardt, about midday and let it rip all afternoon. I think we may have put Nancy through her paces, and I can say that my legs were a bit pumped after bashing the final moguls on the Grizzly Chute.

But still, sunny days with fresh snow are too few here in River City — it was like being in Colorado – so blasting through to day’s end was mandatory.

And more good news seems to be on the way. The Weather Service is predicting major storms over the next few days — March 5 on — with forecasts for a foot of fresh in the mountains. Bring it!

Snowbowl’s Gelande weekend is almost always a great ski weekend, in part because most people don’t ski. Instead, they sit in the bar, suck down beers and watch guys huck the Gelande jump.

That leaves most of the mountain untrammeled, and that’s the way it was on Saturday. Even up top, on the Lavelle chair, there was little to no waiting in line. And the snow up top is still winter-like. I’m not saying there’s powder, because there’s not. Sure, you might find a few square feet of uncut snow in the trees, but the fluff is gone. So until further notice, it’s groomer time!

The bottom of the hill skied like mid-March on Saturday. You couldn’t quite put up a roostertail on your turns, but it was a great day to serve corn chowder. That made places like Spartan and even the lower Grizzly the places to be. Upper parts of the bowls were sketchy, but the lower ends were soft. We’re getting to the point at the Bowl where the lack of snow is gonna be a pain. The Bowl is doing a good job with snowmaking down low, but there are places mid-mountain where some pretty nasty rocks and stumps are surfacing. I’m all for grinding the occasional log, but encountering softball-sized rocks while pulling into the Lavelle chair is scary.

The weather folks are calling for some chances of snow in the next few days, and I’m about ready to take up the Snow Dance. We need it badly. The flip side, of course, is that sunny, warm days like Saturday are rare and worth enjoying. The weather made it a grand day for sitting back on the deck at the bar and watching the Wilson brothers throw down on the Gelande.

But nothing was better than seeing the Missions peaking their snowy, white heads up past Point Six while unloading at the top.

Michael Moore

Snowbowl’s Gelande Championship is this weekend. Ski jumpers from all over will collide on Missoula’s local ski mountain for a chance to win an $8,000 cash purse.

For those who don’t know, gelande is ski jumping except with regular alpine gear. The event begins Saturday at noon. The finals are Sunday at noon. Admission is $3 per person for non-skiers.

Snowbowl has the only Gelande jump in the nation still used in compeition. And it just so happens, that the best viewing spot is from the bar! (or outside deck).

It leaves me with only three words: Check. It. Out.

– Chelsi Moy

Without wind, it’s hard to launch a kite. Most of the snow kiters who attended the 6th annual Snow Kite Rodeo this weekend at Georgetown Lake have come to terms with this reality, but when you’ve traveled upward of 8 hours to attend the event, it’s never easy to swallow.

Little wind at Mt Haggin on Saturday and Sunday left snow kiters with few choices. Some traveled elsewhere to find wind, and some stood around waiting for it to blow. It’s kinda too bad. Part of the fun of rodeo weekend is watching other kiters and seeing dozens of colorful kites in the air.

On a good note, however, the soup shack at Haggin expanded and remodeled. It’s fabulous. If you like soup, it’s worth the trip. Try a day of cross country skiing at the nearby groomed track and finish it off with some yummy soup. You won’t regret it.

- Chelsi Moy

OK, so we weren’t technically lost, but there were moments on Saturday where, in the search for untracked snow, I found myself a little turned around. Still, when you’re riding a bowl, down will get you out.

So, I’m here to tell you that despite the dearth of snow, there is still untracked powder hidden away at Lost Trail. We concentrated our efforts in the Hollywood Bowl area off Chair 4, and found the best snow by circling around to the north-facing slope.

I spent the day, Saturday, with my daughter Kate and a handful of her old Big Sky buddies, including the wacky, high-flyin’ duo of Kevin Watt and Keegan Connell. Those boys threw down some major huckage off the small cliff bands that wind through the bowl.

The day’s other highlights were rousing games of Kuub played in the LT parking lot. Kuub, for those not in the know, is a yard game with ties to Bocci and horseshoes. Kate and her friends have lately taken to trailer camping in the LT parking lot, and they’ve built quite the social network, as liftees, technicians and even LT owner Scott Grasser stop by in the evening for a bit of socialing and Kuub play.

So, who says you can’t have fun in a down economy!

Below, Kate and Tracy Davis play a game of Kuub, while Andy Hubing cuts it up in the bowl.