Park City Mountain Resort 12/30

Conditions: 4" powder overnight, still snowing
Temp: low-thirties
Gear: snowboard

I got a little bit of a late start (see Mousecapades below) but am glad I made it out to the mountain. It started snowing pretty hard after lunch and the helped clear some of the people off the mountain. And left the fresh for the rest of us!

I headed up Eagle down Gotcha Cutoff and over to Ski Team for my first run to avoid the crowds.


(Snow coming down while I ride up Eagle.)

I had a very brief wait at Silverlode but made it quickly over to McConkey's where the snow was great and the lines were non-existent. The snow was great everywhere over there -- a great run down the middle of the bowl; some nice turns to the left of Buckeye; even Tycoon was nice. This is definitely my favorite area on the mountain.

I even endured the interminable ride up Pioneer twice -- once for some nice riding in the aspens and another down Blue Slip.

It wasn't a lot of runs, but it was definitely worth going up for. And it's supposed to snow all night, so tomorrow should be great too. If you go, have fun!

'til next time,
- Jeff

Mousecapades

So, a few months ago a heard a sound up on the roof. I assumed it was a bird hopping around up there and didn't pay much attention. Unfortunately, the noises continued on and off for a while, but I didn't figure there was much I could do.

A few weeks later, I heard the sounds again, but they were clearly coming from above the kitchen. I figured I had a mouse and went off to the store to buy a few traps.

How hard can it be to catch a mouse? I baited two of the traps with some cheese, set the trap in the crawlspace above the kitchen, and waited.

Next day I crawled up to check the traps. The first trap was sprung, cheese gone, but no mouse. The second trap was GONE. No sign of it. No mouse. Nothing. The little sucker stole my trap!

Not one to give up that easily, I set two more traps that night, this time baited with peanut butter. I hear they like that better ....

Next day, I went to check the traps again. This time they were both gone! *$&#^$ But I noticed two pine cones up there. That shoulda been a pretty good clue, but I didn't figure it out until a few days later.

Later that week I looked out the window and saw a squirrel sitting on porch chewing on a pine cone!

To make a long story a little shorter, I made a visit yesterday to Summit County Animal Control. For a small deposit, they loaned my a little trap. I baited it with some peanut butter and set it out on the porch. I woke up this morning to a very agitated squirrel. The good folks from Animal Control came today to take him away and release him to a much better home - far, far away from my attic! At least I'll be a little less agitated in the mornings now!

Park City Mountain Resort 12/27

Conditions: 9" powder
Temp: mid-thirties
Gear: snowboard

Well, it wasn't the 1-2 feet of powder originally forecast, but it was powder nonetheless. The official report was 9" in the last 24 hours. That was enough to convince me to grab the board and head to Park City Mountain Resort for a few hours of riding.


(PCMR from the base lot)

Expecting crowds, I made a bee line for McConkey's. The view from the top there is always awesome. Check out the fog over Heber!


(Cloud over Heber as viewed from top of McConkey's)

First run down the center of the bowl made it worth getting out of bed! I followed up with a few more great runs in that area, including the following tree run to the skier's right of the bowl.


(Trees off of McConkey's Bowl)

I then did a run off of Pioneer -- skier's right off 10th mountain. It was the best run of the day. Beautiful powder in perfectly spaced aspens. Back to McConkey's for a few more runs -- including spots of 2' powder off of Buckeye -- and I'd had enough.


(Base of McConkey's as seen from Pioneer lift)

If you go this week:

• get there early (lifts open at 8:30 this week)
• avoid the main lifts (Payday, Bonanza, and Silverlode) when possible
• have fun!

'til next time,
- Jeff

Welcome

Welcome to my little spot on the web. This is my place to share some of my outdoor adventures with others. The original thought was to include a description of each day I spend on the slopes and an occasional picture. But I also enjoy trail running and mountain biking, so maybe I can share some of that too.

I'm just getting started, so please check back again soon.

Take care and enjoy the trails!
- Jeff