2016/2017 Ski Area Snowfall Log
for the Silver Valley
I moved to Wallace
in January 1993 because it was a
charming village halfway between TWO ski areas, a dozen
miles in either direction on Interstate 90 in northern
Idaho's
Silver Valley.
This page will
log the snowfall
statistics for both
Silver Mountain,
a gondola ride away from Kellogg,
and
Lookout Pass,
at the Montana border. Click on the
animated color bars to move between the top and bottom of the data. Greg Marsh |
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| Ten Day Weather Forecasts for both Ski Areas | Follow @gregswallace | |||
| A crude measure of each previous season is given by the maximum snow depth recorded at Lookout Pass's summit. The Season Recaps link leads to more summary information presented at the bottom of the page. | ||||
| 2001/2002
Snowfall Log 225" |
2002/2003
Snowfall Log 130" |
2003/2004
Snowfall Log 119" |
2004/2005
Snowfall Log 85" |
2005/2006
Snowfall Log 168" |
| 2006/2007
Snowfall Log 163" |
2007/2008
Snowfall Log 197" |
2008/2009
Snowfall Log 144" |
2009/2010
Snowfall Log 90" |
2010/2011
Snowfall Log 192" |
|
2011/2012
Snowfall Log 176" |
2012/2013
Snowfall Log 139" |
2013/2014
Snowfall Log 149" |
2014/2015
Snowfall Log 78" |
2015/2016
Snowfall Log 113" |
| All Season Recaps | ||||
|
Silver Mountain The Lodge, elevation 5650 feet, is at "Mid Mountain," while Kellogg Peak, top of Chair 2, has an elevation of 6200 feet. See trailmap for orientation and today's Snow Report for operation confirmation. |
Lookout Pass The Lodge is at base of Runt Mountain. The chair runs from an elevation of 4800 feet to the top of Runt at 5650 feet. See trailmap for orientation and today's Snow Report for operation confirmation. |
|---|
| 122 |
Days Open in 2016/2017 season as of April 23, 2017 |
105 | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
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The early morning temperatures listed below were
recorded between 5 and 7 AM at the Silver Mountain Lodge and/or at the Lookout Pass Lodge . A (temperature) means it was recorded/reported after 7 AM. A (new snowfall) number records new snow when a resort is closed. Click on the animated color bars to move between the top and bottom of the data. |
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| Date | 24 hr New |
at Lodge |
at Summit |
temp °F |
Date | 24 hr New |
at Lodge |
at Summit |
|---|
|
|
/ 30° |
Sunday Nov 27 |
0" | 8" | 14" | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ski Report: "Top to bottom skiing off Chair 1. Chair 4, beginner area, will also operate. Lifts turn at 8:30 AM through 4:00 PM PST. Lodge, ski school, and rental shop are in full operation. Seven runs have been machine groomed. Reduced ticket rates are in effect." | ||||||||
|
|
/ 29° |
Thursday Dec 1 |
3" | 14" | 21" | |||
 I rode up to the resort with Jim on a foggy morning to get my gear into my locker, and my skis into the shop for their annual tune-up and binding torque test by Dave in the Rental Shop. In between, I made two runs. Enough to reacquaint myself with the difference between bicycling muscles and skiing muscles. And enough to experience the drama of "tree top skiing." However, as shown in this photo of Silver, taken from the Loft deck coffee in hand, the tree tops on groomed runs were tiny and inconsequential. Enhanced situational awareness was required elsewhere. All in all, a very fine first day for Jim and me. |
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|
Friday Dec 2 |
1" | 25" | 36" | 21° / 27° |
Friday Dec 2 |
3" | 16" | 22" |
| Ski Report: "With 18 inches in the last 48 hours ... we will be running Chairs 1, 2 and the Conveyor Lift from 9:00 to 3:30 with the first Gondola loading at 8:15!" | ||||||||
|
Saturday Dec 3 |
5" | 25" | 36" | 28° / 28° |
Saturday Dec 3 |
2" | 18" | 24" |
|
Sunday Dec 4 |
8" | 25" | 36" | 14° / 30° |
Sunday Dec 4 |
10" | 26" | 32" |
|
|
/ 6° |
Thursday Dec 8 |
0" | 34" | 40" | |||
|
Friday Dec 9 |
4" | 24" | 30" | 14° / 9° |
Friday Dec 9 |
0" | 36" | 42" |
| "4 Lifts Operating, 45 Trails Open, 17 Trails Groomed" | "Chair 2 on the Montana Side now open" | |||||||
|
Saturday Dec 10 |
5" | 24" | 30" | 25° / 14° |
Saturday Dec 10 |
11" | 45" | 51" |
|
Sunday Dec 11 |
9" | 28" | 34" | 23° / 26° |
Sunday Dec 11 |
9" | 51" | 57" |
 Rode to resort with Jim. He skied to exhaustion yesterday and left early today to attend church. My church is the mountain, so I made eight runs under steady snowfall, before hitch-hiking home about 2 PM. Twenty inches of new snow in the last two days provided an uplifting spiritual experience. However, I began the day by relearning that early season deep powder may hide unexpected surprises because of the variable cover beneath it. So an ill advised and brief trip into the woods on my first run located a "rabbit hole" for my right ski to inhabit. On my second run, I had a "plop down" on lower Cloud Nine, when one ski buried itself far deeper than the other. After that everything was smooth sailing... I stayed out of trouble on Rainbow Ridge, Black Bear, Gold, Silver and Hoot Owl. The boot deep skier packed powder on these runs was fun exercise. Although Chair 3 on the North Side opened today, I was not up for the challenge this early in the season. |
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|
|
(19") | / 23° |
Monday Dec 12 |
31" | 71" | 77" | ||
|
|
(8") | / |
|
(21") | ||||
|
|
(0") | / |
|
(0") | ||||
|
|
(1") | / 12° |
Thursday Dec 15 |
2" | 75" | 83" | ||
|
Friday Dec 16 |
2" | 35" | 40" | 8° / 11° |
Friday Dec 16 |
3" | 57" | 73" |
| "6 Lifts Operating, 65 Trails Open, 20 Trails Groomed" | "Boomer Friday: Over 40 => $30" | |||||||
|
Saturday Dec 17 |
0" | 35" | 40" | 3° / 14° |
Saturday Dec 17 |
1" | 57" | 73" |
|
Sunday Dec 18 |
3" | 35" | 40" | 10° / 6° |
Sunday Dec 18 |
trace | 57" | 73" |
|
CLOSED by wind |
5" | 35" | 40" | 13° / 20° |
Monday Dec 19 |
3" | 60" | 76" |
|
Tuesday Dec 20 |
8" | 35" | 40" | 20° / 25° |
Tuesday Dec 20 |
12" | 67" | 83" |
|
Wednesday Dec 21 |
6" | 35" | 40" | 23° / 25° |
Wednesday Dec 21 |
18" | 70" | 86" |
|
Thursday Dec 22 |
0" | 35" | 40" | 24° / 22° |
Thursday Dec 22 |
0" | 70" | 86" |
| 6 lifts operating, 77 trails open, 23 groomed |
 Jim and I arrived fashionably late on a "bluebird day." The photo taken above Sundance, the most challenging run beneath Chair 2, shows that a blue bird would not be seen against the "black" morning sky. The mouseover close-up reveals that some small obstacles remain on this face with two fall lines. We stayed on the "hero" packed power present on Rainbow Ridge, Cloud Nine and Keystone where perfectly pushable snow and no obstacles made us fly. All Front Side slopes were unblemished as expected, but Marmot off Chair 3 had some obvious thin spots to avoid. I made eight runs before joining Jim in the Loft. The resort was pleasantly crowded, yet on my last run down Keystone, I had paradise all to myself. |
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|
Friday Dec 23 |
0" | 35" | 40" | 24° / 22° |
Friday Dec 23 |
1" | 70" | 86" |
|
Saturday Dec 24 |
8" | 35" | 40" | 23° / 22° |
Saturday Dec 24 |
7" | 74" | 90" |
|
Christmas Dec 25 |
5" | 37" | 42" | 21° / 19° |
Christmas Dec 25 |
11" | 77" | 94" |
|
Monday Dec 26 |
1" | 37" | 42" | 16° / 19° |
Monday Dec 26 |
2" | 79" | 96" |
|
Tuesday Dec 27 |
5" | 37" | 42" | 20° / 21° |
Tuesday Dec 27 |
6" | 81" | 98" |
| 6 lifts operating, 77 trails open, 26 groomed |
 Jim and I arrived in a morning snow storm that dropped four inches on his car while we skied. It was a day when "Powder Rules" ("no waiting for friends on powder days"). Jim had an easy time in the deep powder on his wide K2 Pon2oons, while I had to work at it on my Fisher XTR's. I was content to quit after five runs with no falls. Skiing in low viability on variable powder depths at a windy 20° temperature was not difficult, but it was also not relaxing. The untracked powder on the sides of Rainbow Ridge was my favorite route. Jim made eight runs including expert Niagara, and took some tumbles as a result. |
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Wednesday Dec 28 |
9" | 39" | 44" | 22° / 25° |
Wednesday Dec 28 |
18" | 86" | 103" |
|
Thursday Dec 29 |
0" | 39" | 44" | 22° / 20° |
Thursday Dec 29 |
2" | 86" | 103" |
 Before this season began, it was predicted that snowfall would be 125% of normal because of El Nino. This seems to be the case, with wonderful conditions currently at both Silver Valley ski resorts. The photo's mouseover closeup shows Silver Mountain in the distance on an overcast day. It also shows the uncrowded conditions present on Rainbow Ridge at 12:33 PM... on a day when the parking lots were overflowing. Jim and I stayed mostly in our favorite woods where boot deep powder and solitude provided a special out-of-the-wind world just for us. We made six runs including a couple on the Front Side, where the machine groomed and skier packed powder had wide appeal. We never had to wait more than a couple of minutes to load a chair, however. |
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|
Friday Dec 30 |
6" | 39" | 44" | 23° / 20° |
Friday Dec 30 |
8" | 94" | 111" |
|
Saturday Dec 31 |
0" | 39" | 44" | 18° / 15° |
Saturday Dec 31 |
0" | 94" | 111" |
|
New Year 2017 |
3" | 39" | 44" | 16° / 19° |
New Year 2017 |
4" | 98" | 115" |
|
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Tuesday Jan 17 |
0" | 50" | 60" | 28° / | |
(0") | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Wednesday Jan 18 |
3" | 50" | 60" | 32° / 30° |
Wednesday Jan 18 |
3" | 103" | 121" |
|
Thursday Jan 19 |
5" | 50" | 60" | 30° / 32° |
Thursday Jan 19 |
5" | 91" | 121" |
|
Friday Jan 20 |
3" | 50" | 60" | 26° / 29° |
Friday Jan 20 |
1" | 91" | 121" |
| 6 Lifts, 80 Trails Open, 27 Trails Groomed |
|
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Saturday Jan 21 |
0" | 50" | 60" | 27° / 25° | Saturday Jan 21 |
1" | 91" | 121" |
|
Sunday Jan 22 |
3" | 50" | 60" | 30° / 28° |
Sunday Jan 22 |
2" | 92" | 122" |
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Monday Jan 23 |
2" | 50" | 60" | 26° / 28° | Monday Jan 23 |
3" | 95" | 125" |
|
Tuesday Jan 24 |
0" | 50" | 60" | 26° / | |
(0") | ||
|
Wednesday Jan 25 |
2" | 50" | 60" | 23° / 22° |
Wednesday Jan 25 |
1" | 95" | 125" |
|
Thursday Jan 26 |
0" | 50" | 60 | 23° / 23° |
Thursday Jan 26 |
3" | 104" | 121" |
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|
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Friday Jan 27 |
0" | 50" | 60" | 23° / 15° |
Friday Jan 27 |
1" | 104" | 121" |
|
Saturday Jan 28 |
0" | 50" | 60" | 25° / 23° |
Saturday Jan 28 |
0" | 104" | 121" |
|
Sunday Jan 29 |
0" | 50" | 60" | 30° / 27° |
Sunday Jan 29 |
0" | 104" | 121" |
 I rode to the resort with Mark and his daughter Kaitlyn in time to catch the morning sun hitting the summit at 7:44. Made eight runs by 10:15 with no lift lines. However, after coffee I encountered a lift line on Chair #1... which made me meet Hank from Post Falls, a semi-retired 70 year old physician with a diverse curriculum vitae who skis as fast as me. We made seven runs together off Chairs #2 and #3, and had seven very interesting conversations about science and life experiences. He also witnessed my only fall when an out-of-control snowboarder hit me from behind as I raced down Black Bear. Thankfully my tiger-quick reflexes safely sat me down on the lad, which made an impression on him. All together I made eighteen runs by 1:30 on a most beautiful day. |
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|
Monday Jan 30 |
0" | 50" | 60" | (29°) / 30° |
Monday Jan 30 |
0" | 104" | 121" |
|
Tuesday Jan 31 |
2" | 50" | 60" | 19° / |
|
(4") | ||
|
Wednesday Feb 1 |
3" | 50" | 60" | 10° / 17° |
Wednesday Feb 1 |
0" | 104" | 121" |
|
Thursday Feb 2 |
0" | 50" | 60" | 10° / 14° |
Thursday Feb 2 |
0" | 104" | 121" |
|
Friday Feb 3 |
0" | 50" | 60" | 22° / 7° | Friday Feb 3 |
1" | 105" | 122" |
|
Saturday Feb 4 |
13" | 50" | 60" | 30° / 31° |
Saturday Feb 4 |
16" | 105" | 122" |
|
Sunday Feb 5 |
20" | 60" | 70" | 31° / 33° |
Sunday Feb 5 |
13" | 105" | 122" |
 Mark and I journeyed to the pass early, before I-90 shut down east bound due to 18-wheelers slip sliding around. I made four runs and one face-plant during a brutal morning battling dense snow underfoot and wet snow in the face. My slow motion fall happened on the side of Rainbow Ridge, when I poorly transitioned from one to three feet of untracked snow. No big deal, more humorous than distressing... but still, I was happy to retire to the crowded Loft, where most of the day's adult crowd seemed to be. Naturally, when we were ready to leave about noon, the interstate was again closed, west bound this time. Thus it was a long ski day that involved very little skiing, lots of conversation and some alcohol. |
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Monday Feb 6 |
10" | 60" | 70" | 25° / 26° | Monday Feb 6 |
29" | 105" | 122" |
|
Tuesday Feb 7 |
2" | 60" | 70" | 20° / |
|
(10") | ||
|
Wednesday Feb 8 |
4" | 60" | 70" | 20° / 18° |
Wednesday Feb 8 |
10" | 112" | 129" |
|
CLOSED by weather |
3" | 60" | 70" | 35° / 34° | CLOSED by weather |
2" | 112" | 129" |
|
Friday Feb 10 |
3" | 60" | 70" | 29° / 34° | Friday Feb 10 |
0" | 112" | 129" |
|
Saturday Feb 11 |
1" | 60" | 70" | 25° / 26° |
Saturday Feb 11 |
2" | 114" | 131" |
|
Sunday Feb 12 |
0" | 60" | 70" | 24° / 18° |
Sunday Feb 12 |
0" | 114" | 131" |
 Arrived early with Mark and Kaitlyn, and thus loaded my first chair at 8:25 on a beautiful morning. No new snow, so it was a day for fast groomers and no trees. Firmly packed snow and ~10° at Chair #2, sent me back to the Lodge for a tasty breakfast sandwich. However by mid-morning all surfaces were softer and the sunshine made everything warm. Especially appreciated was hot chocolate on the sunny Summit House deck. I made thirteen runs by about 1:30. In summary, it was a lazy day spent going fast. |
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Monday Feb 13 |
0" | 60" | 70" | 32° / 22° | Monday Feb 13 |
0" | 114" | 131" |
|
Tuesday Feb 14 |
0 | 60" | 70" | 32° / |
|
(0") | ||
|
Wednesday Feb 15 |
0 | (60") | (70") | 36° / 30° |
Wednesday Feb 15 |
0" | 98 | 106 |
|
Thursday Feb 16 |
0" | (60") | (70") | 37° / 38° |
Thursday Feb 16 |
0" | 98 | 106 |
|
Friday Feb 17 |
0" | 60" | 70" | 30° / 31° |
Friday Feb 17 |
0" | 98 | 106 |
|
Saturday Feb 18 |
8" | 60" | 70" | 30° / 29° |
Saturday Feb 18 |
1" | 98 | 106 |
|
Sunday Feb 19 |
6" | 60" | 70" | 29° / 29° |
Sunday Feb 19 |
1" | 98 | 106 |
 Caught a ride with Patty on a partly cloudy day made for exercise. I made seventeen runs, stopping at 2:15 when a blizzard blew in from Montana. The photo highlights "Mullan Lake," a settling pond built to collect water pumped from more than a mile below the surface in the Lucky Friday silver mine. Since 1884, mines in the Silver Valley have produced 1.24 billion ounces of silver, including 4.52 million ounces in 2015. The close-up (mouseover) image shows Chair #3 at the bottom of intermediate trail Red Dog. |
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Pres. Day Feb 20 |
4" | 60" | 70" | 29°
/ 28° |
Pres. Day Feb 20 |
4" | 98" | 106" |
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Tuesday Feb 21 |
5" | 60" | 70" | 30° / | |
(9") | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
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Wednesday Feb 22 |
8" | 60" | 70" | 28° / 29° |
Wednesday Feb 22 |
13" | 98" | 106" |
 Jim and I had a terrific workout on heavy "powder" this morning, just as we did a year ago on February 19. Except this time, 22" fell since the resort was last open, not 8". Today the mountain was also shrouded in dense fog. So while Jim had a ball, I took a fall... or two when snow densities changed abruptly. He made eight runs on his K2 PON200Ns, while I was satisfied to make four runs without injury. Jim played with the mountain, I battled it. Skiing is all about attitude. The photo of Patty on the Summit House deck shows the degree to which the 22" of new snowfall compacted when left alone for 36 hours. |
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Thursday Feb 23 |
0" | 64" | 77" | 22° / 32° |
Thursday Feb 23 |
0" | 98" | 106" |
 Jim was "too sore" to ski, so I caught a ride with Patty on her way to work. What a difference a day made. The groomed runs were fast, the untracked powder under the trees was manageable, the sun was out and the fog was gone. And my attitude was way better. I made sixteen runs on a most glorious day... marred only by the fact that the resort was deserted. It is nice when you don't have lift lines... but if you are looking forward to seeing Chairs #5 and #6 in operation, you want the comfort of an occasional lift line. |
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Friday Feb 24 |
0" | 68" | 77" | 20° / 30° |
Friday Feb 24 |
0" | 98" | 106" |
 Back in action, Jim picked me up in Silverton and we joined Mark for a Prime Timers luncheon, preceded by lots of fun under ideal conditions. I made eight runs on either well groomed trails or untracked powder beneath familiar trees. As I've mentioned before, tree skiing for me is about aesthetics, not speed. It is simply magical to move at will through a forest with untracked snow breaking above your boot. No need for speed. |
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Saturday Feb 25 |
4" | 68" | 77" | 19° / 18° |
Saturday Feb 25 |
3" | 98" | 106" |
|
Sunday Feb 26 |
6" | 68" | 77" | 21° / 21° |
Sunday Feb 26 |
6" | 98" | 106" |
 An early arrival with Mark and his daughter Kaitlyn began a morning of great skiing and occasional light snowfall. The six inches that fell overnight made for "hero powder" in the morning. Go fast, go anywhere, go quietly. I made ten runs by the time we quit around 1 PM. Besides hours of delightful skiing, I also enjoyed a delicious breakfast sandwich, and later a bowl of famous Lookout chile. Life is good. |
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Monday Feb 27 |
9" | 68" | 77" | 21° / 18° |
Monday Feb 27 |
6" | 98" | 106" |
 More snow falling during a cold night followed by morning sunshine provided another epic skiing experience at Lookout Pass. The photo is looking down into the Cloud Nine woods, where knee-deep weightless powder was found. I made eight runs on a variety of perfect surfaces before joining Mark and Jim in the Loft by noon. |
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Tuesday Feb 28 |
17" | 68" | 77" | 21° / | |
(15") | ||
|
CLOSED BY WIND |
14" | 68" | 77" | 21° / |
|
(4") | ||
|
Thursday Mar 2 |
5" | 70" | 82" | 27° / 31° |
Thursday Mar 2 |
4" | 102" | 116" |
 This photo taken from the lift at 10:43 conveys two divergent impressions. The fresh powder looks very well appreciated after only two hours... and yet it looks deserted at the same time. In fact, the only two people visible on this side of Runt Mountain are on the Montana Face (mouseover close-up). Minimum skier density on outstanding terrain is one of the reasons I like this resort so much. Similar to February 24th, the morning was made for fast tracks down groomed runs, or for tranquil passage through familiar forests. The in-between surface, skier-chopped heavy powder, was just not worth the effort. I quit after eight runs, when the untracked snow under the trees started to go from heavy to sticky as the day warmed. |
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Friday Mar 3 |
9" | 70" | 82" | 30° / 31° | Friday Mar 3 |
6" | 106" | 120" |
|
Saturday Mar 4 |
7" | 76" | 87" | 29° / 34° |
Saturday Mar 4 |
4" | 110" | 124" |
|
Sunday Mar 5 |
5" | 78" | 89" | 24° / 27° |
Sunday Mar 5 |
8" | 116" | 133" |
 I arrived early with Mark and left after 3 with Patty, so I had a full day of skiing under a variety of conditions from heavy snowfall to fleeting sunshine. I only made fifteen runs because most of them were through the forests on the Montana Side. Chair #2 takes 12 minutes and the woods provide ample opportunities for delays, often unexpected. For example, the photo shows the top of what is called The Meadow between Rainbow Ridge and Cloud Nine. Previously I have called this clearing "my church" because of its solitude and majesty, but it is also called a wetlands. The unseen little streams make this meadow tricky to navigate; I was fooled by a forgotten snow gully in the photo's mid range. I was avoiding the known tight spot shown in the close-up.  Today I discovered that some of the spring water in this meadow is HOT. This severe hazard is thankfully hard to notice on skier's left at the bottom of the meadow, but it emphasizes why I call this area EXPERT. The pursuit of untracked powder in a dense unknown forest may not be wise. |
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Monday Mar 6 |
6" | 78" | 89" | 20° / 22° |
Monday Mar 6 |
12" | 122" | 139 |
|
Tuesday Mar 7 |
9" | 78" | 89" | 22° / | |
(12") | ||
|
Wednesday Mar 8 |
13" | 78" | 89" | 23° / |
|
(20") | ||
|
Thursday Mar 9 |
4" | 82" | 94" | 24° / 26° |
Thursday Mar 9 |
8" | 124" | 141" |
|
Friday Mar 10 |
4" | 82" | 94" | 32° / 40° | Friday Mar 10 |
4" | 124" | 141" |
|
Saturday Mar 11 |
0" | 82" | 94" | 32° / 32° |
Saturday Mar 11 |
0" | 124" | 141" |
|
Sunday Mar 12 |
2 | 82" | 94" | 31° / 33° |
Sunday Mar 12 |
0" | 124" | 141" |
 I had another full day of skiing on groomed surfaces that ranged from "firm pack" to "wet pack," with PERFECT SPRING SNOW in between. The sweet spots, where turning was effortless, naturally depended on time of day, mountain aspect and elevation, but it was worth the effort to track them down. I made fifteen runs on this overcast day with its moments of blue sky. I stayed out of the woods after encountering a thick collapsible crust during an exploratory venture. |
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Monday Mar 13 |
2 | 82" | 94" | 31° / 36° | Monday Mar 13 |
0" | 124" | 141" |
|
Tuesday Mar 14 |
1" | 82" | 94" | 33° / | |
(0") | ||
|
Wednesday Mar 15 |
1" | 82" | 94" | 38° / |
|
(0") | ||
|
Thursday Mar 16 |
0" | 82" | 94" | 32° / 37° |
Thursday Mar 16 |
1" | 116" | 134" |
|
Friday Mar 17 |
0" | 82" | 94" | 25° / 21° |
Friday Mar 17 |
1" | 104" | 122" |
|
Saturday Mar 18 |
0" | 75" | 83" | 38° / 38° |
Saturday Mar 18 |
0" | 104" | 122" |
|
Sunday Mar 19 |
0" | 75" | 83" | 30° / 30° |
Sunday Mar 19 |
0" | 104" | 122" |
 Thanks to Mark, I had a full day of spring skiing after a day of rain. Following conventional wisdom, I made five quick Front Side runs by 10 AM, and then went in for coffee before tackling the rest of the mountain. The Montana Side had been groomed while wet in the evening, so the morning sunshine was paired with beautiful, but rock hard corduroy, as shown in the photo taken from Rainbow Ridge about 11 AM. Skiing was technically easy, but very noisy. A free foot massage with every run.  By 2:30 PM, I had completed twenty runs, aided by the lack of lift lines and emerging corn snow as temperatures rose past 40°. In fact the afternoon snow was so soft and forgiving that I had the nerve to decend the Sun Dance steeps under Chair #2. It was not a problem, but it was a good cardiac challenge. I followed that run with a second race down Marmot, where I took my only fall on the narrow run out to Chair #3. I sat down on my wallet when my skis hit ice... ouch. But then, the only time that this affordable resort impacts your wallet is when you fall on it. Get a adult season pass for only $199 before April 30, and save $170 off the regular price! |
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Monday Mar 20 |
0" | 75" | 83" | 27° / 24° |
Monday Mar 20 |
0" | 112" ? | 129" ? |
|
Tuesday Mar 21 |
0" | 75" | 83" | 38° / | |
(0") | ||
|
Wednesday Mar 22 |
0" | 75" | 83" | 34° / | |
(0") | ||
|
Thursday Mar 23 |
2" | 75" | 83" | 30° / 33° |
Thursday Mar 23 |
1" | 112" | 129" |
|
Friday Mar 24 |
2" | 75" | 83" | 32° / 27° |
Friday Mar 24 |
1" | 112" | 129" |
|
Saturday Mar 25 |
4" | 75" | 83" | 30° / 33° |
Saturday Mar 25 |
2" | 126" | 143" |
|
Sunday Mar 26 |
2" | 75" | 83" | 28° / 27° |
Sunday Mar 26 |
3" | 127" | 144" |
 I spent the day skiing with Goldie Locks on spring snow that was never too firm and never too soft. Some might have predicted that the resort would be crowded because this weekend was the EEYSL Alpine Finals with regional youth race teams in Slalom and Giant Slalom competition. However, I had no trouble making seventeen runs by 2:45 because I stayed on the Montana Side most of the day.  This photo of future fantasy ski lifts in Montana was taken at 9:45 on Rainbow Ridge after five minutes of solitude while waiting for someone to pass. My next two runs down Cloud 9 and Keystone were remarkable because from beginning to end the only person in front of me was the lift operator. |
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Monday Mar 27 |
5" | 75" | 83" | 32° / 34° |
Monday Mar 27 |
5" | 127" | 144" |
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Tuesday Mar 28 |
2" | 75" | 83" | 30° / | |
(0") | ||
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Wednesday Mar 29 |
5" | 75" | 83" | 30° / | |
(3") | ||
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Thursday Mar 30 |
4" | 75" | 83" | 30° / 35° |
Thursday Mar 30 |
0" | 127" | 143" |
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Friday Mar 31 |
1" | 75" | 83" | 32° / 33° |
Friday Mar 31 |
2" | 127" | 143" |
 A perfect day of spring skiing. Surfaces were slightly crisp at higher elevations around 9 AM, and slightly sticky at lower elevations by 1 PM. I left after making eleven runs, well pleased with the day. I never saw a single thin spot during my travels. The unblemished soft snow present on Rainbow Ridge and Huckleberry Ridge is shown, along with typical traffic densities on a glorious day. 
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Saturday Apr 1 |
0" | 75" | 83" | 30° / 30° |
Saturday Apr 1 |
0" | 127" | 143" |
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Sunday Apr 2 |
0" | 74" | 78" | 29° / 35° |
Sunday Apr 2 |
0" | 127" | 143" |
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Monday Apr 3 |
2" | 74" | 78" | 27° / 27° |
Monday Apr 3 |
2" | 127" | 143" |
 Jim picked me up in Silverton at 8:30 and dropped me back in Wallace at 12:30 after eight runs and a long coffee break with friends. Although the 5:07 AM ski report only listed 2" of new powder, two to three more inches fell before the lift openned at 9:00, when fog conveniently replaced snowfall. This resulted in some very dreamy early morning powder runs where all movement was carefree. Naturally as the sun came out and the day warmed to 36°, the snow became heavier and turning soon required conscious thought. We left when conditions went from "perfect" to "excellent." As locals we get very spoiled. Check out an identical spring day for Jim and me last March 28th. At the center of this photo, taken on Rainbow Ridge, is where the proposed Chairs #5 and #6 will terminate. |
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Tuesday Apr 4 |
2" | 74" | 78" | 28° / | |
(4") | ||
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Wednesday Apr 5 |
0" | 74" | 78" | 33° / | |
(0") | ||
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Thursday Apr 6 |
0" | 74" | 78" | 37° / 36° |
Thursday Apr 6 |
0" | 127" | 143" |
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Friday Apr 7 |
0" | 64" | 78" | 37° / 37° |
Friday Apr 7 |
0" | 127" | 143" |
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Saturday Apr 8 |
2" | 74" | 78" | 30° / 31° |
Saturday Apr 8 |
0" | 127" | 143" |
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Sunday Apr 9 |
2" | 74" | 78" | 25° / 29° |
Sunday Apr 9 |
5" | 100" | 121" |
 A truly wonderful final day of skiing: five inches of new dry powder on well groomed trails under an overcast sky with occasional sun bursts. I made fourteen runs in a leisurely way during the day. The photo was taken at the top of Silver before my final descent. This season I made 268 runs on 26 days for a total of 51.6 vertical miles. My average vertical drop during the previous ten seasons was 52.5 miles... so I'm still in shape at 69. |
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Saturday Apr 15 |
6" | 74" | 78" | 30° / |
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| 4 Lifts operating, 74 Trails Open, 27 Trails Groomed, Gondola loading at 8:15 | ||||||||
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Sunday Apr 16 |
0" | (74") | (78") | 30° / |
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Saturday Apr 22 |
0 | (74") | (78") | 34° / |
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| 4 Lifts operating, 74 Trails Open, 24 Trails Groomed, LEADMAN SKI-BIKE-RUN RACE | ||||||||
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Sunday Apr 23 |
0" | (74") | (78") | 34° / |
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Silver Mountain 122 94" March 9 |
Days open in 2016/2017 Season Maximum snow depth at summit |
Lookout Pass 105 144" March 26 |
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 This Snow Water Equivalent Graph was downloaded on April 24, 2017, and shows that when compared with thirty year averages, total precipatation this season was record setting. However, the amount falling as snow was slightly diminished from normal, but better than last season due to decent snowfall in March. Click on this end-of-season graph to open the current NRCA Snowpack graph in a separate window. |
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| Silver Mountain | Lookout Pass | |
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122 94" March 9 |
Days open in 2016/2017 Season Maximum snow depth at summit |
105 144" March 26 |
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119 79" March 16 |
Days open in 2015/2016 Season Maximum snow depth at summit |
106 113" March 17 |
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71 73" January 18 |
Days open in 2014/2015 Season Maximum snow depth at summit |
81 78" January 18 |
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96 104" March 31 |
Days open in 2013/2014 Season Maximum snow depth at summit |
108 149" March 6 |
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94 91" March 23 |
Days open in 2012/2013 Season Maximum snow depth at summit |
106 139" March 23 |
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101 135" March 30 |
Days open in 2011/2012 Season Maximum snow depth at summit |
113 176" March 23 |
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103 145" April 7 |
Days open in 2010/2011 Season Maximum snow depth at summit |
112 192" March 17 & April 8 |
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97 70" April 10 |
Days Open in 2009/2010 season Maximum snow depth at summit |
111 90" February 13 |
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92 118" April 3 |
Days Open in 2008/2009 season Maximum snow depth at summit |
93 144" April 3 |
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128 178" March 31 - April 12 |
Days Open in 2007/2008 season Maximum snow depth at summit |
98 197" April 3 |
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132 117" March 2 - 4 |
Days Open in 2006/2007 season Maximum snow depth at summit |
106 163" March 1 - 3 |
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118 139" March 10 |
Days Open in 2005/2006 season Maximum snow depth at summit |
111 168" March 26 - 27 |
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97 80" April 2 - 3 |
Days Open in 2004/2005 season Maximum snow depth at summit |
83 85" January 16 - 17 |
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136 85" March 7 |
Days Open in 2003/2004 season Maximum snow depth at summit |
104 119" March 7 |
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101 111" April 6 |
Days Open in 2002/2003 season Maximum snow depth at summit |
69 130" March 9 |
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90 209" March 21 - 22 |
Days Open in 2001/2002 season Maximum snow depth at summit |
80 225" March 21 - 23 |
Greg's Score Card after turning 59
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