Go play in the snow! Big powder days coming through MLK weekend with 2-feet of new!

Powder day at Brundage Mountain this morning! I felt blessed to be there! (Courtesy Brundage Mountain) 

Hi all,

I snuck up to McCall last night so I could ski some fresh *pow* this morning, and it was a great morning at Brundage Mountain. It was bombing snow relentlessly, perhaps at 1-inch an hour or more, and by mid-day Brundage had 10 inches of new, including 4 inches overnight.

Every run I took was virgin *pow* all the way ... I didn't want to stop for anything! My legs felt strong!

It might be 50 degrees and gray in Boise, but it's full-on winter in the mountains! And this particular weekend, all of our regional ski areas are supposed to get a big dose of snow. Not only today, but continuing through the MLK weekend.

According to Open Snow, here are the expected snow totals for the next 5 days:

Nearby 5-Day Forecasts

Brundage

28"

Schweitzer

27"

Bogus Basin

24"

Silver Mountain

23"

Snowhaven

23"

Lookout Pass

22"

Tamarack

20"

Pebble Creek

19"

Pomerelle

17"

Magic Mountain 16" 

I watch the weather pretty close, and you don't see those kind of numbers in the forecast for SW Idaho very often. If you have the time and flexiblity, might be time for a powder road trip! Bogus Basin, Tamarack, Brundage, Sun Valley, Solder Mountain, Pomerelle and Magic Mountain are all in close range!

I wrote about taking a road trip to ski Soldier, Magic and Pomerelle a few years back, and I thought I'd share that with you ... All of those ski areas are reasonably priced, and they're kind of like taking a step back in time in terms of the down-home friendly atmosphere around the base lodges. 



But with Bogus Basin projected to get 2 feet of snow over the MLK weekend, you might not need to go anywhere! Ditto if you're planning to be in McCall to ski Brundage or Tamarack. Brundage is having a beer and gear festival on Saturday and Sunday. 

Sun Valley is getting its fair share, too. All of this will be great for Idaho's snowpack, which has been lagging in the 70 percent zone in recent days (Boise, Payette and Salmon basins). 

Backcountry skiing and snowshoeing this weekend could prove to be challenging because of the deep snow for breaking trail, but be safe and careful out there! Check on avalanche conditions at the Payette or Sawtooth Avalanche Centers.

Have fun!
- SS

Enjoy the fresh powder! Every kind of snow activity will be great this weekend!

Today at Bogus Basin ... 

Today at Brundage Mountain 

Skiing pow at Bogus today (courtesy Rick Gerrard) 

Hi all,

Well, I picked one heck of time to get injured! The ski areas and the mountains are getting doused with multiple coatings of fresh snow, and I'm stuck working on rehabbing the medial collateral ligament (MCL) in my left knee. At least I can walk!

The accident occurred in a hockey game at Idaho Ice World. I play in the men's C league, which you'd think would be mellow and low-key since it's the lowest level available. But unfortunately, the league is full of younger ringers who should be playing B-league, and there's always that testosterone-charged male who loses it going after the puck in the corner. That's what happened to me in a high-speed collision with the boards after this guy checks me from behind, twisting my left leg badly to the outside and tearing the ligament.

So much for my romantic weekend with Wendy at Grand Targhee we had planned over President's Day weekend, and so much for skiing with my son Quinn in early March, when we are booked to visit Waterville Valley, N.H., and spend a long weekend with our cousins. Damn! Wah!

So that's my situation right now. I am approved to do light snow biking or Greenbelt riding, I can hike in a brace, and I am approved to do classic xc skiing. It could be much worse, I know.

My outdoor tip this week is to GO PLAY IN THE SNOW! Even if I can't go powder skiing, you should!

The latest conditions at the SW Idaho ski areas are stellar by all accounts.

• Bogus Basin - 10 inches of new today, 11 inches in the last 24 hours. I saw some several pics and video of light blower powder on Facebook ... it's been staying cold up there, to keep the snow light. Another foot of snow is expected on Saturday. 
• Brundage Mountain - 5-7 inches of new today, 19-24 inches in the last week. Cold smoke! 
• Tamarack Resort - 5 inches of new today, 6 inches in the last 24 hours. Probably more up high. 
• Sun Valley - 3 inches of new snow today, 2 inches of new in the last 24 hours. 

The good news is that more snow is expected through the weekend. Coleen Haskell, a meteorologist and author of the Idaho Daily Snow blog, says "Computer models are in good agreement through the short term this weekend. I'm expecting a foot of snow between now and Sunday morning, coming in several surges including the one today. It will be closely followed by the stronger wave Friday night and Saturday, while yet another one strikes on Monday."

Predicted snow amounts through Monday, Feb. 26 (courtesy OpenSnow.com)  

This is the forecast for the West Central Mountains. Are you excited yet?

All of the Nordic areas should be in a great shape, too, with fresh snow. The Idaho City Park n' Ski Areas received 6 inches of new snow on top of a firm 24-inch base. Idaho Parks & Recreation is grooming the Gold Fork loop tomorrow as well as the Skyline loop. You can go xc skiing, snowshoeing or snow biking on these trails. "Should be perfect skiing," says Leo Hennessy, non-motorized trail coordinator for IDPR.

All of the McCall Nordic areas are reporting 2-5 inches of new snow with fresh-groomed conditions. This includes Ponderosa State Park, Bear Basin, Activity Barn/North Valley Trail, Tamarack Resort and Jug Mountain Ranch. Don't forget that you can go snow biking at Jug ... probably the best snow-biking trails in SW Idaho in my opinion.

All of the Wood River Valley xc trails are open and skiing great, especially in the upper valley. Being a gimper, I hiked on snow-covered trails in Adams Gulch and Greenhorn Gulch last weekend while Wendy went downhill and xc skiing.

Military Reserve trails had nice packed powder today ... Love this view of the city of Boise! 

Closer to home, with the new dose of snow in Boise, the Foothills are perfect for hiking, snow biking, trail-running and snowshoeing right now. I went snow-biking in Military Reserve this afternoon, and there was a 1-foot wide singletrack with packed powder. Perfect!

Hope you have a fun weekend playing in the snow! I'll be dreaming of skiing powder while I dial it down to do gimper activities and work on my MCL rehab.

- SS

Bounce back into winter mode, search for the best *pow*; Look for great stay-and-ski deals

Fresh turns in nice powder puts a smile on your face! (Courtesy Brundage Mountain) 

Skier shreds 7 inches of new at Brundage today. (Courtesy Brundage Mountain)

Hi all, 

I've been having a great time playing in the Boise Foothills lately, but with the cool and wet weather happening now and through the weekend, you might as well bounce back into winter-mode and go skiing this weekend. Are your skis waxed for speed? 

The weather forecast looks really promising for powder hounds at Brundage Mountain, Tamarack Resort, Bogus Basin and the West-Central Mountains, in particular. There isn't as much snow forecast for Sun Valley and Stanley, but there are some great lodging deals cooking in Sun Valley. More about that in a moment. 

Holy Powder Handstands, it is bombing snow in McCall! Brundage received 7 inches of new today, and it's nice, light snow with temperatures hovering around 20 degrees F. Damn! Shoulda been there today! They could get 8-14 inches Friday, 4-8 inches Saturday and 2-4 inches on Sunday, according to the National Weather Service. All told, that could be 14-26 inches over the weekend! The great snow god Ullr is looking kindly upon Brundage. Wow! 

Bogus got 5 inches of new today (Thursday), and it could get another 10-20 inches of snow by Sunday morning, according to the National Weather Service. I also see "rain/snow" mix at times on Friday and Saturday, so I hope you can avoid that. But there should be a steady dose of new storms rolling in and dumping snow Friday and Saturday. Watch the weather, Bogus' web cams and catch the best powder window that you can. 

Tamarack Resort also is going to get dumped on, with 10-21 inches forecast through Sunday. 

The forecast for Sun Valley calls for 3-6 inches of new snow through Sunday. But if you don't like skiing in a lot of powder, then Sun Valley might be the right call. It's a huge mountain with tons of great slopes, finely manicured groomers and plenty of challenge in the Baldy Bowls and bump runs like Holiday, Exhibition and Limelight. 

Best of all, you can save a ton of money on lift tickets by doing a combo stay-and-play package. Right now, you can stay overnight and ski a day at Baldy for $65/night, and kids 15 and under ski free! Contact VisitSunValley to book a room. 

McCall has some excellent lodging deals going on as well. Visit the McCall Chamber of Commerce's stay-and-play lodging page, and you'll see some package deals with lift tickets to Tamarack and Brundage ranging from $63.50/night to $90 a night and more. 

---------------------------------

Sagebrush and bitterbrush planting efforts improve habitat
 for mule deer, song birds and other wildlife. 

Closer to home, there are a couple of volunteer opportunities going on this weekend. Mary Dudley of Idaho Fish and Game could use more volunteers for planting sagebrush and bitterbrush in the Pony fire complex area north of Mountain Home on Saturday. People are meeting at the Nature Center at IDFG on Walnut Street at 8 a.m. Dress warm for foul weather, bring a lunch and water. Call Mary to RSVP if you'd like to go, 208-327-7099. There's another planting day planned April 5th, if you'd rather not plant in rainy weather. 

On Friday afternoon, Mike Pellant from the Healthy Hills Initiative in Eagle needs 10-15 more volunteers to plant forbs at the Eagle Sports complex near Floating Feather and old Horseshoe Bend Road from 3-7 p.m. They have 1,300 forbs to plant in a native plant education area. Call Mike for more information or to let him know you'd like to help, 208-867-1571.  

Hi Ho! Go play in the snow! Latest storms create lots of fun for xc skiing, snowshoeing and more!

Fresh pow! 

Time to find fresh tracks this weekend. Be safe out there! 

Hi all,

The slow start to winter this year has certainly tried my patience, and I'm sure you feel the same way. But finally, we got a great dose of snow in the last few days, with more on the way, so it's time to get out and play in the snow!

The kids already get that as they've been making snowmen and sledding in the foothills. But finally, there's enough snow in the mountains to enjoy xc skiing, snowshoeing, backcountry skiing and alpine skiing.

Leo Hennessy of the Idaho Department of Parks and Recreation tells me the Idaho City Park n' Ski Areas got hit with 14 inches of new snow in the last two days! Finally, they'll be able to groom more than 35K's of trails in the area. Leo said they'll be grooming through the weekend to make sure they get all of the trails smoothed out and ready to xc ski or snowshoe.

But this means that all of the key Park n' Ski Areas, including Gold Fork, Skyline Loop, Banner Ridge Loop, Whoop 'em Up and the trails leading up to Stargaze Yurt are all ready and poised for you to enjoy.

Getting read to skin up to Stargaze Yurt 

Getting there: Go east of Boise on Idaho 21 to Idaho City. Stop at the Sinclair gas station in Idaho City to pick up a Park n' Ski pass (either daily or season passes are available). A three-day pass costs $7.50 and a season pass costs $25. Pretty cheap, and the parking passes pay for the grooming operations, so it's a good cause.

Mores Creek Summit received another 5 inches of snow in the last 24 hours. And there's more on the way. So Pilot Peak, Sunset Mountain and Freeman Peak should all be great skiing. That's where I'm going to go! Be safe, dig a pit and check on avalanche conditions before you ski down.

High winds coming Saturday afternoon: I'd get out and play in the snow today and early tomorrow, because Saturday afternoon, high winds are moving in from the West Coast, and that may create white-out conditions and severe avalanche issues.

Here's the high-wind winter storm warning from the National Weather Service ... * SNOWFALL AND WIND... STORM TOTAL SNOWFALL AMOUNTS OF 6 TO 12 INCHES BY SATURDAY NIGHT. MANY AREAS NORTH AND WEST OF SUN VALLEY POSSIBLY COULD SEE 15 TO 20 INCHES. SUSTAINED WINDS OF 20 TO 40 MPH AND GUSTS IN EXCESS OF 50 MPH ESPECIALLY FOR THE HIGHEST ELEVATIONS. 

* LOCATIONS INCLUDE... SUN VALLEY... KETCHUM... GALENA SUMMIT... STANLEY... .BANNER SUMMIT... SMILEY CREEK AND COPPER BASIN.

The lucky ducks who have the yurts booked this weekend are going to have a blast! 

In the Idaho Statesman Outdoors section on Thursday, I read the following snow forecasts coming up for the greater SW area through the weekend:

• Brundage Mountain - 9-27 inches
• Tamarack - 8-17 inches
• Bogus Basin - 10-21 inches
• Pilot Peak - 9-19 inches
• Sun Valley Galena area - 4-11 inches
• Stanley - 11-21 inches

Sock it to us, I say to the great Ullr, the snow Norwegian snow god. Bring it on! 

New snow also provides a fresh base on the xc ski trails in McCall and the Wood River Valley. 

McCall Nordic reported 4 inches of new snow today. All of the trails at Ponderosa State Park, Bear Basin and Jug Mountain Ranch have been freshly groomed for you to enjoy. If you're going to be in McCall, the xc skiing should be sweet! 

In the Wood River Valley, the Blaine County Recreation District reports improved conditions with fresh snow. The entire Harriman Trail is being groomed from Galena Lodge to Sawtooth NRA headquarters. Prairie Creek is open. Most of the lower valley trails are still closed. Alturas Lake xc trails are groomed and ready to go, too ... wouldn't that be a nice place to go!

Have fun out there! Hope you get some fresh tracks!
- SS