Weather forecast calls for big *pow* in Central Idaho this weekend; 24-36'' expected

Should be tons of fresh *pow* this weekend. Go get it! (Courtesy Brundage Mountain) 

Hi all,

Well, it's been warm and rainy this week, but now the temperatures are beginning to cool down -- just in time to lay down a fresh layer of powder snow for happy skiers this weekend. Indeed, Christmas is coming early for the powder hounds!

Scott Dorval on KIVI-TV has been tracking the storms and predicting 6-12 inches of new snow from the storms on Thursday, more snow Friday and Saturday, and then 10-18 inches on Saturday night and Sunday. Are you getting excited yet? I am! That's 20-37 inches of new snow forecast from Thursday - Sunday. Woo hoo!

The most snow is forecast for Brundage, Tamarack Resort and Bogus Basin. Sun Valley is supposed to get some new snow, but not more than a couple of inches a day. I heard they had 4 inches of new just this morning.

Brundage will be in full operation on Friday, with all chairs running and 100 percent of the terrain open. Tamarack is opening the whole mountain for the first time on Friday, so there will be lots of fresh snow to ski there. It's not clear what slopes will be open specifically, so check their web site for updates. Sun Valley has been open since Thanksgiving It offers top-to-bottom groomed runs that are guaranteed to burn your quads because the slopes are SO long ... more than 3,000 verts!

Personally, I'm going to head up to McCall because I think there will be the most powder there, and I have a place to stay at our Cozy Cabin in McCall. Look for early-season lodging deals in McCall and Sun Valley. You can pick up stay-and-ski packages for great prices! Sometimes you have to pick up the phone to get the best deals ... especially in McCall.

I'm not sure if Bogus Basin will be open this weekend or not. There is no indication on their web site. I couldn't get an answer on the phone this afternoon. So maybe there will be an announcement on Friday ...

If you're interested in going backcountry skiing this weekend, I'd be cautious about that. Check on avalanche conditions before you go ...

The Idaho City Park n' Ski Areas should be fine for snowshoeing this weekend. No grooming is happening yet, so the xc skiing would be marginal, especially after all the rain mid-week. Monitor the snow conditions line for more information: 208-514-2423.
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I've been contacted by quite a few folks who want to buy my outdoor books for Christmas gifts, and they'd like to get their books signed. So, I have set up a special book-signing event on Saturday, Dec. 19th, beginning at 11 a.m. at the Capital City Market Annex in Vista Village. There will be live music and wine-tasting going on at the same time.

I'll have my outdoor guidebooks with me, and I also will have plenty of copies of "Idaho Microbes: How tiny single-celled organisms can harm, or save, our world."

Idaho Microbes is a brand new 268-page full-color book that features 10 chapters, or "eco-adventures," as my editor puts it, taking readers on a virtual journey to learn about a particular big-picture environmental or human health issue, and then learn about how the magical powers of microbes are helping solve the issue or make it worse. The whole project was a really fun learning experience for me.

In the case of the beer chapter, yeast is the magical ingredient that leads to the unique taste of a beer, among other things. In a chapter on "Guzzling Crude," naturally occurring microbes consume an oil spill below a Nampa gas station. In the chapter on white pine blister-rust, I show how the exotic fungus is combining with mountain pine beetles to kill off our whitebark pine trees in the rooftops of the mountains of Idaho. Fortunately, there are solutions to save our whitebark pines.

Anyway, the book is proving to be very popular so far! Idaho Microbes retails for $29.95. It's available at Rediscovered Books, the Boise State bookstore, Discovery Center of Idaho, and SteveStuebner.com,  
-- SS

Go play in the snow! Over a foot of *pow* forecast for McCall, Bogus, Idaho City

Go find your fresh *pow* this weekend. Should be lots of it! 

This is how things should look on the xc ski trails on Saturday, if there's any tracks at all ... 

Gold Fork Trail in new snow 

Hi all,

The weather forecasts for Bogus Basin, Brundage Mountain and Tamarack Resort are looking great for a nice coating of new snow Friday and Saturday in the Boise and West-Central Mountains. The forecasts call for more than 6-8" of new snow on Friday and more on Saturday, so get out there and enjoy the new *pow*!

If you go to Brundage, they've got the "Beer and Gear" event going on Saturday and Sunday, starting at noon each day. Think beer garden hosted by McCall craft breweries and the latest demo gear from McCall ski shops.

The forecast for Idaho City and Mores Creek Summit areas calls for a big dump this weekend, with 5-9 inches expected on Friday and another 5-9 inches expected Saturday night. Oh baby! It's going to be lots of powder fun for backcountry skiers, but perhaps deep snow and tough-going for snowshoers. The groomers are going to have a hard time keeping up!

There's supposed to be a fair bit of wind accompanying the storms, so backcountry skiers and snowshoers should carry basic safety gear (avalanche beacon, probe and shovel), and check the Payette Avalanche Center for the day's forecast before you go.

But it sounds like a perfect weekend to go play in the snow in the Idaho City Park n' Ski Areas, too.
I'd highly recommend the Gold Fork Loop for a xc ski or snowshoe outing. It's an intermediate trail, 5.3 miles in length. It's a moderate uphill climb to a low summit, and then it's downhill back to the parking area. The trail is well-signed, and it's well-groomed most of the time. Great for a first date-type of situation where you'd just like to go for an easy-going walk in the woods.

Michael Lanza's kids and friends scale the Skyline Trail. (Courtesy The  Big Outside)

Directly across Idaho 21, the Skyline Loop features a slightly steeper uphill climb on a wide surface. It's a 4-mile loop, topping out near the Skyline Yurt. It's also possible to explore some other trails nearby when you reach the Skyline summit, such as Ralph's Trail, Twister or Ridge.

Farther up Idaho 21, you also could try the Elkhorn Loop from the Banner Ridge Trailhead, or climb up to Stargaze Yurt from Beaver Creek Summit. The Elkhorn Loop is 7.3 miles, so it's longer and more challenging than the Gold Fork and Skyline loops. The loop is typically groomed for xc classic and skate skiing. The trail to Skyline is an ungroomed snowshoe/ski trail. It's 1.5 miles up to the yurt, and 1.5 miles back. There are several slopes that make for good backcountry skiing in the vicinity.

Top off your adventure with a nice soothing soak at the The Springs in Idaho City (call ahead for reservations or do it online) or go home via Lowman and stop at Kirkham Hot Springs or Skinny Dipper Hot Springs.

Enjoy the snow!
- SS