# Headed to Utah Feb21 . . . advice wanted



## Racer20 (Feb 5, 2010)

I'm going to be in SLC from 2/21-2/24. The current plan is to ride park city 2-3 days and maybe try something else for a day. But, I'm a bit concerned about the weather. I see the temps creeping up close to 40 over the next week, with very little snow. I can still change my plans and go to Tahoe or Colorado to find better snow if possible. 

All I really care about is getting some good powder at least once this trip, and I want to avoid riding in 40deg at all costs . . . my last 3 trips have been slushy warm bump fests that turned out to be a waste of time and money.

Anyone out there right now? How is the snow holding up? Would I be better off going somewhere else? 

Also, I'm hoping the crowds will be thinner Sun-Wed than towards the end of the week. Am I wrong?


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## CaptT (Sep 23, 2009)

Weekday riding is the best.......

Temps are high, base low, no storms in the 7day......


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## Racer20 (Feb 5, 2010)

CaptT said:


> Weekday riding is the best.......
> 
> Temps are high, base low, no storms in the 7day......


Yeah, so how are the conditions on the hill? Temps are at the base of the mountain, so I'm hoping its cold enough on the hill to at least keep the snow from turning slushy and dirty. How is the snow at the base?

I might be better off staying in Michigan and going up to Mt. Bohemia. I rode in 9" of powder last weekend, and we got about 8" last night in Ann Arbor.


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## CaptT (Sep 23, 2009)

Let me clarify....

Base=snowpack
high temps = icy in the A.M. soft in the P.M.

Not spring conditions but shit coverage and ice mornings.....which in turn means no powder that shit sets up like concrete once it melts then freezes...mountain areas can be super warm in the day and super cold at night, these are the conditions at this moment. Your only chance is tight packed trees where the sun can't get and you don't have a ton of coverage for that.......unless you get a storm that dumps at least 8inches your not getting any powder.


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## Racer20 (Feb 5, 2010)

Sounds like exactly what I was afraid of. Damn. Based on the weather reports, I'm guessing it's a similar situation at all the Northern UT resorts.

Anyone done the drive up to Grand Targhee?


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## burritosandsnow (Nov 22, 2008)

the snow is not better in Tahoe or Co at this time ... its a weak season in the west for everyone except for mammoth ... well get dumps here and there but not the usual consistent storm cycle weather thats normal for out here... planning to go ANYWHERE more than a week in advance is a crapshoot for powder


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## killclimbz (Aug 10, 2007)

I agree with Colorado not being great, but unless I missed a big rain event, Tahoe has been getting smoked. The coverage is fantastic out there. And Colorado is only lame in the central-northern rockies. Southern Colorado is rocking a nice snow pack. Wolf Creek is the spot to be, Telluride and Silverton are doing just fine too.


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## burritosandsnow (Nov 22, 2008)

Tahoe did get stomped in that last round but overall the normal consistent 3 day storms clear a few days then more storms pattern is not there ... "which gets back to the im planning a trip in three weeks am I going to get powder?" question of the OP .. just not consistently there this year to say two-three weeks out "aw cmon out there will most likely be a storm around the time youre here"


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## Racer20 (Feb 5, 2010)

To be fair, my trip is in a week and a half. I was asking for feedback on the CURRENT conditions. Everything online says either "packed powder" or "variable," which doesn't mean a whole lot.

I'll keep an eye on the weather, but Wolf Creek might be an option. We might drive up to Grand Targhee from SLC too.


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## burritosandsnow (Nov 22, 2008)

Racer20 said:


> To be fair, my trip is in a week and a half. I was asking for feedback on the CURRENT conditions. Everything online says either "packed powder" or "variable," which doesn't mean a whole lot.
> 
> I'll keep an eye on the weather, but Wolf Creek might be an option. We might drive up to Grand Targhee from SLC too.


yes I understand but this isnt the weather channel and these kind of posts are answered all day by various folks on the forum .. sorry I was curt with you BUT if you have planned a trip what can you realistically do about it at this point. Its weather its unpredictable ... case in point the storm that was supposed to split and miss us didnt and we all woke up to lots of snow this morning and now snow through the weekend. Just because some of us live in SLC doesnt mean we can tell you with 100% certainty the conditions you can expect when you get here in 10 days ... and worrying about the CURRENT conditions does you no good either because of the previously mentioned storms the conditions of yesterday are moot.

oh and those 'packed powder' and 'variable" listings are right on .....

packed powder .... snow from a previous storm packed onto the trail and groomed .. moves easily under your board or skis .. little to no solid or icy areas 

variable.... dependent upon the face of the slope and time of day .. can be packed powder turning to slush or even hardpack turning to packed as the temps rise and the sun hits it


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## Racer20 (Feb 5, 2010)

burritosandsnow said:


> yes I understand but this isnt the weather channel and these kind of posts are answered all day by various folks on the forum .. sorry I was curt with you BUT if you have planned a trip what can you realistically do about it at this point.


As I said in my previous post, I CAN do something about it. I still have plenty of time to change my plans with nothing more than a $100 plane ticket fee. That's what I'm trying to decide on. I'd rather stay here and drive up to Bohemia than spend the time and money to fly to Utah and ride in marginal conditions.



burritosandsnow said:


> Its weather its unpredictable ... case in point the storm that was supposed to split and miss us didnt and we all woke up to lots of snow this morning and now snow through the weekend. Just because some of us live in SLC doesnt mean we can tell you with 100% certainty the conditions you can expect when you get here in 10 days ... and worrying about the CURRENT conditions does you no good either because of the previously mentioned storms the conditions of yesterday are moot.


Obviously there's a lot of unpredictability, and things can change quickly. But, if I know that it's getting a bit slushy at the bottom now, and the 10-day report shows sun and 40deg every day, then I know that I need the weather to turn around pretty drastically in order to get even decent conditions.

Not asking for someone to tell me what the weather is going to be like in 2 weeks or tell me how to plan my vacation. But I have a choice to make, and the limited information on the various weather/snow conditions sites can be a bit vague, especially when the conditions are marginal.

Obviously snow conditions will vary across the mountain, but that could mean a bit of ice here and there, or bare spots and slush on half the mountain, or anything in between.


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## burritosandsnow (Nov 22, 2008)

just stay where youre at ... looks like Utah just cant handle the conditions you demand


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## CaptT (Sep 23, 2009)

burritosandsnow said:


> the storm that was supposed to split and miss us didnt and we all woke up to lots of snow this morning and now snow through the weekend.



Was that not the coolest thing since preschool......I got up at 5am and grinned from ear to ear, then I watched the weather.....I am still grinning....we may get lucky after all.....!!!


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## burritosandsnow (Nov 22, 2008)

yeah .. and on presidents day weekend no less .. guess the clock punchers get a bit of karma for working so much ... headed up now!


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## CaptT (Sep 23, 2009)

burritosandsnow said:


> yeah .. and on presidents day weekend no less .. guess the clock punchers get a bit of karma for working so much ... headed up now!



And THIS moment was brought to you by the letter "F" and the letter "U"....


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## burritosandsnow (Nov 22, 2008)

CaptT said:


> And THIS moment was brought to you by the letter "F" and the letter "U"....


well its nothing special .. thursdays are one of my regular four days a week riding ... well that probably didnt help but well you know


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## CaptT (Sep 23, 2009)

and the number "2".....


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## Racer20 (Feb 5, 2010)

Glad you guys got some snow. I'll keep my fingers crossed.


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## neednsnow (Nov 30, 2007)

CaptT said:


> And THIS moment was brought to you by the letter "F" and the letter "U"....


Haha, you Clock Puncher!



burritosandsnow said:


> just stay where youre at ... looks like Utah just cant handle the
> conditions you demand


I love how, even in internet lingo, it is very obvious when we have our grumpy pants on. I wear mine very well, too.



Racer20 said:


> As I said in my previous post, I CAN do something about it. I still have plenty of time to change my plans with nothing more than a $100 plane ticket fee. That's what I'm trying to decide on. I'd rather stay here and drive up to Bohemia than spend the time and money to fly to Utah and ride in marginal conditions.
> 
> Not asking for someone to tell me what the weather is going to be like in 2 weeks or tell me how to plan my vacation. But I have a choice to make, and the limited information on the various weather/snow conditions sites can be a bit vague, especially when the conditions are marginal.


You should be fine with SLC. Pay attention to the boards, here. While PC may be getting shit, other resorts in the SLC area are getting pretty good snowfall. For good pow focus on (as it has been said) Brighton, Solitude, or Snowbird. The Cottonwood resorts get much better snow than the resorts in the Park City area. Avoid focusing your energy on Park City (though it does have 110 of 107 trails open?????:dunno::dunno::dunno

Tourist Colorado (Northern) isn't getting shit, this year so don't head there. Tahoe area, in-general isn't doing too well, either, but Kirkwood (about 40 mins south of South Lake Tahoe towards Mammoth) has been doing well with a near-weekly cycle of storms that brings in 1-2 feet per week. Kirkwood or Mammoth would be the only option to change, if I was you. (It sounds like your trip to Targhee might be a decent option, though one hell of a drive.)


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## killclimbz (Aug 10, 2007)

Again the Colorado isn't getting shit is a completely untrue comment. Telluride, Crested Butte, Silverton, Wolf Creek are all having rocking seasons. Better than most anywhere except Cali. It's the Colorado Northern rockies that are sucking. So Vail, Summit County, Witnerpark, and such are not great. They have great conditions for mid November, for mid Feb, not so much...


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## neednsnow (Nov 30, 2007)

killclimbz said:


> Again the Colorado isn't getting shit is a completely untrue comment. Telluride, Crested Butte, Silverton, Wolf Creek are all having rocking seasons. Better than most anywhere except Cali. It's the Colorado Northern rockies that are sucking. So Vail, Summit County, Witnerpark, and such are not great. They have great conditions for mid November, for mid Feb, not so much...


True, I never consider Silverton, WC, or Butte because of the proximity to major airports. I incorrectly refer to the northern colorado resorts as Colorado. Edit made in earlier post.


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## burritosandsnow (Nov 22, 2008)

neednsnow said:


> True, I never consider Silverton, WC, or Butte because of the proximity to major airports. I incorrectly refer to the northern colorado resorts as Colorado. Edit made in earlier post.


meh I do the same for pretty much the same reason ... personally I hate flying then driving another few hours to get to point b .. but I guess we should be fair to Southern Co and give it its due.


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