# Where to spend a month?



## tortoise (Feb 15, 2013)

I was going to do this but the snow is bad out west this year so I'm going to Japan for 2 weeks instead.


edit:
I just noticed you probably didn't mean this year. You can do it many places if you plan ahead and buy pass early. Your timeframe is early season though, so the snow might not be good anywhere. Which makes it tough to plan ahead.


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## oldmate (Oct 24, 2011)

For the last few years some mates and I head to Banff every winter for a month.

We get a hotel in town (cost is about $1,500 each) But then you've got lift tickets and car hire (which you could probably skip)

From everything i've seen and read, Banff seems to stack up the best value wise (and i'm not just talking North America). Reasonably cheap, plenty of good mountains nearby, and guaranteed powder days if you are there for a month.


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## wrathfuldeity (Oct 5, 2007)

Perhaps not this year but for technical aspects...Baker; no park progression though. The other is Nelson BC. Usually there is a fair number of folks that work their ass off and then winter in Glacier.


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## CassMT (Mar 14, 2013)

here...look into it anyway..righ tnow we've got some of the best conditions in the US and it's dumping up there right now

your dates are past...or do you mean 14/15?


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## a4h Saint (Jan 24, 2013)

oldmate said:


> For the last few years some mates and I head to Banff every winter for a month.
> 
> We get a hotel in town (cost is about $1,500 each) But then you've got lift tickets and car hire (which you could probably skip)
> 
> From everything i've seen and read, Banff seems to stack up the best value wise (and i'm not just talking North America). Reasonably cheap, plenty of good mountains nearby, and guaranteed powder days if you are there for a month.


Is a month of hotels a better option than apartment? What do you do for food?
I don't mind the snow being less than optimal or absolutely dumping powder. Getting a pow day or two would be cool, but i have never rode real snow so alot of it would be kind of learning overkill. No matter how bad out west conditions are they are still 100x better than what i ride on a weekly basis.


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## a4h Saint (Jan 24, 2013)

CassMT said:


> here...look into it anyway..righ tnow we've got some of the best conditions in the US and it's dumping up there right now
> 
> your dates are past...or do you mean 14/15?


yes. Sorry for not specifying.


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## tortoise (Feb 15, 2013)

It's possible at Mammoth. hands down my favorite place in the USA. Hard to find a place but it is possible. You don't really need a car once you get there. If you are driving bring your own food... food is SUPER expensive because it's in the middle of nowhere. 

Tahoe is easy if you live in South Lake Tahoe. Even if you can't find a rental you can stay in a dumpy hotel for $50 a night. The downside is that the hill right in SLT, Heavenly, isn't what you want. But you can drive down to Sierra at Tahoe in 25 minutes. You could probably find a place in Tahoe City if you tried hard enough which would put you closer to Squaw and Northstar. 

If you want to drive an hour each way, Mt. Hood has cool locals and is relatively near a real city. It's probably better for spring riding though.


If you really want to just do parks I like Bear mountain. Cheap pass. But no point unless you really just want to focus on parks. 

I did a season at Bridger Bowl in Bozeman and that was the best time of my life. However that was a loooong time ago and I don't know what it's like now. 

I don't know anything about Colorado or much about SLC. 

The bigger issue is will there be snow during your suggested time period.


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## oldmate (Oct 24, 2011)

a4h Saint said:


> Is a month of hotels a better option than apartment? What do you do for food?
> I don't mind the snow being less than optimal or absolutely dumping powder. Getting a pow day or two would be cool, but i have never rode real snow so alot of it would be kind of learning overkill. No matter how bad out west conditions are they are still 100x better than what i ride on a weekly basis.


Well it's just the one hotel, plus it has gym/sauna etc. I had a brief look at getting an apartment but it didn't seem to stack up as well cost wise.


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## linvillegorge (Jul 6, 2009)

I'd go with Jackson, though the budget might be an issue.


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## oldmate (Oct 24, 2011)

I looked at Jackson. That was our second pick. Was going to be slightly more expensive, but the biggest negative was that there was no other mountain options close by


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## ridinbend (Aug 2, 2012)

Thailand or Vietnam go travel if you have a month. That's my opinion.


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## hardasacatshead (Aug 21, 2013)

I can't recommend Jackson Hole highly enough. I've been here a month so far and have two weeks to go. I've ridden all bar 4 days, it's early season so the snow's only just getting good but nonetheless I've had a ball every day. 

My wife and I found a house in Jackson on VRBO. It's not at Teton Village but as a result it's 1/4 of the price for accommodation. We payed about $3,800 for 6 weeks which I think is pretty good considering where we are. We cook 90% of our meals which saves a huge amount too. 

It's a piece of piss to get to the mountain. There are shuttles running on 3 different routes around town that go to the mountain. For us it's a 3 minute walk to a bus stop, they come every half an hour and it takes roughly 20 mins to get to Teton Village. Easy as. It's free with a season pass (if you're going for a month then it's worth getting).

The mountain is awesome, there's so much varied terrain inbounds and unbelievable amounts of easily accessible back country from the gates. Snow's been great considering the time of the year, we get a nice little storm about once a week that lasts a few days then bluebird for the rest. The terrain parks aren't really that amazing, they're ok but if you're a mad park rat this probably won't suit you. There are three Burton Stash Parks here though that would be sensational later on in the season, there's just not enough snow here yet for them to be really fun.

The town itself is fucking cool. Everyone's super friendly, the pubs are great, food in general is really good and there are plenty of good board shops. There's a wicked western charm here that really sucks you in. You can walk to the shops and see a moose crossing the road or walk over the refuge and see herds of up to 4,000 elk and big horn sheep cruising around. I think that's awesome. I met a dude on the bus when we first got here, he was wearing full blown denim on denim, cowboy hat and wranglers and his name was Gator - fucking awesome. 

As for mountains close by, you're right in that there aren't heaps but there are options. Grand Targhee is pretty close and when Jackson gets a good dump you know Targhee got more. I'm actually catching the shuttle there tomorrow because we're due for a good storm tonight, it's been bucketing down outside here all night so I'm pumped. It's $99 for a return bus ride to Targhee and a lift ticket for the day. 

Apart from that you can skin/hike up Teton Pass. Without a doubt that's where I've had my best turns of the year, including last season. I haven't skinned it but have hiked it three times now. I just get the free bus out to Teton Village and get off at the Wilson turnoff then hitch up to the pass, hike, shred, hitch back to the top, hike, shred, hitch back to the bus stop/back to Jackson. Heaps of people do it. So much fun. 

It's worth considering not just for the mountain but for the whole vibe that comes along with the place. I think February would be the ultimate time to be here. 

I'm in love with the it, I have to move to London in 2 weeks and I'm going to cry when the time comes to leave.


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## tonicusa (Feb 27, 2008)

Good for you! You sound super stoked. That's what it's all about.


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## ridinbend (Aug 2, 2012)

So what's the trick to riding j hole and not paying $110 a day for a lift ticket?:dunno:


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## hardasacatshead (Aug 21, 2013)

Well it's $1700 for a Grand Pass. So if you ride 30 days that's $56 a day. Bingo.

:thumbsup:


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## hardasacatshead (Aug 21, 2013)

tonicusa said:


> Good for you! You sound super stoked. That's what it's all about.


I am mate. I will be back here for sure.


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## ridinbend (Aug 2, 2012)

hardasacatshead said:


> Well it's $1700 for a Grand Pass. So if you ride 30 days that's $56 a day. Bingo.
> 
> :thumbsup:


Yeah I already dropped that much for two season passes to bachy for my wife and I. Glad you enjoyed yourself.


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## oldmate (Oct 24, 2011)

Hows the crowds at Jackson? I've heard so many mixed reports...


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## hardasacatshead (Aug 21, 2013)

Over the period from Christmas to New Years it was pretty hectic but nowhere near as bad as somewhere like Whistler where the crowds a ludicrous all the time. On a pow day you can wait about 40mins for the tram, but it carries 100 people 2.3 miles to the summit and you can then access anywhere you want. 

On a typical day I don't wait for the gondola at all, straight though. There might be a 5 min wait in line at some of the upper lifts. The tram lines might be a 10 minute wait and that's just waiting for the tram to arrive moreso than lines. 

To be honest, I think it's fine. I've had waaaaay worse at Whistler and Japan.


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## linvillegorge (Jul 6, 2009)

oldmate said:


> but the biggest negative was that there was no other mountain options close by


There's a couple of things that I think people from back east get overly obsessed about, this is one of them. "How long are the trails?" is the other one.

I'd be willing to be that the majority of people out here spend the majority of their time riding one resort. You're only there for a month. You're barely going to be able to really get to know one or two mountains at most.


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## CassMT (Mar 14, 2013)

you don't need any more than Jackson, if all you know is TN(?) you will shit when you see it...actually, i think it would be a bit of a waste cosidering how expensive, you wont scratch the surface in a month

but, Driggs ID/ Targhee, that could be a good fit


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## a4h Saint (Jan 24, 2013)

CassMT said:


> you don't need any more than Jackson, if all you know is TN(?) you will shit when you see it...actually, i think it would be a bit of a waste cosidering how expensive, you wont scratch the surface in a month
> 
> but, Driggs ID/ Targhee, that could be a good fit


You guys are absolutely right about not needing more than one mountain, and I would kill to be able to spend a month in Jackson hole; however, I think this would be beyond my price limit being so far out. I am going to look around a bit based on your suggestion, I really like the idea of Northstar. That place has always looked awesome to me. 

Being from TN is the snow really that bad out west during Dec. and Jan. Just generally reading these forums a lot of you guys are spoiled, you don't know what you got till its gone.


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## a4h Saint (Jan 24, 2013)

Well, Northstar looks like a great way to practice park but aside from that it is kind of small, especially since like half the runs are closed at the moment. My park skills are fairly beginner so it does not take much to increase my park ability.


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## Argo (Feb 25, 2010)

Dunno what people are considering west but I have been riding knee deep pow for the last two weeks. I'm sure BA has too. I chose to live in the region I do for a reason......


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## a4h Saint (Jan 24, 2013)

Northstar + Kirkwood looks perfect! How far are these mountains apart? I have looked and looked, but I cannot find how much the Tahoe value pass is from epic?


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## a4h Saint (Jan 24, 2013)

Argo said:


> Dunno what people are considering west but I have been riding knee deep pow for the last two weeks. I'm sure BA has too. I chose to live in the region I do for a reason......


LOL, exactly. West for me is everything west of me. Which is TN so basically everything that is in the US and has real snow.


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## jdang307 (Feb 6, 2011)

a4h Saint said:


> Northstar + Kirkwood looks perfect! How far are these mountains apart? I have looked and looked, but I cannot find how much the Tahoe value pass is from epic?


Pretty far apart. Northstar is North Lake Tahoe. Kirkwood is south of South Lake, which is already an hour or so away in good weather.

Is this for next year? No longer available for this year.


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## neednsnow (Nov 30, 2007)

ridinbend said:


> So what's the trick to riding j hole and not paying $110 a day for a lift ticket?:dunno:


Plan a few trips and grab the Mountain Collective.


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## neednsnow (Nov 30, 2007)

a4h Saint said:


> Northstar + Kirkwood looks perfect! How far are these mountains apart? I have looked and looked, but I cannot find how much the Tahoe value pass is from epic?


Tahoe can be cheap considering all resort areas. Northstar and Kirkwood are pretty far apart.....think 90 mins easy. The Tahoe Value Pass (which includes Heav) is probably around 600$ the spring before. Realize that there are some blackout dates, so if your "month" is December, you could be hurting. 

The problem with Tahoe is that they have been very shaky with snowfall. Three years ago they got dumped on, but mainly after early February. Two years ago, not much of anything until "Miracle March." Last year, an early season dump, then all of 75 inches from jan 1 till closing....horrible. This season, blech, to round-out one of the driest years on record for Tahoe (2013).

When Tahoe gets dumped it is great, but when it isn't getting goods, it is horrible. Generally, i suggest your "Month" to be feb-marchish. No matter where you go, it'll be a crap-shoot.


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## jdang307 (Feb 6, 2011)

Tahoe is hurting real bad right now and so is Mammoth. I have the Mountain Collective and am lucky enough to just "go" when the snow finally comes. I'll probably make a trip to Tahoe and Mammoth before the season is over but damn look at that weather.


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## madmax (Sep 10, 2013)

If "Out West" is anything west of TN, you could go the Breck, Keystone, A-Basin route. You can get decent lodging either in Breck or in Frisco which isn't too far away. There is a free Summit County Shuttle that will take you to all three resorts.

Epic Pass is like $600 if you get it early enough and has no black out dates - which would be good for you over the holidays.

Copper is close and you can get lift tickets at decent rates locally or on Liftopia. Also can do day trips to Vail (30 mins), Steamboat (2 hrs), or Aspen (2.5 hrs) - Vail is on the Epic Pass as well. These are all times in good weather/no traffic

Basically from Frisco you can get to a ton of resorts in 3 hours. Denver is 1.5 hrs also if you need a city for whatever reason.

Hope this helps and I'll add - definitely do this when you're life situation will allow you. I'm trying to figure out how to do this with a job and a girlfriend - will still get it done but more complicated.


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## neednsnow (Nov 30, 2007)

madmax said:


> . I'm trying to figure out how to do this with........and a girlfriend - will still get it done but more complicated.


Find a girl who has a career and can handle you being gone for a little time so she can focus on her career. I've done this twice and it has worked as well as can be imagined. (Obviously issues arise.) Funny though, that it was done with two different girlfriends. It is that football season that I coach that they have a hard time dealing with.:blink:


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