# West Coast recommendations



## Megatron X (Apr 27, 2012)

If you are coming down as far as LA or SF I would probably go to mammoth. A lot of terrain and usually has pretty good conditions. 


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## grafta (Dec 21, 2009)

Don't do it January if you can. Feb and March are much more reliable if the last few seasons were anything to go by.


Oh yeh, expat kiwi here. Chur chur!


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## killclimbz (Aug 10, 2007)

March is much more reliable than January. 

If you are stuck in January, I would say interior BC is where you should look. Revelstoke, Golden, powder highway spots. 

Washington State is awfully good, but snow levels can be erratic during that time. I guess they can be during any month, but it just seems like that is the time it happens the most. 

Utah is another pretty easy spot to hit with pretty reliable snow.


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## WasatchMan (Aug 30, 2011)

Mammoth is having a pretty decent season, they have great annual snowfall totals - cool little town, as well as plenty of ski in/out joints.

Do you want a lot of amenities or just good skiing?


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## IS3_FTW (Jan 21, 2013)

Mt. Hood is a good place in Oregon. I want to venture out there this season, but I might have to wait next season


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## mixie (Mar 29, 2011)

If you opt for March Mammoth is probably a good bet. January not so much. 

It's technically 'off season' for them even tho they will most likely still have a ton of snow even in an average year. You can probably get some pretty good rates for a ski in/ski out . Their base clientele are from LA and by march most of us forget about winter sports and move on to going to the beach. 

Not to mention the Tioga Pass will be open and Yosemite is about an hour away. You may or may not need a car to get to Yosemite, but it's a must do if you're in the area. I know there are buses but from Mammoth to Yosemite but they might not start running until April/May.


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## neednsnow (Nov 30, 2007)

mixie said:


> If you opt for March Mammoth is probably a good bet.
> 
> It's technically 'off season' for them even tho they will most likely still have a ton of snow even in an average year. You can probably get some pretty good rates for a ski in/ski out . Their base clientele are from LA and by march most of us forget about winter sports and move on to going to the beach.
> 
> Not to mention the Tioga Pass will be open and Yosemite is about an hour away. You may or may not need a car to get to Yosemite, but it's a must do if you're in the area. I know there are buses but from Mammoth to Yosemite might not start running until April/May.


Tioga opened in March? It wasn't open when I came through on May 1st, last year.....and that was a horrible snowpack year. Tioga won't be open in March.


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## m0rph3us (Jan 26, 2012)

grafta said:


> Don't do it January if you can. Feb and March are much more reliable if the last few seasons were anything to go by.
> 
> 
> Oh yeh, expat kiwi here. Chur chur!


Shot bro. 

We've done January the last couple of years just because it's normally easier to swing leave from work then (as you know, the whole country here basically shuts down for a month over Jan!). March is probably a bit late but Feb could be an option - any major holiday peaks to avoid there?


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## m0rph3us (Jan 26, 2012)

WasatchMan said:


> Mammoth is having a pretty decent season, they have great annual snowfall totals - cool little town, as well as plenty of ski in/out joints.
> 
> Do you want a lot of amenities or just good skiing?


Amenities is not so big a deal. As far as I'm concerned, a village the size of Sun Peaks or maybe a little bigger is ideal. A few places to eat and drink, somewhere to buy alcohol, somewhere to buy groceries, that'll cover it. More concerned about the quality of the riding and reliability of the snow!


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## mixie (Mar 29, 2011)

neednsnow said:


> Tioga opened in March? It wasn't open when I came through on May 1st, last year.....and that was a horrible snowpack year. Tioga won't be open in March.


really? ok, sorry. That's right it was open in december last year. I was getting my dates way confused. :-/

i usually don't even know what day of the week it is


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## wrathfuldeity (Oct 5, 2007)

m0rph3us said:


> Amenities is not so big a deal. As far as I'm concerned, a village the size of Sun Peaks or maybe a little bigger is ideal. A few places to eat and drink, somewhere to buy alcohol, somewhere to buy groceries, that'll cover it. More concerned about the quality of the riding and reliability of the snow!


washington is out...amenities generally is the suck but there will be snow and the riding is up to you


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## grafta (Dec 21, 2009)

m0rph3us said:


> Shot bro.
> 
> We've done January the last couple of years just because it's normally easier to swing leave from work then (as you know, the whole country here basically shuts down for a month over Jan!). March is probably a bit late but Feb could be an option - any major holiday peaks to avoid there?


Monday Feb 11 is family day, so the gapers will be out (myself included lol) as it's a holiday in BC. Prob not even that bad really depending where you go.

Otherwise yeh, go feb if you can. We've just had a fairly dry Jan. It'd suck to drop the dough and get no pow :blink:


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## m0rph3us (Jan 26, 2012)

grafta said:


> Otherwise yeh, go feb if you can. We've just had a fairly dry Jan. It'd suck to drop the dough and get no pow :blink:


True that! Was at Whistler in early Jan... some great conditions the first week but it was starting to get pretty average by the time I left on the 17th and there hadn't been any snow in a week (and I don't think there was any for a few more days after that either).


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## Varza (Jan 6, 2013)

m0rph3us said:


> March is probably a bit late but Feb could be an option - any major holiday peaks to avoid there?


Feb 18th is Presidents Day and Squaw is upping their lift ticket prices for the 16th to 24th. I don't know if it's major, but I'd expect more people than on an average weekend (I try to avoid these dates, I don't have a season pass this year and paying extra just cause it's a 3-day weekend sucks for me)


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## IS3_FTW (Jan 21, 2013)

Im in the Tacoma area, near Seattle. It has been a dry, freezing month. It is now starting to snow again. 

Agreed with everyone, Feb is the best time for the PNW


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## edlo (Jan 24, 2011)

m0rph3us said:


> So, keen to get some recommendations as to resorts on the west coast (Canada or the US) that are decent.
> 
> Had sussed out Big White (maybe as a combo with Silverstar) and Mammoth as options (and maybe Fernie) but keen to get views or other suggestions. Given the distance, cost and need to book in advance, reliability of snowfall is pretty important (and I'm pretty set on ski-in ski-out too).


I know you want ski-in and ski-out but...

You can start by flying into Southern California then do a midweek day trip to Mountain High ,2 hour from about every where in Los Angeles. The weather is pretty predictable and they will have a lot of man made snow, although I had rare snow date at the end of December 2012 which was really good. You ski in and ski out of your car.

From there. once you are in LA you can fly out to Mammoth, Tahoe, Salt Lake City, or Colorado depending on where the snow is. Flights to Mammoth are always open because they basically started commercial flights only a couple of years ago and people in California love to drive their own cars 6 hours to Mammoth. In Mammoth there are tons of ski in ski out, but they have a lot of shuttle around town. You are either going to shuttle to the mountain or shuttle to the restaurants. Staying at "The Village" is basically ski in ski out, and walking distance to shops, but it is $$$ pricy. I no longer do ski in ski out because we don't use the kitchen in the condo of these places, but if you have kids , ski in and out makes more sense. There are three ways to rent: vacation rental by owner, condo rental via management company, rental from Mammoth Resort, you pay for convenience.

If the condition are bad for driving , they will do slow plow escort but it is usually for just a short distance.

June Mountain is 40 minutes away from Mammoth, it is just far enough to have totally different weather. It is a good backup plan for Mammoth, they will reopen June next year, but I don't know to what extent. There might be a storm in Mammoth but clear skies in June and june is always empty.

If you want to fly into Salt Lake City - You can stay in Down Town and take a shuttle to 4 different resorts 30-40 minutes away. You can also do ski in and ski out at those places but I want the options. The first time I went, I rented a 4WD car to drive everywhere, it doesn't make much sense with the transportation that they provide.

You can also fly from LAX to Eagle Colorado for Vail. 

When people make the drive to Mammoth they know that they wont be stranded at an airport due to weather. If weather is so bad that they can't even drive, they won't be able to make it up there. I've been there for a week and my truck was buried under 5 feet of snow. Even then the conditions weren't harsh, although I now carry a snow shovel with me. 

You can gamble and book a place far off in the future or pay a little extra and know exactly where the conditions are good next year.


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## WasatchMan (Aug 30, 2011)

edlo said:


> You can start by flying into Southern California then do a midweek day trip to Mountain High ,2 hour from about every where in Los Angeles. The weather is pretty predictable and they will have a lot of man made snow, although I had rare snow date at the end of December 2012 which was really good. You ski in and ski out of your car.


Jesus christ PLEASE do not fly all the way from New Zealand to ride at fucking Mt High...

is this what you want to ride?


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## mixie (Mar 29, 2011)

WasatchMan said:


> Jesus christ PLEASE do not fly all the way from New Zealand to ride at fucking Mt High...
> 
> is this what you want to ride?


seriously. If you fly into LAX and have some time to kill before driving/flying to mammoth I highly suggest checking out the beach. Venice Beach and the Santa Monica Pier are close to LAX. For the love of gawd do NOT drive from LAX to Mtn High. The traffic alone will kill you. I used to commute from Pasadena to Santa Monica...and it can take three hours to go those 26 miles. I repeat DO NOT drive from LAX to High...wtf?!.....this is coming from someone who actually enjoys Mtn High!!!! 

Also? Flights from LAX to Mammoth are often filled...and they are cancelled at the drop of hat. Last April I got stuck in Mammoth for 3 extra days. The incoming flight from LAX could not land due to high winds. They turned that plane right back around and headed back to LAX. All the flights for the next week were booked solid. I ended up hitching a ride to Vegas and flying home from there.....


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## poutanen (Dec 22, 2011)

killclimbz said:


> If you are stuck in January, I would say interior BC is where you should look. Revelstoke, Golden, powder highway spots.


I can second this. If the last two seasons is anything to go by, we've been pretty consisten by the end of December in all the Canadian Rockies resorts (Lake Louise, Sunshine, Fernie, Kicking Horse, etc.)

We get arctic air masses that mean we can be -15 C when interior BC and west is above freezing. Means our snow stays fluffier longer. Also relatively small lift lines here.


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## onthefence (Dec 16, 2010)

WasatchMan said:


> Jesus christ PLEASE do not fly all the way from New Zealand to ride at fucking Mt High...
> 
> is this what you want to ride?


Lol. Mt High does NOT look like that just to be clear, the only times ive seen Bare spots were early season november and early december this year.. and they were nowhere near as bad as that pic haha. They have good coverage lately, no bare spots at all. Though I def agree that it's not worth a visit if you're flying from out of country, it's a very small mountain with not a lot to do.


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## mixie (Mar 29, 2011)

onthefence said:


> Lol. Mt High does NOT look like that just to be clear, the only times ive seen Bare spots were early season november and early december this year.. and they were nowhere near as bad as that pic haha. They have good coverage lately, no bare spots at all. Though I def agree that it's not worth a visit if you're flying from out of country, it's a very small mountain with not a lot to do.



but it will look like that in March, if they are even still open! 

hell, I ride there even when it does look like that, but I live close


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## edlo (Jan 24, 2011)

onthefence said:


> Lol. Mt High does NOT look like that just to be clear, the only times ive seen Bare spots were early season november and early december this year.. and they were nowhere near as bad as that pic haha. They have good coverage lately, no bare spots at all. Though I def agree that it's not worth a visit if you're flying from out of country, it's a very small mountain with not a lot to do.


Original poster said mid January. Not march. My highs sucks 80% of the time . I commuted from highland park to Torrance , it took 30 minutes to get through down town.i commuted from Redondo to Costa Mesa 50 minutes each way. Why do you bring up commute times , they aren't going against traffic. And if the day sucks don't go to mt high. Drive 6 hr to mammoth. Canada got good storms the last two years but weather is not predictable one year out .

This picture is mammoth coverage today and why I drive 5 hours


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## mixie (Mar 29, 2011)

edlo said:


> Why do you bring up commute times , they aren't going against traffic.



your post makes no sense. Besides, rush hour traffic is 24/7 in LA. 

OP, I suggest SLC or BC. Mammoth is awesome, but people in california are assholes...like we've not proven it in this thread :yahoo:


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## edlo (Jan 24, 2011)

mixie said:


> OP, I suggest SLC or BC. Mammoth is awesome, but people in california are assholes...like we've not proven it in this thread :yahoo:


Standing in a line like this would turn anyone into a ass. If you mistime a storm you might get caught in this crap.


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## jdang307 (Feb 6, 2011)

WasatchMan said:


> Jesus christ PLEASE do not fly all the way from New Zealand to ride at fucking Mt High...
> 
> is this what you want to ride?


LMAO.

Yeah, I would NOT ride Mt High if I flew 15 hours across the pacific. Save it for a real resort.

From LA, Mammoth. From SF, Tahoe. Not sure about Portland area resorts but Seattle ones I've seen don't really have any ski in ski out places.

SLC and Denver aren't far at all from LAX and if you time it right, you might only be out a couple hundred bucks. Southwest is the shit for flying, as they are relatively cheap, and don't charge you to check in snowboard bags. They are very easy going.


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## WasatchMan (Aug 30, 2011)

edlo said:


> Standing in a line like this would turn anyone into a ass. If you mistime a storm you might get caught in this crap.


Yes do not ever come to SLC/Utah - unless you want to wait in the lift line for 30 minutes for a crappy run and mormons yelling at snowboarders all day.

mammoth/tahoe/colorado is what you want.


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## m0rph3us (Jan 26, 2012)

jdang307 said:


> From LA, Mammoth. From SF, Tahoe. Not sure about Portland area resorts but Seattle ones I've seen don't really have any ski in ski out places.
> 
> SLC and Denver aren't far at all from LAX and if you time it right, you might only be out a couple hundred bucks. Southwest is the shit for flying, as they are relatively cheap, and don't charge you to check in snowboard bags. They are very easy going.


Got some friends in SF who have just gone up to Tahoe so I'll have to see how they found it.

Cheers for the tip re Southwest. Air NZ do the same thing here at home on domestic flights with snowboard bags, but not international flights. Sucks because they are really good to fly long-haul on.


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## mixie (Mar 29, 2011)

edlo said:


> Standing in a line like this would turn anyone into a ass. If you mistime a storm you might get caught in this crap.


holy shit!! That is why I don't snowboard on weekends. It was 80 degrees today here in the lovely So Cal mountains. Btw it was probably that warm at Mtn High too, jus' sayin'




> do not ever come to SLC/Utah - unless you want to wait in the lift line for 30 minutes for a crappy run and mormons yelling at snowboarders all day.


Mormons do not yell, they are the politest people I have ever met. LIES From Wasatch Man! SLC is what you are after. 

No seriously, Mammoth is awesome and if you end up there I can help you avoid said lines and other BS.


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## m0rph3us (Jan 26, 2012)

mixie said:


> No seriously, Mammoth is awesome and if you end up there I can help you avoid said lines and other BS.


Rad, thanks! A guy I used to work with has just spent a couple weeks there so I'm gonna hit him up for his thoughts.


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## poutanen (Dec 22, 2011)

mixie said:


> holy shit!! That is why I don't snowboard on weekends. It was 80 degrees today here in the lovely So Cal mountains. Btw it was probably that warm at Mtn High too, jus' sayin'


Yeah again I think we're lucky in the Canadian Rockies. There are 6+ resorts within 3 hours of Calgary, a city of only 1.2 million with basically no metro area to feed it. We get tourists but even on the worst weekends lift lines are only about 10 people deep.

Christmas is another story but regular weekends are a-ok here! I can count on one hand the number of times I've actually stood in a line at Fernie! :yahoo:


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## edlo (Jan 24, 2011)

I wish I never mentioned mountain high , I'll never hear the end of it.


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## edlo (Jan 24, 2011)

m0rph3us said:


> Got some friends in SF who have just gone up to Tahoe so I'll have to see how they found it.
> 
> Cheers for the tip re Southwest. Air NZ do the same thing here at home on domestic flights with snowboard bags, but not international flights. Sucks because they are really good to fly long-haul on.


When I went to the philippines, my brother told me to buy some golf clubs and bring them. I didn't golf, but we sold them and it covered the luggage charge and still make a couple of hundred. I wonder if you could just buy a snowboard here and sell it back in NZ
los angeles all for sale / wanted classifieds "snowboard" - craigslist


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