sibhusky

So, in a lousy snow year, with lift issues all season, they managed to set a new visit record, cracking 1/2 million.😟 https://flatheadbeacon.com/2023/04/13/another-banner-year-on-big-mountain

Theoretically. They have an agreement with the Forest Service with a firm close date. So they can't go around making last minute changes because they just got a foot of snow (last year, not this year). However, for some weird reason (Utah? Tahoe?), visitors were way off the January and February numbers in March. I think maybe people booking for March are watching the early season numbers before booking. Which makes total sense. I swore last year in Lech I'd never ever travel for skiing in March, it's too unpredictable. Anyway, by the 3rd week of March, it was approaching ghost town status. Part of that might be the snow. We had an abysmal year in terms of snowfall, even though what we got held up well because of so many really frigid days. So, they wouldn't have even wanted to stay open, bears or no bears. (It was in fact empty enough on Gray Wolf that I was actively looking for bears on it. Bears have even been IN TOWN for weeks.) Hellroaring Basin always closes April 1 because of grizzly dens near the creek area down low. But, people stop coming and I am sure that is the main reason no matter what they claim. They also say they need to give employees a "release date" and that they can't react due to that. And maybe that's also a factor because a lot of the long time local employees do construction in the summer as it's the natural seasonal shift. They will all be eager to go to their much higher-paying construction jobs. And the kids from South America will have airplane tickets already bought. Whitefish Mountain Resort also has a huge summer business they need to prep for. Believe it or not, they actually have had to bulldoze snow out of the way some years to prep the mountain biking trails. So "grizzlies"? One factor. It sounds cool. (Not saying there aren't any, hell, I know personally they are in the area. I just think that BUSINESS reasons are the bigger factor.)

Day 43. Closing day.

Podcast about Whitefish. If you're podcast-averse, scroll down for an article. https://www.stormskiing.com/p/podcast-120-whitefish-president-nick#details

She was part of the same event. Slapped down on the ground initially by mama griz and my husband ran to save her. He got the brunt of the attack. Pepper spray saved him. The dogs were useless. This happened a 1/4 mile from the house.

Both. Born in Pa, there for 23 or so years (back and forth), 3 in NY, 1 year in Austria, 1 year in CT, then 23 in NJ, now 20 in MT.

We used to hike a bit, but after my husband got attacked and mauled by a grizzly he lost interest in hiking. I mostly garden. We've also sold the boat. Since Covid, the tourist situation has gotten pretty bad. The reservation system at the Park has resulted in more people in town and in the remaining state and national forests as well. I keep hoping they will go back to video games. Now my daughter and son-in-law are avid four season mountain bikers. Whitefish has an extensive trail network in the area plus the stuff at the resort. They live down in the Bitterroot, which also has plenty of trails. He hunts in the fall. There are lakes, rivers, golf courses, galore. Really, you need to ask what isn't here: Sports teams, malls, an interstate, not many museums.

Saw that recently and saved it for the next time someone said, if you're going to Big Sky why don't you go to Whitefish while you're at it. A few years ago a high school classmate told me she was going to be in Denver and how about meeting up.

No RFID here. Real lifties using scanners and generally being friendly to everyone. You know. How it used to be before you were just a number. They actually address you by name occasionally.

Day 35.

We get little bits maybe 5 out of 7 days a week. Big dumps are unusual. The bigger point is, bring your flat light goggles. Sunny days are a gift.

Siblet was just at Kicking Horse. The place looked huge. They did a lot of hiking. Gorgeous pics.

Day 32

Absolutely phenomenal day. Sunny and no crowds. Perfect 12°F at 11 AM. Day 31 Canyon Creek Ridge Run North Bowl Face and the Ant Hill Ptarmigan Bowl

Me neither.

A friend of mine ran into your group at the hot tub. He's here from NC.

Freshies here. Unfortunately I spent the morning meeting people who didn't all want to meet up at the same time. 10:00, 11:00, 11:30 (with a late appearance, so take a run and try again at noon). Like I'd like to move to another lift, not keep coming back to the summit.

They all have names, but since those names have changed over the years, it's easier to just call them by their numbers. There's a couple that are called by their area in the resort on occasion. It's easier to call something "chair 1" than "Glacier Chaser", or whatever the latest name is. (Looked it up, now "Big Mountain Express", a real mouthful.)

Chair 3 would drive me nuts. SSSLLL000WWW and gets you 441(?) feet of vertical per ride. I guess it's better than 9.