Pow pow pow – Powder snow in Whistler

Powder in Whistler

March is the month of snow in Whistler, and I must say we have got a lot of snow!

The first day of spring offered mild frost and roads covered in snow in the morning. It have been snowing almost every day of the month and it is now 367 cm deep. During the last 7 days we have had 165 cm of freshies, accumulating to a total of 1.165 cm over the season – yes 11 and a half meters!

One night we got 35 cm which had everybody set for an amazing powder day – unfortunately there was a blizzard, and most of the resort was closed. That meant that we woke up on Friday to 55 cm  of untouched snow. I was in line for the lifts at 7 am – well I put down my snowboard there, and went for breakfast. At 8.15 the craze begun, and peaceful winter wonderland feeling was replaced by an every-man-for-himself kinda vibe. I was among the first 20 up there, and had 2 runs before they opened the glacier. Most people seemed to go for Ruby Bowl, since it is the only one visible. I managed to find my way to Wild Side. This was probably the best run I have ever had – only 3 people had gone before me.

blackcomb glacier - my favorite spot for riding powder in Whistler

A week before that we had the first dedicated powder day. Mike and I got up early, and was ready by the lift at 7 am. We were 10th in line, and over the next one hour and 15 minutes the line grew all the way through town. We took a few quick laps, before I got in linefor the lift to the glacier with 3 of the guys from the house. We waited for around and hour, before it finally opened in a roar of excitement and ski bindings clicking in.

We were quite far back in the line, and when we got off at the top, it was a race to Spanky’s Ladder, which was the target for the day. People spread out at the top of Glacier Express, so there weren’t many people ahead of us. It was another hour before patrollers had cleared out avalanches on the other side of the ridge. I the meantime many people killed time drinking Fireballs (cinnamon whiskey) and smoking joints.

The ride down was absolutely amazing – without doubt the best run of my life at the time – unfortunately the footage from there wasn’t great due to the fog. I was tripped by a few small tree tops barely reaching out of the snow, when I dropped from a stone. That part you can see…

There will be an update during the week that isn’t just about snowboarding (but likely still partly about snowboarding).

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