The Blog

February 15, 2021 Après-ski may look a little different this year – crowded slopeside bars are operating with extremely limited capacity, closed entirely or only allowing their hotel guests. While this certainly changes the whole experience, skiers throughout the country have adapted quite nicely to the “new normal” and created their own parking lot après-ski […]

February 7, 2021 7:30 AM Mad River Glen Report for February 3rd: 18 degrees; freezing drizzle upper mountain; snow flurries at base; “biting” north wind 10-20 mph; no new snow Me: Probably no need to get first chair! My brother: Ah come on, the west has spoiled you. I bet the wind has blown in […]

Avalanche that caught and killed three skiers in southern Colorado (photo from Colorado Avalanche Information Center) UPDATE February 8, 20201 Since writing my original post I, unfortunately, have a few additions to the below tragedies which we shared on February 5th.  This includes one in our own backyard here in the Wasatch that has truthfully […]

February 1, 2021 While we like to think of our sport as serene and peaceful, every once in a while there is some anger out there. Sharing odds and ends in ski news you may have missed from this past week. California Snowstorm – as predicted (see our article CA Mother of All Storms) this […]

Up on the Rooftop: Deep Snow at Meyers, South Lake Tahoe, April 1969  (Photo Credit: Mark McLaughlin) January 6, 2021 At first we thought it was a typo! In checking the weather predictions and ski reports for the week, Mammoth in southern CA was slated to get 110 inches. But there it was – a […]

January 18, 2021 Most of the ski industry has been open and largely functioning since early December. We thought it was, therefore, a good time to check around the country on the effects of Covid on the sport. The good news is that we seem unlikely to see a complete shutdown of the industry like […]

January 14, 2021 With major resort restrictions this season it comes at no surprise that the backcountry has seen a boom in skiers and splitboarders throughout the country. Aside from not needing a lift ticket (or parking reservation), backcountry skiing is great exercise and an excellent way to socialize in a world of socially distancing. […]

January 8, 2021 What does a Pacific Ocean weather buoy, the Grateful Dead and Utah powder have in common? (This is not a trick question!) We explain below. I was on the Wildcat lift at Alta when I first heard about this weird internet post called Powder Buoy. Wildcat, affectionately known as “The Kitty”, is […]

January 5, 2021 From time to time we like to pause and take a look at what parts of North America have received snow and who is getting skunked. We are fans of road trips to be able to quickly go where there is snow. The Covid world may have changed that a bit, but […]

Doug Coombs looking for a line in Alaska. Photo: Scott Markewitz These holiday time periods can often be a bit of a blur. Days can be spent with family, just eating carbs and cheese for breakfast, lunch and dinner. We’ve been lucky enough to spend the last few days on skis and enjoying low key […]

It was almost fourteen years ago that I recognized I needed an excuse to get to the mountain.  The kids had outgrown skiing with dad, and my wife never took to the sport.  It would be far too easy to look out the window on a Saturday morning, decide it was too cold, too gray […]

Dreaming of traveling? Adventure mavens are foaming at the mouth to get out of their homes and off on an exploration. With borders to Canada closed and much of the world shuttered to Americans, travelers are looking within the US to quench their thirst. Alaska Backcountry Guides (“ABG”) seeks to draw you in and offer […]

December 20, 2020 Yep folks – that first word is “Eastern!” With all the focus on western sun and powder, it can be easy to forget that much of skiing culture was first developed on the east coast.  So…there are actually a couple fun ski movies filmed in the east to watch right now.  If […]