Going to the vail,beavercreek area next week & sure like the pic of snowshoe,wv over the pic of the village & ski rink at B-CK.The west va alps have recieved almost 40" the last 2 weeks where as vail has posted 16".I don't see any powder dumps in the near future for CO WUZZZ UPPP???

I think it's the el nino, la nina cycle and we are in the colder/wetter side of things these day on the east coast. So we have all their water.

Actually I read that on the web on one of the weather sites last year so in fact I don't know what I am really talking about and I am not a climatologist -- I merely play one in this forum! ;-)

Still I think you'll find the terrain greatly exceeds what we have here with or without lots of fresh powder.

Enjoy!

One thing you have to remember is that if Vail gets 12 inches, they have it for a long time, especially at the top of the mountain. Plus, its a much better quality snow.

The other thing to remember is they are SPOILED ROTTEN OUT THERE and you are used to skiing on rocks painted white here. I have been out west 4-5 times and the locals are always complaining about the lack of 10 ft of pure fresh champagne powder... WHINE WHINE WHINE, I say. Regardless of that, I found the conditions there to be vastly superior to conditions here 99% of the time...

So short of painted rocks, I think you'll have a great time, and still a good time if they just have paint on them.

:-)

Thanks for the positive posts!This is my 1st venture out west.I know the lack of fresh powder will be offset by the terrain & views.I will feel bad for my funny little honey because allthough I don't see any dumps of powder in our future she assures me that all of her clients have told her she will have to learn how to ski in powder,like its a GIVEN! I keep hearing about this 6 to 12 dump but all i see are light snow showers.I think that snow will be falling east of the devide.Anyway if i can't have powder then give me & everybody else some bluebird days!!PS after this I'm building my chalet in WV & rooting on the dev of MOUNT PORTE CRAYON (ALMOST HEAVEN)

Off-piste, upper slopes, in the trees, there's almost definitely powder... even now. But maybe the easier to get to places have been "tracked out" as they say... But on the groomed main trails, or the semi-groomed and even the more widely accessible ungroomed, the powder may be largely non-existent. BUT, powder is different... I found 2 ft to be quite challenging to ski in (already covered to death on some other thread) for a first timer. However, I quickly adapted to 6 inches or less... this was on the regular trails and not the off trail stuff.
Generally from what I can tell, the complaints about the lack of powder really center on certain terrain being accessable and skiable vs rocky and possibly more dangerous (or even unskiable) without a few feet of the soft stuff all over it...
I think you'll probably have more than enough to keep you occupied regardless of that experience but it would be cool if you got a good dump one day when you are there. Also you can take the bus between vail & beaver creek and try something else for a day. at least when i was there the tickets were interchangable. Check out www.snow.com -- you can order up your tix online for a small discount using the Peak program.

... well .... my next door neighbor in CO are ok but we are getting all the snow here in UT ... tee hee be there or be square!

Yah? I am going out first week of march! Where are you?

I'll be in Beaver Creek and Vail next week too. My brother lives in Boulder and told me yesterday that they are forecasting 12 inches in the next couple of days. Maybe there is hope.

I was out in Utah last week. The locals were saying conditions were not that great. I my opinion, I had a blast! There were still freshies to be found and the tracked up powder was still nice and soft vs the east coast concrete...

-Warren-

If you live out there you probably don't want to ski all the time after the first year or so (assuming you moved from outside the region). The mountains, the snow - it's there, it's not going anywhere, etc... So after awhile you start to only want to ski on the really good days... you crave the big powder days ... that's just a guess, plus it probably knocks the tourists down a bit as they can't ski in that stuff or don't know where to go on the mountain to find the "really good stuff"

It wasn't 12" but vail got 8 & the beav got 6 so I guess it will still be there as you all say.Arriving sat nite & will try to get used to the alt sun.I think my tickets are good for vail,BC,Keystone,brek Copper? I'll just stick to vail,BC. My girl skis a little slow & its our 10 year anv. So in other words I'm not going to be able to bust loose to often,So we will have more than enough sking.If i come back divorced you know i couldn't resist the call of the wild!!

Yeah take the bus around and it is worth it maybe to try one or the other. Vail has the terrain that's for sure, the back bowls are super cool. and then there's the mountain behind this that i never quite made it too. BC is a little more laid back i think ski wise, although fancier pants in the village area. Look for hot chocolate chip cookies being given out at the main lift AM! (yeah its snooty what can i say!)
I cannot remember names but i recommend going way over around to right which has some easier blue groomers that are long with some small blacks tossed in here and there -- you two can ski together and not end up divorced! The main bowl there is pretty cool, cannot remember the name of that either. While overall easier the BC BIRDs OF PREY are supposed to be super STEEP and are used on World Cup downhill/super g (i think) circuit. I did go down the center run on that mountain which wasn't too bad but it was icy and scraped off and i didn't venture back. The other runs next to it are even steeper. VAIL: CHINA BOWL good blues down the middle, some easier tree skiing off to one side, some moguls and stuff off the other. THe other bowls nearby looked really cool but did not venture in. I was just there 1 day so its hard to recommend much more. Big place, lots to ski! Some crowds though.. ;-(

Andy-- whatever Vail and BC have is gotta be better than the mess that's coming our way tonight. The forecast for south central PA is significant ice accumulation, and heavy rains in WV. Have a blast out there and don't let it corrupt you too much! If it does we will lose our staunchest Almost Heaven advocate.

Having just returned from Vail/Beaver Creek, I don't think you have to worry. Once they've got that solid base which they do now, they just need a couple of inches periodically to keep it fresh. The conditions were pretty dicey the day before we got there, but 10 inches that first night and we were set for the rest of the week. You may not be in deep powder, but you'll have an amazing time.

If your looking for the blues (so to speak) to ski with the lady, at Beaver Creek Latigo is an excellent blue warm up run which is at its best first thing in the morning. After that, head over to Harrier which is a more challenging blue and a great little cruiser. The blue into Rose bowl is nice as well, but the lift out of rose bowl is slow and there could be a line on the weekend. (If you get a break from coupling, Golden Eagle (the top of the WC downhill run) at Beaver Creek is a blast. Steep (but not too steep) and very fast.

At Vail, my favorite warm up blue run is Dealer's Choice in Game Creek Bowl. Again, there's only one way out of the bowl so check the lift lines out of the bowl before you go in. Finally, you must get over to Blue Sky Basin and ski Grand Review. One of the prettiest blue runs I've skied.

I have a lot of friends who live in the Vail valley. When were looking for cruisers we usually start at chair 2 and make huge arcs on Avanti, Pickeroon, Lodgepole and Columbine. From the top of chair 2 you can see what the crowds are like at mid Vail, if its not crowded make your way to chair 4 for cruising on Whistlepig, Expresso and Cappucino. If mid Vail is crowded and theres been recent snow then head for the back bowls where Bolshoi Ballroom, Poppyfields and Chopstix get groomed frequently. You can find one or two trails groomed at Blue Sky, usually Cloud 9 and I think occasionally The Star.

If its a powder day get out early and head straight for Blue Sky where the northernish exposure yields freshies galore. The back bowls are very nice as well but the southern exposure eventually ends up creating sun crust. The bowls also tend to get tracked out pretty quickly. Enjoy the views of the Gore Range and The Mt. of the Holy Cross and dont forget to stop by the Kaltenburg Castle for happy hour liters and soft pretzels.

For myself & anybody heading there now or in the near future THANKS! I'm syked..The blues are def where i'll be.I'm an ind contracter & if i don't work I don't get paid.Some of the blues are really blacks i guess anyway.I'll ski the blues fast though...Always did like the downhill.Bieng the 1st time in the rockies I'll probably be like a japanese tourist snapping pics at every turn!

Warren - I have to laugh at who ever said conditions are not rulin' in UT .... pluee-eee-eeeze! This is probably the best in at least 5 years .... for the first time in 5 years the snowpacks are at +100% what they should be (that from KSL Channel 5 TV) and this week we had a nice little pow day ... not 3 1/2 feet like we had a X-mas but 6"-8" of "ego pow" that anyone can have fun in. And it is snowing today !!!!! :-)