Ski Bum Poet

We have a New Year’s Blue Moon. And there’s powder snow at Alta. Not too shabby, eh? I heard this story on NPR this morning on my way to the office:

A Blue Moon is a full moon that is not timed to the regular monthly pattern, and results in two full moons in one lunar cycle. It happens once on average about every 2.5 years. But a New Year’s Blue Moon only happens once every 19 years. The last one was in 1990, and the next will be in 2028.

Considering it’s stormy in the Wasatch…which NO ONE is complaining about…there probably won’t be too many hippies skiing the full moon tomorrow night. But keep this rarity in mind during the celebration.

Happy New Year!

Here is a little info from someone in the know, about the coming storm. Looks good…we sure could use it in the Wasatch. Looks like Wednesday morning might be the one…National Weather Service Alta, UT

Looks like its coming in right side up. The first foot is a little heavy- around 8% and the second foot is supposed to be around 3%- the high for Wed, when it’s done, is 11. Light winds. Sounds like facies to me.

See ya soon Jim!

I’ve paid the price two times in two days on high boy. It’s been good exploring on low snowpak. That’s important at Alta. When the powder comes you can take all you want, but always be willing to pay the price when there’s none.

This is an offer that’s direct from Patagonia.com, and I quote “Till December 22 we are offering free 2-Day Shipping on any order over $100″…

(Patagonia promo featured in the ski gear deals category)

People who read Ski Bum Poet generally know all about Alta and Little Cottonwood Canyon. Yep. But some don’t. And for you folks, here’s a cool little write up on the area quoted direct from the Town of Alta website. It’s pretty much my dream to live up there full time one day…not own a place to only enjoy a few times a year. <--For those in that category.. That there's a shame.

The Town of Alta is a small mountain community located at the top of Little Cottonwood Canyon in the Wasatch-Cache National Forest.

Little Cottonwood Canyon is a west-facing break in the Wasatch mountain range which rises from an elevation of 5,000 feet above sea level at the mouth of the canyon to over 11,000 feet at the top of the watershed.

State Highway 210, a designated Scenic Byway, provides access to Alta from the Salt Lake Valley. The Town itself ranges in elevation from 7,500 ft to 9,500 ft. above sea level.

The Town harbors aspen, spruce, high alpine meadows and lakes, long-lasting snowfields and rocky tundra on granite cliffs. The vast display of over 170 varieties of wildflowers offer a colorful sight between July and September. There are over 40 varieties of birds in the canyon. Deer, moose, coyotes, and a rare mountain lion are the largest of the animals that roam the high country during the year.

An annual average of 500 inches snowfall provides for enthusiastic powder pigs and spectacular downhill skiing extending from November into May. Cross country skiers enjoy an even longer season. Hikers and bikers use the extensive network of trails, snowfields, mountaintops and over passes.

And she already has her Alta pass, so WATCH OUT!

When I first got to know my wife I was introduced to a world of rocks and ages that I never even considered up until that point. Danette studied Geology at USU and her passion for that science was contagious. I still always bug her with silly questions about Geologic time scales and rock formations. So anyways I was checking out the Alta Historical Society website earlier, and how freakin’ cool is this…

During the Wisconsin Glaciation the Wasatch Mountains trapped precipitation in such quantities in the winter that snow remained throughout the year and glaciers formed. These glaciers carved Alta’s distinctive terrain, broad U-shaped valleys, dramatic headwalls, hanging valleys, and steep gulleys. Today the Wasatch Mountains are the first major barrier to storms east of the Sierra Nevada Range. As Pacific storms cross the high desert of Nevada they grow colder and release their moisture as light, fluffy powder on the glacier-groomed slopes of Alta Ski Area, producing some of the finest skiing in the world. The geometry of Little Cottonwood Canyon with Alta at the mountain divide captures every possible flake of snow from passing storms and the “lake effect” of the Great Salt Lake adds to snow totals. The steep north-facing glacial headwalls of Mt. Baldy, Devils Castle and Sugarloaf Peak shade much of the area from sunshine preserving snow quality through much of the winter. All of these features combine to make the foundation of the totally unique Alta experience.

Read more from “Geology & Skiing Experience” and “A Geologist Describes 20 Favorite Runs at Alta” for cool tidbits like…

As you stand above the limestone outcrops at the top of Alf’s High Rustler, take a minute to imagine this place 16,000 years ago. The ice was 1500’ thick, almost up to your skis, two miles across, fifteen miles long and moving an average of about 10’/day.