Cypress 2016/17

[Alton]

Day 68 - Sunny POW morning with Rob F, Marc and Rob W. 15 cm of virgin fresh after hiking up to the Raven Chair and even more down the secret run down to the parking lot. Sky Chair was also fantastic in the trees. Gradually heavier at lower elevations but still plenty of fun.

#photo Marc and Rob F riding down from Raven Chair

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[drh]

Well, I didn't think it was worth going up to Cypress today but thought I might as well since there's only a few days left. I left home a bit later than usual and took my time on the drive up. Got to the lodge parking lot about 8:20 AM and for a brief moment thought the hill might be closed. There were only five cars in the lot. I listened to the radio for 15 minutes then put my skis on. The only other person there was Derrick (snowboarder) and there was no staff manning the gate. We waited for a couple of minutes but no one showed up so we sauntered over to the Lions chair which opened at 9 AM. Turned out to be a great treat today. There was about 5 cm of new snow at the bottom but 15 cm at mid mountain. A terrific surprise. Had great fresh tracks on upper Bowen then was first down Slash. Next lap I did Moons which was fabulous. Next run I went down upper & lower Rainbow, followed by Moons again where I still had fresh tracks for 75% of the run. Lucked out as they opened the Sky chair around 9:30 AM, just seconds before I arrived there. There was 20 cm of fresh snow up top and had great first tracks down Tomcat, followed by Ripcord. Decided to take T33 and take a look at Top Gun. I couldn't believe it as there were only three tracks showing. Conditions were amazing - about half way down Top Gun I stuck my pole in the snow and it went a third of the way in. Soft with just enough moisture to add to the float with the fat skis. Went back up again for another lap and still got in a lot of fresh turns the second time down Top Gun.

Today was like being at a private ski hill as there were so few people there. Called it quits around 11 AM as it started to get foggy and most areas were skied out by then. When I pulled out of the lodge lot at 11:30 there was still some empty parking spots there and no one (other than staff) in the #1 lot.

[drh]

The Cypress 6:30 AM report on their website said they had received 17 cm in 24 hours. However, the webcam snow stake at the bottom of the hill only showed about 3 cm. Hmmmm. Went up anyways and arrived in the parking lot around 8. It actually snowed heavily for a brief period before stopping. They opened the Lions chair a bit early but it was very foggy. Went down Humpty which was nicely groomed with a thin layer of fresh snow on top. On the next run the visibility was better so went down upper Bowen (good) then Slash which was ok, but somewhat firm and bumpy underneath. Figured the day might end up being mediocre but did Moons on the next run which was great - about 15 cm of smooth, soft, untracked snow. When I went back up I saw that they had just opened the Sky chair. I started to go down Tomcat but bailed as it was so foggy it was hard to see even close to the trees. Went down T33 then Top Gun. The first pitch was great but it got harder and bumpier lower down. Just after 10 AM I headed over to the Eagle chair but there was a group of about 15 people leaving the lift area saying they had still not opened. The Eagle chair had been closed all of yesterday (to save money) so there was all of the fresh snow from two days waiting to be skied. The liftee said they were having an electrical problem as lightning had knocked out a battery system last night. I decided to wait and within about 60 seconds they opened. I had all of the Eagle terrain to myself for a few minutes before anyone realized it was running. There was about 20 cm of fresh powder on the sides of upper Fork. Upper Jasey Jay was ungroomed and untouched - as well as the right side of lower Jasey Jay. Got in three great laps on upper Jasey Jay. It would have been worth driving up to Cypress just for that. Lower Fork had been groomed but they had left Cascade untouched. Around 10:45 I decided to do the Olympic slope for my last run which was great - and all fresh tracks. It was starting to feel a bit heavier as the temperature was rising, but it was still fabulous with the fat skis. The top parts of all of Raven Ridge would have been terrific for those willing to hike out, at least untill it got too warm.

[Alton]

Day 69 - In the spirit of day "69", I came down on Maelle Ricker twice. Velvety dusting made for a smooth sensuous ride. Then came down on Ashleigh McIvor. What a bitch! Rough bumpy ride.

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[drh]

Nice day with a couple of cm's of fresh snow on pretty good grooming. Rather foggy at times. Did several laps on Humpty Dumpty which was very enjoyable. Gobbled down excellent lunch specials along with Alton & Tony.

[LeopardSkin]

With an alpine high temperature of 7°, Sunday afternoon would be good for the tailgate picnic party right after the Slush Cup.

https://www.facebook.com/events/760209127449754/

[Brian C]

Afternoon shift -130 to 4 - was very good. The skies cleared enough for good vis and the snow was soft everywhere.

We won't be able to make it up for the tailgate party tomorrow but hopefully the weather is okay for burgers on Monday.

[Alton]

Day 70 - Maybe my last session at Cypress this season. Snowboarding 1.5 hrs with Rob F, Tony, Patrick and Marc before I had to leave. Too bad I couldn't stay for the tailgate party and Slush cup.

#photo Tony and Patrick

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[Alton]

Day 71 - Foggy morning (1hr) of skiing with ulterior motive of getting wax (storage wax) and edge on my snowboard and skis before packing them away. Enjoyed the free hamburger with Dale (Jerry's nephew) over lunch ... yummy!

[Brian C]

Closed the resort down this afternoon. Started with a free burger on the patio, since I noticed an old friend there when I went by. We then skied Lions Chair for a couple hours, until just before 4. Most consistent light was on humpy dumpty, but Gibson's to Rainbow was often good too. Got hit by one rain squall for a couple runs - luckily it stopped just soon enough to keep us skiing. Unskied snow got sticky after the rain but well travelled areas stayed very nice.
Fun to have skied the first and last days of this awesome season. Did 41 Cypress days plus 9 (so far) at Whistler. The most I've skied since we had kids!
Now bring on the warm winds of Spring!!