Memorial Day Skiing
Alpental opened for another weekend! The skiing was not good, but I had to go up there and at least make a couple runs to say that I skied on Memorial Day weekend. The forecast was sketchy, but the day ended up being gorgeous. Once I saw how sloppy the snow was, I turned into a tourist and snapped a bunch of pictures. I stayed for a couple hours, but the views were worth it.
The weather is about 70 degrees and the skies were blue. I started off skiing in shorts and a t-shirt, but quickly learned that snow goes straight down your boots on every turn. I quickly headed back to the car and put on snow pants, and I grabbed my outer shell too since it was still a little chilly in some spots.
I can count on one hand the days when it has been clear enough to see from Rainier in the south to Baker in the north and this one was one of them! Rainier shows up in a couple photos but unfortunately I didn't get a picture of Baker.
I had another skiing first: fresh slush lines. I saw a large line of untouched snow. It had melted smooth since the last time Alpental was open last Sunday. While it wasn't as fun as thigh-deep powder, it was a very interesting experience.
You can see some photos in the gallery. And since I'm so obsessed with the panorama feature in Windows Live Photo Gallery, I took three panoramas. The last one here is my favorite. You can click them all for a larger view, but be forewarned: the files are big!
