Timberline Dec 29 - Jan 1
Posted: Mon Jan 12, 2015 9:52 pm
First off, I want to say a big thank you to everyone here for the great advice on the trip. I tried to post this while we were still up there, but the internet kept dropping out. Better late than never, I suppose.
Anyway, we got up there the Saturday after Christmas. We had a house off of Lower Salamander ("The Haven", big green metal roof). Sunday was low 40s and drizzling, so we spent the day relaxing, waiting for the rest of the crew to arrive, trip into Davis, a little tubing at Canaan. Sunday evening we went to Ski Barn and picked up our gear.
View from behind the house on Salamander
Forecast for Monday was mid to upper 30s and rainy, but when we got up the temps were in the 20s with some cloud cover and a very light drizzle. I think the forecast kept the crowds away, because we went pretty much all day and there was very little congestion and we rarely had to wait more than a chair or two. The snow was better than I thought it would be; a little lumpy in places, but not bad overall.
We just walked out back and went down Salamander. In retrospect, I should have driven down to the bottom that first day; it was my oldest's first time on the snow, and a wider slope would have been good for him to start on. Got them a couple of lessons each that first day, and even though I put them in group lessons they ended up being 1 on 1. Instructors were all excellent.
Temps started dropping Monday night, and they turned the guns on. The rest of the week was very cold (-10 on top of the mountain Wednesday morning), so the guns were going pretty much our whole stay. The slopes were freshly groomed every morning from Tuesday on. The snow quality was very good for southeast skiing (for what I'm used to anyway). Crowds started to build on Tuesday, and it got a little congested down around the bottom, but we still were able to get on the lifts pretty quickly. I don't think I ever waited much longer than 5 minutes for a lift. Then again, the best part of having a place on the slopes was being able to take a break for an hour or so during the busiest times of the day.
They didn't have much of the mountain open - really only 3 ways down from the top: salamander (green), upper dew drop (blue), and upper white lightning (black). Winterset was opened on our last day there, and the website said that Off the Wall was opened that day, but it was roped off every time I rode by. If I was alone, or with some of my skier friends, I would have been pretty bored after the second day, and would have gone to Canaan or made a day trip to snowshoe. However, everyone else in the group was happy with what was open at Timberline, and it was so easy to get on and off the slopes that we stayed there for all 4 days of skiing. Most of the crew was content to just go up and down Salamander. I did my youngest on Upper Dew Drop the last day, and he loved it. However, since we stayed there, I did three days on a snowboard before switching over to skis. I have to say, I feel it's starting to click for me.
Bottom line, is everyone had a great time. Surprisingly little drama in the house (which is a big deal for my family in tight quarters). Kids are hooked, and wife realized just how much she had missed it (she hadn't been in 12 years).
Anyway, we got up there the Saturday after Christmas. We had a house off of Lower Salamander ("The Haven", big green metal roof). Sunday was low 40s and drizzling, so we spent the day relaxing, waiting for the rest of the crew to arrive, trip into Davis, a little tubing at Canaan. Sunday evening we went to Ski Barn and picked up our gear.
View from behind the house on Salamander
Forecast for Monday was mid to upper 30s and rainy, but when we got up the temps were in the 20s with some cloud cover and a very light drizzle. I think the forecast kept the crowds away, because we went pretty much all day and there was very little congestion and we rarely had to wait more than a chair or two. The snow was better than I thought it would be; a little lumpy in places, but not bad overall.
We just walked out back and went down Salamander. In retrospect, I should have driven down to the bottom that first day; it was my oldest's first time on the snow, and a wider slope would have been good for him to start on. Got them a couple of lessons each that first day, and even though I put them in group lessons they ended up being 1 on 1. Instructors were all excellent.
Temps started dropping Monday night, and they turned the guns on. The rest of the week was very cold (-10 on top of the mountain Wednesday morning), so the guns were going pretty much our whole stay. The slopes were freshly groomed every morning from Tuesday on. The snow quality was very good for southeast skiing (for what I'm used to anyway). Crowds started to build on Tuesday, and it got a little congested down around the bottom, but we still were able to get on the lifts pretty quickly. I don't think I ever waited much longer than 5 minutes for a lift. Then again, the best part of having a place on the slopes was being able to take a break for an hour or so during the busiest times of the day.
They didn't have much of the mountain open - really only 3 ways down from the top: salamander (green), upper dew drop (blue), and upper white lightning (black). Winterset was opened on our last day there, and the website said that Off the Wall was opened that day, but it was roped off every time I rode by. If I was alone, or with some of my skier friends, I would have been pretty bored after the second day, and would have gone to Canaan or made a day trip to snowshoe. However, everyone else in the group was happy with what was open at Timberline, and it was so easy to get on and off the slopes that we stayed there for all 4 days of skiing. Most of the crew was content to just go up and down Salamander. I did my youngest on Upper Dew Drop the last day, and he loved it. However, since we stayed there, I did three days on a snowboard before switching over to skis. I have to say, I feel it's starting to click for me.
Bottom line, is everyone had a great time. Surprisingly little drama in the house (which is a big deal for my family in tight quarters). Kids are hooked, and wife realized just how much she had missed it (she hadn't been in 12 years).