It was the kind of ski day you dream about; the kind of day you wish you could have every day you ski. The snow had fallen straight down overnight, letting Montana's famous "one-percent cold smoke" flakes stack up on top of each other like intricate building blocks. A complete lack of wind on lower mountain helped the fragile piles of snow grow thigh to waist deep in spots. When the rope dropped at 9 AM, powder panic quickly transformed into powder bliss, as skiers and riders loaded up the Iron Horse chair and spread themselves around the mountain. I beelined for Lone Tree chair, where a gentle northwest breeze had borrowed snow from higher elevations and deposited it on Lone Tree Face. As I rode up, I watched giddy skiers and riders submerge themselves in blower powder; emerge, their face white with snow; and re-submerge again. Hoots and hollers could be heard from all directions as I neared the top, re-igniting my powder panic. I scrambled through the deep snow to a gladed section, where the panic subsided into frosty delirium. Turn after turn blew big fat flakes into my face, blinding me for just a split second. I shook it off, spit out a big mouthful of snow, and dove in again. Over and over this cycle repeated until I hit the cat track at the bottom. Lap after lap accrued until I thought I could take no more, until I looked at the clock. Huh. It was only10:15 am, and I already had 6 Lone Tree laps under my belt. Time to check out the rest of the mountain, I figured. The long laps from Lone Tree down to the 6 Shooter chair had just opened one after the next; Whiskey Trees, Broken Heart, Shaftway... spent on my 24th day of skiing this season, I staggered into the Moonlight Lodge to warm up in front of the majestic stone fireplace. The murmurings from folks riding at neighboring Big Sky Resort indicated that it was epic there as well.
Never had I experienced such amazing snow conditions anywhere on opening day; nor had I even dreamed that it could be this good. We're just getting started with this ski season, folks... it's going to be a great season in Southwest Montana. Thank you Moonlight Basin! Bring it on, Winter! http://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=10151286900559281&set=a.130840134280.94738.53242774280&type=1&theater
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