Loon 4-5-15

[deadheadskier]

Nice to get out on the hill for the first time in a month. I probably should have skied Cannon as it sounds like conditions were fantastic there today where as Loon was basically 2-3" of fresh mank on top of a rock solid base. I was only there for the afternoon, so I only enjoyed the fresh on reserved trails. A couple areas things were a spring like, but overall the snow was just weird; hard, but grabby and not all that fast.

Mainly went to Loon today to ski South Peak as I had never skied it before. Overall it's pretty decent cruising terrain. The trails have some pitch and no intersections which is nice. They're all quite wide, which I guess you need at Loon with their crowd issues. Only legitimate complaint is the lousy run out on Boom run. The area does seem like it has a lot of potential that will likely never be realized. Tons of acreage for tree runs or more trails. And why did they leave all the trees under the lift as 3 foot stumps??? It would make for a decent natural snow trail.


Some pics.

1. Almost, but not quite strip club bumps
2. Nice views today
3. Triple Trouble, which was listed as open, but for some reason was reserved.

 

[deadheadskier]

One really dumb thing I saw today which I had not seen at Loon before (or anywhere else) were these really lame warning signs at several entrances to unmarked glades. Loon is fine with Monster park features that kids can huck themselves 50+ feet through the air off of, but heaven forbid people ski some trees.

 

[Puck it]

One really dumb thing I saw today which I had not seen at Loon before (or anywhere else) were these really lame warning signs at several entrances to unmarked glades. Loon is fine with Monster park features that kids can huck themselves 50+ feet through the air off of, but heaven forbid people ski some trees.

And thus the reason we ski Cannon!

 

[deadheadskier]

Trust me. I think my Loon skiing career is short lived. $29 for a Sunday afternoon is a great deal for what it is, but with policies like the above, I'm clearly not the customer they want.

 

[legalskier]

One really dumb thing I saw today which I had not seen at Loon before (or anywhere else) were these really lame warning signs at several entrances to unmarked glades. Loon is fine with Monster park features that kids can huck themselves 50+ feet through the air off of, but heaven forbid people ski some trees.

And thus the reason we ski Cannon!

I guess a private leaseholder in a national park has the right to restrict such use, but a state facility inside a state park (e.g. Cannon) can't?

(Nice pics, btw.)

 

[frapcap]

Ha, what a sign! I'd be so disappointed about that. Were there tracks showing people ignored it and went in anyway?

 

[deadheadskier]

Ha, what a sign! I'd be so disappointed about that. Were there tracks showing people ignored it and went in anyway?

Yes. This sign in particular was at the entrance to a tree shot that clearly a local had cut. It was off of Haulback. Only reason I didn't enter is I was solo and I'm not sure what the open water issues are like at Loon this time of year.

I've got no problem with Out of Bounds signs saying the terrain isn't patrolled, but threatening pass removal is L-A-M-E.

There was another Loon thread recently about trails there being closed that shouldn't have been. It was the same thing yesterday. Upper Flume, Can't Dog, Big Dipper and Triple Trouble were all roped off. They were actually listed as open on the Trail Report, which isn't cool. All of the trees were roped off as well despite them looking skiable. I poached some of the trails anyways and while the surfaces were piss poor, it was a lot more fun than just railing groomers all afternoon.

I guess Loon's GM is either a former lawyer scared of liability or the Ski Patrol there are extremely lazy and only want to open the difficult terrain when an intermediate skier or rider can navigate it without potentially getting hurt.

It's cool though. They obviously don't need my business. They're the busiest ski area in the state, so clearly there's a market for people who don't care about these issues. It just sucks because the pitch in places at Loon is actually fairly decent. There's potential for some good technical skiing, like down the gondola lift line and with a little clearing of trees in other locations.

 

[skiMEbike]

Yeah...That was my thread (PSA) that I wrote back in March. I had to chuckle when I read your report (sorry you had to endure the pain & suffering also). As a Boyne (New England) passholder, I thought I would at least give them a try...However like you concluded, it will be 1 and done for me....They don't need (nor want) me, and the feeling is mutual. Plus, any Mtn that has a "south peak" north of "north peak" is a sure sign they are backwards in their thinking.

 

[Domeskier]

1. Almost, but not quite strip club bumps

Not a term I've heard before, but they look pretty good.

 

[deadheadskier]

Not a term I've heard before, but they look pretty good.

It's a term I've been saying for years. Moguls that look really good, but you don't want to touch them. Kind of like strippers

They were great zippers for sure, but absolutely hard as a rock as it rained the day prior and froze up over night. The 2" of snow did little to make them all that enjoyable. 1 run and done. True strip club bumps you exit immediately once you touch them.

Had it been 10 degrees warmer, I probably would've spent the whole afternoon right there. Very disappointing. Oh well, weather happens.

 

[Domeskier]

It's a term I've been saying for years. Moguls that look really good, but you don't want to touch them. Kind of like strippers.

Ha! Got it. :grin:

 

[St. Bear]

Moguls that look really good, but you don't want to touch them. Kind of like strippers

That's funny.

 

[chuckstah]

One of the yellow sign glades today. All the trees skiing well with a solid 6 or so inches of high density snow. Inexplicably all roped off!

 

[SnowRider]

Dip into that sign for the gnarliest run at Loon. Rule of thumb at Loon, many of these signs mark unmarked glades & slackcountry (black mtn)

 

[2knees]

This is from 2012? from :36 to about 1:10 is off map. It was excellent. that is my brother in law snowboarding it, or attempting to.

very easy to find this.

 

[deadheadskier]

Nice. If I head back next season, I'll check it out. Despite the lame sign, I'm sure the off map stuff is pretty good