Today I gathered together all my necessary ski garb and hit the slopes for the first time in the 2009/10 ski season. I usually don't like to go out on weekends, but I made an exception because there has been some great snow in Keystone for the past few days and I knew there was at least an 18 inch base.
The snow in Keystone is surprisingly good. Compared to last year Keystone is at least 3 weeks ahead of where it was then. More slopes are open and there is plenty of room to move around. Keystone has opened a mini-terrain park at the top of Dercum Mountain. To call it a mini-park is actually understating the fact. It is about have as large as the Area 51 terrain park that will open a little later in the season (probably mid-December).
As for my ski experience, I took out my trusty Volkel AC 30's, which have fantastic cutting abilities. I figured I would need this feature because I was prepared for very icy runs. Well I was wrong. There was very little ice on the slopes in Keystone today. There was a lot of fresh powder and man made snow. There were light snow showers in Keystone all day, but even better the temperatures have remained below freezing for the last few days and the sun has not been showing through much, hence the minimal ice.
I was just getting warmed up for the season. So I took about 6 or 7 runs from the top of Dercum Mountain to the River Run base area. If you have not skied Keystone before, this about a 3000 foot drop. There is a lot to do on a run the long. There were several intermediate slopes open, but they were more fun than usual because there were dozens of little jumps and moguls on the edges of these runs. Later in the season a lot of these features will either get filled in because the advanced skiers will not be usings these runs much or the snow cats will groom them. I think it is very smart the way things are setup in Keystone right now. Even though only a few runs are open there is a lot to do for all levels of skiers.
Based on my estimation of the main skier parking lot today November 15, 2009 was the busiest ski day in Keystone since it opened on November 5th. I was expecting long lift lines and extremely crowded conditions on the mountain. On the contrary, on my first run I had to wait about 2 minutes to get on the Summit Express. Then I decided to try each of the other lifts to see what the lines were like. At the bottom of River Run, there was about a 8 minute wait at about 12:30 p.m. This is one of the busiest times of day. So I would say that is pretty good. Then my next run, I took the mid-station gondola and the line was about 5 minutes. After that I decided to stick with the Summit Express at the bottom of River Run and I never waited more than 1 minute to get on the lift.
I also had an opportunity to look at the snow accumulation on some of the ski runs in Keystone that are not yet open. They are looking pretty good. One of my favorite runs, Bachelor, looks like it should have enough snow in the next few days. This run has massive man made snow making abilities. I think it is just a matter of turning on the snow guns for a couple of nights and it will be ready to go.
I noticed that Keystone has modified at least part of its ski school setup for this year. In previous years the little baby hills with the magic carpet was right next to the Summit Express at the bottom of the River Run base area. Keystone Resort has moved this setup to the mid-station gondola area and I think it is a much better setup. It dramatically reduces congestion at the River Run base, which was a serious issue in the past.
One negative thing to note, Keystone has seen fit to make it even more difficult for you to stay hydrated without paying a fortune for a drink. In the past, I was able to pick up a large cup and fill it with water from the water fountain. I usually bring some powdered sports drink to add to the water. Now The Summit House will not give out these cups. They direct you to the back of the cafeteria area and allow you to have a cup that holds about 3 onces of water. Thanks Vail Resorts!
Posted by Karen on 11/16/2009 12:45:02 AM 0 Comments