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SPRING'S HARVEST "The uncertain
glory of a spring day." In the cold war among hot skiers and snowboarders, competitive rivalry never runs out of fuel. At Alpine Meadows, in April and May, chairlifts fill with enthusiasts in search of spring's snow harvest. Early morning speed junkies thrill down virgin, corduroy groomed trails, flashing from the top of Alpine's Summit Six chair and its 8,637-foot crest into wide trails and tall transitions. Some carvers lay down tight, free-fall turns in the softened mogul gardens of Waterfall,The Face and the forgiving slush of Kangaroo Ridge. Others challenge one another plunging through the rowdy timber of Peril Ridge and Three Sisters. More than 400 inches of snow blanket the resort each year, and in 1998-99, Alpine recorded a whopping 550 inches. Come springtime, the coverage remains immense. Even better than the snow is the ground it covers. With a high base elevation, 6,837 feet, over 2,000 acres of terrain, and a variety of exposures, Alpine Meadows offers some of North America's toughest to tamest slopes. Especially deluxe are resort runs not directly lift accessed. Here, beyond the buffed beltways of groomed trails and foolproof panoply of cruiser-friendly slopes, lies terrain to make the quads quiver, egos soar, and dreams come true. Traversing the ridges north to the small tongues of spindrift atop Beaver and Estelle Bowls, or hiking south past Alpine Bowl to the breath-stealing views of the Twin Peaks area known as the High Traverse, there rests a delightful cache of big open drops, nifty noses, and daunting steeps the likes of which provide backcountry-style experiences within ski-patrolled boundaries. Described by Alpine Meadows as "Adventure Zones," these areas, containing mostly south and southeast exposures, arguably deliver the best spring skiing in the Tahoe Basin, perhaps the country, especially when Sierra Nevada snow and California sunshine combine to create the perfect corn snow. "There's no other place for better snow conditions in the spring than Alpine Meadows," explains Robyn Scarton. Scarton, a transplant from the San Cristo Mountains of New Mexico, holds a PSIA Level 3 and instructs with the Alpine Meadows ski school. "Alpine's terrain has more aspects than discovered at most other resorts. Follow the sun and you're in for the best corn skiing found anywhere." Because of its coastal proximity and intense early morning sunshine the Sierra Nevada is blessed with corn snow: loose ice-like granules the size of corn kernels. Cornology is the product of the freezing of nights and sunny, warm days typical of spring at the high elevations. Corn snow is the perfect carving surface skiers crave. And at Alpine Meadows, its multiple exposures allow corn snow to be discovered in all directions depending on the time of the day. "We'll open the eastern and southern slopes early in the morning and then close them as soon as they start softening. Towards noon the western slopes off of Lakeview and Scott chairs start getting good and everybody will head there. The lift crews follow the sun like everyone else, working one chair to the next," explains Larry Heywood, Alpine's Director of Mountain Operations. Alpine's kingdom of corn image is so nationally recognized it's become inflated into a commodity. Its favorable conditions attract enough people for the resort to stay open well into May if not June. "The company's attitude was to stay open into May. No other area would take the time and money to cultivate there snow, like throw salt onto runout areas of lifts, till it, and make a base," says Bob Belden, a former Alpine Meadows patrolman. "Patrolling was a hoot. Everyone is in a good mood, the sun's out, it's warm. It's the kind of duty you wanted." Management gets into the spirit of promotion by offering a discounted lift ticket to whomever arrives with a can of corn to donate to local food banks. Last spring the resort collected over three thousand cans of food. As a result, preserving the resort's famed crop of snow is key. "You try for an absolute natural smooth surface. Ideally, you don't want tracks so the snow doesn't have to settle out. Allow people on it after it gets soft and it quickly gets bumped out, freezes into ruts, and will never smooth out until the next storm," says Heywood. "Some days, depending on surface conditions, we'll open some slopes for only two hours, sometimes only an hour, sometimes one run. In late spring, when it doesn't freeze at night, we may not even open some sections of the mountain to preserve the slope." Closures to skiable terrain can be understandably frustrating for those visiting from outside the area. A wet storm dropping two to four inches will take the High Traverse sometimes several days to set up, the extent of some people's holiday. The High Traverse, Estelle, and Beaver Bowls also add up to over 600 acres of the resort's overall terrain, cutting down on choices of what to ski or ride when closed. "For passholders it's no problem, but it can be unfortunate for someone who is just visiting for the day," Heywood admits." We get phone calls, "Do you think it will corn tomorrow?' Managing your snow is always for the bigger picture." For some, the temptation is just too much. Indeed, looking over the full glory of the High Traverse's expanse makes one want to dive into its endless basin, leaving long rivulets of linked turns upon fresh snow. There is a kind of magnetism that draws the boards past closed signs towards Twin Peaks' outstretched arms. And for snowboarders who get hooked on the surge of slush the lure is even more intoxicating. "Perfect corn is pretty dreamy to ride on, but it's still fun when it goes to mush," explains Tom Burt, a world class snowboarder and international adventurer who each year hosts a spring snowboard contest at Alpine Meadows. "People want to play, and until you've been introduced to the process of springtime corn it's a bummer to have the best areas of the mountain closed." Alpine's ski patrol takes its snow management as seriously as its snow safety/ avalanche control. In fact, if they didn't have their spring program these areas could become avalanche problems "Wet slides in spring are as dangerous as mid-winter snow. The only difference is being buried in sunglasses instead of hat and goggles," explains senior patrolman Steve Raab. Come spring, patrol utilizes signs at the bottom and top of lifts to let people know if an area is open or not. They even rope off and gate some areas with signage such as in Lower Beaver Bowl. Ski patrolmen are constantly checking conditions, listening to feedback from skiers and making sure closed areas aren't poached. Fortunately, most of Alpine's prime corn rests in areas that need to be traversed into or hiked. The result is easier control and closure of terrain. "A lot of people don't understand the cultivating proces and sometimes you get tired busting people going through closed signs into the High Traverse, recalls Belden." We'd tape a radio to a bamboo pole and sit at Summit with binaculars. When we saw prospective poachers we'd yell into the radio "Don't do that!" The person would stop, look around wondering, but always turn back into the ski area." "Educating people to the value of our program is the biggest challenge. And even if we have to close off an area until the next day there is still always plenty of other resort terrain open," Heywood says. "We look at skiing corn as a reward for winter. To preserve and save it we need to cultivate the crop so to speak. When the sun is out and the snow surface is just right it's time for harvest. There's no better ski experience." |