 brian
brian
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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brian, great photos! where is everyone!? this is a holiday week so where on earth is everyone. It looks like you had the whole place to yourself! Very jealous, I wish I could sneak off work for a day up there.
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Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
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PS the weather forecast on BBC Scotland tonight was NOT promising at all particularly for the western ski areas .... the gorms looked like they may get away with it a bit though in terms of not getting hit with too much of the warm rain, fingers crossed ......
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You need to Login to know who's really who.
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That looks fantastic, Brian 
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Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
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Snow looks better than Davos yesterday 
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You'll need to Register first of course.
You'll need to Register first of course.
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brian, Superb photo's, conditions look pretty damn good. Shame I'm off to France on friday, otherwise I would be up there this weekend. Instead have to drive to Aberdeen tomorrow, then back home and pack, then drive to London. Going to be a tough few days, but the thought of being back in the Alps might make it bearable.
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Adamski,
Unfortunatley the BBC weather forecasts can be pish when it comes to the mountain weather - they often seem to forget the mountians are at 3000ft and the rain at sea level may well be snow over the tops. This seems to be worse in Spring and Autumn, during the winter they are more likely to mention that precipitation may be following as snow on the mountains.
At the moment its blue skies and sunshine here in Aberdeen after an overnight frost - down to ~ +1*C overnight out by my house. Looking at the webcams for the gorms looks to have been a little cosmetic loss of snow at low levels outwith the runs, but even the low runs still look loaded with snow.
brian,
How busy was it? Did the Cas car park fill up? Considering how good the snow is, and the fact that its the easter holidays the slopes have been remarkably quiet. Was up at the weekend and the only queues were on te M1 poma mid morning Sunday - and that was only cos the ww poma and Ciste and Ptarmigan tows weren't open. Once the ww poma opened the M1 was a lot quieter. Where is everyone? Part of the problem was that the forecast for the weekend was poor - high winds and poor overhead conditions, yet the forecasts were wrong again. Saturday was better than forecast with lower winds and a decent amount of sun, Sunday was windier than forecast, but the overhead conditions were probably spot on. To some extent its best to ignore the forecast and just go and make the best of whatever you get.
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brian
brian
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Dave Horsley, pretty quiet. The top car park was full by afternoon but I think there was still some space in the lower bit. I suspect a fair number were non-skiers, however. The funicular seemed to be doing fairly steady non-sking business. We didn't wait in a queue all day. There were some smallish queues for the ciste and ptarmigan but that was it.
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You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
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Lovely pics brian,
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Amazing. Less than a week to Easter, perfect conditions, and no queues. I remember 1-hour queues regularly for the White Lady T-bar every Easter - back in the 70s. It shows how people's habits have changed I suppose. I wouldn't think there are any fewer skiers in Scotland nowadays, so perhaps they just don't ski at home anymore?
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snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
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wonder if I'll be able to ski on my birthday 15th May again????
This was taken 13th May 1994
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And love to help out and answer questions and of course, read each other's snow reports.
And love to help out and answer questions and of course, read each other's snow reports.
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You know it makes sense.
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Martin Bell, I once counted 11 lines waiting for the White Lady - I went and got drinks for my class in the Shieling!
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Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
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Martin Bell, I think you are right.
The only other skiers that I know at work have gone to the alps (the edinburgh schools are on holiday so its the only time they can go).
If work hadnt have intervened then I'd have spent a good part of the last few weeks on the slopes.
I noticed on winterhighland.com that someone had driven up from manchester to the gorm for their 1st ever ski trip to scotland and was full of praise. Hopefully he'll have attracted some more folk to come up next time.
gregh, I'm hoping to put some turns in around my birthday several weeks later. Its an hours wander to the summit from the car park but thats without kit.
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Poster: A snowHead
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prog99, One year I skied from October (veryd dodgy descent of the Lady) until my birthday on 21st May! At that point I'd had enough. A friend of mine skied in a bikini on midsummer's day on the Ptarmigan. (No lifts, but enough snow for several proper turns). I think that must also have been 1994.
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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so you don't reckon 'Gorm are going to open lifts into May if the snow holds out? Somehow I don't reckon the wife n kids would be up for a drive from Leeds and then have to walk to ski!!!!
cheers,
Greg
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Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
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With regards 1994 though daily lift served skiing ended on June 2nd with the Cas Tow on CairnGorm closing, there were several lifts operating on mid-summers day, I was at Nevis Range with the middle third off the Goose Tow available loading at tower 4, the full length of the Goose and part of the Allt Sneachda were available if you were prepared to hike, and there were two or three rope tows lower in Goose Gully.
AFAIK and only found out after the event there was one t-bar on the gorm open not sure if it was the ptarmigan or cas, and the Meall Odhar T-bar also opened a couple of days in June in 94 though Glenshee shut down end of April, incidently due to lack of demand not snow.
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You need to Login to know who's really who.
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| Quote: |
so you don't reckon 'Gorm are going to open lifts into May if the snow holds out? Somehow I don't reckon the wife n kids would be up for a drive from Leeds and then have to walk to ski!!!!
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I don't know - I hope they would - at least at weekends if conditions are not marginal. Heres my thoughts on it for Cairngorm:
Advantages of staying open:
1) If the tows are open, CML doesn't have to run the closed system, the train tourists get to be allowed outside to play in the snow, have more of a fun time, stay longer, spend more. They also give good word of mouth publicity and CML get more train tourists. It also acts as viral marketing for the skiing. Along the line of "Hey I was in Scotland in May and there was loads of snow and people were out skiing"
2) They get a decent number of skier ticket sales etc. who bring in a lot more money per head than the tourists
3) They don't p1ss of us season ticket holders who pay them a large wodge of capital in the summer well ahead of the ski season.
4) Gives an incentive for more people to buy season tickets for next year (go on you know you want to - only £250 if you buy before the end of April  )
5) Chance of some good marketing and press interest.
Disadvantages:
1) Poor turnout of skiers, costs of extra staff, energy etc for the lifts not covered by ticket sales ( but don't forget us season ticket holders - we've paid in advance.
2) Poor publicity
So from my point of view CML at least should keep some tows running as long as there is good snow, even if it only weekend opening.
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Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
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How is the snow holding up in Scotland? I flew out of Glasgow on Saturday evening and saw a glint of white to the North
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You'll need to Register first of course.
You'll need to Register first of course.
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| Quote: |
How is the snow holding up in Scotland? I flew out of Glasgow on Saturday evening and saw a glint of white to the North
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Very very well at Cairngorm, had some great skiing over the weekend. The upper runs are all in fine shape with good hard snow that softens by the afternoon. Lady is good all the way to the Lady tow with some big bumps developing down the burn course, but link back to M1 is getting narrow, but still doable. M1 is great as far as the timing hut, but the bottom is narrow as far as the convergence with the 105 but from there to the M1poma is OK. Traverse, Cas and Fiacal runs are good, gunbarrel is good, Zig zags are good. Ciste gully is good and Gulleys 1 and 2 are still complete, West wall is good, Ryvoan run was great. M2 is in great condition. Daylodge is broken at the bottom and you need to walk back to the car park. Lower slopes like Burnside look to be thin/broken , but I didn't ski them. Fiacall ridge run was good, but thin at the bottom was fine for skiing back to the carpark. Uplift wise only the daylodge uptrack has gone rest are still complete.
Snow is starting hard with some windblown powder on top, best where pisted  Softening later in the day. Over the weeked the top stayed pretty hard all day, lower down was softening up to some really nice spring snow. Great skiing.
Was chating to the boss over the weekend he said he was hoping to be able to keep the skiing going into May.
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brian
brian
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johnboy, pretty good. Still worthwhile skiing at 4 out of 5 areas. Best bets would be Nevis, Glencoe and the Gorm where the upper runs are all still in great condition. Glenshee is now closed although I think the further out runs, Coire Fionn and Glas Maol were still loaded. Getting to/from them was involving a hike though and I don't think they were getting the numbers to justify opening.
Looks like staying cold through until the weekend but a worrying looking lump of warm rain approaching then.
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You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
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| Quote: |
M2 defiantely didn't run all the way, in the funicular they were say it was patchy
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The M2 was complete all the way - I skied it last thing yesterday (easter Monday) Were a few rocks showing at the top of the steep section but that was it. The daylodge run (the run from the bottom of the M2 to the car park) was complete to about half way down from the point wher the poma makes a sharp turn, but could get to about 3/4 of the way down using the tow track.
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| Dave Horsley wrote: |
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M2 defiantely didn't run all the way, in the funicular they were say it was patchy
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The M2 was complete all the way - I skied it last thing yesterday (easter Monday) Were a few rocks showing at the top of the steep section but that was it. The daylodge run (the run from the bottom of the M2 to the car park) was complete to about half way down from the point wher the poma makes a sharp turn, but could get to about 3/4 of the way down using the tow track. |
Ah - yup my mistake just looked at a piste map - I thought that run was called the M2 from top to bottom. Like you say it was the Daylodge where the heather took over from the snow.
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snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
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brian,
Hope the forecast about the warm rain on Saturday is wrong - I'd like a bit more good lift served skiing before having to tour on the plateau. Friday is looking good on the forecasts at the moment but don't think I'll be able to take the day off.
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brian
brian
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Dave Horsley, if the low would track a few hundred miles further south it would be a lot better. Fingers crossed it moves that way on the forecast, looks like cooler conditions again following on into Sunday/Monday.
Friday looks a potential belter. I have to say I am extremely tempted to try and grab another day.
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You know it makes sense.
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Friday looks a potential belter. I have to say I am extremely tempted to try and grab another day.
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I'm tempted too, but I've set up a load of experiments today that will need finishing on Friday so if I want to take the day off I'll need to do the work either before and/or after.
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FAQ
