April fools day at the Pass also happened to be long anticipated 80’s day, and it didn’t disappoint. After meeting Dan early and making the quick drive up highway 58, we arrived at the patrol room around 7:45. The great powder snow I’d found a couple days earlier with the family during spring break was gone, replaced with the typical spring mank. Nevertheless, it was going to be a good day, and we set out to open the mountain.
Dan and I found some good tree skiing after opening for our first couple of runs in the trees between High Lead and Good Time Charlie. It was soft enough for enjoyable turns, not having froze the night before. After a few more runs, we took a quick break and checked out the scene at the base area. I arrived in time for the snowball toss contest, and snapped a few photos of the players in their 80’s gear….
I had an 11:00 bump at EPA, and headed up a few minutes early to get there on time. The weather, although overcast, was pretty warm, and it was pretty nice hanging out up top. I snapped a few pics and them made myself comfortable for a few…
While lounging in the sled, I kept watching folks spinning laps off of EPA. One group in particular caught my eye — some folks I’ve seen up at the pass over the years. Their clothing was spot on for 80’s day…so I snapped a picture of them standing up top with Ed. Right after that, Kerstin got off the lift, so I snapped a few shots of her too….
When bump was over, I made a quick run down RTS, which was in deceqnt shape. The shenanigans were still happening at the base when I pulled up for lunch. DJ Toby was spinning records and the beer garden was open, and people like Quin (below) were hanging out…
I headed in to eat some food, and then wandered out to listen to some music for a bit before hitting it hard the rest of the day.
I linked up with Dan for the remainder of the day and we headed out to Peak 2. We skied a couple runs on Waldo and Junes, and the snow was sticky. A quick rub-on was helped quite a bit. Below is a shot of Dan looking into SDN…
We finished the day running laps on Timburr with Peter, as well as a couple runs down RTS. Timburr had been groomed a few days earlier, and the terrain park with the modest jumps provided some entertainment for me on the board.
The day ended with a fun sweep down the lower mountain, and then beers in the patrol room after the evening meeting. It must be close to the end of the year, because everyone was enjoying the apres ski for sure, with the usual bs and talk about spring mountaineering objectives still to come. One thing is for sure, it’s been a great year so far, but it’s not over yet!
