Mid-April 2017 in Utah part 1 of 3

raisingarizona wrote

Ok I'm a little curious, why do you guys like to boot up in the lodge? It seems like an unnecessary extra step and a hassle.

Just a more civil way to gear up..especially if it's real cold..

JasonWx wrote

raisingarizona wrote

Ok I'm a little curious, why do you guys like to boot up in the lodge? It seems like an unnecessary extra step and a hassle.

Just a more civil way to gear up..especially if it's real cold..

I'm a boot up at the car guy myself but there are times that I do it in the lodge, when I have my kids with me especially.

raisingarizona wrote

Ok I'm a little curious, why do you guys like to boot up in the lodge? It seems like an unnecessary extra step and a hassle.

Well, me and my friends I ski with the most are mostly over 50, in some cases over 60.  My observation midweek is that the senior skiers boot up in a lodge in many places, not just in the northeast.  Assuming they aren't travelers who pay more to stay in ski in/out lodging.

For me, walking in ski boots and carrying skis is a major effort.  I much prefer to save my energy for the slopes.  At some destination resorts out west, can be a long walk, a bus ride, then more walking.  I like to start with dry socks so change socks when I'm booting up at a lodge close to a lift.

Just as important is how I feel after a full day of skiing.  Changing into comfortable shoes or snow boots makes sitting around for a little while, and the walking after that, much easier.

At my little local hill where I stay close to the slopes but need to drive <5 min, I've driven in my ski boots to ski for an hour or so under the lights.  So don't always boot up in the lodge.

D.B. Cooper wrote

I would be interested to know where to go for each of those places!

Maybe I'll start a thread about where to boot up in the Rockies (MT, WY, UT, CO) later in the off season.  My experience is mostly from 2010 on, so should be relevant for trips in the near future.  Sometimes I even take pictures of the door to a locker room so I can remember for a return trip.

At both Gore and Plattekill the lodge is not out of the way at all.  It's nice to have street boots in the lodge to change into for after ski beers.

I arrive so early I always get a cubbie for my boot bag, which also holds my puffy that I often put on after lunch.

But the real reason is that boots are expensive.  I find that the toes on teleboots are susceptible to damage from pavement and sand/salt. I'd rather baby them and get more years out of them.

raisingarizona wrote

Ok I'm a little curious, why do you guys like to boot up in the lot? It seems like an unnecessary hassle.

FIFY!

I always wonder that.  Even when you get a good spot, it's a substantial walk to the lifts in ski boots with skis on your shoulder.  Then, everything is in the car, so if you need something it's another long walk in ski boots to the car to get it.  All to save what......the 5 or 10 minutes spent walking in and out of the lodge?  Not like putting your gear on at the car goes any quicker.

Of course this only applies when skiing at a resort.  Most of the time, for me, that includes multiple kids, with multiple bags that need to be in the lodge anyway.

At Mt Bachelor there was no where to boot up that I could find except in the rental area.  They wanted 10 bucks for a tiny locker or 25 for a big one that would fit a boot bag

We carried the stuff back to the car and booted up in the parking lot the rest of the week.

Coach Z wrote

At Mt Bachelor there was no where to boot up that I could find except in the rental area.  They wanted 10 bucks for a tiny locker or 25 for a big one that would fit a boot bag

We carried the stuff back to the car and booted up in the parking lot the rest of the week.

I booted up in Cafeteria and stored the bags in a corner..

JasonWx wrote

I booted up in Cafeteria and stored the bags in a corner..

Yeah, but in UT there is no corner because there is no real cafeteria.  It would be like storing your stuff in a Subway.

I agree with all of the above points, especially Harvey wanting to take care of his boots.

I have booted up inside at every major Utah resort..
Snowbird in the tram building downstairs across from the the gift shop/t-shirt store
Alta on the couch next to the food service..
Deer valley main lodge
Snowbasin in the cafe, stored bags downstairs next to the bathroom...
The list goes on..
I think at Deer Valley I had to check the bags..
All others had some sort of cubby or corner to stow them..

I guess I get the comfort factor if there are lockers available. Especially for those of you driving several hours to go skiing. There are days where I head to the lodge just to warm up and sip on some coffee but on a powder day? Hell no! It's go time and that extra set of steps would be a killer for getting the first chair lineup. Also, here I can generally park within 200 feet of the lodge and main lift so my car is my locker, often outfitted with fold out chairs, beers in a cooler, and everything else I might need.

One thought I'm having is, if your boots are too uncomfortable for walking across a parking lot you might want to get some new boots. Being a ski tourer it's essential to be comfortable, we walk around all day in em.

I actually boot up at my house, and drive in my boots to the ski area.  It's the most effective way to get a good spot in the line up ahead of the other Powder Whores.

At WF it can be a long shlep across the bridge and frankly the WF lots are in absolutely shitty condition. they never fill the potholes until they are the size of the pond skimming pond and they are either an icy or muddy mess.  I figure it's because management never parks in that lot as they all have reserved spots on the other side of the river.  They talk of trying to world class and the parking lot is decidedly 3rd world as it even has a sewage smell in one spot.

Yeah, you left coast fuckers  are spoiled, what with your powder days and free close parking!  Sure, on the occasional EC powder day you make some adjustments to the routine, but that ain't often.

Not a matter of the ski boots being uncomfortable, but even with touring boots in walk mode....they are clunkier than street shoes/boots.  If you are rocking alpine fuggetaboutit.  At WF, as Coach indicated, walking across the River Lot and the bridge is a chore in regular shoes, much less ski boots. If you park in the upper lot you have a longer walk down a path with no steps that isn't shoveled.  Just makes little sense, IMHO, to do it in ski boots on a typical, non-powder day.  An easier walk to the lodge in street shoes, where I need to store bags anyway, and putting the boots on in a more civilized manner, maybe grab a cup of joe or a bite for breakfast at the same time....works for me.  I'd rather get the car in the lot a few minutes earlier and do that than futz with putting ski boots on in the lot, where there is a much greater risk of something hitting the ground/snow, and then braving the walk through the rocky, uneven lot in clunky (compared to street shoes) ski boots.

And now-a-days, heck, I'd probably tweak my back or pull a muscle contorting myself in and around the car getting the damned boots on!  Hucking some jumps and hittting the tight trees is no problem.....sometimes it's the seemingly easy stuff that trips us up, so to speak.  I've almost slipped and fallen in the lot with Timberlands on, which would have ended the day before it started, so I ain't risking ski boots in the lot!

If we have a freeze thaw at WF I wear my yak trax as that river lot and bridge can be slicker than MT run is.  They should sand the F out of that lot but since it's hard to sue the state and win they don't.  And for he walk from the LP lot is down right dangerous but I'm seldom late enough to ave to park up there.

My take is if management had to park in that lot it would be much better taken care of.

Great trip report....as for where to boot up I'm a lot person mainly because Hunter is my home Mtn. ...I usually get to the Mtn.early enough to park by lifts ...just a short 100ft. hike in packed snow to put your skis on and skate to lift at the end of the day I can ski back to the car which is my locker...but after skiing Whiteface this past spring I decided the next time I'd carry my boots to the lodge and stash my shoes...my boot bag is to big and full to be lugging around and leaving unlocked....bought the max pass for next year so might have to dig out some old minimalist boot bag for Gore and Whiteface next year when weathers not so nice