Powder Chase to Grand Targhee

The best Alpine Powder experience

I have written before about the challenge of scheduling Alpine ski trips well in advance, having no idea if the conditions will be good when you arrive. The only way to really know if the skiing will be good, is to decide last minute where and maybe even when you will go. This is great to ensure fantastic skiing, not so great for domestic harmony, cheap air fare and the ability to find someone who has the flexibility and desire to do a trip like this. The only exception to this is helicopter/cat skiing and or backcountry skiing. Even that is not a guaranty as bad conditions such as rain, fog, super poor snow can turn those normally great venues into a downer.

This December I started to get the powder itch so on an almost daily basis I have been looking at the app “Open Snow” to see where the snow gods were smiling, dreaming of a powder chase adventure.

Mount Baker was going off…

Checked with my friend who lives in Seattle. Nope, timing not right.

Checked with a sailing friend, his sister lives in Seattle area. Nope, he cant go. She is actually going to Baker but not when it would work for me.

Then I received a marketing message from Grand Targhee. 35% discount for lodging on the mountain in January. Hmmm. Checked Open Snow, holy cow, Targhee moved up to one of the top spots on the Deepest Reports and Forecasts sort.

Now who can come play with me;

Gary - Nope

Charlie - Nope

Dann - Nope

Russ - Said no go the week of 1-6-25 but I tried again if we pulled the trigger right away, which was actually lining up better with the snow forecast. Russ said yes, so it was game on.

With ski in ski out lodging discounted and Targhee on my Mountain Collective pass, the trip was coming in at a reasonable cost. However, air fare was a nasty exception. Chalk it up to the price of guaranteed powder.

Russ lives in Idaho Falls which is a 1.5 hour drive to Grand Targhee. Russ let me stay at his place and after making friends with the cats I had a good nights sleep.

The next day we were off to Targhee. Arriving on January 1, I expected it would be somewhat crowded for Targhee. Nope, easy parking near the hotel. It is looks exactly like it was the first time I skied Targhee 30+ years ago. A small base area with no lines to any services. Ticket Window, Lifts, Restaurants, Hotel front desk….All of them you just walk up and a smiling person greats you.

We stayed at the Teewinot Lodge which is located right at the base. The rooms have been recently remodeled and they are excellent. They are nothing fancy but way beyond my expectations for a discounted rate of about $100 per person per night. I schlepped by bag into the hotel lobby, changed my cloths and booted up. There is no luggage storage which wasn’t a problem since parking was so close. So off we went with a late start to some moderate powder skiing. Here is the from base area at 11:17 am on January 1. Do you see the lift line? That’s right, there isn’t one.

One of the great powder areas of Targhee is the far lookers left. Below is a video of Russ and friend Michelle enjoying the boot top and higher Teton cream pie. (Substack technical issue preventing a video image preview.)

Russ and Michelle in Teton Powder Cream Pie

Russ, like my friend Charlie, is a champion of being a frugal skier. Below is a picture of the room with our snacks, soups, sandwich fixings and breakfast items. What a luxury to have ski in ski out lodging where we can dine in and even take a nap if the spirit moves us. To be sure, that spirit was alive and well so naps were had.

Day two was the best powder day with the deepest being up to our knees. This time we ventured into the new expansion area known as Colter. This is the area that used to be reserved for Cat Skiing which I sampled decades ago. The terrain is still fantastic. The pitch varies between intermediate and expert. There a lots of glades and valleys making interesting little knucks and crannies. The only downside was self inflicted. I failed to take fitness seriously. This meant I was good for maybe 3 powder runs in the morning and really only one in the afternoon. Pathetic.

With my fitness level so poor, I anticipated day 3 to be a rest day. Russ wanted to ski Jackson a day and skiing Jackson on weekends is to be avoided so off we went to Jackson for the 3rd day. Being a forgetful space head, I forgot my Mountain Collective pass so I had to stop at the Jackson ticket office. I could not resist showing prices for a few Jackson services. No comment needed.

With warm temperatures the snow was heavy this day at Jackson so we pretty much stayed on the groomers. If we had gotten there for first chair I think there were a few good powder runs to be had on the top where it was colder/lighter, but we chose a relaxed pace and slowly worked our way from lookers right to the left and then went all the way down for lunch.

For Jackson, the crowds were moderate which was an unexpected bonus. After lunch we hit the tram to visit Rendezvous Bowl. The powder was long gone but was was very pleasant. Soft snow, steep and NO moguls. Below is a picture of Russ in the Tram Line. Russ has a few less miles on his life odometer (at least that is the excuse I’m giving) so I cashed in early while Russ skied a few more runs. Hanging out in the Four Seasons lounge on a comfortable couch is a joy. They must have a policy of not hassling people until you break out the cold cuts and mayonnaise.

Day four came and I could take a break. Thank goodness. Russ went home to catch up on life and I had a glorious day of leisure. I caught the free shuttle down to Driggs and had a fantastic breakfast while reading the local paper.

Driggs in the winter remains a sleepy little town. I really didn’t see anything different from a couple summers ago but I didn’t walk around much. I love the Teton Valley and Grand Targhee.

Our last day looked to be another great one. The open snow forecast showed 6-12 inches should be there over the past 24 hours. After a day of rest, the time had come to hit first chair. If I was going to crap out after 3-4 runs we might as well ski the best Targhee could offer which meant being on the lift at 9. Colter seemed to be the place to go which is accessed via a cat track from the base area. At Alta/Snowbird/Jackson….the rope drop line might be in the hundreds. At Targhee it was maybe approaching 30.

Just to prove we really did hit first chair with no line at the end of the cat walk.

View of first lift up.

Below is a video of Russ on our first run. It was a pure delight. Note the little jumping on his part, dam fit little hot dog.

Russ in his powder prime

On our second run we went to the ski area boundary to the lookers far right. From here you can see the prime hiking area of Table Mountain. I have hiked this area several times with my wife Jackie. It is as beautiful in the winter as in the summer. While we were standing there taking pictures a Mountain Host stopped and asked if he could take our picture. That is what you see below. I am taller than Russ, but not that much taller. I should have stood on the downhill side.

We watched the host ski down and followed him. He is a classic mature mountain skier. Steady and rock solid at all times. It looked like a buffalo could not have knocked him off his skis.

At the bottom (NO LINE!) we connected again with the Host and rode the chair. His name is Dave and we had such a nice conversation. Dave graciously offered to give us a little guided tour and we soaked up every inch of it. No question those four runs with Dave were the highlight of our trip. Dave gave us a valued local tip when traversing to the lookers far left off Dream Catcher chair lift. When the cat track stops and visibility is poor, ski on very slow in a snow blow the entire time. Wind lips can create what are essentially walls of snow out of nowhere. If you hit one of those at speed injuries can and do happen.

Every ski area has little off the trail map places that locals give names to. Dave took us to one called Crack Pipe along the rope line. This time the run was uneventful but certainly a fun name.

After a few more runs without Dave the visibility went bad once more so decided to call it a wrap. Despite being in poor shape I was able to hang in there that last day and not get hurt. A victory of sorts I guess.

I knew I was gaining weight the last couple months, afraid to step on the scale and face the truth. So the first day back I faced the music and saw the number. Ugly.

The days are long gone I can rip up advanced terrain out west being overweight and not strong. So, I bought a book about exercise and diet, “The four hour body”, by Tim Ferris. Some of the concepts seem a bit on the extreme side but after 3 weeks I am down 6.5 pounds. I love skiing and it was not fun to underperform my former self to such a degree. I won’t be going off any cliffs or skiing from 9 am to 4pm six days in a row, but I sure hope to to ski from 9 am to 2:30 pm on a powder day with my legs hanging in there and a smile on my face.

My next ski trip is back to Targhee in March with a group of about 30 friends. Goal is to be down 20 pounds or more and significantly stronger. The picture below shows that the scale is now out in plain sight and being used every morning.

If I had to some up the post it would be three messages:

1. Grand Targhee is a gem if you like no crowds, friendly people and a high chance of powder.

2. Find a local or a Mountain host to ski with if you can. So much more fun skiing with someone who knows the area well.

3. If you want to keep skiing at a higher level into your 60’s, 70’s and beyond, take fitness seriously.