From Bare to Fair
When my daughter and I got to Flagstaff for a Spring Break visit this past week, the entire south side of the mountain was bare, which quashed my plan to repeat some of the amazing tours we skied last year.
Instead, we made do with t-shirt and white-ribbon conditions at the Arizona Snowbowl...until a surprise April storm dropped 18" of new snow. We dutifully put in the requisite powder turns at the resort, which naturally made me wonder if touring might yet be a possibility.
Looking at the mountain the following morning, I thought, well, why not?
So we skinned up Freidlein Prairie to cap off the ski week with a little wild-snow. Yes, it was a tad thin, but not too shabby considering everything you see here was bare dirt before the storm hit. :)
When the stars align properly, the south side of the Peaks is my very favorite spring corn destination, and also a reasonably-safe backcountry powder zone during storms—provided you stay out of the prominent avalanche gully.
It's back to SoCal for me, and hopefully back to a little more skiing before the season closes up.
— April 22, 2025
My family and I are deeply grateful to all of you for your kind words, encouragement, and offers of support. Every message and every gesture—big or small—has meant a lot to us. We're doing the best we can ❤️
