Over Easter break from University, the McGill ski team boys decided they should go ski some big mountains. They checked out some maps and decided the closest, biggest ones were in Montana. Forty-eight hours later, after driving straight there from Montreal right through the night in the ski-team van, the crew arrived at Big Sky. The rest of us had to hear about their trip for the next ten years.
Big Sky is remote. It’s in a quiet, mountainous, gorgeous section of Montana. And Big Ski is HUGE. One of the biggest mountains to ski in the world, the vertical drop at your feet brings on the hippy shakes. A tram takes you to the top, and unleashes only a handful of skiers out into the wild. From here, perfectly pitched powder runs are as long as the commercial breaks at the end of a tv movie. Mark tells me, Big Sky had the longest powder runs he has ever skied.
There is a lot of terrain above tree line and some intense bowls in which to explore. A range of semi-in-bounds areas are available for those with peeps and shovels. But most often, the snow abounds and there is no need to venture far off course.
Big Sky also has a lot of glades and tree skiing. Skiing out here, you feel as though you are alone. The cheers and cries of joy coming from your friends fade away on the thick snowy forests and echo loudly off the mountains in the high bowls. No fighting over powder lines is required and it is easy to spend the entire day on the mountain without ever having to ski another skier’s sloppy seconds.
A giant heated patio at the bottom is a perfect place to catch you breath and let you cramped muscles unwind. Big Sky is filled with laid-back friendly guys who like to see fellow ski fanatics out on their mountain having a blast. Unfortunately, Big Sky is quite deficient on the female front. It may be a sausage party out here, but after so many sweet powder runs, it seems like no one really cares that much. Grab a Moose Drool at the bar and toast testosterone.
Comments...