PureWest - Living Life Wide Open

It’s official: Yellowstone sees most-ever visitors during 2010

PureWest Blogger — Mon, 10 Jan 2011 20:21:00 GMT

For the second year in a row, and for the third time in the last four years, Yellowstone National Park has set a new annual visitation record.

During the calendar year, 3,640,184 people visited the world’s first national park. Recreation visits in 2010 were 10.5 percent higher than recorded in 2009, which itself was a record year.

This past year the park set monthly visitation records in June, July, August, September, and October.

All park entrances recorded annual visitation increases compared to 2009 levels. Double-digit percentage increases were recorded through the North and West entrances. The West Entrance continues to be the park’s busiest, which hosted nearly 1.5 million recreational visitors in 2010.

Park managers believe the record visitation was due in part to the public’s recognition that visits to national parks represent a good value for their travel dollar.

By: Livingston Enterprise Staff Writer

Moonlight Basin offer "Ski with a Local" Mountain Tours

Jason Frey — Wed, 22 Dec 2010 21:07:00 GMT

"Ski with a Local" Mountain Tours

If you are interested in finding the best gladed tree runs, the finest groomers, or knowing about our secret powder stashes – don’t miss your chance to Ski with a Local. Whether it is your first time or you have been here many times before, our seasoned Mountain Ambassadors will provide you with a personalized tour of what makes Moonlight Basin special. Don’t miss this Moonlight Basin Experience!

Madison Village Base Area everyday and the Moonlight Lodge on Saturdays starting December 12
10:30am and 1:30pm

Snowshoe at Moonlight Basin

Jason Frey — Mon, 13 Dec 2010 21:11:00 GMT

Snowshoeing

As easy as walking, snowshoeing lets you experience what most people will never see. Get back to nature one step at a time with nothing but the wildlife, scenery, and snow blowing off the branches on Moonlight Basin’s own designated snowshoe trails. There is two main snowshoeing trails that we recommend for our guests. The Ulerys Lake Trail runs 2.5 miles between the Moonlight Lodge and Madison Village Base Area, looping around Lower Ulreys Lake. In addition, The Lee’s Pool trail is a 3 mile loop that winds through natural beauty starting at the Madison Village Base Area and down to the scenic Lee’s Pool.

Both trails are a must experience for those looking for a peaceful alternative to skiing. Our trails are open from 10 a.m. - 3:30 p.m., 7 days a week during winter season. Beginner, Intermediate and Advanced loops are available.

Snowshoe rentals, trail passes and trail maps are available through the Season Pass office at the Madison Village Base Area or at the Skier Services area at the Moonlight Lodge.

Snowshoe Trail Use with Equipment Rental: $15
Snowshoe Trail Use Only: $5
Moonlight Basin Snowshoe Trail Season Pass: $50

Contact Madison Village Season Pass Office for more information at (406) 993-6074.

If you're looking for a more interactive experience check out our Guided Snowshoe Hike. Take in the scenery and enjoy the mountain air as our guide leads you through Moonlight Basin's backyard all while learning about our winter wildlife. Contact Mountain Concierge at (406) 996-7716 to learn more or reserve your space.

Montana Landscape Architect: What Does the Bear Cross the Road

PureWest Blogger — Mon, 13 Dec 2010 12:49:00 GMT

By STEPHANIE SIMON

Landscape architect Robert Rock takes pride in talking to his clients to understand just how they'll be using the green spaces he designs. In his most recent assignment, however, he hit a roadblock.

"You can't ask elk what they'd like for dinner," Mr. Rock said ruefully.

View Full Image

The Olin Studio

A design from the Olin Studio in Philadelphia would cost about $12 million and span a six-lane highway.

Nor can you ask them what would induce them to nibble that dinner while strolling across a lushly planted footbridge spanning a six-lane highway.

Getting elk to cross highways safely—and encouraging lynx, bear, deer and bighorn sheep to follow suit—was the key challenge in an unusual global contest that concluded this month.

The ARC International Wildlife Crossing Infrastructure Design Competition asked engineers, ecologists and landscape architects to come up with an overpass bridge for pedestrians of the furry sort. The goal: to encourage wildlife to roam freely across their habitat—even when that habitat is bisected by a highway.

The five finalists, unveiled last week in Denver, designed multimillion-dollar bridges that aimed to tempt animals across with tasty foliage, green valleys, gentle streams and curved walls to block out noise and vibrations from the traffic below.

Critter Crossings

View Slideshow

The Olin Studios

More photos and interactive graphics

Mr. Rock, who is with Michael Van Valkenburgh Associates in New York, came up with a very wide bridge planted with strips of differing vegetation giving each species its own lane to cross in: pine-tree forest for wildlife that like privacy, such as deer; a section of meadow for animals that prefer more wide-open views.

For his part, David Rubin, a partner at the Olin Studio in Philadelphia, even included a wildlife playground of sorts, made up of toppled tree trunks, to attract the American marten, a beady-eyed weasel with a penchant for scampering among dead wood.

Designing animal crossings is not a new art; in the last decade, they have become common across the U.S. But nearly all the existing crossings are underpasses—tunnels and culverts built underneath roads and out of sight.

Florida, for instance, has built a network of concrete underpasses to ferry panthers safely across roadways. Glacier National Park in Montana boasts a tree-lined underpass for mountain goats. There are tortoise tunnels in California. And the town of Amherst, Mass., guides spotted salamanders, in their annual trek from burrows to breeding ground, through special culverts that protect them from getting squashed.

But though these projects have been successful, some animals, such as elk and deer, find underpasses dark and scary and won't use them with any regularity, ecologists say.

View Full Image

Janel Rosenberg & Associates

A bridge design extends to the forest on both sides of the highway

Meanwhile, car-critter collisions in the U.S. are on the rise, according to the Federal Highway Administration. Last year, 182 motorists were killed. The Western Transportation Institute at Montana State University puts the annual cost of such collisions at about $8 billion in medical and repair bills.

Seeking a solution, the institute invited designers from around the world to work up plans for a wildlife overpass bridge—common in Europe but rare in the U.S. Entrants were asked to design for a specific site, across Interstate 70 near Vail, Colo.

In truth, Colorado has no money to build a high-concept wildlife bridge. And the Vail location isn't a priority for animal crossings, according to Russell George, executive director of the state Department of Transportation. Organizers picked the site, rather, for its thorny engineering challenges—rough mountain terrain, heavy snow, six lanes of traffic plus bike lanes. Any design that would work there could be easily modified for other sites, they figured.

Organizers envision wildlife bridges built across prominent highways throughout the nation. Contest manager Rob Ament says the striking structures could become instant icons, symbols of the need for man to share the landscape with animals.

The trouble is, iconic bridges are pricey. One team that made it into the final round has estimated its span would cost $12 million. Another said it hoped to keep construction costs under $10 million. By contrast, a run-of-the-mill underpass might cost anywhere from $100,000 to a few million, depending on size and complexity.

The contest winner, who will earn a $40,000 prize, will be announced in January at a national meeting of transportation officials.

Trisha White, a director of the conservation group Defenders of Wildlife, says those officials must do more than ooh and aah over the entries; she would like them to work on keeping highways out of habitat in the first place.

Wildlife bridges are fine where habitat is irreversibly fragmented, Ms. White says, but "the bigger issue is those future roads....Can we please make better decisions on where to put them?"

Living with Bears in Yellowstone Bear Country

PureWest Blogger — Mon, 13 Dec 2010 11:56:00 GMT

You can imagine what a bear does when it's trotting down a wooded path and suddenly approaches asphalt.

The bear might sniff it, but it's not afraid of it. It's not going to yield for pedestrians in the street or stop at a traffic light. In most cases it's going to see where it can get some dinner throughout the linear meadow it is met with in West Yellowstone.

Along with that search for food in town, bears will follow wherever a scent of food or memory of a previous snack takes them. Some say it's just part of the unique nature of living between two forests. But there's no denying the reality of a hungry bear creating conflict along the way to dinner, conflict that can damage property and threaten lives as it wanders down the streets that are also routes for children walking to school.

Reducing conflict isn't as easy as flipping a switch or putting up a fence or moving a bear to another spot in the forest. The bears aren't going to go away. Neither are the people. And that space between bears and people is shrinking. The bears probably won't get any smarter living among people, so people have to.

Reducing conflict is less about reacting defensively to a bear's visit as it is about reducing reasons for bears to visit, which is usually all about the food.

Laws and regulations are just some of the ways the community has smartened up so Winnie the Pooh and his friends can't break into the honey pot.

The town of West Yellowstone implemented a bear ordinance 22 years ago, requiring appropriate trash disposal and the usage of bear-proof containers. It has helped clean up the town and bear conflicts, according to West Yellowstone Police Chief Gordon Berger.

Bear-proof dumpsters, trash receptacles and recycling bins have replaced flimsier containers of the past.

Bears frequented town more when the bear ordinance wasn't in place, according to resident Stephanie Young.

"My friends and I used to drive around looking for bears," she said. The bears would hang out in neighborhood yards or by old dumpsters.

She didn't have to look for very long.

Young has had a bear aware mindset since a bear broke into her family's house 24 years ago.

The incident is rare and humorous -- Young hasn't met anyone else with a similar experience. It also illustrates that the residents of West Yellowstone live in extremely close proximity to bears and that the bears don't have boundaries.

A female grizzly didn't see the line between woods and residence when she stumbled upon the Seely home. The sow found her way into Clyde and Linda Seely's, Young's parents, garage one Sunday evening in search of dog food that was stored inside.

The Seelys waited for the bear to leave and then made sure all the garage doors were shut, according to Young.

To Young's surprise, the bear came back for another visit, this time breaking into the house.

She arrived at the Obsidian Avenue home alone the next night. The rest of the family was out seeing a movie in Bozeman for her brother, who had recently got out of a body cast.

As she was getting ready to go inside, she noticed that the garage had been torn apart and that the sheetrock on the walls had been ripped through. She thought someone had broken in and immediately called her sister's fiancé, who was a police officer in West Yellowstone at the time. The police came to look at the damaged garage without knowing a bear was trapped in the basement of the house.

"After they looked around in the garage, the cops left and I went into the house when the family got home," Young said.

When the family entered the house they were met with toppled furniture and trails of bear scat.

"We lived in a split-level house and the bear managed to get through several rooms before it got into my bedroom. There were nose marks all along the windows and it had knocked down everything," Young said.

The family along with the police figured out that the bear must have pushed her way through the back door leading into the garage. She then made it through the door leading from the garage into the house, somehow shutting each door behind her. The further the sow went, the more trapped she became in the house.

"The bear had somehow trapped herself in my sister's bedroom in the basement. It finally broke through a window in the bedroom and got out," she said.

The bear didn't leave until it vented its frustration and fear.

The family's dogs were hoarse from all the barking they did to ward off the bear, according to Young.

Young suspects the dogs saw the sow getting lost throughout the house.

"The dogs were on the upstairs level of the house," she said.

The Seelys had to wait to clean up the mess the bear left behind until insurance officials could come and take photographs. No one believed that a bear caused the damage, according to Young.

Wildlife officials wanted to make sure the bear wouldn't come back for a third visit. So, Fish Wildlife & Parks officials set a bear trap the next day and within two days the bear was captured.

She most likely kept returning to the house because she had found a food source.

"Once bears sniff out a food source, that just keeps them coming back for more," Berger said.

The bear had been collared and tracked in the past by wildlife officials. The collar is put in place when a bear is tranquilized and then issued a radio tracking collar so that it's migration can be followed with the rest of the species population.

Not everyone gets to choose the destiny of an unruly bear, but the Seelys had the unique opportunity to decide what would happen to the intrusive sow. They chose to have the bear transported to the other side of Wyoming.

"My parents had the choice to have her euthanized or moved. They kept track of her and she didn't cause anymore trouble that we know of," Young said. "They (wildlife officials) moved her far away because they told us bears will travel to return to a place they've found food at in the past."

The town of West Yellowstone is taking additional steps to assure that a repeat incident like the Seelys' doesn't happen again.

The proper disposal and storage of food attractants is still a main way to deter bears from town. Bear safety methods often practiced in backcountry camping can be applied to town living.

West Yellowstone resident Steve Hoovler is a backcountry guide during the summer season. He has witnessed bears passing through camps in Yellowstone National Park.

Hoovler is super precautious with food safety and how campers and he store and separate food on camping trips.

The same precautionary steps are practiced in town by residents who store pet food indoors, put trash in bear-proof dumpsters and make sure the streets are free of litter.

"I make sure everything is clean and we set up camps pretty much how YNP mandates it. We have a core camp -- where food is hung, where the fire pit is and a bear pole to hang food out of the way of wildlife," he said.

The tents are placed at least 100 yards away from the core camp and no food, or even ChapStick or a stick of gum isn't allowed near the tents.

"There's nothing that smells like anything but people (near the tents). We're really, really strict about that," he said.

Small mistakes can mean a bear attack and injury or death to people in the backcountry as well as in residential areas.

"I think the biggest mistake that I see made has to do with campsites and not respecting the bear's nose. That grizzly bear spends its summer rolling over 1,000 lb. logs to eat ants," Hoovler said. However, even small food items with just a hint of flavor are enough to alert the bear.

Hoovler believes that some of those backcountry measures should be applied when living in town. West Yellowstone is sandwiched between National Forest Service lands that bears frequent all year.

"The town is in close proximity to the backcountry; Boundary Street is the boundary to YNP," he said.

Bear sightings decrease this time of year, but just because there's a blanket of snow on the ground doesn't mean that all the bears have denned for the winter. Two bears were sighted on Boundary Street on Nov. 7. The National Forest Service hung a sign at the trailhead to remind patrons to carry bear spray and to be cautious on the trail.

Of 20 radio-collared bears located by FWP since the beginning of November, about 60 percent are denned for the winter, according to FWP bear management specialist Kevin Frey.

Three bears were observed walking around or in locations that were probably not den areas, according to Frey, resulting in 15 percent of the bears still being semi-active as of Dec. 6.

Every year there are a few reports or sightings of bears still out in December to early January.

These are usually large male bears that are almost sleepwalking or smaller bears that are still trying to find one more meal, according to Frey.

"People who live, work or recreate in bear country need to consider that even though most bears den by mid-November, that there is always a chance of a late fall/early winter (bear) encounter," he said.

Bears may also be near homes or camps on their way to den, so no matter what season it is, Frey advises to always keep food attractants secure.

Securing food attractants is on the top of Berger's list before West Yellowstone gets slammed with winter weather and restaurants re-open for the winter season.

The big green metal box sitting outside of the WYPD isn't just another bear-proof dumpster. It is temporarily on display to show locals what can be used to dispose of restaurant grease. Restaurant grease is the waste product drained out of fryers and grills, so the aroma of food sits in the grease. That smell of food attracts bears.

Berger hopes that the bear-proof container will be the solution to the ongoing grease disposal problem in town. Two local restaurants were cited last month for having plastic grease barrels outside of their establishments.

They thought the containers they had were bear-proof, according to Berger. But nothing plastic is bear-proof, he noted.

"The Island Park Forest Service dropped it off to give the community an idea of what's available and bear-proof," Berger said.

The container has been tested and it seems to be pretty bear-proof, according to Berger.

The metal container can fit two 55-gallon drums of used restaurant grease, has a latch on the top, very similar to the bear-proof dumpster latches, that opens up to a pour area for the grease. The grease is then sifted into two openings, one on each side, and emptied into the drums housed inside the container.

"It can be modified to fit whatever container is going to be in it," Berger said.

The containers cost between $600 and $1,200, according to Berger.

Most of the restaurants have closed their doors for the off-season, but Berger wants to have a discussion with the businesses before the winter season kicks off.

"I want this resolved this fall. It's just one less thing to worry about, that's taken care of," he said.

Berger knows that the bears will always mosey through town, especially once they've found a food source. That's what Berger believes to be the root of the problem.

Berger and FWP Game Warden for the West Yellowstone area Jim Smolczynski have been staying in close contact with discussions about bear problems in town.

Berger has worked hard to get all the grease barrels in town emptied.

"Grease barrels will be a thing of the past now that we got them all cleaned out," Berger said.

He would like to meet with the different food establishments in town to talk about the benefits of the containers.

"I wish all the restaurants were here to see the container and if it will work for them," he said.

Grease barrels aren't the only culprits attracting bears. Litter, birdfeeders, discarded gut piles or animal carcasses, along with scattered trash can also present bears with easy feasting options.

Berger has been in West Yellowstone for 24 years and has become familiar with the weather patterns. He noticed that West had an unusually warm fall season.

"It's been a weird year for Mother Nature. I've never seen this high of bear activity since I've been here," he said.

A low abundance of preferred foods causes more bear activity and the more bears you have, the more interactions they have with humans, according to Frey.

"Long cold winters or late springs can set the stage for an early summer shuffle by bears to make up for days lost without quality feeding. The bears are then on an all-season catch-up. That is usually the case for young adult bears and females raising cubs," Frey said.

Berger has seen more bears this fall than in past years.

The bears seemed to be particularly attracted to the grease barrels and garbage this fall, according to Berger.

Once the grease disposal containers are in place someone is going to need to collect the discarded liquids.

Deciding who collects the old grease will be the responsibility of the restaurants, according to Berger.

Westmart owner Greg Forsythe collects used grease to convert to biodiesel for his company vehicles, according to Berger. Golden Recycling, out of Pocatello, Idaho, also collects it.

It seems as though both the human and bear populations are on the rise in bear country.

People are moving closer to wilderness areas. Daily life in bear country can encompass camping in backcountry of barbecuing in your backyard. And, it doesn't look like the bears plan on leaving the area anytime soon.

The space between our backyards and the forest is shrinking so carrying a can of bear spray when going on a hike or making sure your garbage is in a bear-proof dumpster are all wise tips to follow in this region.

Being aware of your surroundings is one of the simplest, but most important safety rules you can follow in bear country to help reduce the bear-human conflicts in West Yellowstone.

"I always try to tell people to be aware of what they're doing and where they're at," Hoovler said. "A bear can sneak up and surprise you unknowingly and that usually happens when you don't know where you're at and what you're doing."

Swiss Billionaire Puts $35M into Montana Conservation: Key to Plum Creek Conservation

Wade Dokken — Sun, 12 Dec 2010 18:09:00 GMT

We often do not connect the dots--between the preservation of our precious state and the reality that those who are attracted to come here to vacation, travel, recreate, and live part of their life, base their decisions on the high quality of our wild spaces and the abundance of our great wildlife resource. Big Sky's luxury buyers are also people who are keenly focused on helping to preserve the wild spaces of their new Montana home; whether that is at the Yellowstone Club, Big Sky, Spanish Peaks or Moonlight Basin.

By MATTHEW BROWN Associated Press

Posted: 12/12/2010 09:36:57 AM PST

Updated: 12/12/2010 09:44:51 AM PST

BILLINGS, Mont.—Philanthropist Hansjorg Wyss grew up in Switzerland and now spends the bulk of his time outside Philadelphia, but it is the wild landscapes of the Rocky Mountains where he could leave his most lasting mark.

In recent years the publicity-shy billionaire has quietly donated tens of millions of dollars to the preservation of pristine areas of Idaho, Nevada, Utah and other states.

Now, what appears to be his most ambitious project to date has come to fruition as conservation groups this month closed a deal to purchase vast tracts of Plum Creek Timber Co. land in western Montana. Backers say the deal—which included $35 million in donations from Wyss—could shield an estimated one million acres from future development.

In an exclusive interview with The Associated Press, Wyss, 75, said he first became enamored of the Rockies as a college student who toured the region in 1958. And he defended his actions against those who chafe at the prospect of an outsider buying up land that in some cases has been logged, ranched or farmed for generations.

"Look, these are beautiful landscapes," Wyss said. "There was controversy when Yellowstone (National Park) was created and when they declared the Grand Canyon as a National Monument. But there are areas in the United States that must be protected."

Wyss's fortune—estimated by Forbes magazine at $6.1 billion—came largely from Synthes, the medical devices company he

ran for three decades and still oversees as chairman.

He has donated to a range of causes, with the largest single gift apparently a $125 million donation two years ago to create a bioengineering institute at Harvard University.

But Wyss said the Rocky Mountains have offered a particular allure since he took a summer job with the Colorado highway department during a break from college.

He went on to Harvard Business School and founded Synthes USA in 1974, returning to the Rockies frequently over the last several decades to hike and climb.

"I know the West like my back pocket," he said.

Lots of billionaires and megamillionaires have come to Montana and decided to claim a piece of it as their own—from media mogul Ted Turner and software entrepreneur Tom Siebel, to former Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld, who all bought ranches in the state.

While Wyss has a daughter in neighboring Wyoming, he has never lived in the region. And the land he helped buy in the recent Montana transaction will not become a private estate.

Instead, most of the 310,000 acres of former Plum Creek land are being transferred to the U.S. Forest Service and Montana's Fish, Wildlife and Parks Department. Because the land ownership was "checkerboard"—meaning the private property was interspersed with public parcels—its preservation will keep intact a much larger swath of the so-called Crown of the Continent, a region anchored by Glacier National Park.

The deal is one of the largest private conservation purchases in the nation's history. It was arranged by the Nature Conservancy and the Trust for Public Land and also involved $65 million from the state of Montana and $250 million from the U.S. Department of Agriculture lined up by Montana Democrat Sen. Max Baucus.

Nature Conservancy president Mark Tercek said it might not have happened without Wyss, whose initial $25 million contribution spurred participation from other donors. When extra closing cash was needed, Wyss chipped in $10 million more.

Montana Gov. Brian Schweitzer said he met Wyss several years ago, when the Plum Creek purchase was first suggested by conservation groups.

At a lodge in Condon, Mont., Schweitzer said he told Wyss and other potential donors that their names might not be remembered by future generations, but their work would be.

"Near as I can tell, he (Wyss) is a citizen of the planet that was interested in protecting some of its last best places," Schweitzer said.

Such praise is not universal.

Wyss's foundation has given $1.5 million to the American Prairie Foundation to build a grasslands reserve in eastern Montana where bison can roam free. The project has stirred deep resentment in surrounding agricultural communities, where it is seen as a move to boot ranchers from land they've stewarded for generations.

"The fact that they're coming from all over with these big bucks—who do they think feeds them?" asked Vicki Olson, a rancher south of Malta, Mont. "Their feeling toward us is they don't care that they are ruining our economy and our area."

Wyss said he is not opposed to cattle grazing on public lands, but said it must limited to protect the land from destruction. He said the biggest threat is when ranches are bought by developers, opening the door to residential "ranchettes" and golf courses in environmentally sensitive stream valleys.

As for why he's targeting his money in the American West, Wyss said it was too late to do much good for his native landscape in the Swiss Alps: "Too many ski lifts, too many resorts, too many hotels."

In Montana, he added, there is still room for grizzlies, wolves and other iconic species to thrive.

"In the United States, we have a chance to protect some of them, not only for Americans but for people all around the world to benefit," he said.

El Nino/La Nina Impacts on Ski Resorts and Link to Big Sky

PureWest Blogger — Sun, 12 Dec 2010 06:41:00 GMT

El Nino/La Nina Defined and Ski Areas Favored by El Nino

The El Nino/Southern Oscillation (ENSO) has been studied extensively for its impacts upon climate. The shorthand definition of El Nino is an abnormal warming of the normally cold ocean waters of the Humboldt Current off the coast of Peru. A more formal measure used by many meteorologists is The Multivariate ENSO Index , which tracks both sea and air temperatures along with wind, pressure and cloud cover across the tropical Pacific. The data is combined and normalized to a monthly value where +1 = one standard deviation above normal (El Nino condition) and -1 = one standard deviation below normal (La Nina condition). I'll refer from now on to the MEI index, which is graphed below since 1950:

As most of us have observed, skilled weather forecasting has become very accurate in the short term, very useful for storm-chasing 3-5 days out, but more speculative beyond a week. Beyond 2 weeks I find it more useful to rely on historical records. El Nino/La Nina is the exception to this rule of thumb because the condition tends to persist for several months at a time. I have examined the monthly MEI table, which is used in the graph above and is updated with about a 1.5 month lag. With over 700 monthly values since 1950, each month's MEI index can be correlated with the index 1, 2, 3, etc. months in the future to demonstrate how likely an El Nino or La Nina condition might persist. Results are shown here:

Persistence of El Nino/La Nina
1 month:	96%	13 months:	1%
2 months:	89%	14 months:	-3%
3 months:	81%	15 months:	-6%
4 months:	71%	16 months:	-8%
5 months:	62%	17 months:	-10%
6 months:	52%	18 months:	-11%
7 months:	43%	21 months:	-13%
8 months:	34%	24 months:	-11%
9 months:	26%	27 months:	-9%
10 months:	18%	30 months:	-6%
11 months:	12%	33 months:	-3%
12 months:	6%	36 months:	0%

When I first wrote this article on 11/21/07 the last posted value of MEI was -1.117 for SEP/OCT 2007, and I expressed strong confidence that the observed La Nina condition would be in effect through the end of 2007, and some confidence that it would persist for the entire 2007-08 ski season. Notice that there is a very mild tendency for El Nino/La Nina to reverse itself 15-30 months in the future (think of a bathtub sloshing one side to the other), and only after 3 years do all effects of prior conditions disappear. It turned out that La Nina remained strong (2007-08 was 4th highest La Nina in the past 44 years) through FEB/MAR 2008, then dissipated over the next 3 months to a neutral value of +0.050 as of MAY/JUN 2008. Similarly the El Nino of 2009-10 was strong through FEB/MAR (the 6th highest El Nino in the past 44 years), but has swung radically to a very high La Nina value of -1.99 as of AUG/SEP 2010. The northern spring months are the historically most likely time for an El Nino or La Nina to break up, so there is strong confidence that the current La Nina will persist through the northern winter season of 2010-11.

While we have established that El Nino/La Nina are persistent weather events, their effects upon ski area snowfall are less clear-cut. I have correlated the monthly MEI table with all of the monthly snowfall data I have collected through 2010, and the list of ski areas with statistically significant snowfall sensitivity to El Nino/La Nina is much shorter than most people think.

The monthly correlations are not large enough to have much predictive value. But by combining 6 consecutive months together to form seasonal data, the correlations for some areas get into the 50% range. This fits with observed experience that in big El Nino or La Nina years the expected effects occur from time to time but not consistently. So I considered the seasonal correlations to be the main criteria in classifying areas. Not all areas provide complete November to April data, and I like to have 20+ seasons to draw conclusions.

For areas without enough complete seasons I looked at the monthly correlations, but also at the seasonal ones for nearby areas with many complete seasons. For example Sugar Bowl is likely to be affected similarly to nearby Donner Summit and Alpine Meadows. It is important to realize that season correlations based upon 15-40 data points have much more uncertainty than the El Nino/La Nina persistence correlations based upon over 700 data points.

The list of ski areas favored by El Nino, along with their monthly and season correlations to the MEI index, is shown below:

Area	Monthly	Seasonal	Seasons

Strongly favored by El Nino
Southern California Composite 7,000 - 8,000	22.3%	52.8%	35
Arizona Snowbowl 1, Ariz. 9,500	21.9%	55.4%	19
Brian Head, Utah 9,770	20.5%	49.6%	19
Arizona Snowbowl 2, Ariz. 10,800	19.6%	48.0%	20
Portillo, Chile 9,400		44.9%	38
Las Lenas, Argentina 7,400	19.5%	44.9%	24

Mildly favored by El Nino
June Mtn, Calif. 8,700	19.8%
Taos, N. Mex. 11,200	13.3%	27.2%	38
Thompson Pass (Chugach), Alaska 2,450	12.6%	38.1%	20
Mammoth Mtn, Calif. 9,600 or 8,900	11.9%	28.6%	42

El Nino strongly favors only Southern California, Arizona and far southern Utah, with milder effects extending to the southern Sierra and New Mexico. In El Nino years the only big destination resorts that are favored are Mammoth and Taos, with both of those in the mild category. In La Nina years Mammoth is likely still good for mid and late season, but earlier bookings should wait until snow is on the ground. Taos takes until nearly February to get fully covered in normal years, and skiers should be more wary during La Nina years. The data I acquired for Las Lenas in 2005 and Portillo in 2007 support the prevailing view that the high Andes are strongly favored by El Nino. Advance bookings to these lower latitude South American ski areas (also the Valle Nevado group) should be avoided in La Nina years until snow is on the ground.

I have constructed graphs to illustrate the variability of the snowfall correlations to El Nino/La Nina. The one below is for selected areas favorable to El Nino. Since the 2 strongest La Nina years were 1973-74 and 1970-71, I select areas with data that goes back that far.

The horizontal axis lists the past 44 ski seasons in order of strong El Nino at left to strong La Nina at right. The vertical axis is percent deviation from normal snowfall. The blue line is the sum of MEI indicies from OCT/NOV to APR/MAY, scaled to fit the graph.

The purple line shows the dramatic boost to Southern California snowfall from El Nino, with the 2 biggest snow years correponding to the 2 big El Nino of 1982-83 and 1997-98. 5 of the top 7 El Ninos produced at least 170% of normal snow. There are no guarantees even here, as the #4 season 1986-87 was a real stinker at only 59%. The top 8 La Nina seasons were all below average in Southern California, though only one was lower than 77%.

Moving to Taos (yellow line) the effect is less dramatic. The 2 big El Ninos were 116% and 118% of average, while Taos' record 1972-73 season at 174% was in the 5th highest El Nino year. But only 1991-92 of the top 7 EL Nino years was below average at Taos, and that one was still 94% of average. For the top 8 La Nina years, Taos is missing data for 1970-71, 1974-75 was a good year at 138% and 2007-08 above average. 1999-2000 was bad at 58% and the other 4 were below average in the 85% range.

In the Sierra the picture is mixed. Everyone remembers the record Sierra snow during the record El Nino of 1982-83. But the 3rd and 4th strongest El Ninos (1991-92 and 1986-87) were severe drought years at Tahoe, and 1986-87 was Mammoth's second worst season ever at 42%. Nonetheless 5 of the top 8 El Nino years (1982-83, 1992-93, 1994-95, 1997-98 and 2009-10) were at least 145% at Mammoth (orange line) and those same years were at least 125% at Donner Summit (light blue line) and Lake Tahoe.

At Mammoth the top 6 La Nina seasons were all below average, 3 of them by 30% or more. At Donner Summit it's a different story, as the top 2 La Ninas and 5 of the top 8 are above average. Lake Tahoe La Nina seasons are probably assisted by colder temperatures minimizing low elevation rain. This relatively good La Nina track record is the reason that the MEI correlations are low and statistically insignificant for areas like Kirkwood, Squaw Valley and Alpine Meadows.

Great Skiing Starts at Big Ski, Spanish Peaks, and Moonlight Basin

PureWest Blogger — Sat, 11 Dec 2010 22:49:00 GMT

L adies and gentleman, it's time to put away your stash of powder porn in favor of the real thing. That's because this week, three of your favorite spots to carve and shred are opening for your skiing and snowboarding pleasure. On Thu., Nov. 25, aka Thanksgiving, Discovery Ski Area near Georgetown Lake opens at 9:30 AM and Big Sky Resort in Big Sky opens at 9 AM. According to info on their respective websites, Big Sky Resort plans to have 19 lifts open, while Discovery plans to have three. Tickets are $55 for adults at Big Sky Resort, and $29 at Discovery. Then, on Sat., Nov. 27, you can get gnarly on the gnar closer to home when Montana Snowbowl tentatively plans to open around 9:30 AM—and, as far as I can tell, most runs will be available for you to hit up. Tickets for adults at Snowbowl cost $40 for a full-day pass and $35 for a half-day pass. Of course, the snow goddesses might change things for better or worse, so be sure to check the snow reports at each hill before you head out.

Record Snow Helps Big Sky Ski Resorts: Significant Real Estate Activity

Wade Dokken — Sat, 11 Dec 2010 22:23:00 GMT

A snowstorm prior to Thanksgiving followed by frigid single-digit and sub-zero temperatures ushered in the ski and snowboard season in Montana. Accumulating natural snow caused several resorts to open for the holidays to the delight of skiers and snowboarders anxiously eyeing the slopes.

Memories of several consecutive winters of scant early season snow faded fast with what Big Sky Resort touted as "the best conditions in 10 years." Thanksgiving Day saw the lifts start turning for the season at Big Sky.

Discovery Ski Area expected to open 35-45 percent of their terrain with three chairlifts running Thanksgiving Day on what it called "high quality snow." Silver Chief, the resort's new backside chair, was not operating, but will run Saturdays, Sundays, and holidays for skiing 200 new acres when conditions permit. The resort is planning to groom some of the steeper runs on Granite Lift by closing the lift to skiing Thursdays.

Bridger Bowl opened two weeks early with what the resort termed "excellent early season snowfall." Lifts ran for three days over the holiday weekend. The resort closed Monday, but plans to reopen Dec. 3-5 before opening for the season Dec. 10.

Montana Snowbowl shot for opening Nov. 27. Snowbowl plans to run its lifts Fridays, Saturdays, and Sundays in early December. Daily operations are scheduled to start Friday, Dec. 18, the same day the shuttle bus from the base of Grant Creek begins running. The shuttle will run Saturdays, Sundays, holidays, and the week after Christmas. It costs $3 round trip.

Montana Ski Company Embraces the Spirit of Giving

PureWest Blogger — Sat, 11 Dec 2010 22:21:00 GMT

WHITEFISH, MT--(Marketwire - December 6, 2010) - The Montana Ski Company announced the launch of its new website www.montanaskicompany.com today. "The new website is very exciting, but we're focused on a far more important initiative this holiday season," says Pat Corrick, board member of the company. "We are committed to sharing the excitement and happiness that skiing offers by helping some of America's true heroes -- disabled veterans." The Whitefish, Montana based ski company has committed that for every pair of skis it sells between now and Christmas, it will donate a set of adaptive skis to a disabled veteran through Vets-Help.org. In addition, the company has pledged that if 10,000 people 'friend' the Montana Ski Company Facebook page between now and December 24th, those 10,000 friends will be entered into a drawing for one of five pairs of Montana Ski Company skis, whose names will be drawn and announced on the company's new website Christmas morning.

The Montana Ski Company is a grassroots company started last year with venture capital from another Whitefish company, Bledsoe Capital Group (BCG). Drew Bledsoe, founder of BCG, part-time resident of Whitefish and avid skier, stated, "This is a company that has an exciting mission -- making high quality skis and snowboards while having a positive impact on the environment and people who use its products. That's what really got us involved." Chad Wold, Whitefish attorney and partner in BCG, added, "The principle that guides our involvement in companies is that they need to be doing good, while doing well, and this company clearly exemplifies that spirit."

The handmade American manufactured skis, snowboards and adaptive skis are constructed with solid wood cores using sustainable Montana wood products. Kim Barreda, head of the Adaptive Ski Division of the company and an adaptive skier herself, said, "This is the only company in the U.S. I know of that even offers a product for an adaptive skier, which can mean absolute freedom to someone that uses a wheelchair."

For more information, you can visit the Montana Ski Company's website,http://www.MontanaSkiCompany.com