December of '23 Skiing in Big Sky

After fantastic early snow the last couple of years, El Niño brought warmer temperatures and less snow to Big Sky in December of 2023.

With senior season passes at Big Sky Resort, Julie and I braved whatever conditions awaited at the slopes.

Fewer runs were open to start the season, but the coverage turned out to be surprisingly good on sufficient runs for fun ski days.

The ski resort experts accomplished the remarkably good conditions on select runs through a combination of artificial snowmaking plus moving snow around the mountain.

In many ways, it felt like spring skiing, with temperatures often rising above the freezing point by mid-day, making the usual layers of clothes downright hot.

Crowds proved to be light, so that was a bonus.

 

The new Lone Peak Tram offers spectacular views all the way up to the top of the highest point in Big Sky.

We skied iver to the entryway, unsure if we needed to have bought advance tickets.  With the assistance of a friendly staffer named Arthur, we purchased tickets for $10 each to take the roundtrip ride.

We spent a few minutes at the peak, walking around the mountain top to take in the glorious views, including a panoramic look at the Yellowstone Club.

Hiking was also very pleasant in Big Sky Meadow and Town Center.

We returned regularly to the trails around the golf course and what we call Moose Meadow.

In the evening, we started watching a new season of Reacher, as well as a new show for us, The Morning Show.  The Morning Show is a drama series about behind the scenes politics at a major TV network that is coming to grips with new era competition from streaming services.

With Reese Witherspoon, Steve Carell and Jennifer Anniston among a cast that features several other recognizable faces, The Morning Show has plenty of star-power to keep us watching even when the subtle and blatant biases make us a bit crazy.  The seasons deal with #MeToo, Covid-19 and other recent events.

After a few weeks in Big Sky, we were ready to head for California to spend the holidays with family.  

On the way out of town, we were bid farewell by a small herd of bighorn sheep.

Rather than make the long drive through what can be challenging winter driving conditions, we boarded a non-stop flight on Alaska Air.  The snapshot photo of an airplane outside of the Copper Horse Restaurant where we shared a burger at BZN was not our plane.

Before I had time to finish watching Die Hard on the flight, we landed in San Diego.