Date: 05/14/98
Days: 1
Resort: Mt. Baldy
Hours: Day
Equipment: Alpine
Rating: 8
Primary-Surface: Powder
Secondary-Surfaces: Rocks, Slush
Gender: Male
Age: 45
Ability: Expert
E-mail: crockeraf@aol.com
Loved: SoCal freshies in May
Hated: Fog came in too late(1PM) to save the powder
Closed: Ch. 4
Liftline-Waits: Ch. 3: 15min 9:30AM; 5-10 min. rest of AM; none after noon
Moguls: Not yet, should be good by the weekend

I loaded Ch. 1 just before 9AM, skied Nightmare in fresh but thick powder, then joined the large line on Thunder, which had opened at 9:15 but didn't get cranked up to full speed until close to 10AM. The early lift line was actually longer than on the February powder days, perhaps since Mt. High was the only other area open. Powder quality on Thunder was excellent until about 10:30. The sun is so high in May that all exposures were getting direct sun from 9AM onwards. I persisted in the heavy snow until noon. Ironically the fog rolled in at 1PM, but there was no winter snow left by then. However, the groomed skiing on Robin's and Bonanza was still good, and Emile's was skier packed. Upper mountain coverage is excellent and should remain so through Memorial Day at least. I only sustained rock damage by looking for powder in some marginal areas. The bottom of Ch. 1 will be too rocky to ski in a couple of days, but they should have Ch. 4 by the weekend.