We woke up to 4-6″ of fresh snow this morning, and normally that would set us up for an amazing powder day. Unfortunately, the snow level shot way up and rain threatened to dampen our spirits.

But in typical Idaho fashion, many of our visitors refused to  get rained out, and enjoyed some fairly decent snow conditions this morning. Part of the secret was to ‘manage the moisture’. We’ll share some tips on that in a minute. But first, let’s take a look at some of the surprises we found on the slopes.When the lifts opened at 9:30, it was still snowing the base area. As you can see, the fresh snow hadn’t been washed off the trees…

The runs groomed this morning were surprisingly fun. Main Street started out smooth, soft and creamy.

Runs groomed last night were more of a challenge, with 4-6 inches of wet snow on top. This guy was rocking it on 45th Parallel, though! Turns out he’s spent some time skiing in the Cascades, so he’s has some practice in conditions like this.

Not everyone could resist the urge to hit that fresh snow off-trail.

If you have legs of steel, perfect technique, and no fear, you probably found some good turns on the upper mountain first thing in the morning…

The rest of us stuck to the runs groomed this morning, like Main Street.

The runs on the Bear Chair stayed prime even longer.

But it was hard to enjoy any of the slopes today if you were struggling with “moisture management.”

Here are a few rainy day tricks I learned growing up in the Cascades.

# 1 –  A HOOD IS GOOD

It’s pretty simple, when you wear one, your hat stays dry. When your hat gets wet and you lift up your goggles, they quickly turn to foggles. No good.

Of course, most Brundage Mountain skiers rarely get a chance to learn this lesson.

This young lady ALMOST has it figured out. Unfortunately that gap is going to work against her. She’s also about to learn about tip number two…

#2 – DON’T HANG OUT

Anything exposed that is not waterproof will eventually get soaked. That includes your lovely hair, ladies.

It’s also not a great day to sport a pony tail or that fashionable scarf. They’ll quickly turn into a soggy mess that wicks the wetness straight to your skin. BRRRRRRR!

# 3 – LEAVE FASHION BEHIND

A rainy day on the slopes is not the time to worry about being ‘fashion forward’. Go ahead and rock that rain poncho!

Or for the truly resourceful, a garbage bag works, too.

The Brundage Baggie was a popular look today. (And it goes so nicely with a smile.)

# 4 – TAKE SOME TIME TO DRY OFF

A lot of our skiers are accustomed to rolling straight through the lift lines to get as many runs in as possible, but whether you grab a paper towel to dry off your googles,

or make a visit to one of our on-mountain warming huts, slowing down for a minute could be the key to staying comfortable.

Stop by the Bear’s Den at mid-mountain…

Or hit the Bird’s Nest for a hot drink and a warm smile.

It’s hard to enjoy the slopes if your attitude’s not right.

Which brings us to our final tip, offered up by one of our favorite locals, Dave.

# 5 –  “IF YOU CAN’T GET OUT OF IT…GET INTO IT!”

We can’t control the weather, but we can control our outlook. This Brundage regular was sporting the same attitude. What do they understand that others don’t??? The best way to stay warm is to get on out there…do what you can to stay dry…and keep on smiling.

– April