Cash for Pow
Plus, boats in Death Valley, mountain lions in trees, park minimalism, overlooked parks, how plants see, and more
howdy
This weekend, I’ll be joining some family at an annual ski weekend at Oregon’s Mount Hood. We’ve had a somewhat lousy winter so far (thanks, El Niño) and this will be my first time on the downhill slopes this season. Although I’m a bit nervous about it (still kind of a beginner over here), I’m looking forward to making sure my skills don’t completely atrophy and hopefully will jump-start some weekday ski trips before my next freelance writing gig kicks off in March.
One of the reasons I haven’t really clicked with skiing yet is probably not too shocking—it’s expensive. As a hiker, most of the permits and entry fees we need are exceptionally reasonably priced (even though we still love to complain about them), and while gear we need can be pricey, there are usually lots of options for still getting out for a hike in a solid pair of sneakers and an old beat-up backpack from college.
Skiing understandably needs a lot of specific items. Then you need to also factor in the lift tickets, which last year averaged $142 for a weekend walk-up. And that doesn’t include the $25 chicken fingers at the ski lodge. It’s no surprise that skiing is a sport with a LOT of financial entry barriers. What is surprising—and a bit of a bummer—is that those barriers keep multiplying so that only rich people get to enjoy what was once available to anyone who wanted to put in the effort.
Roger Marolt writes in Outside about a new trend to open ski resorts up early for “VIP customers,” who can drop extra cash to get first tracks on the slopes before the poors get there. He notes a few programs in Japan as well as his hometown mountains in Aspen, which include a $2500-per-person early run at Aspen Highlands that includes a gourmet breakfast. I hope it’s free refills on coffee.
In simpler times, early ski runs were for anyone who was willing to put in the effort to get to the slopes first—if you could set your alarm early, you could get dibs on the powder. But as more ski resorts put up the velvet ropes for our financial betters, that’s no longer an option. Whatever your opinion is about timed-entry permits for popular parks, at the very least we’re all dealing with the irritation equally, you know?
Marolt interviews the VP of Communications for Aspen Skiing Company about this program, and his response sounds like it could have come out of a ChatGPT bot trained on corporate nonsense speak: “Running ski areas is an expensive and capital-intensive undertaking, so we look for opportunities where you can test new programs and diversify our business to offset headwinds.” Cue vomit emoji.
In the United States, most ski resorts operate on public land with special-use permits. Maybe it’s time our public land managers stepped up to rein in some of these practices so that our public land remains accessible to all of us, and not just those who can recreationally light piles of cash on fire.
Your Parks
Your Places
Time for a Desert Kayak?
In the mid-2000s, when I was still just learning how to hike, there was a big winter rainstorm that filled in Death Valley’s Badwater Basin with enough water that people could (and did!) kayak in the ephemeral Lake Manly. Taking a boat ride in one of the lowest, driest places on earth sounded like such a unique and rare occurrence and missing even the opportunity to see a lake down there remains one of my great outdoor regrets (never put work before lifetime experiences, folks). Well, fast forward a few years and now it seems like that extremely rare occurrence is happening a lot more frequently.
Due to the recent firehose of atmospheric rivers aimed at California, Lake Manly is currently about 6 miles long, 3 miles wide, and a foot deep—and is navigable by kayak. Rangers at Death Valley National Park expect the lake to remain kayak-friendly for another week or so, but the lake should linger through mid-April and will give you some incredible views and great photos. If you go (and you should) be sure to check road conditions—most of the main roads are passable now but there are still some closures due to storm damage.
Rainier 101
I’ve been in the Northwest for a few years, but last fall was my first visit to Mount Rainier National Park. I spent a few nights there and did some exploring, but the park is huge and I really only barely scratched the surface. If you’re looking for a good primer on your own first visit—especially since the park will be testing out a permit entry system this summer—you may want to pop into this article on USA Today, which answers some basic questions and provides good info, too.
The Most Overlooked Parks
For a lot of units in the National Park System, summer is peak visitation season. That means visitors can expect long lines, sold-out campgrounds, and crowds in some of the most popular marquee units. As always, the best strategy is to just look elsewhere—which is why this first-hand list of some of the most overlooked parks from our friends at National Parks Traveler is a terrific brainstorm-generator. From caves to prairie preserves to historic Civil War sites to off-the-beaten-path cave tours, there’s a little something for everyone. No need to sit in a traffic jam in Yosemite Valley this summer!
Tech Talk
Gadgets, Technology, and Hype
A Stripped Down Park Service
No, not talking naturists here (sorry), we’re talking minimalism. Specifically, visual minimalism in photography from the various units of the National Park System. This seems to the MO of the Minimal Park Service, which highlights a large number of stark, simple landscapes on their extensive Instagram account. What I love about this project is that the photography is not showy, and the views are not the iconic landmarks we’ve all seen a million times before—this is the kind of scenery you’d see on an everyday, totally average hike you might have found buried at the back of a dusty guidebook … and it’s all gorgeous.
The site is run by musician, ambient soundsmith, and all-around artist Alan Kahler, whose landscape-centered soundscapes are a vibe that absolutely matches the visual imagery. Zone out and enjoy!
Wildlife Crossing
Wildlife and the Outdoors
A Lion Looks for Waterfalls
Escondido Falls is the tallest waterfall in Southern California’s Santa Monica Mountains, and during the rainy season it’s an especially popular destination. But it’s not just hikers and photographers trying to get out there right now—the Mountains Recreation Conservation Authority posted a video of an uncollared mountain lion just chilling out up in the oaks and sycamores inside Escondido Canyon, while hikers walk on the trail nearby. It’s a reminder of several outdoor safety tips, like why you’re encouraged to keep your pup on a leash, as well as a reminder to always be aware of your surroundings when you’re out on the trail. MRCA rangers also would like to remind you that if you do encounter a mountain lion on the trail, “do NOT attempt to take a selfie.” Learn more about the mountain lions of Los Angeles at SaveLACougars.org.
Leafing Out
Plants!
How Plants See
Anyone who’s ever grown a bean sprout in a paper cup in elementary school knows that plants will usually grow toward a source of light. Some plants—like sunflowers and buttercups—will even turn their flowers toward the sun (in science terms, this means the flowers are heliotropic, which you should store in your brain to help you on a pub quiz ten years from now). But it seems like until recently, biologists didn’t really know exactly how plants did this.
In a somewhat wonky article in The Atlantic, European scientists have finally figured out how plants can “see” without eyes … and the conclusion is pretty cool. Basically, they “see” with their entire bodies.
One More Thing
Oh yeah, before I go …
If you, like me, are of a certain age you may remember a time when operating a computer meant you actually needed to know how to operate a computer. Did I enjoy having to run MemMaker in DOS to play Sid Meier’s Civilization off 3.5” floppy disks? Not really, but it did increase my understanding of what was going on behind the scenes before I swore at Genghis Khan as his armies ransacked my settlements.
This wistful essay in The Atlantic bemoans the loss of the mouse in favor of touch screens and swipe gestures, and is a nice read that also highlights just how useful the mouse was for computer … and how in the rush to make things simpler we’ve also accidentally made them a lot more complicated.
Until next time,
Happy Trails.
