When the first day of the season=100% open, you know your scarcity fears are over. When you’re the first one in the parking lot and the owner is still plowing because all of a sudden there’s another six inches of snow… ?
When you get on the chair and you can’t see any tracks even though you’re not the first one on (or off)…?
When the second lift opens, and the terrain is untouched…?
That sums up day one at Plattekill this year, where for the first time in nearly a quarter of a century day one = a powder day.

I could go on. These are the questions (and answers) important to a skier’s heart. Well, to my skier’s heart that is. Last year is best ignored. And, this year began with a bang and powder and every single trail open—even the ones where no snow had been made and which never opened last year. So on Day One there was whooping and laughing and sheer cries of joy. Already this year Platty has had more snow than all of last year combined. And it’s only been open one day.

There was also a visit to the Cardinal, a winter rite and blessing of Ullr. The Cardinal is aka Cardenal Mendoza… brandy, hidden on the hill for winter rites (and a rite of passage for many a Platty skier.). Witness here the Cardenal’s greeting. First job finding the bottle in the snow. The rite includes a mouthful of snow, a slug of brandy and then more powder, that is, powder to be skied upon. All hail season 2016-17.