What a difference a year makes.  Last season there was so much snow during the holidays that the mountain was closed for days at a time and we hardly snowboarded because the mountains were falling down all around us.  This year there was very little snow but the whole mountain was open and you could do as many tram lapse as your legs could handle.

I am not sure if it is the low snow or the economy but the Tetons have been empty.  Up high the riding has been good while down low it has been fast, firm and rocky.  Being able to walk on the tram with out a line and access 4139 ft of vertical drop in 8.5 minutes made for a great early season tune up and the perfect testing grounds for my new boards.

Grand Targee 2PM on a Saturday.  This is about as tracked out as this place gets.  The locals claim Targee is the place freeriders go to retire because it never gets bumped out, it snows over 450 inches a year and it is rare to see more then 50 people riding the mountain.

Air Bags Save Lives.  TGR lead guide Jim Conway wakes up the class room by pulling the rip cord at the annual TGR avi/first aid workshop.

Opening day of the Tram

All this terrain can be accessed with a series of short hikes from the tram.

Low tide, sharky and barreling.  This is the Jackson Hole classic, “Once is Enough.”

This is the view from the classic entrance.  The top was too rocky to ride but the chute was powder.

I opted for the alternate entrance.

We hit the center coulior.  It was surreal being the only people out here and having the only tracks around.

This is the reason why.  The way out was an hour of traversing threw thick bushes and rock fields.  I do not think I went over 5mph but was dripping in sweet by the end.