First Chair

This never happens. I awoke a little earlier the other morning for a day of skiing at Stevens Pass. It was officially a holiday and school was also out, so I expected big crowds and riders who probably had the same idea. When I arrived at the mountain, I got what I least expected.
First chair - yes indeed. Not only that, I snagged second, first chair on the connecting lift to the backside of Stevens Pass. According to liftee and the latest reports, they had received four inches of new snow and over two feet in the last seven days, so I was ready to ride. Granted, it wasn't dry, fluffy, Utah powder, but it was colder than normal (it wasn't raining - hallelujah) and I was able to find freshies for several hours.

What does "first chair" get you? I've never been heli-skiing (yet), but it's probably the closest I'll come to having the entire Mill Valley to myself. I took the two lifts up and surveyed the entire backside with nary a person in sight. It was beautiful and serene and strangely quiet.

Of course, after about 30 minutes, I was sharing the mountain with hundreds of my closest friends, but the day went well and skiing was excellent.

On your next trip out, set the alarm an hour earlier to ski what you've been missing.