WOLF CREEK SKI AREA - “It’s all powder!Come on!”
Karla Yahn, atop the Knife Ridge on a sheer chute lined with jagged rocks, hesitated, while below, Ian Melcker urged her on.
Her hesitation was understandable. The two snowboarders from Denver usually ride the resorts along the Interstate 70 corridor — a region that an El Niño weather pattern has kept brutally dry this year. As of late January, most central Colorado resorts had bases of just 30 to 40 inches, with hard snow and exposed rock and dirt.
“It’s pretty bad — Copper, Winter Park …” said Melcker, his voice trailing off, as if discussing some calamity.
Yahn plunged down the gap between the crags, crashing halfway down with a burst of white spray. She emerged from the tumble laughing.
“It’s way better,” she said of the powder that cushioned her fall. “Summit County has no snow this year.”
Welcome to the happiest place in the Rockies.
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