General The best spring destination? Crete! (According to this article)

[Pequenita]

There are some really cool things to see in the eastern sierras, if you want to take time off from skiing and climbing. I did a road trip last spring. I stopped at Mono Lake (Cinderella filmed the video to “Don’t know what you’ve got” there ), Lake Crowley, some petroglyphs off a dirt road, Bodie ghost town (really weird that a town that young can be a ghost town), and Manzanar NHS. I used Mammoth as a home base, but there are also campsites in the area.

 

[Primoz]

@Pequenita those are some of very few things (it's huge country afterall so seeing few national parks and other places doesn't really count as seing much) that I saw in USA, and while I would never want to live there, I still think it's one of best places to visit. But in my case it was in summer, even though winter should be really cool there.

 

[Cameron]

I've never been to Crete and really don't know a whole lot about other than Robin Williams character in Good Morning Vietnam was stationed there before Vietnam but I never would have imagined a Mediterranean island had skiing.

 

[cantunamunch]

I've never been to Crete and really don't know a whole lot about other than Robin Williams character in Good Morning Vietnam was stationed there before Vietnam but I never would have imagined a Mediterranean island had skiing.

Both Cyprus and Sicily get snow too - it's all about the mountains. Don't forget Sicily is about the same latitude as West Virginia; Cyprus and Crete are at the level of Kentucky.

 

[Cameron]

I would have thought the sea would keep the island too warm for snow but then again Hawaii get snow.

 

[cantunamunch]

I would have thought the sea would keep the island too warm for snow but then again Hawaii get snow.

Yep. The sea brings great quantities of extra moisture too, so its presence has a net effect of amplifying the altitude contrast.

 

[Jersey Skier]

International travel is tricky now. I am booked for two weeks of heli, followed by a week of fly fishing, for Iceland in April. No PCR test, for now. I bailed on BC and Patagonia due to PCR test requirement. Tough to get quick turn in our little mtn town.

Iceland is super easy to get to. May be cheaper than the Sierras. Round trip, coach out of Denver was running $350 on Iceland Air.

Pre-Covid we flew to Iceland from Jersey in 5 hours for less money than a flight to FL. Not to ski, but still an amazing place to visit.

 

[Tom K.]

I gifted you all the article. You're welcome.

The ‘Best Spring Skiing Anywhere’? Try Crete

The Greek island has no lifts, no lodges, no trail maps. But for those willing to climb for their turns, it’s got miles of wide-open terrain, dependable spring snow and no crowds.

www.nytimes.com

She's a witch with astounding powers!

Seriously, thanks!

@Slim, I believe there is some great, road-serviced backcountry skiing in the vicinity of Red Lodge, on Beartooth Pass.

In your shoes, I'd load up the Wagon Queen Family Truckster and start driving.

Though spring break may be a bit early for that pass skiing.

 

[cantunamunch]

She's a witch with astounding powers!

Weren't you a newt last week?

 

[Slim]

@Tom K. , for last years spring break, we drove the long way around, to spend 4 days skiing the ‘Far side of the Beathooth pass” aka Cooke City, Montana.
And the rest and travel days were Yellowstone.
it did mean 1.75 days of driving in either end, so even though we took the week, plus both weekends, we only skied 4 days, and the day trip to Yellowstone.
Thats where flying comes in.

Iceland is about 6 hour flight for us, and Icelandic used to fly from MsP to Amsterdam, with free stops in iceland, so a good option for us.

Trip Reports - Cooke City, MT / Yellowstone

Last week, for the first time since corona hit, we travelled further than a 100 miles from our house. We took a family trip to Yellowstone National Park and surrounding area. My wife and I have two awesome daughters, 10 and 13 years old at the moment. For those unfamiliar with the area, Cooke...

www.skitalk.com

 

[Nobody]

Well, considering the amount of snow fallen recently down there...
(Greece and Turkey have been pounded)
The southern mediterranean is the place to go and seek fresh snow, ATM...
Rather go there fast, though...

 

[Daniel]

I've never been to Crete and really don't know a whole lot about other than Robin Williams character in Good Morning Vietnam was stationed there before Vietnam but I never would have imagined a Mediterranean island had skiing.

The French island of Corsica has a few small ski areas/resorts that offer lift-served skiing/riding. I have been to a couple of them, though it was in the course of cycle touring, hiking, and mountaineering and not skiing or snowboarding. Mountain peaks on the island go up to 8,878' elevation (Monte Cinto being the highest).

Corsica

Everything you want to know about backcountry snowboarding and skiing, avoiding avalanches, finding fresh powder and buying the right ski and snowboard gear, sport: sking, sport:snowboarding

pistehors.com

I also have an acquaintance who has (lift-served) skied on the part-Greek, part-Turkish island of Cyprus.

 

[James]

I mean you can ski in Morocco too.

Here’s Etna in Sicily just recently. Crete you prob don’t have to worry about volcanic activity.

I posted some stuff of someone “skiing” cinders on very small steep Islands off Sicily. But it might have been years ago on epic.

 

[Nobody]

Did someone say Sicily"?

 

[Nobody]

Did someone say "Sicily"?
Following link will take to apicture of Etna volcano covered I snow, while erupting...
Etna -Sicily
Picture is not mine. I have found it on a Facebook page about Sicily.
There is also a group of skiers who abitually ski the Etna...

 

[Primoz]

There are (sort of) proper ski resorts at Sicily, so skiing there is nothing that unusual.

Ski resorts Sicily - skiing on Sicily

List and map of all 3 ski resorts on Sicily. Find the ideal ski resort for skiing on Sicily. Overview: ski Sicily

www.skiresort.info

Sciare sull'Etna - Funivia Etna

IMPIANTI SCIISTICI Piano Provenzana, Etna Nord Nel periodo dicembre / marzo (la data precisa di apertura viene comunicata in relazione alle condizioni meteo e all’innevamento) gli impianti sciistici di Funivia dell’Etna presso la Stazione di Piano Provenzana a Etna Nord sono aperti tutti i...

www.funiviaetna.com

 

[Nobody]

Correct. There is also a "team" of people who regularly skis there. They also have a Facebook page (but no site that I can see).
I saw pictures of them skiing beside an active lavic flow at night. Spectacular.

 

[cantunamunch]

Correct. There is also a "team" of people who regularly skis there. They also have a Facebook page (but no site that I can see).
I saw pictures of them skiing beside an active lavic flow at night. Spectacular.

The thread at Epic (@James ' reference above) wasn't of Sicily. It was about the maniac who did Stromboli.

 

[Nobody]

The thread at Epic (@James ' reference above) wasn't of Sicily. It was about the maniac who did Stromboli.

Yepp, lot of "famous" people, WC racers and the likes, go there to ski the cinder. It is more a publicity stunt than else. Skiing the Etna, OTH, is real skiing, on real snow. Never been there but it should be really something.

 

[Nobody]

A six years old report from a French (thus in French, sorry) broadcasting company:

Skier sur l'Etna, c'est possible

Chaque année, des skieurs dévalent les pentes enneigés du célèbre volcan sicilien.

www.francetvinfo.fr