High Cascade Adult Camp - Session 6 - 2009

This year was my first year participating in the adult camp offered by High Cascade. I had avoided the adult camp in the past for several reasons: I didn't see the opportunity to drink as being worth the extra $200 and I wasn't sure hanging out with a bunch of "old dudes" (everyone was around my age, officially or in spirit) was going to be a good time. I'm definitely glad I gave adult camp a shot this time around since I had the most fun of any session I've done at High Cascade so far.

Session 6 recap 2009 from High Cascade Snowboard Camp on Vimeo.

There are some major differences between youth to adult camp, and plenty of worthwhile reasons why it costs a bit of extra money for a spot, but first a breakdown of your options... Adult camp offers a few different experiences; you can rent your own lodging or stay in High Cascade's adult lodging and opt for coaching or just cruise the camps private park on your own. Your choices will effect your cost, but for the purpose of this review I opted for High Cascade lodging with coaching.



As mentioned earlier, it costs just about $200 more for the adult coaching and lodging than the same amenities in youth camp, but the extra money goes right to your stomach; instead of the routine camp food (which is actually pretty good) you eat a fancy meal every night... we visited some seriously legit eateries. Eating wasn't the only thing that went down though, High Cascade set up activities galore to keep us insanely busy on and off the slope. From kickball to yoga to bowling there was never nothing to do. For transportation, High Cascade donated their sickest bus, the Boom Bus (lined with Kicker speakers and topped with Kicker subs), to the adult camp cause. Camp even closed off some of their real popular areas for various "adult only" activities. Private bowl session, anyone?





For housing, the camp set aside the entirety of one its lodges, Park Place; it is a four story lodge with an identical floor setup on each floor save the first, which was set aside for the ladies. Rooms are mainly single beds or bunk status with about four to each room. I've stayed in Park Place before and between the HDTV on every floor, the satellite cable and occasional access to one of the only working wireless networks, I like staying there just fine. I will say that last years adult camp were given private cabins much further from the youth campers, which I have also stayed in; the returning adult campers agreed that those were much nicer and better suited to the goings on of adult camp.



Adult camp coaches were hand selected and some of the best coaches that High Cascade has on their roster, and having attended the camp for a few years and getting to know many of the coaches I really do mean that. Our coaches were not only phenomenal riders and instructors but genuinely exceptional human beings; it's true that a day of snowboarding can only be as good as the company you ride with and I know my group was vibing every single day, breaking barriers and pushing limits... both on snow and at the pub.



Last but not least, the park. A quick backstory, Session 6 began after an intense heat wave that had Timberline losing around two feet of snow per day! Coming up on my first glimpse of the mountain I wasn't expecting much, and in true High Cascade fashion I was pleasantly surprised. Everything was still very much shredable, from the main park to the lap park there was still an abundance of kickers, jibs and pipes to get gnarly with. The big-toe (the camps private tow rope) was still up and running for quick laps through the main park, but equally awesome was still being able to lap both parks using the Palmer lift.



Unfortunately Mother Nature had a change of heart, and where it was 9o°F each day the week before, Session 6 found itself smack in the middle of a week of foul weather and two riding days were lost to visibility and miserable conditions (with temperatures as low as 37°F). Especially when so much money is involved, it is easy to get incredibly disappointed about losing any riding time to weather. This is part of our sport and completely out of anyone's control, but this particular occasion in late August is an excellent example of the unpredictability of mountain weather and why you should always prepare for anything. High Cascade was generous enough to refund photo and video session charges due to the poor conditions, and equally generous in finding and funding alternate activities throughout Oregon.

All in all, like I said, this was my best camp experience at High Cascade to date. In fact, I've already started saving for next year.

Cigarettes and Snowboarding?

One of the topics in snowboarding that remains relatively quiet is smoking cigarettes. Even though it doesn't seem to capture the big media's attention, I know it is a subject that many have pondered at some point when riding. Curious, I asked readers their opinion of the habit and its effect on their resort experience.

Now, the process of slowly destroying your lungs and throat is blatantly out of place in a sport that demands physical exertion in high altitudes, but the possibility of a resort being completely smoke-free is unlikely. It is important for non-smokers to understand that smoking is an addiction not easily put down; likewise, smokers need to understand that there aren't many who appreciate the smell of cigarette smoke when in fresh mountain air. Let's face it, cigarette smoke stinks; even smokers will admit that. Most non-smokers are simply hoping riders stop smoking in lift lines, on the lift, at the top of runs and in food areas where the smoke is guaranteed to affect several people, and this is a policy many resorts are beginning to enforce in response to customer feedback...but here is the bigger picture:

In most cities, cigarettes are a major contributor to the litter that lines the streets and sadly, the same is true for our resorts. Since many smokers associate their cigarettes with relaxing, the habit fits right in with escaping to the mountain and getting some turns in. Snow works great for putting out a cigarette, so maybe you are on the lift, maybe you are strapping in, maybe you are enjoying a quick cigarette mid-tree run, but it's so much easier to just snuff the butt in the snow and leave it there. Unfortunately, what ends up happening throughout the season is layer upon layer of cigarette butts are deposited in the snow. Of course the snow melts, and now you have butts all over the mountain as well as in the runoff... this runoff likely flows to vital water sources. There are a few smokers who appreciate that their cigarette butts are not meant to be a part of the mountain and make all efforts to dispose of them properly, but the majority do not. In fact, poll results showed that above personal comfort, most readers just wish that smokers would pick up their butts.

In an increasingly mistrusting and unfriendly world it might be asking too much for us to be considerate of one another, but in all likelihood the only thing the mountain ever does is bring us good times, so above all we as snowboarders should at least respect that.

Bottom line: Smokers, pick up your butts!

High Cascade 2009 - Session 6

You know that saying, "more fun than Disneyland"? Well, High Cascade Snowboard Camp up in Mt. Hood, Oregon really is more fun than Disneyland; that's why I'm going up there for my 4th summer. In fact, as you are reading this I'm probably en route to Oregon for Session 6.

What is High Cascade Snowboard Camp, or rather, what isn't it?

A High Cascade vacation includes lodging, food, transportation, trampolines, lake trips, whitewater rafting, paintball, mountain biking, a private dodgeball course, a private street skate course, a private bowl skate course, 2 private lap-able snowboard parks, 1 private rope tow, expert coaches, Cobra Dogs, tons of free demoes and tons of free product.

So I'll be up in a land of never ending snow, aka the Mt. Hood glacier, enjoying all of the above for a week; plus, if all goes well, there will be some new changes and additions to DesertsDontSnow.com as a result.

Stay tuned for daily updates and photos of the goings on... unless my equipment fogs up again and fucks up the whole thing like last summer. Hopefully, I learned my lesson.