Unfortunately for my readers I have my two cents worth on this subject. Whales can be rather dangerous even when they aren't in avalanche condition. Bromley has about a hundred of them right now on their fastest trails. I find them rather un-natural in their shapes and positions which can throw your rythm off dramatically while descending. They also appear quickly and are hidden behind the snow of the guns. Futhermore, when left for a period of time, they often gain a slick crust which doesn't break under a skier's weight. It's also easy to jump them and then land at bad angles on the next one. One time I went up to the North face of Mt. Snow in the spring with a highly skilled skier. They had blown a huge 30 foot whale above the steepest section of Ripcord. He went over it in fine style, but I hesitated at the apex, bailing out. I was the object of derision for hours after that. Nevertheless, he can no longer ski without excruciating pain due to his persistent ankle injury and the way he insists on aggravating it when skiing while I continue to enjoy the sport. Both of us had previous ankle injuries prior to that day which had pretty much ended our competitive careers. He now lives in the South because he suffers emotionally seeing skis on roofracks when he can't go skiing.

Seems as though your friend should have had more common sense when going down, I usually check it out from the bottom first from River run, then make a mental note of which side to take being the conditions, personally it is to short of a trail for the pitch but it can be really fun sometimes when it is the right conditions. My son and I did the spring race there one year, the Gladitor event and it was just a great time. I dont know how you screwed up your ankles, I never had come across this in all my years of skiing and ski racing, maybe your boots were to loose, something is wrong there. Hope this info helps you out. Goodday.

Most areas smooth out their whales soon after they are finished making snow on that particular trail. Loon, as I understand it, caches snow by keeping whales in tact in certain strategic shady areas so they can "use" this snow later after they have exhausted their snow making water credits - which this year will probably be early Feb.

Whales can be fun, but a lot of the time, they are powdery on one side and blue ice on the other.

..., I usually check it out from the bottom first from River run, then make a mental note of which side to take being the conditions,...

Sorry, but I don't think you know all that much about skiing in spite of your experience. ...

Most areas smooth out their whales soon after they are finished making snow on that particular trail. Loon, as I understand it, caches snow by keeping whales in tact in certain strategic shady areas so they can "use" this snow later after they have exhausted their snow making water credits - which this year will probably be early Feb.

Many areas preserve snow in "Whales" for use late in the season (a pile melts slower than snow thats been spread), commonly at the top of trails or in natural depressions. This kind of whale blends into the slope of the trail unlike the freshly made whales that been mentioned frequently in this thread.

Loon has traditionally ended its snow making season the week before Massachussetts school vacation not because of water but because that is when we've pulled the plug for years. This year should be no different especially since the weather in November and December was so poor for making snow, we didn't even open until December 8th(?). As long as the level of the East Branch River stays normal we can make snow. The question posed by some at the mountain is whether we'll go later this year to make up for lost weeks of snowmaking. My guess is "No". One, because its a budget thing, and two, because in the last two weeks we've made an incredible amount of snow.

Sorry, but I don't think you know all that much about skiing in spite of your experience. ...

And weedywart: you can disagree without being defensive or disagreeable