Mt Bohemia frigin rules

thanks for the info. saw the rain so we are not going.
what do you mean more bad days than good days? Bohemia claims to get like tons of snow right?

we would be coming from about 10 hrs away how often is it good during the winter and by good we mean like fun does not have to be powder everyday

A great day is a powder day for us in lower michigan so our expectations are hoping for powder but if not we still want soft snow to ski on

we were looking to reschedule for maybe mlk weekend ? should we or should we not. Also we heard it is a real laid back place, real noncorporate so we were kind of into supporting a place like that kind of attitude

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Originally Posted by snowchase

thanks for the info. saw the rain so we are not going.
what do you mean more bad days than good days? Bohemia claims to get like tons of snow right?

we would be coming from about 10 hrs away how often is it good during the winter and by good we mean like fun does not have to be powder everyday

A great day is a powder day for us in lower michigan so our expectations are hoping for powder but if not we still want soft snow to ski on

we were looking to reschedule for maybe mlk weekend ? should we or should we not. Also we heard it is a real laid back place, real noncorporate so we were kind of into supporting a place like that kind of attitude

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drive the extra 7 hours and go to Colorado...better choice

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Originally Posted by snowchase

we were looking to reschedule for maybe mlk weekend ? should we or should we not. Also we heard it is a real laid back place, real noncorporate so we were kind of into supporting a place like that kind of attitude

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Bohemia isn't the kind of place where you schedule to go weeks in advance. Basically you wait for a big storm to plow through and drive up just before or during (and hope that the storm doesn't turn out to be pouring rain). Copper Harbor (about ten miles north of Bohemia) is a cool place to stay, but I'd make sure you top off the gas before leaving Houghton and also maybe put some kind of food and beer in the cooler. Copper Harbor brings new meaning to the term "remote outpost". It's literally the end of the road.

Well, shit if that isn't a funny funny read. like a bad dream with catskiing. :D Not sure Boho would gimme what I'm lookin fer.

I had planned on taking the family W tomorrow, but having just about NO luck on finding a place to stay. was looking at Wolf Creek, but even there is booked solid. Found one cabin for one night one place, adn another cabin another place for one night.


Just talked to Boyne and they have alot of openings. 3-400/night right now for a family of 4 including skiing and breakfast.

Damn. Roll the dice and head to crowded CO/NM? Or take it easy in MI?

I'm confusulated.

does anyone know what the chances are bohemia will be open by mid january

also can i trust their snow report. they went from saying they had good conditions to being closed

im debating whether this is worth the drive and most importantly if there looks like whether there will be snow?

No, you can't really trust their snow reports, that has been stated previously.
if you are close, like within an hour or so, I would just go and find out. If not, well, toss the dice.
Mt. Bohemia is just far enough from me that I could spend a few hours on a plane and be anywhere better for just about the same $$. The drive is the real killer, about 11 hours for me, on average. I have made that trip about a dozen times, and after all this time I learned that unless you have family/girlfriend there, bugger it and go west/east.
JH has a hostel that's about $60 a night IIRC, and plane tix there are reasonable, less than $400 RT.

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Originally Posted by snowchase

does anyone know what the chances are bohemia will be open by mid january

also can i trust their snow report. they went from saying they had good conditions to being closed

im debating whether this is worth the drive and most importantly if there looks like whether there will be snow?

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Unless something wierd happens, they should open back up by the first week in Jan. Then again, something wierd happened last weekend - they got deluged by rain, so who knows?

They did have good conditions two weeks ago when they first opened, but then the floods came. Bohemia is good if you are able to chase storms, otherwise you're probably better off just going to CO or UT. Bohemia can be great right after a big storm, but otherwise it kinda sucks unless you like rocks and moguls. Their snow report is about as accurate as any other place, it's just that last weekend's flood really put a monkeywrench in the whole thing. Who knows what it'll be like in two or three weeks? You might not even be able to get up there due to blizzard conditions or it may be completely devoid of any snow whatsoever.

Well, it's on again. Today was the hardest I've seen it snow in the midwest for about 20 years. Unreal. Supposed to rain this weekend, but I'll be in UT for the next month+ so I don't care. But today was great. Tomorrow will be too.

hey im finally heading up to bohemia. anybody know a cheap place to crash?anybody got any passes they want to sell. Looking to be there for a few days with a couple of buddies. need cheap lift tickets or how to get them. Any lifties reading this ? i will be your best friend for a hookup!

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Originally Posted by snowchase

hey im finally heading up to bohemia. anybody know a cheap place to crash?anybody got any passes they want to sell. Looking to be there for a few days with a couple of buddies. need cheap lift tickets or how to get them. Any lifties reading this ? i will be your best friend for a hookup!

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Sounds like you're gonna hit it jusy right! If you are there today, you might see Glen Plake.

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Originally Posted by snowchase

hey im finally heading up to bohemia. anybody know a cheap place to crash?anybody got any passes they want to sell. Looking to be there for a few days with a couple of buddies. need cheap lift tickets or how to get them. Any lifties reading this ? i will be your best friend for a hookup!

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20 bucks for the at resort lodging, you get a cot, and something to eat like Raman

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Originally Posted by Yukonrider

20 bucks for the at resort lodging, you get a cot, and something to eat like Raman

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For my money, Lac La Belle lodge seems like a better option. Got to spend the last few days up there. Skied it with low snow on Sat/Sunday/Monday and then with some pow on Tuesday. Super fun with good snow. Solid tree skiing. Good spacing and some rocks to jump off.

One of 4 photos taken all weekend. Gotta use the camera more.

http://i85.photobucket.com/albums/k5...njm/trees2.jpg

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Originally Posted by snowchase

hey im finally heading up to bohemia. anybody know a cheap place to crash?

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The new hostel is the best bet. If you have four or five guys, stay slopeside at Bohemia in one of their trailside cabins. It's $110/night, but if you divide it by four or five guys, it's cheap. Side note: make the fifth guy sleep on the floor, or snake a cot from under the bunks!

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Originally Posted by 1wsguy

Sounds like you're gonna hit it jusy right! If you are there today, you might see Glen Plake.

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Did Plake end up going up there? Last I heard, he was going to end up skipping it 'cause of the possibility of rain this weekend. I'm sure the draw of 15" this week helped lure him and his wife back...

I'm excited to see the rain getting pushed back. Going to be up there Sat-Mon this weekend...I don't want it to suck.

Plake was there and supposedly liked it so much he decided to stick around for an extra day or two.

It's supposed to warm up on Friday and stay above freezing through Tuesday...

so whats new at bohemia
have not been there in a few years
seems like they have added some runs are they any good or just ski area hype?

missed that pass sale
any place in town sell discounted lift tickets?
not wanting to pay $45 !!

Sounds like it could get good back up there starting next week when that artic air comes in. I'll be going up sometime in the next week or so.

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Originally Posted by mike41

missed that pass sale
any place in town sell discounted lift tickets?
not wanting to pay $45 !!

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I'm not sure if they still do, but the Ramada in Houghton/Hancock used to sell discounted tickets. I used to stop in there and just buy them even though I didn't spend the night.

had great powder at bohemia over new years
wow i never thought that kind of hill was in Michigan

were thinking of getting back in feb
does powder normally last that long(few days in the woods)
i assume getting the $99 pass is a no brainer even if you are from downstate

what is the deal with no day lodge?
are they ever going to build one?

found a few rocks however needed petex bad!
hit up riplay on the way up. cool place never heard of it before
had cool ski patroller there show me some cool hidden spots
told me bohemia management is kind of Fkced up and that the locals are pissded off with them
place does seem kind of laid back and bare but what is the deal?
can anyone enlighten me what the issues are or are the two hills just rivals

Lot's of people bitch about Lonnie. I don't know - I guess I could care less really - I just go there to ski. He paints the lift towers ugly colors, uses the word "extreme" way to much in promotion and somewhat overplays the gnarliness of the place but really there's no other place in over a thousand mile radius that even compares to Bohemia. And although the gnar factor is somewhat overplayed, Bohemia is way gnarlier than all the other places in MI, WI and MN combined. I've heard gapers complain about stupid gaper shit like the lack of parking lot plowing or getting grease stains on their gaperjackets or rock damage on their gaperskis, but that's just gapers being gapers.

Usually the snow stays good for a couple days. People tend to really gravitate to the "Extreme Backcountry" (aka "Crackcountry") and overlook certain other areas. And don't be fooled by the "experts only" thing - there is no shortage of flailing gapers at Bohemia.

The $99 season pass is a no-brainer, however that's a one day only thing (Dec. 8th this past year). If you want a pass now they're something like $350. Sorry.

Hopefully they keep the yurts. Who needs a day lodge? Who even needs the yurts for that matter?

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Originally Posted by justcuz

My beef with Bohemia is this: It has the potential to be an AWESOME hill. Don't get me wrong, I friggin love the fact that it is bare, they don't groom, etc. etc. But I'm a promoter of the sport, I want to see people skiing and he won't allow that. And at a flat $45 daily rate he's nuts for this area. He won't invest in anything other than boobs and parties, and that pisses me off. I want to see the area grow with tourism, and that hill is one of the best possible ways to do this in the winter, but he just keeps fuckin it up. He could invest a relatively small amount and hold races, make it reasonable for families, but he has no interest...and that makes me mad. He only wants partying college kids. By the way...I'm only 25, still love a good party, and can friggin ski.

I know that there are lots of vacationers out there that think the gnar factor is cool, well, you're retarded. The gnar factor wears off quick when you're hoping for your area to grow the sport of skiing. He could keep ALL of his "Extreme Backcountry" and still cater to the fam.

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In Lonnie's defense - he caters to families with the Porkies. Porkies = family skiing, Bohemia = skiing. Ripley's got plenty for the gate-rapers.

I hate parties, but I'd much rather see Bohemia stay the way it is than turn into Ski Brule North. If he wants to appeal to families, he's gonna have to get a fleet of groomers, a much bigger base area, snowmaking, a park, etc., etc. And that would really be retarded.

im not sure i understand the boobs and parties thing
did not see many women when i was there
did not see any parties

i agree with the $45 dollar thing they could sell a multi day pass
i had to pay $45 each day i even offered to pay for two days up front and they said i had to pay each day and no discount
i was also told there was no half day rate which is bs

how is the place doing? is it growing

sounds like this guy is a real partier, take it he is the arrogant type that has screwed up ski places out west with expensive lift tickets and condo crap!

i think the patrol guys name was bill

Yeah, well like I said - I just go skiing there, I don't get involved in all the drama. I see families skiing there quite a bit - it's just that they're families who already know how to ski and don't need groomers and a big base area. I ski Alta way more than I ski Bohemia, and I gotta say that if the ski school, groomers, etc. went away tomorrow I wouldn't miss it and I'm sure Alta Lifts wouldn't go out of business either. The whole extreme thing perpetuated by Lonnie is pretty silly, but if I ever get that tired of it I guess I'll just STFU and buy my own hill. Then again I'm interested in skiing, not the ski industry.

I'll never forget meeting Lonnie at the MSP ski show back in the mid nineties. He was all revved up on this Bohemia thing and he had it all planned out. Extreme only, blah blah, etc. I remember spending a few minutes listening to him explain his hopeless business plan and then about thirty seconds trying to talk sense into him. I realized he was hopeless and so I wished him the best and walked away.

I just can't believe the place is still up and running and his plan is still in place. Unbelievable really, but its cool. Really there are far worse ways that he could be plundering his families fortune.

The world needs less polish and more goofballs like this guy.

my friends and i had a good time at bohemia
i think it would make a cool coop kind of like mad river glen
any chance this guy wants to sell?
has anyone seen their dvd, i was kind of shocked when i watched it

Well yeah we put in the dvd and all of a sudden there is this guy being beaten up . It was kind of well shocking. we thought we were going to see a video of the trails and the mountain and we got this weird thing.

Why does bohemia do that ? Other ski resorts video have like professional announcers and lots of facts about the ski resort.
It is a really good place but who the hell does their marketing?

By the way... were we the only people shocked by that video? What do you think of it? Are we being too critical?

QUOTE]who the hell does their marketing?[/QUOTE]

I would venture a guess that Lonnie is cheif marketing director

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Are we being too critical?

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Low budget stupid shit, who cares. I think that they take the approach that the skiing is extreme-nothing (base facilities, groomers, making money) else matters.

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Originally Posted by snowchase

Why does bohemia do that ?

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Probably for the same reason they call an area the Extreme Backcountry (even though it's niether "extreme" nor "backcountry"). Hey - it's the midwest. People still call it "snowskiing", y'know, to differentiate it from waterskiing. Gotta get people's attention somehow. I think the video's pretty silly, but I'm not the sort that actually get's all pissed off about something like that.

like i said earlier i think it is a cool mountain especially for michigan
ive been to other places in michigan and none of them are as good
but it seems from reading these posts and from talking to some locals that bohemia is being held back by its managment
what if it was run by real skiers and riders that cared about the sport than just making money!!
would a coop work and would it be better than what is currently running the place
please give me some feedback. is my idea crazy, pros and cons
i just think of mad river glen out east and what a great idea that seems to be

sure i just thought coop would be a cool way to make it a skiers mountain and protect it from being ruined

you guys are pretty remote dont imagine there anyone in town that has those kind of skills to run the mountain right?

are the current owners not investing much into the ski area?

coop's could raise money for new investments and then vote on what are the important things to invest in

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Originally Posted by snowchase

Well yeah we put in the dvd and all of a sudden there is this guy being beaten up . It was kind of well shocking. we thought we were going to see a video of the trails and the mountain and we got this weird thing.

Why does bohemia do that ? Other ski resorts video have like professional announcers and lots of facts about the ski resort.
It is a really good place but who the hell does their marketing?

By the way... were we the only people shocked by that video? What do you think of it? Are we being too critical?

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Huh?

glad our video is better than that. at least we landed the hucks we did.

I haven't made it up there yet this season. Word on the prairie was that some of the runs were getting thinned out a bit.

If I had one complaint, which I don't, it would be - there's some real nice shizzle on the hill, but too many trees in some spots make them nearly unskiable.

I'm definately heading up there. I haven't even cracked the pass yet.

thinking of coming back up
heard bohemia is getting lots of snow
looking for an update from anyone that knows
weather for this weekend is it going to be super cold?

Yesterday was great! It looks like they have been getting snow for evryday for the last week or so. I heard it was busy on Sat, but Yesterday there was few people, so there was still some goods to be had.
There was maybe 4 in fresh, but pretty cold (7 deg) with the wind chill (-5ish).
They got about 3 inches while we were there, and it was snowing when we left.
They were supposed to get about 10 inches through last nite.
4-8 predicted each day up to and including Thursday with some cold temps -single digits.
It's supposed to warm up abit maybe 20 for the weekend, but I would plan on cold anyway.
It should be good this weekend.

GO. Cold = GOOD for LES machines.

http://www.johndee.com

focus has a good tip on JohnDee.com...more reliable than Bohemia's website (although they are doing a good job keeping it up-to-date this year).

My .02 for the Bohemia marketing machine: they need to hire an outsider. I don't think the management at Bohemia is "money hungry" or cheap, just not in the know...for one reason or another. If they were to bring in an outside consultant to give them some direction, I think that would help a lot.

Anyone going to compete in the video content? We shot some footie last time we were out there, but I have yet to put in on my computer...and I'm video-editing retarded, too. Too bad it won't be until the spring that I can get back out there and do some more filming.

IM going out tomorrow, anyone going to be out there? Hear they have been getting pounded

Heh. I remember meeting a couple of dudes at a consumer ski show about 5 or 6 years ago, right when they were really launching that place. They kept talking about how sick it was and how nobody knew about it. Glad to see it's all true! :yourock:

Realize that 95% of snowriders in the midwest would actually consider this extreme backcountry.

Powder snow, moguls, and trees will scare the dickens out of most regular folks.

I would rather freeze to death than drive 400 miles to Mt. Bohemia, and I am Bohemian!:FIREdevil

Head to Colorado, Wyoming, or Montana!

Be that 5%