I was about 45 minutes from finishing my column from the Whistler World Cup this afternoon when Doug Haney, a PR guy for the U.S. Ski Team, gave me the nudge I needed to take a break.

"We at the U.S. Ski Team encourage skiing," he said.

I looked at my watch and saw I had about an hour before the lifts closed, just enough time to bag two of my favorite Whistler runs. I took the shuttle to my car, grabbed my skis then jumped on the gondola. It takes three lifts and about 35 minutes to get to the top of Whistler Mountain.

First I dropped into Whistler Bowl. This diamond run on Whistler's upper slopes was skied out with moguls the size of Volkswagons but it was still a relatively enjoyable run.

The view at the entry to Whistler Bowl

At this point the lifts were closing, so my only option for second and final run was the Peak to Creek Run. A 4-year-old, one-vertical mile run that locals say is the ultimate test of your legs.

If you can ski from Peak to Creek - about four miles - without stopping, they say, you have thighs of steel.

Actually, I did this Thursday and had legs of Jello when I was done. It was my fourth time making North America's longest intermediate run. I have to say doing it nonstop is one thing. But doing it nonstop at the end of the day when all the other routes to Creekside are closed for the World Cup is another. The crowd of people scooting down the run meant I had to take it slow. And this, of course, meant extra thigh burn.

Still, I highly recommend skiing Peak to Creek on your next trip. If you can do it without stopping good for you. If not, don't worry. The run is so long benches have been added along the way so skiers and boarders can rest.

Black Tusk from the top of Whistler Mountain and the start of the Peak to Creek run.

I think I parked next to the janitor at the Whistler World Cup today.

Just saw this story in the Idaho Statesman.

By Ken Dey
Tamarack Resort won’t fail, even though the two investors who own 75 percent of the resort filed bankruptcy last week.
Experts say the Chapter 11 filings by Tamarack CEO Jean-Pierre Boespflug and resort co-founder Alfredo Miguel Afif could keep creditors from taking over and let the two men finish the expensive creation of the resort.
Tamarack is already too well known and established to be closed, said Michael Berry, president of the National Ski Areas Association. Even if Boespflug and Afif fail, plenty of investors would be interested in picking up where they left off.

=> Read more!

If you like your smelt fresh caught, you might want to head to the Cowlitz River on Saturday.

There are reports that some anglers caught their 10-pound limit last Saturday.

State test dipping early this week at Longview (Gearhart Park) and at Kelso produced no fish, but birds and seals were working the east bank just below the Kelso Bridge and the riffle just upstream from the park.

Samplers got a few smelt per dip (best dip about a pound) at Lexington. Mostly mature males of assorted sizes. There were sea lions/seals and birds present upstream as well.

I'll have more in Saturday morning's fishing report.

Hats off to Alice Few and other members of the Tacoma Astronomical Society. They helped an estimated 300 people view last night's total lunar eclipse at three locations -- Lakewood, Puyallup and Olympia.

I hung out with Few at Pierce College in Lakewood and had a great time talking to folks and looking through the telescopes Few and others had set up, as well as using binoculars. We got great views of Saturn -- the best I've ever seen through a telescope -- as well as the Orion nebula, the Pleiades and other celestial sights.

It was great to see so many families out with their young children. For many of them, it was the first total lunar eclipse they had seen.

It was a fun night, and thankfully the clouds cooperated, making for some good viewing conditions.

Here is a link to the story in today's paper, including photos from Janet Jensen.