When a die-hard powder skier leaves the snows of Utah, you know there’s a damn good reason, and in the case of Joe Royer it was because there was something compelling on the western side of the Great Salt Lake. Nope, not Wendover. It was the Ruby Mountains, one of Nevada’s hundreds of distinct ranges, which just so happen to be blessed with heaps of the light and dry, and it was there in the Rubies 33 years ago that Joe set up a helicopter skiing operation.

Think for a minute what it would be like to hold the keys to a helicopter skiing joint for 33 years, particularly one in the middle of Nowhere, Nevada, where you’re more likely to see a mountain goat than another skier. Lucky bastard. Smart bastard. It’s no reason he left.

Joe’s been carrying a camera for most of the last three decades and he’s recently gotten around to digging out his slides, scanning them, and uploading images. (Slides are artifacts from the prehistoric era, when cameras used a medium called “film”, which was sandwiched in a small holder and projected via light onto a screen for larger viewing.) Predictably, the skis are skinnier, pant flares wider, and suspenders more rainbowy. And one can’t help but wonder why you need a belt with a one-piece suit. But one thing hasn’t changed–no matter where you look, you see untracked snow, and the only skiers are Joe’s. Just like today.

Ruby Mountains Heli-Experience runs both helis and snowcats. For more information, visit www.helicopterskiing.com.

Tagged as: skiing