Snow’s Best Bracket – 2023

Join in the excitement as we bring together the most legendary photos from the 22/23 record-breaking winter. For Ikon Pass holders, this meant the chance to ski, snowboard, and capture every memorable moment all the way into August.

You, our Ikon Pass community, now hold the power to decide the ultimate champion of the best snowy shot of the season. Starting August 14, vote for your favorite photos on each day’s Instagram story. Your votes shape the next round, so don’t miss out on helping us crown Snow’s Best image from this unprecedented season.

Contestants:

Story behind the shot – Mammoth: During one of the deepest snowpack seasons that Mammoth has ever had, Andrew went out with a few athletes while it was dumping snow and caught a unique glimpse from inside the storm.

Story behind the shot – Brighton: With storms raging from November through April, there were few clear days or nights where you could accurately see just how much snow had fallen. This cornice stood out as a way to remember that the snow in Big Cottonwood Canyon was hitting heights we had never seen before in our part of the Wasatch.

Story behind the shot – Copper Mountain: A skier floats through fresh powder as a sun dog beams over the Tenmile Range

Story behind the shot – Revelstoke Mountain Resort: This shot from the sub-peak of Revelstoke has been in my head for so many years, but has never really lined up before to have fresh snow and no tracks. These are just some of the limitations of shooting inbounds. However on this day, we got up the hike quickly and Nat got into position, things were looking promising but we were window shopping for the light. The masses were hot on our tail and eventually, we had to go if we wanted a fresh line, we got it and we got a shot. So this day we arranged to go up early as we knew we were going to get a dusting over night, I think it ended up being between 10-15cm. This coincided with some nice morning light so we got to work in the trees on the south side of the mountain. This actual shot I have had in mind for many years but rarely lines up to have fresh snow, okay light so I convinced the crew to trek up to sub-peak, not knowing if this would be on or not, and it was. But like any good line it’s a race against the clock/ the general public. As I waited on subpeak Nat traversed around on top of the lines, the clouds built and we lost light, we had a few minutes to window shop and without communication we knew this was as good as it was going to get and pulled the trigger.

Story behind the shot – Steamboat: Blue bird day + powder make the recipe for a perfect day to play in the snow.

Story behind the shot – Palisades Tahoe: Teton Gravity Research (TGR) was filming a resort segment at PalisadesTahoe this year. During an mid January filming session I found myself atop the palisades with a super solid crew and great conditions. While Connery spent some time getting the in-run and lip set up, I was running around trying to find the best angle. I set up in this spot, fully knowing I’m in Jeff Wrights (the cinematographer) shot and might have to move but luckily it was later in the session so he didn’t mind me being there. Connery sent the backflip, which he absolutely stomped, and I came away with my favorite image from this past season.

Story behind the shot – Jackson Hole Mountain Resort: I think my favorite part of ski photography is the back-and-forth creative process that happens between the athlete and the photographer, it can feel like a flow state that often leads to a really fun day. In this case, Max had a specific line he was looking to ski for a film piece I was shooting still on, and everything lined up. There’s a special energy that comes around when the snow is good, the sky is blue, and avalanche risk is manageable. With all of the above in check, it led to the perfect scenario to coordinate a shot like this one.

Story behind the shot – Snowbird: Tyler Peterson shows off the new red Tram cabin on a classic Little Cottonwood Canyon powder day. “We got more sunshine in the first half of last winter when it was merely dumping a lot before it started dumping insanely.” – Lee Cohen

Story behind the shot – Taos Ski Valley: Skier Colter Hinchliffe and photographer Liam Doran got a few days shooting the legendary terrain and snow at Taos Ski Valley in early March. When they came across this scene of snow, clouds and Kachina ridge they knew they had to stop and take a photo.

Story behind the shot – Aspen Snowmass: Last season I was invited to join a sunrise hike up the Highland Bowl. While hiking up as the sun was rising was an experience on its own, seeing this herd of bighorn sheep at the top was absolutely magical! They watched us hike, shared the views from the top with us, and then ran off into the mountains, as we strapped into our snowboards and rode incredible lines down some of the steepest terrain at Aspen Snowmass.

Story behind the shot – Sun Peaks Resort: Enjoying the powder on Mt. Tod – just a regular morning in Sun Peaks.

Story behind the shot – Sun Valley: Chase Josey & Nate Sheehan session the big jump on one of Dollar Mountain’s Terrain Parks.

Story behind the shot – Killington Resort: Red Gerard came to town for a nighttime rail jam in January and the weather was not on our side. But the misty evening and rare lighted set up helped produce this awesome silhouette image.

Story behind the shot – Crystal Mountain Resort: It was a rare day indeed! A day that skiers and riders of the PNW have dreams about. A bluebird morning after a colder than expected storm drops 8 inches of blower pow. Here, Crystal Mountain Ski Patrolman, Carter Herrington enjoys a moment of calm after a quiet rope drop of Crystal Mountain’s Southback gates. The moment didn’t last long… The powder was calling our names and who were we to resist!

Honorable Mentions: