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Vuarnet Cliffs

Double black Big Sky, MT

Steepest pitch46°
Vertical582 ft
Length1,108 ft
Average pitch33°
FacesSE
Top9,889 ft

Vuarnet Cliffs drops 582 vertical feet over 1,108 feet of skiing, with a steepest pitch of 46° about 280 feet below the top. That's steeper than 93% of the 2,251 double black runs we've measured in North America, and the 15th steepest of 290 named runs at Big Sky. It faces southeast.

How well Vuarnet Cliffs holds snow

Snow preservationPoor

Facing southeast at an average 33°, Vuarnet Cliffs gets about 143% of the winter sun that flat ground at Big Sky does, December through March. That's sunnier than 97% of the runs we've measured, and the 30th sunniest named run at Big Sky. Its top sits at 9,890 feet.

Angled toward the low winter sun, it bakes: powder turns heavy soon after a storm, and in spring it softens early in the day and refreezes hard overnight. Shading from ridges and trees isn't counted yet.

Vuarnet Cliffs profile

under 25°25–35°35–45°45°+ Hover to follow the line on the map.

Where it is on the mountain

Runs like Vuarnet Cliffs elsewhere

Nearby at Big Sky

Measured by ZRankings from 1-meter USGS lidar. Steepest pitch is the steepest stretch of about 50 vertical feet along the skiable line. Run lines come from OpenStreetMap and can sit a little off the skied path.