The State of Conditions

The Green Mountains are operating in style. The areas all picked up wonderful and much needed snows this past week and into the weekend. Lake affects snow and a Clipper. Skiing has gone from blue square hero to powder loving zero. New England is in the best shape it has been this season.

There is also a system in the works that we should begin hearing more about, e.t.a. Thursday/Friday. More snow for the ALL the mountains! This coming weekend will be one that you do not want to miss. Enjoy it while we have it. Check Snow Country for your favorite montain’s reports. March is the best month to ski around these parts. Look forward to warmer, longer days during the snowiest month for our ski areas.

Superastar in a whiteout Saturday afternoon

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Mountain Reports – with conditions improving I was on the horn Sunday to find out who skied where and how it was. Some of the feedback…
Gunstock, NH – Saturday… arrived around noon, right as it began to snow. Picked up four inches in a couple of hours. Fantastic skiing on the trials, yet painfully noted that anything not on trail was unskiable… Note: Skied Pats Peak back in January with this person. As reference it was said Gunstock is much more core. Sounds like a good day trip.
Waterville Valley, NH – Saturday = good skiing. Conditions were better than expected. Mostly groomed, not much ice and not crowded. Starting snowing there around noon and they picked up 5 inches while the lifts were still turning. Great option for the first day of the season ~ better late then never.
Jay Peak, VT – Friday afternoon, received an inbound call from my cousin. He grew up in VT and is as fussy a skier I know. Raved! He started the convo with a question, “Guess what I am looking at?” Answer: Snow Banks. Claimed it was one of his better days on the mountain, ever. Even with some lifts on wind hold. Powder will do that, fresh lines galore, trails and trees. Skied brains out….
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The spine of the Green Mountains got pounded last week, especially those areas further north. New Hampshire and Maine are also doing well again. Everyone benefited from the weekend system, even those of you looking out the window at your backyards. Some spots recorded a couple of feet in as many days. Skiing has returned to New England with a vengeance. I made my turns.
Guru Weekend Report: Killington, VT
S.G. digs the threads…

For a change I listed to my own advice and chased the snowmaking. Not the least bit disappointed in the decision, on Saturday all that man made stuff got backed up with a foot of fresh.
You probably think I am nutz at this point. I could have gone anywhere, but I chose Killington on a busy Holiday weekend? Absolutely! I love the challenge of negotiating the busy mountain, even more so, I am endlessly entertained by the masses on skis and boards (not is a mean way whatsoever, I love the culture and all it brings). Even better, watching all these people try to drive their SUV’s around on snow covered roads after a few pops during après ski is priceless.
S.G. – (pulled over, hazards on, hanging out the window w/ camera) “What state you guys from?” (could not see the plate)
Dudes stuck – “New York”
S.G. – “Do you Ski or Ride?”
Dudes – “We Ride”
S.G. – “Good Luck” (we drove away chuckling; this was probably the most inexplicable of the dozen or so cars witnessed off of the road, still have no idea what they where thinking to wind up in that spot)
The night just took a bad turn, do not let this be you.

Here is the Guru’s attack at Killington on a busy Holiday Saturday, with fresh snow that started to fall in the morning and will accumulate all day. Top secret info….or it was.
Got up around seven in the morning and it was just starting to snow. Drank a glass of water and went back to bed. By 9:00 snow was falling at a steady clip and accumulating. Kill some time. The idea is to arrive around 11:00 AM. This pretty much will grantee you a parking spot in one of the front rows, all the early birds are calling it a day. It also means no lines at the ticket windows. By the time you reach the lifts, most people should be heading in for their lunch break.
Here is how it played out…
Skied right onto the Superstar Quad for the first ride, once at the top we made a beeline over to Needles Eye. Rode the Express Quad over there for multiple no stop runs. (This a great way to get quick veritcal feet under your boots, on fun terrain.) Vertigo was skiing beautifully and no one was on it.
From there, the only lift line of the day was encountered at the Skyeship Gondola mid-station. I do not particularly enjoy being in a box with seven other people, kind of freaks me out. I would much rather the fresh air of a chair. From the top of Skye Peak the mission was to ski down to the K1 Gondola (necessary to reach planned destination, The Canyon).
seems to be everyone wants to ride the covered lifts when it snows and blows

This time, since I was only skiing with one friend, we opted for the singles line and moved right along. My ride was interesting. Managed to keep my mouth shut for the first 4 minutes, then I broke.
I had to interject with a group arguing about the trail map. Gondolas are not big enough for people to argue in effectively, especially in front of strangers.
I asked them a simple question, “Where do you want to go?”
The answer was, “Nowhere!” form the guy holding the map.
I calmly told him, “If that be the case, the trail map will do you no good.”
(S.G. note: I seriously doubt he knew of the tree stash called ‘Nowhere’ at Killington and if that was what he was looking for, I was not about to share. I will help people whenever I can at any mountain. I would rather seem them smile and return, but that information is off limits.)
Totaly stressed from 2 gondola rides in a row, I had to take a snack break in the Summit lodge. It was pleasant for the most part. The Nachos were good. No rush on this day, conditions were only getting better, it was officially dumping snow. Eventually though the barkeep put on some loud techno music (it was a request), which expedited the Guru’s return to the normalcy of outside.
Off of the front side via Downdraft into the Canyon. There was tons of untracked snow on the edges. No line at the quad! My favorite lift on the mountain, we had tons tremendous skiing all afternoon, another quick handful of runs. Powder galore, in the trees and on the trails. Everything was splendid.
riding the Canyon Quad

Downshifted once the dogs started barking (legs feeling the burn). We relocated with some cruisers on the brain. I once described the Snowdon Triple chair as the ‘slowest lift in America’ but on Saturday it was just my speed. Again, there were no lines (literally skied onto the chair) and great snow conditions, not looking for much more out of a ski day.
All said and done, we were able to ski to the car in a second row spot!
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Killington is the Capital of skiing in the East. If you know how to navigate the mountain anyone can have a brilliant ski day there. The key is to find a lift that services terrain you enjoy and stick with it for multiple runs, before you decide to go to another part of the mountain. At a resort as large as Killington you can spend you entire day traversing, if you chose to. Hope this helps. With a little common sense and the right attitude anyone can have a ski experience at this resort that is second to none.
Oh yeah, this is no secret, but there are more options once the sunsets at Killington than other resort in New England… Undoubtedly no matter what your taste you will find something that fits the bill, I suggest asking around during the day on the slopes. Depending whom you speak with, you may be doing some foundation building.
This visit my footprints were left outside the following establishments…
Sports Bar/Local: Moguls
Good Dinner: Charity’s
Lively Ski Bar: The Lookout
Night Club: The Wobbly Barn
PLEASE: Be careful on the roads when it snows. Do not end up in the ditch. Or worse, trading paint with someone and ruining their vacation. Agro driving in the snow is a recipe for trouble.
Me, enjoying the snow

Keep warm. Get out on the mountains this weekend.
Thinking about Powder skiing again,
Photos ~ S.G.