Chairlift Chatter

There was a bunch of noise this past weekend up in Killington, VT. Some originating form the ground, but most seemed to be coming from the folks hanging on the lifts.

A thirty plus inch dump of fresh snow gets people pretty fired up. Personally, I got the “Snowboarder Down!” whistle into play (built into my jacket). I also threw around a little, “Get Some!”

In the Growler trees I was hooting and hollering my way down a fresh line and folks were yelling back from the Skye Peak Quad.

the crew working on the bump course for this weekends event on O.L.

It was a very nice weekend.
I have been a long time visitor and fan of Killington, VT. After listening to countless stories of people that have gone there and seemed to not enjoy themselves I have found it usually comes down to a few common factors.
One of the big ones is always chairlift management. In my opinion, when tackling a resort like Killington with numerous mountain peaks, hundreds of trails, and dozens of lift options – picking your ride to the top is a rather important choice to be made.
Chairlift riding is as good as it gets in Killington, VT.
I was thinking about this on the ride home last Sunday to Boston. If you use the lifts at Killington to your advantage (or disadvantage) it can change your experience all together. Herein find the breakdown of the lifts I rode this weekend, in order of appearance…
Snowdown (high speed quad)
Length: 4476’ & Vertical Rise: 1114’
The alarm went off very early Saturday morning. I forced down some breakfast, geared up, and made my way to the main base area for a front row spot at 7:00 am. The Snowdown chair is where it all began. I was fortunate to be invited on a quick “first tracks” video shot the resort was doing. Normally that is not really my thing, but given the opportunity to be heading up the mountain a good half hour before the rest of the masses on a powder day…breathe…Count me in! Most ever visit
Normally I try not ride this lift, but I was not about to complain.
If you want to see the clip they put together hit the K Cast link on the Killington home page and check out the St. Patrick’s Day Storm. The skiing starts about 44 second into it…
a look at some of the rock jumps on Devil’s Fiddle Saturday morning before the additional snowfall buried them

Superstar (high speed quad)
Length: 3504’ & Vertical Rise: 1199’
The second ride up on Saturday (and many more over the weekend) happened on Superstar. I love this lift ride. It is a fast and there are always people to watch on the trail to the left of the chair. From the top you have so many terrain options. Make you way around Skye Peak, or head over Needle’s Eye, Bear Mountain, or over to the K1 base. Great lift to get around the different parts of the resort, provides fast access to almost everything I enjoy skiing besides the Canyon and Killington Peak.
K1 Express (gondola)
Length: 6453’ & Vertical Rise: 1642’
One of the mountains two covered lifts, a.k.a. gondolas. The K1 Express allows Killington to claim the “tallest/highest” lift serviced terrain in the state of Vermont. It is also the only way to the top. I like to ski down the face instead of taking the round about way down.
Fun = take the 5 minute hike up to the top and start your ski from there. Give it a try.
South Ridge Triple (fixed grip triple)
Length: 4215’ & Vertical Rise: 825’
Took one ride on the South Ridge Triple this past Saturday, which was the result of being the fourth or fifth track down Jug Handle. I was not willing to risk getting powed out on the run out down to Bear. The lift is a blast to ride. It makes two sharp left turns. Be ready or you could lose something. Great ride, highly recommend it.
Wow – look at all the power under the Bear Mountain Quad!

Bear Mountain (fixed grip quad)
Length: 2833’ & Vertical Rise: 1184’
You want Outer Limits. The Steepest bump run in the East (so they say).
Get on this ride. It is a front row seat for viewing numerous skiers and riders giving their best for the crowd on the chair. From the top you can also get back over to the rest of the resort in the K1 base area.
I spent most of my weekend riding this chair.
The best chatter of the weekend (I heard) was while riding the Bear Mountain Quad. The chair in front of us had a Mountain Ambassador on it. People had been poaching directly below the chair all day. A big No No at Killington. Snow making equipment usually litters the space under the Bear, Superstar and Canyon Quads.
On Sunday though it was stuffed with snow. So, seeing some people poaching, the Ambassador goes bananas like an Ape. When some guy flew down the line smashing soft piles of powder the Ambassador was screaming vulgarities toward him at the top of his lungs. Remember, almost evey shair is full. The skier would have not been able to understand if he had heard the lashing from the friendly “May I Help” you ambassador.
I was cracking up. I find this type of behavior hysterical.
Devils Fiddle (fixed grip quad)
Length: 2964’ & Vertical Rise: 1086’
If you go to Killington and this lift is spinning go for a ride on it. In years past I have not seen it open very often. I am glad that they have started utilizing it again; I think last season it also spun. Gets you to the same place as the Bear Quad, but provides a different look and gives great views of the legendary trail it is named after.
my buddy T messing around in some pow pow

Skyeship Express II (gondola)
Length: 5052’ & Vertical Rise: 1342’
The resorts other covered lift. Gondolas are wonderful on days when it is cold, windy, and snowing. On the ride you get the opportunity to warm up (they are heated) and clean the goggles. I rarely ski all the way down to route 4, but will often get on at the mid station in Needle’s Eye.
Tangent ~ Flashback: I was in a ski house there 99/00. I often talked & twice participated in; what I called – The Killington Chalenge! Not hard math = K Peak summit down to 4, no other rules.
Lunch Move: Sunday was a powder day, fact. One of the better in recent memory. Easily one of the top three days I have been on the snow this season. With no time to spare I hit the Baja Burrito shack in Needle’s Eye base area.
A $6 handle gets you one on the go in short minutes. I wolfed mine down during the gondola ride to the top of Skye Peak (gondola ride form the mid station). Good food, right price, great way to fuel up without wasting time and dealing with a busy lodge any ski day.
Especially though on a powder day.
Needle’s Eye Express (high speed quad)
Length: 3286’ & Vertical Rise: 971’
A short, fast ride gets you in position to hit Vertigo or anything else on the lower half of Skye Peak. Even though Killington has put many of their gladed runs on the trail maps a few seasons ago, there are still plenty of line in the woods that were left secrets.
Many of these can be found off of the Needle’s Eye Express. Explore for yourself. Look for tracks going in. Be careful…
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Killington has chairlifts everywhere. But they also have acreage to support the uphill capacity. If you understand how to use the Killington chairs you will have a great time visiting the resort. Especially when it is crowded…
Besides those above that I rode last weekend I also recommend the Canyon Quad. Still trying to figure out how it slipped through the cracks this past weekend. These things tend to happen on powder days.
Crowded it was not. The terrible road conditions kept folks away. Lift lines were virtually non-existent all weekend. Basically each ride up yielded another run of fresh snow. Sure there were people in the common areas and this was good. Packing down the throughways makes getting around in all that powder a lot easier and helps save your legs for the good stuff.
The lift system is the key to being able to manage Killington. There are so many options and they all service terrain for all abilities. Once you figure out what is best for yourself and how to string runs together the mountain will be a breeze to navigate.
Killington is the King of Spring, so there is still plenty of time (they stay open into May) to get up there and explore the options for yourself.
Think Spring Bumps,
photos ~ S.G.
looking down at the Bear Mountain Base Lodge from O.L.