Mary being buffeted by high winds on Killington Peak just off K1 Gondola. Notice the strap on her ski pole being held in the air by the wind.

Mary being buffeted by high winds on Killington Peak just off K1 Gondola. Notice the strap on her ski pole being held in the air by the wind.

In sharp contrast to the weekend, a warm front has overrun the Killington area today, driven by very strong winds aloft. Temperatures in the area are in the high 40's to low 50's. Snow melt similar to spring time is occurring through out the region.

Mary and I went out on the mountain for a few hours this morning. Areas below ~3000 feet were clear. Above that line, low clouds and fog were overhanging the area. The clouds were not terribly dense, as at Killington Peak there was a very strong wind. Visibility was ok for skiing and riding. Taking panoramic pictures of the mountain...not so much.

Snow surfaces on the mountain were soft and spring like. Other than the parking lots, we did not see a hint of ice on the mountain. What we did see in abundance, however, were broken tree limbs and branch parts on many of the trails. The high winds, combined with the ice remaining from last weeks storm were taking a toll on the weaker branches on trees lining the slopes.

We rode the Ram Head Quad, Snowdon Quad, and the K1 Gondola. All lifts had small lines (less than a couple of minutes). The Superstar Quad was not loading this morning, although it was running intermittently. The wind direction was head on into Superstar which does complicate unloading at the top. Even though the Superstar Quad was not running, we did make a traverse across the top of the mountain for a run down Bittersweet. As we were the only ones on it at the time, it was quite easily our run of the day.

Temperatures in the area are predicted to fall back to more seasonable levels overnight. With plenty of cover on the mountain, that will help stabilize conditions for the rest of the week....Let it snow!