Superstar, site of this weekend's Audi FIS World Cup, covered in snow

Superstar, site of this weekend's Audi FIS World Cup, covered in snow

I went to the mountain this morning and I honestly feel like a little kid again. THIS IS EXCITING!

Do you remember the first time you saw or felt snow. Thats what I felt like this morning while I was witnessing the awesome power of the Killington Resort's snowmaking system. It is just hard to comprehend what the resort has been able to accomplish over the last month. Combined with the help we received from Mother Nature, the resort will be ready to offer over the Thanksgiving Weeked top to bottom skiing and riding while simultaneously hosting the Audi FIS World Cup.

Resort employees are all over the resort this morning. Lots of activity is taking place, as one would expect, in the K1 area preparing the base for the World Cup. Snowmaking operations had ceased this morning on Superstar, but lots of activity was taking place on the upper headwall installing fencing and (what looked like from a distance) starting gates.

Killington Resort looking like mid-winter. Tuesday November 22, 2016.

Crews working at the top of Superstar setting up for this weekends World Cup

Snowmaking operations were visible all over the mountain. Snowmaking was taking place on Sky Lark to support the World Cup. Snow making was also taking place on Great Northern, Bunny Buster, Moustrap, Chute, Caper, Vale, and parts of Rams Head. Cold temperatures resulting in high snow making production, combined with the foot of new snow the resort received during the Sunday/Monday storm should have the resort set up nicely for Thanksgiving Weekend.

Snow making on Chute and Mouse Trap on Snowden Mountain at Killington, Tuesday November 22, 2016.

Snow making at the base of Mouse Trap on Snowden Mountain at Killington, Tuesday November 22, 2016.

Snow making on Lower Bunny Buster back to the K1 Lift on Snowden Mountain at Killington, Tuesday November 22, 2016.

Lower Superstar with the VIP Tent and Grandstands in place for the Audi FIS World Cup, Tuesday November 22, 2016.

At the inn we are getting ready to receive Thanksgiving visitors. Our chef is in the kitchen busily preparing our Thanksgiving and weekends menus. This year we will be celebrating Thanksgiving at the inn with dinner service starting at 5:00 PM. Dinner is open to the public. The menu can be found at the Birch Ridge Inn website Given the amount of people who are traveling to the resort to participate in and spectate at this weekend World Cup, reservations are suggested.

Also in other inn news, yesterday we harvested the Inn's Christmas Tree. It is wrapped in tarps, sitting outside in front of the inn's Great Room. The tree will be brought into the inn and raised on Christmas Tree Monday, the Monday after Thanksgiving, November 27th. We have a ritual to raise the tree on Christmas Tree Monday starting with skiing (we live at a ski resort after all) followed by lunch and then the tree raising. This years tree is 15 feet or so sitting in the yard. It easily weights several hundred pounds. It took 5 of us yesterday to lift it into the truck to bring it to the inn. It should be a fun day.

On a more somber note.... no self respecting Baby Boomer can forget the tragedy that took place this day in Dallas 53 years ago. I was a fifth grader at the time. I still remember the tears in the eyes of my mother and grand mother when they came to St Agnes School in Arlington MA to pick up my brother, sister and me at school. I will NEVER FORGET the look on their faces as they tried to be composed so as to not upset us kids. For the next 5 days were were sitting transfixed in front of the TV watching a true American horror story play out. I will carry the sadness of those days with me the rest of my life. The current brouhaha concerning President Elect Trump seems so trivial by comparison.

But enough of that...

We have a lot to give thanks for this year. We look forward to hosting many guests over the weekend, both overnight at the inn and in our restaurant. We and our families are healthy. And we remain quite optimistic about our community and our country. Let It Snow!