Weebles wobble but they don't fall down 

Over 600 people attended the 41st annual Wobbly Barn Halloween party last night. Upon entry to the Wobbly, each person received a lovely, extremely resilient, purple WOBB tattoo on the top of their right hand.

Joey Leone's Chop Shop provided the entertainment. Copious amounts of malt and spirit beverages were consumed. Gramps Taxi was on hand to shuttle people home after the evenings festivities. Of course to get back to the Inn, we just had a short walk across the Killington Road up Butler Road.

Currently is is a beautiful day here in Killington. At noon time the temperature was 65 degrees with muted sunshine. Showers are expected later in the day, followed by warm temperatures all week. It is hard to tell if the mountain will be able to open for skiing and riding next weekend as there is significant snow cover melting taking place. I will report on that possibility later on during the week when I get a chance to hike up the hill.

What are you going to be for Halloween? 

The 2005-2006 Ski Entertainment Season officially kicks off this evening with the 41st Annual Halloween Party at the Wobbly Barn. Local favorite, Joey Leone, will be providing the entertainment for the festivities. Proceeds from the party will be split to benefit the Sherburne First Response and the Gretna, Louisiana Volunteer Fire Departments.

Each year, the Wobbly holds the season opening party on the traditional Halloween, October 31. Tonight's affair will tend to draw a very heavy local crowd, being on a Monday evening. There is only one rule for the party - You must come in Costume! So, if you are in Killington, get yourself in costume and head to the Wobbly tonight. We will see you there!

Oh, and by the way, what are you going to be?

Heavy Snow in the Upper Elevations at Killington makes for a great opening day to the 2005-2006 ski season. 

Absolutely incredible! Mid winter snow, mild temperatures, a little sun, small crowds. What a great opening day of skiing at Killington!

I was very hesitant this morning about the first day of skiing. Usually the first day at Killington is a zoo with big crowds. Today, however, while there were plenty of people, when I got to the hill at 11:00 AM, I had no trouble getting a parking space and getting right on the lift. I would guess that crowds were kept down due to the late in the day announcement on Friday, by Killington, that the mountain would open.

The K1 gondola, Snowdon Quad, Snowdon Poma and North Ridge lifts were running. I started on the Quad, it was too nice a day to be in the box(the K1 Gondola). All of the Killington side of the mountain was open for skiing. From the quad, I did Chute, Bunny Buster, and Great Bear. Cover on all trails was very good. Chute was showing some grass in places, but the soft bumps in Great Bear reminded me that this was my first day on ski's in a while. No lines at the quad. Skied right onto the chair each time without waiting.

I then took the North Ridge Chair up to the Glades. Did a few runs down Rime. The trees were all very heavy with snow, the sun was blazing, unbelievable day. Skied right up to the chair each time with no waiting. I could have done loops all day without stopping if my legs were strong enough. I did take a peek at East Glade. In a couple of months, I would have enjoyed it, but it was very bumped up so I took a pass.

I then traversed the mountain over to South Ridge. I followed Great Eastern across the top of the mountain. Ovation was roped, but that had not stopped some people. Super Star was open. Upper was not groomed with nice soft bumps. A few hollows on lower Super Star made it interesting.

I had so much fun, I K1'd back up and did the traverse again. This time I took Upper Skylark, which was sweet, to lower Bittersweet. Lower Bittersweet again was not groomed, except for 1 cat track on skiers left. Bumps were nice and soft, although by this time my first day of the season legs were calling it a day.

I don't think I will get up on the hill on Sunday, as I have a commitment at the Inn I need to tend too, but if you have the opportunity to head to Killington, go for it... The conditions were well worth it!

Killington Resort to open for Top to Bottom Skiing for 2005-2006 season 

As noted yesterday, all signs were pointing to Killington opening this coming weekend. Well it's now official. In a press release sent out this afternoon, the headline reads "Killington Resort Open for Top to Bottom Skiing and Snowboarding this Weekend".

Killington plans on running the K1 Express Gondola and the North Ridge Triple Chair(formerly called the Glades chair for Killington Old Timers) from 8 AM to 4 PM on Saturday and Sunday, October 29 and 30. Price of a one day adult lift ticket will be $39. A two day ticket will be $72.

After Sunday, the resort is reporting that they plan to suspend operations during the week, assuming mother nature does not provide ample cold temperatures to allow snowmaking operations. So get your gear in the car and head north for a late fall weekend of skiing at Killington!

The Ki Gondola is on line and running, October 27, 2005 11:00 AM 

The signs are unmistakable, all around the resort. Killington is getting set to open the 2005-2006 ski season at any minute!

In my daily trek to the K1 Base Lodge, what a difference a day makes. Unlike yesterday when the place was very sleepy, today workers were everywhere! Visibility on the hill was very limited due to continuing falling snow, but the place was literally humming. Stealth groomers were moving all over the place. Some were on the hill grooming Killington while others were being used as snow tractors, moving supplies around the mountain. I heard the distinct sound of compressed air bleeding from open valves in the snow making system. But the sweetest sight was that the K1 Skyship was online and running! Cabins looked like they were being filled with material to bring to the peak.

All this activity matches nicely with other activity around town. We have heard from several sources that many locals employed by the resort during the ski season are getting calls to come in to work. The strong rumor among the locals has the mountain open on Saturday and Sunday, then closing next week as the weather is supposed to get warm. All signs point to an opening of Killington in the next day or two. So get your equipment ready..the 2005-2006 Season is about to begin!

A lone snow boarder hiking up Superstar at Killington after big dump on October 26, 2005 

The snow storm spawned by hurricane Wilma continued to pound Killington overnight into early morning. By 10:00 AM, the storm had dropped over a foot of very heavy, wet, snow at the inn (we are at 1870 feet in elevation). As there are still leaves in many trees, there was a lot of damage. Many of our local friends are without power. Some have been told by the local power company, CVPS, that they could be without power for 3 to 4 days. The inn lost power briefly this morning for around 10 minutes, so we feel fortunate.

I traveled up to the Killington Base Lodge to see if there was any activity. At the Base Lodge (approx 2400 feet elevation) there was around 18 inches of snow on the ground. Local rumor has over 2 feet at the peak. There was no real sign of activity at the main base lodge. There were a few snow boarders hiking superstar. I also saw several people on telemark skis cruising the area.

We have received an official fax from the mountain indicating that they are still trying to determine if they will move up their opening date from their plan of November 11. According to the fax we received, "The Key is getting a quality base on the lower portions of the mountain to be able to provide top to bottom skiing". So it is hard to tell when the resort will officially open. Keep positive, get your gear ready, and stay tuned.

In the aftermath of hurricane Wilma, it has been snowing all day at Killington. At the inn as I write this we have approximately 8 inches of wet cement with snow still coming down. Very heavy snow with a high moisture content. We had a large private function at the inn this afternoon which prevented me from going out to get some pictures of the area. Hopefully, I will be able to get to the mountain tomorrow and get some pictures of how much snow fell on the hill.