ROTD - East Falls 

After spending literally all day yesterday at the town of Killington's Town Meeting (more on that after we talk about the important stuff), this morning it was time to get out into the fresh air and make a few turns at the resort.

Given that we have now had several freeze/thaw cycles, surface conditions around the resort could generally be characterized as flat and fast. Some trails were definitely faster than others, but everything that was skiable (ie groomed) was basically flat. Since the last weather event at Killington on Monday, the resort has been able to make multiple grooming passes over most of their terrain. In general, surfaces were covered with a soft layer of machine groomed granular, over a firm base. The machine groomed layer was several inches deep in most places, preventing skiers and riders from reaching the firm base layer except in areas with very high traffic, or areas exposed to impact from the wind. After a couple of easy runs, it was obvious that surface conditions around the resort were fairly uniform, allowing for more aggressive skiing where skier traffic (or lack there of) permitted.

Trails on Bear Mountain saw surfaces that were more granular than on the Killington Peak side of the resort. The Stash had excellent, yet firm, coverage. Wild Fire from top to bottom was a beautiful groomed cruiser. With the exception of the steep pitch just under the Sky Burst Chair, Wild Fire was skiing as an advanced blue trail, versus its regular black diamond heritage. Bear Claw, Skye Burst, Outer Limits, and Dream Maker (top to bottom) were skiing well. The Dream Maker headwall was your basic GS slope, supporting 3 to 4 sweeping turns from the top to the bottom at most. If you did not keep your tips "pointed downhill you chicken@#!t", you were basically going to be sliding sideways any way, so best to take it like a skier and run with it. None in our group had any difficulty on Dream Maker, but there were a few beginner boarders on it (who should not have been), further polishing the flat trail left by the groomers.

On the Skye Peak part of the resort, Superstar was a tail of 3 trails. The headwall had its challenges. Middle Superstar was your basic groomed cruiser. The lower headwall was not quite a slide for life, but skier and boarder traffic was rapidly wearing away the groomed surface. Skylark was very granular. Bittersweet was mixed, with more granular conditions towards the middle of the trail versus more powder conditions on either side. Needles Eye was deep and steep. Multiple grooming cycles on Needles Eye left a very soft base for carving turns. Except for the fact that the Needles Eye chair was not operating today, we probably would have done the Needles Eye trail over several times.

During the last few weather cycles, I would guess that the temperatures stayed colder on the Killington Peak side of the resort, as the snow conditions remaining after the groomers finished their magic had more powder than granular content. All of North Ridge, and the Canyon areas were skiing beautifully. I felt that East Fall on skiers right was the run of the day this morning. Groomers had cut unto the snow bank on skiers right leaving a very soft, powder covered surface (before 11 AM this morning) that was just perfect of GS style carving turns. It was worth doing over several times.

Yesterday, instead of partaking in the beauty of the Killington Resort, we performed our civic duty and attended the Killington Annual Town Meeting. The meeting was attended by over 250 people. Highlights from the meeting were the election of Bernie Rome to a 3 year term on the board of selectman. Bernie beat out Patty McGrath, a fellow innkeeper at the Inn at Long Trail, by just 3 votes; proving once again that at Killington, your votes really matter. In addition to the contested selectman's race, the citizens of Killington decided to play fast and loose with a couple of decisions.

One was to redirect moneys collected by the towns 1% local option tax and apply it to the towns general fund, instead of exclusively to the Economic Development and Tourism Commission (EDTC). This basically turns the 1% money into a pot of gold to be raided at the pleasure of the selectboard. The same group, but not the same people,(and no offense meant to the past or current office holders as they are volunteers who try to do the right thing) who have so adroitly been able to run up millions of dollars in debt (mis)managing the towns Green Mountain National Golf Course. The other decision the citizens made was to reject the 2011 town budget. There was virtually no debate on budget line items before voting the budget down. Both of these items will result in a series of selectboard meetings to redefine the budget for the town, and a special town meeting later in the year to approve it. As Tip O'Neil used to day, "All Politics is Local"...that really applies to the town of Killington!

....Let it snow!

Killington peak is in this picture somewhere. 

I had planned on skiing at Killington today. I really did!.

I did the right thing and set my alarm to wake me up at the right time. I had my bowl of oatmeal. I got dressed in multiple layers. All the while, I was listening to a ticking sound of freezing pellets bouncing off the roof of the owners quarters at the inn.

My first real hint that it might not be a ski day was in the inn's parking lot. My car was nicely coated with a solid layer of ice. Clearly the ticking freezing pellets falling from the sky had started out over night as freezing r@!n. The trees around the inn were also being contorted on every direction by a howling wind barreling down the mountain along the Killington Road. Freezing r@!n and wind cause very bad things to happen to lift operations at a ski resort.

The drive to the Resort, less than a mile from the inn, was uneventful. The roads were slick, but I am used to driving on snow covered roads, so it was no big deal. The parking lot at the K1 lodge should have been a giveaway that skiing was going to be doubtful today. At 8:55 when I arrived, there seemed to be less than 50 cars in the parking lot, when usually on a Monday there would be several hundred. When I got into the base lodge, I found out why.

The ice overnight had taken it's toll. Combined with the wind, the resort was only going to spin 4 lifts in the morning, including Superstar, the Snowdon Quad, Ram Head, and a lift on Snow Shed. Bear Mountain was closed. The Sky Ship, Needles Eye, and Northbrook Quads were closed. The K1 Gondola Cabins were still in their shed. Combined with the continuing bite of wind driven ice pellets falling from the sky, and it was clear that skiing this morning was not going to be in the cards. So it goes.....

The good news from todays weather is that the liquid precipitation that fell from the sky on Killington was held to a very bare minimum. Most of the precipitation this morning has been well frozen and very granular, as temperatures at ground level have been hovering in the high 20's. So I would expect little damage to surface conditions at the resort when the weather clears the area.

Tomorrow in Killington is Town Meeting Day. It is an annual event in free flowing democracy designed to set the tone for the coming year in managing the town of Killington. There are several issues boiling underneath the surface leading up to tomorrows meeting, not the least of which is the trend toward uncivilized behavior in public meetings by some current office holders. What ever the results, it is an opportunity for the citizens of Killington to come together and express their desires on how the town should be run for the coming year. What ever happens, it is always interesting.

Until tomorrow from town meeting ......Let it snow!

Birch Ridge Inn surrounded by snow drifts 

Our guests are just exhausted.. 2 powder days in a row and their legs are jelly. Meanwhile, Mary and I have been dutifully fulfilling our responsibilities as innkeepers... But tomorrow is a ski day!

5 more inches of snow fell around the inn on Saturday night to greet guests heading to the mountain this morning. Unlike Thursday and Friday's snowfall, which was somewhat denser, the snow that fell Saturday night was pure powder as temperatures in the area were well below freezing.

To the slopes on Monday! ......Let it snow!

Pow Day on my B Day - Thank you Mother Nature! 

Presidents week skiers and riders were rewarded on the last day of their ski weeks with an old fashioned Pow Day!

10 inches of new snow have been recorded at the snow stake at the inn, bringing the total on the ground to 30 inches.

It should be a great weekend to ski Killington! ......Let it snow!

Killington Peak, with full on sunshine. 

Ah spring. It was fun while it lasted...

Winter has returned to Killington over the weekend. The warm reprieve the area enjoyed last week has been replaced by temperatures well below freezing. If that were not cold enough, blustery winds are driving the effective temperature with wind chills well into the single digits.

But all is not lost.

To compensate for the return of winter, the area did receive a light coating of fluff last night, significantly brightening up the multiple feet of snow remaining on the ground throughout the area. In addition, bright sunshine reflecting off of the newly fallen snow is painting an almost angelic tableau across the Green Mountains of Vermont. Like the pure light of heaven described by Dante, the sun shining off the mountain peaks is creating beacons of light, visible for miles around. There are all different points of view on when the Green Mountains look their best. Certainly a pure white snow cap, and bright sunshine is high on the list.

While we have not skied the last couple of days, as the inn has been quite busy, guests and friends are reporting that the mountain is starting to recover from the thaw freeze cycle of late last week. As the number of grooming cycles increases, and as more new snow falls, the surfaces are slowly changing from extremely firm, to soft and granular. If you are out early in the day, most of the mountain is set up as smooth groomers. Later in the day, the centers of many of the trails start to show some wear with soft snow to be found along the sides. Clipper systems along the Canadian Border this week promise to deliver new snow to the area on a regular basis. We still have lots of great skiing and riding left in the season at Killington. And with March just around the corner, the best is yet to come.

......Let it snow!

Ice dam remnants. Gravity always wins! 

Last Sunday I posted a picture of the ice dams on the back building of the inn. They had started to creep off the edge of the roof towards there eventual demise. At 9:40 last evening, the tension between the melting ice, the roof, and the pull of gravity was finally resolved with gravity declared the winner once again. A slab of ice 50 feet long and 10 feet wide with thicknesses ranging up to 18 inches finally slid off the roof of the back building of the inn, creating a tsunami of snow when it impacted the ground below after a 30 foot fall. Todays picture gives a perspective of how big the ice blocks were that came off the roof.

The good news is that the roof is designed for the snow and ice load. The standing seam metal roof is also designed to let the ice and snow slide off the roof, which it does every year when temperatures rise. It is quite spectacular when it happens, but it is just part of life in this part of the country.

This week we have had above average temperatures in Killington, breaking the freezing mark most days before sliding back below 32 degrees at night. I had the great fortune of being out on the mountain on Thursday, which was a beautiful bright sunny day with temperatures in the mid 40's. I can say I have never skied in February with just a ski shirt and a vest on at Killington. Usually at this time of year it is full armor. But if Mother Nature throws us a precursor to spring, you got to go with it and enjoy the show.

Depending upon the alignment of a particular trail, ski conditions during the warm up have varied between a sweet ice cream, or a loose granular. Generally, south facing trails (think Wildfire, Outer Limits, Highline) were soft and creamy. North facing trails (think Superstar, Sky Lark, Cascades, Down Draft) were granular, as the magic of the sun was just not reaching the surface of the trail.

Skiing in just a vest in February? Click to enlarge..

Thursday I spent most of my time doing bump runs. Outer Limits, while not really bumped up, was just spectacular. Wildfire, the Stash, Skye Burst, and Bear Claw were all soft with varying levels of bumps being created Thursday morning. Generally speaking these were the cruisers for the main events.

Upper Dream Maker had some serious, but nicely covered, bumps down it's headwall. On Thursday, most of the bumps were 2 to 3 feet down both skiers right and skiers left. Where the headwall crests for the final descent to the mixing area with the Skye Burst offshoot, the bumps were 3 to 4 feet; some with severely cut back sides.

Old Superstar was just a joy to ski. Extremely regular 1 to 2 foot bumps were spread across the whole trail, giving one multiple lines to choose. Being north facing, but with little skier traffic, the bumps were still soft. On Thursday, Old Superstar was set up so well, it was the cruiser of bump runs.

Ridge Run (formerly West Glades) in the North Ridge area was developing 3 to 4 foot bumps in it's midsection. Backside troughs were starting to bottom out on this natural snow trail, with several exposing rocks and many showing grass. All of the bumps were quite skiable. And the grass and rocks were easily avoided as long as one paid attention to the bump line ahead of you.

North Star featured a wide variety of bumps to choose from. At the entrance, the bumps were in the 2 to 3 foot category, with good coverage and nice regularity. In the first and second turns, they grew a little taller and more random, making it difficult to hold a line and establish rhythm. Just as Ridge Run, in the natural snow section of North Star there was some grass showing in the deeper troughs in it's mid section. Lower North Star settled out again, especially the run out after Vagabond to Caper.

Royal Flush, with it's south facing terrain, was much softer. Upper Flush was similar to Old Superstar with 1 to 2 food well spaced bumps suitable for cruising. Bumps on lower Royal Flush were much bigger, with some ground penetration showing through in the deeper troughs.

While not really set up as a bumps run, Highline also deserves some mention. The south facing headwall was developing nice piles of snow with fairly regular patterns on late Thursday. These "bump precursors" were undoubtedly mowed down by the groomers overnight, but they were fun while they lasted.

Temperatures today are very warm, approaching 60, which will assure continued bump formation on ungroomed terrain. Overnight, temperatures are due to go below freezing, with cooler temperatures expected through the weekend. It sounds like we will be heading back to winter as we head into Presidents week. Of course, it is still only February, much to soon to think about chasing any little white balls down an open field, unless of course they were made of snow.

Where every you may be, have a nice Presidents day weekend, and .....Let it snow!

Killington Peak, monochromatic with high overcast. 

When I got up this morning to go skiing, I could not believe the thermometer. The temperature at the inn was 40 degrees. A down right hot day to go skiing in February.

Mountain conditions today held true to the temperatures. Virtually all of the terrain, with the exception of the very top of Superstar, was soft and creamy. With the exception of no sun at all due to high overcast, it would have been a great spring skiing day in April...oops..it's still February...never matter, it is due to go arctic again overnight.

We started today with a loop down Superstar. A little bit of wind blown surface just off the lift had us questioning the choice, but once on the upper headwall, it was obvious we made the right decision. Soft snow with a firm base left Superstar in hero condition. If you did not look good on this groomed cruiser...why are you skiing on Monday?

We followed up with a run to Bear Mountain thru the Stash. We got surprised as on one of the features on the Stash, which usually has a sloped backside, had a cut backside with about an 8 foot drop. As several of us were at speed going over this feature, we took considerable, unexpected air. We all aced the landings, but there was a considerable oh-oh feeling as we saw snow covered earth drop away from our skis.

Bear Mountain was just beautiful with soft snow everywhere. Outer Limits was a definite do over, as was Bear Claw, Wild Fire and Sky Burst. Upper Dream Maker had large bumps, which were difficult to see in the dim light. The features in the park on Lower Dream Maker were all soft, with no unexpected backside cuts.

From Bear we went back over to the Killington Peak side of the resort, bypassing the Needles Eye Area. Being Monday, the Canyon Quad was running, so we decided to take advantage of it with a few loops in the Canyons.

In the Canyons, East Falls and Cascade were firm with soft corduroy groves from grooming. Down Draft was firm with small to medium bumps. We bypassed Double Dipper. From the lift it looked firm and wind blown.

Over on Snowdon, Highline was soft and creamy. Upper Royal Flush had nice, regular, small bumps. Lower Royal Flush featured larger, soft bumps. Chute was groomed with a little slickness in the shadows. Caper to Rams Head was slow with a few wet spots, as was Header to the Rams Head Quad.

Temperatures overnight are due to return to the single digits. This will undoubtedly cause surfaces to firm up overnight, so take appropriate preparations if you are skiing on Tuesday.

I also hope you remembered Valentine's Day (Godiva Chocolates with some jewelry from Swarovski Crystal in Copley Place in Boston with a nice card).

Until the next time.......Let it snow!