Superstar - Spring Skiing Icon in the Northeast. 

There are quite a few people in offices around the Northeast this morning sitting at work nursing goggle tans. While Easter Weekend at Killington is never "busy" from a traditional sense, there were still thousands of people who enjoyed spring skiing on the mountain Friday, Saturday and Sunday.

We are now entering a season of change at Killington. Just like in the early winter, as they resort tries to make an orderly expansion of skiable terrain, the inverse takes place in the spring. Today, for instance, the resort has 4 primary lifts operating (Superstar, K1 Gondola, Snowdon Quad, Snowshed Quad. Of course, the 4 lifts access tens of miles of terrain for skiing and riding, but it does take a little bit more planning and local knowledge to get around the resort this time of year.

At the inn, we have also started to contract our business with the change in season. This weekend was the last weekend of the winter season for our restaurant. We will re-open it once again in a couple of months for the summer season at Killington, but for now the staff is off enjoying spring in the mountains of New England. (Many left to hike and camp at Tuckerman's Ravine on Mount Washington for a few days.)

The inn will be open through April to serve lodging guests. Stop bye for a beverage in the bar in the Great Room if you find yourself in Killington challenging the bumps on Superstar.

Think Spring!

Killington Peak 

Mary and I wish you a Happy Easter.

Bright sunshine continues to bathe the Green Mountains this Easter Sunday. Spring has definitely arrived in full force to the mountains with temperatures touching 80 degrees late Saturday. Temperatures have since moderated, but they are still unseasonably high in the low 70's.

The ski season at Killington still has a few weeks to run before it's time to put away the boards for another year. But then again, even my mind is starting to think about chasing a little white ball down a lush green fairway.

Happy Easter and Think Spring!

Bill and Mary on Sky Peak 

The Weather Channel has predicted a Severe Photon Storm for the Killington region for the next couple of days. Heavy photon bombardment is currently taking place on Killington Peak and the surrounding mountains of the Killington-Pico Ski Resort.

Local residents are advised to seek higher ground equipped with skis or snow boards to foster swift movement through the storm. The Killington Ski Resort is running their ski lifts to accommodate those trying to reach Killington Peak, Sky Peak, and Bear Mountain. The resort plans to run their lifts on Pico Mountain over the weekend to further expedite travel to higher elevations to help people weather the photon storm.

To foster production of Vitamin D, people going outdoors are advised to wear light clothing. Water for hydration is also recommended, as travel on skis around the mountains in this weather will cause heavy perspiration. It is recommended for those who must stay indoors during the photon storm to open all their windows to prevent their homes from overheating during the increased photonic activity.

For those of you who can escape to higher elevations, be advised that photon activity will strike from above from the sun, and below with reflection off of the snow covered ground. Be advised that snow conditions at Bear Mountain are becoming soft, in places resembling a corn soup. Photon activity on Sky Peak has made Dream Maker soft and creamy. Soft bumps are developing on all steeper terrain as the photons work to create a phase change in the snow.

Photon activity is extremely high on Killington Peak. Cascade is delightfully soft. Highline, under full photon attack, is like a giant soft serve ice cream cone...so delicious you just want more and more and more.

Those who plan to ride out the storm at higher elevations are advised to review their stores of Zinc Oxide or other photon absorbing products. Failure to do so could result in severe goggle tans or worse as the photon storm reaches it's full fury.

......Happy April 1st!

Natural snow cover still covers grounds around the Birch Ridge Inn at Killington. Pictured is the snow stake in the back of the inn. 

Even with the inundation from the warm Nor'easter which hit New England these last couple of days, Killington still has plenty of snow for skiing and riding.

Natural snow still covers much of the ground around the inn. Snow depths are just under a half a foot behind the inn. While it is hard to tell given the low cloud cover, the mountain, which the resort pummeled early in the season with snow making, should be holding up better. As the storm moves out tomorrow, we should get a good peak at the mountain (and maybe a run or two if we are lucky).

Bear Mountain Base Lodge during Mogul Challenge 

Killington's second ski season, Spring, is well underway with the running of this weekends Bear Mountain Mogul Challenge. This year was BMMC's 30th. 200 competitors took the field to challenge the freestyle bumps course set up on Outer Limits. To provide entertainment for onlookers, live music was provided Saturday afternoon from a stage beside the Bear Mountain Base Lodge. The band, Moe, was the headliner for the festivities.

From a skiing and riding standpoint, I took a few turns on the mountain on Saturday. Temperatures this weekend had plunged back to winter, with on slope conditions following suit. But Saturday was also dominated by bright sunshine. There were a lot of goggle tans in our restaurant on Saturday night.

Today, although it is actually a few degrees warmer, the mountain is covered with a high cloud layer. Inn guests arriving back from the mountain said that the lack of sun made today seem colder than yesterday, even though that is not the case based on the thermometer.

Skiing and riding is scheduled to continue at Killington through the month of April. You still have plenty of time to come to the mountains and take in some turns before putting the boards up for the season.........let it snow!

Outer Limits being prepared for Bear Mountain Mogul Challenge this coming weekend. 

Mary and I had a chance to get out on the mountain for a few runs this morning. Snow coverage on the mountain is great. The warm temperatures of the last couple of weeks have barely made a dent in the coverage at the resort. It should be a great spring to ski or ride Killington.

Early this morning, conditions started firm. I use the term "firm" not "solid" as although temperatures dipped below freezing last night, most of the trails we skied did not freeze up. The upper reaches of the trails were "tighter" than the lower sections, but even on the upper sections you were moving a lot of snow under your skis.

From K1 we traversed over to Bear Mountain. Our first run was down Bear Claw to Lower Wild Fire. Upper Bear Claw was flat and fast with great grooming. By the middle, section, the snow transitioned to a creamy consistency. By lower Wild Fire it was soft. But we were two of the first people down the trail, so we were skiing untracked corduroy the whole way.

We followed our route the next loop around, substituting the Stash for Bear Claw. We found similar conditions with the exception that skier traffic (what little there was) had already begun to create little snow piles (the precursors to bumps) on Lower Wild Fire. (It was that soft.) By this time, temperatures had warmed up above freezing. Skyeburst from top to bottom was nicely soft. Lower Skyeburst had a beach sand quality to it, which it usually develops in the spring. But as there was little skier traffic, this did not present much difficulty to negotiate.

Cruise Control, Skye Lark and Bitter Sweet were all nice groomed cruisers. Lower Skye Lark had been left bumped, which we bypassed today. For some reason this morning the Superstar Quad was not running, shortening our day on Skye Peak.

Off the K1, Cascade skied well. The upper section was flat and fast, with the lower headwall getting soft. East Fall and High Line were also groomed flat. The run out along Spillway was in good shape. Sometimes it can get really soft in the spring, but there were no signs of that this morning.

Overall it was a nice morning to ski. And living in the mountains, thats about all we can ask for.........let it snow!

Snow pack behind the Birch Ridge Inn, Killington 

It is just not a nice spring day in Killington. Last weeks warm temperatures have been replaced with cold and damp. Overnight saw some r@!n infiltrate the area for a few hours. On its exit, it has left mountain streams roaring in all their spring glory.

The snow pack at the inn is still holding its own. The fields and forest behind the inn are still maintaining good coverage, with the snow stake reading around 1 foot of snow remaining on the ground. Since around the inn is all natural snow accumulated over the winter, base depths on the mountain must be doing considerably better. Man-made snow from the resorts snow guns tends to be a little more resilient as it is slightly denser than the natural stuff. Also, due to elevation differences, the mountain tends to be cooler than the area around the inn as well, further mitigating effects.

With luck, tomorrow we will get out on the mountain for an on the trail look........let it snow!