Bill and Mary hiking Killington 

Oh! We are going to be sore tomorrow!

It was a beautiful, sunny day here in Killington. Temperatures at the K1 Base lodge just before noon time were approaching 50. Mary and I felt we needed a little exercise. We love being out on the mountain...so we decided to hike up Killington.

We started our hike from the Bay 1 parking lot around 11:30 AM. We proceeded to hike up Great Northern. When we got to Lower Chute, we decided to hike straight up, versus looping out towards Ram's Head. Lower Chute was snow covered, and very slippery. It is also surprisingly steep when you are hiking up. When we reached Lower Bunny Buster at the bottom of Mouse Trap, we decided to get back on Great Northern again, bypassing Middle Chute and Mouse Trap.

We ran into the first signs of serious snow making as we approached the junction of Great Northern and Conclusion. Huge whales of snow were blown on Great Northern from Highline to Klink. We ran into one skier who had hiked up earlier in the morning. He had really earned his turns.

By the time we reached the junction of Klink, Pipeline and Great Northern, the trail was like a staircase. So many people had hiked up Pipeline over the last several days that the climb from Klink was quite easy. Footprints in the snow had frozen over night to form a comfortable set of stairs to aid the climb. We both remarked that who ever made the first climb on this part of the trail surely paid a heavy price to break through the snow. But it sure made our effort a little easier.

We continued our hike up Great Northern to Birch Run, formerly West Glade. The snow whales blown on the trail were over our heads in many places. It was almost like climbing over sand dunes at the beach, only a little cooler.

We crossed between Powerline, Rime, Reason, East Fall, and the Canyons. A huge amount of snow had been laid down in this area by Killington's snow guns. In several places, as we were cresting the whales, we were concerned that we might find a snow mobile coming up the other side, as they were so tall you could not see over them until you were nearly to the top.

Being never satisfied to see the same terrain twice, instead of going back down Snowdon, we decided to hike across the front of Killington and head over towards Superstar. We took Great Eastern to Launch Pad. We were not sure how much snow on these trails was natural, or the result of wind blowing snow from the snow guns, but by the time we got to the top of Ovation the snow started to thin a little bit. The top of Ovation, Superstar, and Sky Lark had snow ranging from a thin crust to boot top deep, depending on how the wind had blown it around.

To descend the mountain, we climbed down Sky Lark to High Road. At Bittersweet, we took a little diversion to Skye Bits, as it was an easier walk than the top of Low Road. Skye Bits branched back under the lower headwall of Bittersweet, allowing us to merge with Low Road to make the final walk down via Yodler and Highlander. We were back to the car at 2:30.

Now, the 64 dollar question... Should Killington Open?

Killington snow makers have laid down a very solid base on the upper mountain at Snowdon from about the 3000 foot level (maybe 3200 feet... I didn't have a GPS with me). While some natural snow has accumulated on the mountain, it is very clear that none of the trails at the lower elevations are skiable by any number of people. Killington/Mother Nature still has a lot more work to do below 3000 feet to connect the top of the mountain to the K1 base lodge. Temperatures during our climb were down right balmy. During the entire climb, I was dressed in a light jacket, with no gloves, and only a baseball hat on my head. (Of course, I had a shell, wool cap, and gloves in my knapsack in case I needed them) It was just plain warm. It wasn't until we got near the peak that we noticed the temperature coming down a bit. But even then, I did not need to put on any extra layers. From what I could tell, Killington did make the right decision to hold off for a while before opening.

When will Killington open? It is very hard to tell. Temperatures are forecasted at Killington to be unfavorable for continued snow making for the rest of this week. And Killington probably needs 3 to 4 more days to make snow to open, unless there is some help from Mother Nature. Based upon what we saw today, if I were a betting man, I would guess that opening day would occur some time between November 13th and November 18th. But given the unpredictable nature of New England weather in November, anything is possible.

Snow making operations
continuing on Killington peak. 

It's a quiet Sunday in Killington. We had a little snow action last night, receiving around 1/2 inch of snow at the inn; most of it in the process of melting. The resort is continuing to make snow at higher elevations. That will probably form a backdrop to life in the area for the next couple of months, when conditions for snow making are favorable.

In addition to going about the business of the inn, Mary and I have been making our own preparations to begin skiing. Last night we made arrangements to bring our ski's in to the shop to get them tuned for the start of the season. Today, we both made the trek to the Killington Season Pass office at the Snow Shed base lodge and got our ski passes for the winter. We need to be prepared for opening day, when ever that may be.

On the business end, we are preparing to host the November mixer for the Killington Chamber of Commerce on this coming Tuesday, November 7th. The mixer is scheduled to run from 5:00 to 7:00 PM in the Great Room of the inn. Our chef Steve has been busy planning some nice hors d'oeuvres for the event. If you find yourself at Killington on Tuesday, feel free to join in.

Dr. Seuss is right. 

Sometimes skiing does not matter!

The feeling of frustration around the town of Killington is palpable. Most of the ground in white.... snow guns are running.... it's the first weekend of November and the mountain is NOT OPEN FOR SKIING! What's wrong with this picture???

But then reality sets in. You look at the ground and realize it's just a fake out. Mother nature has dusted the area with a ephemeral coating of powered sugar. It looks great, but if you look too long you will find that it just goes away. You look at the weather forecast, and realize that next week the temp's are supposed to be in the 50's during the day...great for finishing up any delinquent yard work, but not great for early season snow cover. Then a card comes in the mail, and reality sets in.

Unknown to most of you, Mary's nephew, Scot, has spent the last year in Iraq. Mary and I have our opinions about the the situation in Iraq, but having grown up in the sixties, we STRONGLY know the DIFFERENCE between supporting troops deployed overseas in our country's name, and supporting the policy of politicians who deployed them.

I try not to be to political on this blog. Anyone who knows me, knows where I stand. But this is not a political blog, it's a blog about life in Killington. If you want to talk politics, I own a bar. And in the great New England tradition which fomented the American Revolution, I will spend hours with you in the bar talking politics if you want. But I digress to the self explanatory.

Over the last several months, Mary has been making little care packages to send to her nephew. Just little things... banana nut bread... peanut butter cookies... little things to help brighten up what can be a drab diet for troops deployed in forward areas. We really didn't thing much about it. We had some fun in the kitchen figuring out how to vacuum pack the items so they would stay fresh in transport. But it was just something nice Mary felt she needed to do to support her nephew, and make sure that he knew people back home were thinking of him.

A couple of weeks ago, we got some good news. Scot's unit ended it's tour in Irag; he was in transit out of country, and would be back at his normal base in a few days. A few days later, we get this card at the inn (see today's picture... double click on it to see the card in detail). It turns out Mary's nephew had been sharing his goodies with his unit. When they got back to their base, the all signed a card thanking Mary for the care packages. "Thank you very much SPC Reed", 'Your cookies made my day...Todd B", "Thank you so much for sending us your love and support...Lt Chung"; "Thank you for thinking of us in Iraq. The cookies really hit the spot. Spc Douglas", "I can't thank you enough, But we need more(lol)...Spc Danier"; "Thanks for all the much needed TLC...Sgt "Izzie" Isabell"; "Real food is better.. Scott".

So you see...in the end....skiing just doesn't really matter very much.

What ever you may be doing next Tuesday, November 7th, please go and vote. No matter which side you choose, the ultimate way to support people in service to this great nation, and American Service Men and Women deployed overseas is to vote. And if you can, also send the troops cookies.. They really appreciate knowing that people care about them.

Snow guns operating at junction
of Rime and East Fall at Killington 

Late yesterday afternoon, the Killington resort started to make snow for the 2006/2007 ski season. Snow guns are operating on upper trails at Killington peak. Snowmaking is visible from the K1 base lodge on sections of Great Northern, Rime, and Reason. Killington is not currently blowing snow on lower trails leading to the K1 Base Lodge.

Killington has not made any comments yet about when they will open for skiing and riding for the season, other than to say that they will open only when conditions allow top to bottom skiing. At the K1 base lodge, I did observe various food and beverage vendors delivering supplies, which would seem to indicated opening day is near.

Temperatures at the K1 base lodge this morning at 10 AM was 30 degrees. The key to opening would appear to be making snow on lower trails, which could start any time now. Get your equipment ready, because opening day is not far away!

Killington Peak covered in clouds 

A small low pressure system passed over Killington last night. Precipitation started as r@!n but turned to snow in the early morning hours. At the inn, at 10:00 AM the snow stake measured 1 1/2 inches of very high moisture snow. Temperatures are in the high 30's, with snow melt taking place. It is unclear if the snow cover will last the day around the inn, without the temperatures getting colder.

On the mountain, the temperature at the K1 Base lodge, when I went up to take pictures this morning, around 10:15 AM, was 34 degrees. Conditions were very similar to what I was seeing around the inn; a couple of inches of heavy wet snow that was melting into puddles. Killington peak was covered in a dense cloud bank, probably due to all of the humidity from the melting snow.

Snowmaking operations were not in progress when I visited the mountain this morning. Killington operations has put out the word that they will be making snow as soon as the temperature and the humidity drops to reasonable levels, perhaps as early as this afternoon assuming the peak clears. I would guess from looking at the mountain, that temperatures were close at the peak, but the r@!n and wet snow from last night have created too much humidity for snow making to be successful. What ever happens, it is clear that the resort is very close to starting up their snowmaking system, and close to starting their push to open the resort for the ski season.

Halloween 2006.
What are you going to be??? 

Although the ski season is still a few days away, today is the official start of the party season at Killington. Tonight, the Wobbly Barn starts the ski season party going with their 42nd annual Halloween Party. Joey Leone's Chop Shop is the featured band. Costumes are required (it's a Halloween party...get it!). What are you going to be?

Wind whipped snow on Killington 

Early this morning, the Killington resort turned on it's snow making system for the traditional early season test. I ran into Dave Rathbun, Killington's VP of Brand Management, while we were both getting a sandwich at the Killington Market (that's how things really happen in a small town), and he told me that the system was tested earlier today. 14 new low energy guns were tested on an upper trail named 'Reason". So the traditional "blow the mice out" test is now done...check!

Dave went on to tell me that Killington is watching the weather closely, and as soon as the situation is favorable, the mountain will be lit up with snow guns to push to get the season opened. The next couple of days do not look good as temps in the high 50's are due on Tuesday. However, that is all due to change. Late Wenesday/early Thursday, according to Dave, Killington is expecting temperatures in the teens at the peak. The only question about opening day is when can they blow enough snow to get skiing and riding from top to bottom? It will be a day by day thing, as the run up begins to the opening of the 2006/2007 ski season at Killington.