Under cloudy skies, the Killington Classic HQ gets set up at the Wobbly Barn, across the Killington Road from the Birch Ridge Inn. 

Hundreds of motorcycle enthusiasts from all over the United States are converging on Killington Vermont this weekend for the Killington Classic Motorcycle Rally. Recognized as one of the top 10 events taking place in Vermont in the fall, the classic will bring "Thunder Through the Mountains" as riders enjoy the scenery provided by mountains that surround Killington Peak.

Events at the Killington Classic include self guided tours, a Poker Run, the Classic Grand Parade to Rutland, a Classic Bike Show, and a pig roast. The highlight of the weekend will be an evening with Bill Dutcher, founder and organizer of Americade. Bill will be speaking at the Killington Classic headquarters at the Wobbly Barn on Saturday Evening starting at 7:00 PM.

Registration for the event is at the Wobbly Barn, on the Killington Road, across the street from the Birch Ridge Inn. The registration fee is $20. More information can be found at killingtonclassic.com.

Where ever you may be, keep it in the fairway and don't forget the sunscreen.

Stairway to heaven...original art from killingtonblog.com 

While you were celebrating the Labor Day weekend, the Killington Resort was quietly confirming a rumor which has been circulating around town all summer....The construction of a walkway from Killington Peak to the North Ridge Triple to provide early season winter access to the upper reaches of Killington Peak.

Under the heading "Early Season Insurance", Tom Horrocks, the communications manager for the Killington Resort, posted a message on the "Killington Insider" confirming the plan to construct "the Peak Walkway from the top of the North Ridge Triple to the top of the K-1 Gondola to provide both summer sightseeing access and early-season winter access to upper mountain ski/ride terrain."

Rumors of the construction of the walkway have been active around town for most of the summer. It was first officially raised to the town in a meeting of the Planning Commission in mid July. The resort has since drawn up plans for the State of Vermont to permit the walkway as a minor project under the state's Act 250 land use process.

According to Horrocks "The walkway will provide access, via a 6-minute walk, from our (the Killington Resorts) upper-mountain terrain in the North Ridge area, where historically temperatures from about Oct. 15 on are favorable for snowmaking, back to the top of the K-1 Gondola."

Within Tom's message, no dates were given for when construction will begin or be completed other than "in the coming weeks", however implied in the post is that the walkway will be available to support early season skiing and riding at Killington this year.

On one of our fall hikes up the mountain later in the month, we will swing by North Ridge for some pictures. In the mean time, Mary was wondering if she could find some volunteers to be her "Sherpas" for early season skiing...of course if you are not in shape to do the hike, how can you be in shape for early season skiing and riding??? Time to get in gear with your pre-season ski conditioning program.

Where ever you may be, keep it in the fairway and don't forget the sunscreen.

Walter on the 3rd hole at Green Mountain National 

This summer went fast....

It is amazing... we are already at Labor Day. 2/3rds of the year 2010 are behind us. It seemed to go very quickly.

At lunch yesterday after a round of golf, several of us were marveling at how quickly summer has gone bye. In 10 weeks, if not sooner, we will all be talking about the approaching ski season. If mother nature is in our favor, we might already be skiing...Just look at the snow storm that covered parts of the Alps 2 days ago.

Snow will come soon enough to the mountains (we hope!). For the next few weeks, we look forward to the prettiest non-snow season of the year... Fall Foliage. The heat wave we are experiencing this week will be pushed aside. The eastern slopes of the mountains are starting to cool down as the hours of sunshine striking them continues decreasing with the approaching Autumnal Equinox on September 23rd. A few weeks later, Killington usually experiences peak fall colors, as not enough sunlight is falling on the leaves of the trees to allow sufficient photosynthesis to take place. When that occurs, the maple trees turn red, birch and poplar trees turn yellow, and oak trees turn orange. The mountainsides erupt in a brilliant display of color, forming the perfect backdrop for a hike in the woods, or a few more rounds of golf.

In the mountains, Mother Nature always puts on a show... it's our responsibility to get outside and enjoy it!

Where ever you may be this Labor Day Weekend, stay well, keep it in the fairway and don't forget the sunscreen.

Birch Ridge Inn at Killington. 

Although the temps are in the low 90's today, the calendar does say it's September 1.

The Fall Foliage season in Vermont is just around the corner. Once again this year we will be covering the natural progression of the changing foliage colors at Killington with a daily picture of the forest behind the inn. Currently there are some nascent signs of the fall change in a few of the trees, but green is still the predominant color. You can check back daily to see the progression of color over the next 8 weeks, as we go from green to multicolored and ultimately to twig.

Also with the Fall Foliage Gallery, you will find fall foliage pictures all the way back to 2006, so you can track how 2010 differs from past history. When peak fall foliage color this year will happen in Killington is anyone's guess. But Mother Nature always puts on a beautiful show.

Where ever you may find yourself, stay cool, keep it in the fairway and don't forget the sunscreen.

Hacking and slashing... Mary tackles a tight lie in the junk approaching the 18th green on Green Mountain National. 

Who needs the Mayan Calendar when you have 80's pop... Buster Poindexter predicted the feeling for today perfectly...

Me mind on fire
Me soul on fire
Feeling hot hot hot
Party people
All around me
Feeling hot hot hot

So we go rum-bum-bum-bum
Yeah we rum-bum-bum-bum
Feeling hot hot hot
Feeling hot hot hot

We walked 18 holes today on Green Mountain National. Temps when we started at 8:30 were hovering around the 80 mark. By the time we finished, the car read a toasty 89. For readers to the south, that may not sound like a lot, but for the Green Mountains of Vermont in late August, that is blistering heat.

If the weathermen are reading their tea leaves right, the heat will continue at Killington thru Friday after which a cool down to the comfortable 60's will take place next week...right on queue after Labor Day to start the fall season.

Where ever you may find yourself, stay cool, keep it in the fairway and don't forget the sunscreen.

Quechee Gorge looking back towards the Quechee Gorge bridge. 

While cool temperatures have been the norm in Vermont the last week or so, today temperatures spiked in the region to the mid 90's. Summer is back in the north country.... at least for a few more days.

Having a rare day to ourselves, we played like tourists for a few hours and hiked down the Quechee Gorge on our way to do some shopping in Lebanon New Hampshire. Even though we have been across the Quechee Gorge bridge hundreds of times, and have sent guests down to hike the gorge, we never had the opportunity to do it ourselves. It was a nice diversion for a few minutes during our day.

The trip down the gorge is very simple. In one direction (south), it is about a half mile walk from the bridge to the gorge floor down a well marked trail. The walk was simple and straight forward and the views at the bottom were classic Vermont.

Once we were done hiking back up to the bridge, we headed in the opposite direction (north) to the Quechee Dam. The dam is a concrete structure with wooden slats on its top to control the flow of water into the gorge. A small power plant takes water from the pond behind the dam and converts it into electricity. The whole operation was "green" before "green" was in style.

The whole walk in both directions took a little over an hour. It was a nice diversion in the middle of a warm summer day. Where ever you may find yourself, keep it in the fairway and don't forget the sunscreen.

Looking east from the restaurant atop Killington Peak 

Temperatures today at Killington are barely cracking the mid 70's. With bright sunshine and a few puffy clouds, it made for a great day to begin our late summer hikes to the top of Killington Peak.

Being the first real hike of the summer (most of our recreation time has been spent at the golf course) we took the easy route to the peak. We followed the dirt road that winter visitors to Killington would know as the old Snowshed Crossover. Climbing 2000 feet in the process, the road winds around the eastern side of the resort up Skye Peak towards Bear Mountain before turning up the southeast flank of Killington Peak.

At the peak, there was definitely a hint of fall in the air. Temperatures were in the upper 50's with a light breeze. Even in full sunshine, it was cool if you were not in a sheltered spot. We brought a picnic lunch, found a nice place to sit, and enjoyed the scenery as the reward for our hike. It also reminded us that we need to begin the process to strengthen the legs for next winters ski season. A few more hikes over the next couple of months will do the trick.

Changing subjects -- last weekend I had the pleasure of visiting Cape Cod to attend my fathers 85th birthday celebration. His "true" birthday will be coming up in a few days...Happy Birthday Dad!

Where ever you may find yourself, keep it in the fairway and don't forget the sunscreen.