Fall colors light up Snowdon, Rams Head, and Pico Peak as seen from Upper Ovation at Killington 

The last couple of days at Killington have been beautiful. Nearly 100% sunshine with mild temps in the low to mid 60's followed by progressively cooler nights. Tonight we are expecting temperatures in the low 20's for the first hard freeze since last winter.

Mary and I hiked up Killington this afternoon. We followed the Snowshed Crossover to get a look at all of the construction taking place on the mountain. (I was really torn between posting a picture of muddy, torn up real estate, versus the beautiful picture of fall foliage around the mountain. I will save the muddy work related pictures for another day.)

Skiers and Riders will be happy to know that there was a huge amount of work going on all around the mountain. Earlier in the day a helicopter was positioning lift pulley assemblies on the tops of lift towers at Sky Peak. Excavation work was going on in earnest at the top of Sky Peak to prepare for the new lift terminal. Blasting was taking place to cut a new green trail around the top of Sky Peak as part of the process to eliminate the Snowshed Crossover. Workers were doing excavation in the new "Stash" terrain park. Preparations also were underway to do blasting on Great Eastern to widen and smooth out some of the trail.

Of course, all of this was taking place on the Sky Peak/Bear Mountain side of the resort. On the Killington side of the resort, it was just a beautiful fall day. The trees are really starting to pop their colors. The next couple of weeks at Killington will be beautiful.

On a side note, following up on the saga of the Covered Carriageway at the inn, yesterday, our chef Steve and I got the fallen tree off of the carriage way roof and disposed of it. An insurance estimator and contractor have looked at the damage and done their thing. Hopefully, after completing some paperwork, we can get reconstruction started sometime next week.So it goes.....

Fallen tree sitting on roof of Covered Carriageway at the Birch Ridge Inn 

Wind gusts from the remnants of Hurricane Ike buffeted the Killington region overnight. Random trees are reported down around the area, but overall there is minimal damage.

At the Birch Ridge Inn, however, we were not so lucky. One of the big Poplar trees near our Covered Carriageway was split in half by a wind gust. 30 feet of so of tree fell across the Carriageway roof near the top of the driveway, leaving a rather large hole in it's wake. While the overall structure appears sound, we have closed the gates to traffic into the Carriageway on Butler Road until we can get the roof repaired. Guests to the inn in the meantime can continue to use the driveway to the left of the Carriageway for entrance and egress from the inn.

It does beg the question, however...If a tree falls in the forest, does it make any sound? Mary and I, nor our overnight guests, heard the tree fall. And given the size of the hole in the Carriageway roof, it should have come down with a loud crash. As they say.... never a dull moment....So it goes.....

Sky Peak Express parts in K1 Parking Lot 

Although the pace of change in the color of the leaves has slowed the last week or so, and the humidity in the area today is quite nasty with the remnants of Hurricane Ike, signs of the seasons changing are unmistakable. In addition to the visible clues provided by Mother Nature, you can also tell that the season is heading away from summer due to the uplift in activity around the resort as businesses prepare for the coming winter.

Subtle clues are everywhere. Delivery trucks are making frequent stops at local ski shops. New equipment and clothing is being delivered to prepare for the coming season, and the ski sales that typically take place over Columbus Day Weekend. At our inn, mundane things like orders for new linens for our rooms and dishes for our restaurant are being made to prepare for the coming busy season.

And on the mountain, work is accelerating to prepare the resort for the first snows, which will surely come in the next 30 to 60 days. It has been reported locally that crews have been on the mountain all week cutting new trails for a terrain park called "The Stash" which the resort is planning to introduce this winter. (I'll write more about "The Stash" in future blogs.) And rumor has it that helicopters will be installing tops for the lift towers for the new Skye Peak Express later this week (assuming weather conditions permit).

In the meantime, as the summer season draws to a close, and you play your final rounds of golf for the season, just remember to keep it in the fairway.

Killington Peak
September 10, 2008 

With all the hub bub about the presidential campaign on the news, and the local political campaigns heating up, it is refreshing to turn the TV off during the day and just go outside. And what a beautiful place Killington is this time of year.

Everywhere you look, change is in the air. The deep summer greens of the trees are starting to give way to a warm palate of red, orange and yellow. It is currently more pronounced in the early morning and just before sunset, when the sun is at a sharp angle to the countryside. But even at mid day, the color display is hard to ignore.

We still have a few weeks to go before we approach peak fall colors. But from the early hints we are seeing all around Killington, once again, fall in the mountains should be very pretty.

Where ever you may be, keep it in the fairway (and watch for falling leaves).

Lucky seven....or not! 

In my polite golfing world, the ball lying between the rocks on the 12th hole at Green Mountain National Golf Course is better known as a 7. For that is the score that resulted after taking a couple of wacks to move it out of it's glorious resting place.

Yesterday was a beautiful early fall day for golf in Killington; just perfect to play the final match in the Presidents Cup at Green Mountain National. Congratulations go to Austin Blackman, this years Green Mountain National Presidents Cup Champion. Austin soundly beat me in the final round of the match play tournament 5 up with 4 to go.

Overall, my round was pretty good. Austin's was just plain better! We had a tight match going through the front nine. Austin had me 1 up. We both were playing well. Unfortunately, I 3 putted both the 2nd and 5th holes, resulting in bogies while Austin took pars. The front nine could have gone either way.

The back nine was a different story. I played the first 5 holes poorly, with 4 bogeys and the previously mentioned 7. Austin did what needed to be done. He was 3 over for the first 5 holes on the back. As I was giving him shots on 10 and 12, we ended up halving one hole with Austin taking the other 4. Match over! You can't win back 5 holes when there are only 4 holes to play! Sorry O.D. So it goes.

We have a few more nice months of golf left at Killington. And with fall foliage colors popping everyday, the views from Killingtons 2 courses is spectacular.

Where ever you may be, keep it in the fairway (and watch for falling leaves).

Fall colors starting to appear at the Birch Ridge Inn at Killington 

September is here! (I think hip hip hurray?)

With the change in seasons, it is time to restart the annual fall foliage tradition, the Birch Ridge Fall Foliage Picture of the Day. Each day I take a set of pictures to monitor the progression of fall colors in the trees around the inn. It is actually a fairly elaborate process involving setting up a camera on a tripod in a fixed spot in the inn's parking lot each day. I generally take 3 pictures of the inn including Restaurant A Frame, Front Door, and Great Room A Frame. I then use Photoshop to stitch them together into one continuous photo before posting the picture on the blog.

As it stands today, there is a noticeable amount of color is in the trees around Killington. The great local debate centers around the simple question...is fall coming early this year? It is hard to tell...but one thing is certain... before you know it the leaves on the trees will be gone!

So in the mean time, enjoy the show of the progression of fall colors around the inn, and keep it in the fairway (and away from falling leaves).

Mary watering flower gardens at the Birch Ridge Inn at Killington 

It does not seem possible. Where did the summer go?

It has been a pretty good summer at Killington. On the wet side for sure, but even that has corrected itself over the last 2 weeks. The rain that deluged Killington during late July and early August has given way to sunny dry days and cool nights as we head into fall. So dry in fact that Mary is out this weekend watering flower gardens around the inn.

The benefits of all that early rain are all around. Flower gardens have gone crazy. The flower pots on the light poles along the Killington Road look the best that they have ever been. Golf courses in Killington are all in great shape. For those of you down country who have been following my game, I did win my quarter final match last week in the Presidents Cup at Green Mountain National, beating my friend, Ken Lee, 5 and 4. I have a week off from competitive golf before the President's Cup finals next Sunday morning. Of course the fact that I am even writing about the President's Cup finals is another sure sign that summer is coming to a close.

Around the mountain, rumors and other controversies have been very quiet. Killington Pico Skl Resort Partners, the operators of the Killington Resort, are clearly working to improve the ski product for next winter. Grass mowing and brush cutting crews are out all over the mountain trimming trails to get them ready for the first snow of the year. Progress is being made, albeit slowly, on installing the new high speed quad at Bear Mountain to Skye Peak. And they also provided their lodging partners with package prices for lift tickets for the upcoming winter season, much earlier than in prior years. If you would like to price out a ski and stay package at the Birch Ridge Inn, you can go to our Ski Package Calculator on the inn's website to start planning your winter trips.

But before the first snows of winter, we (hopefully) have a few more weeks of nice weather to chase little white balls down manicured lawns, or commune with nature on hikes across mountain peaks and valley floors. Until the next time, keep it in the fairway...and don't forget your sunscreen (and find your sweaters...fall is coming)!