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 The warm reprieve the area enjoyed last week has been replaced by temperatures well below freezing.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!

Ice dams ready to release from the back building at the Birch Ridge Inn, Killington. 

Public Service Announcement - Did you remember that Monday is Saint Valentine's day? Be a hero! Do something nice for the one you love. - End Public Service Announcement.

Over the last few days, I have done no skiing what so ever. But that does not mean I have not been having any fun.

On Thursday and Friday, I had the opportunity to be down in Boston, my old home town. I was invited to a wine tasting held by a wine importer to introduce the 2009 vintage of fine wines from Burgundy. (One of the fringe benefits of owning an inn with a nice restaurant.) The wines were in general in a word "Awesome". I sipped and spitted about 60 different white and red wines. I have some tough choices to make as my pre-orders are due the end of this coming week.

While in Boston, there were a number of things that peaked my curiosity. One was at the wine tasting. Several hundred people attended, mostly from upscale restaurants in the Boston metro area. I have never seen so many "suits" since moving to Vermont full time 14 years ago. When I got dressed Thursday morning in Vermont before driving to Boston, the though crossed my mind to put on a suit. The tasting was in the Boston Harbor Hotel, a very posh location in Boston. Instead I opted for a simple white button down shirt and a black sweater. My "uniform" was the second most popular outfit at the wine tasting, but it was easily outnumbered by suits 3 to 1. I am not sure what it means, but at least in Boston some people are dressing up for business functions.

I stayed in Boston in the Back Bay at the Lenox Hotel. It is a nice hotel, rated #1 for Boston by Trip Advisor. There are a couple of small inns in the Back Bay where I usually stay, but they were both booked. So I decided to go big, and see what ideas I could steal to apply back to our inn in Killington. What really struck me about the Lenox, and Boston in general, was how "busy" it was. If there is a recession anywhere, it did not seem to be in Boston. Hotel occupancies were up, stores were crowded (remember Valentines day shopping), and the restaurants and bars at night were jammed.

At night, I went over to Newbury Street to check out some restaurants. I first stopped at the Capital Grille. At 8:30, the wait at the bar was probably going to be 2 hours, so I slid down the street (Newbury Street still had huge snow banks from all the snow Boston has gotten this winter) to an old haunt I used to go to regularly years ago, Sonsie. A classic, bistro style, restaurant, Sonsie like the Capital Grille was packed. I signaled a bartender for a drink, and casually stood at the bar for over an hour before finally getting a seat. (again..where is the recession?) The bar was filled with 30-40 somethings. I was definitely on the old end of the age spectrum. I proved this with a brief exchange with a 30 something women beside me at the bar. She had her purse on the bar. I asked her to "move her pocket book", as my appetizer plate was pushed into its side (the bar was packed). She laughed and told me she had not heard anyone call a clutch a pocket book since her grand mother had died several years ago. I laughed and shot right back: "There is a reason the woman who cuts my hair calls my color arctic blonde". She laughed, moved her "clutch" and bought me a glass of wine. Score one for the old guy!

Friday morning, after some Valentine's day shopping, I drove back to Killington and to winter. Starting the drive in Boston the temperature was a balmy 30 degrees. By the time I crossed the Connecticut River in Lebanon New Hampshire, the car read a cool 18. A little light snow on Friday night and Saturday, and my journey back to the frozen north was complete. I dressed with a tie on Saturday night... but I could not bring myself to put back on a suit. I'll probably save that for Valentines day.

We will be getting back onto the slopes this week to report of conditions. In the mean time.......Let it snow!

Ski Bridge from Killington Grand Hotel to Snowshed Base Lodge. 

Kudo's to Home Depot. After a 6 week absence, my 9HP Ariens Snow Blower has been returned from warranty service. It was a good thing too, as the snow at Killington has kept falling. Since my last blog post, the snow stake has seen a net increase of more than 6 inches of new snow. While that may not seem like much, when you take into account that the snow pack underneath is compressing at about 2 inches per day, we have received about a foot and a half of new snow in the last 4 days. Or to put it another way, about 6 hours of snow blowing since last Friday. No complaints, snow is a wonderful thing at a ski resort in the winter. WE WANT MORE!

Speaking of snow, we have some really strange storms the last few days. Over the weekend we had a full blown severe thunderstorm accompanied by high winds, pea sized hail, sleet, and snow. Not a random clap of thunder, mind you, but a full half hour light show with thunder simultaneously crashing down on our heads with each lightning stroke. Really strange.

Yesterday we had a "No Name" blizzard. Snow flurries were predicted. White out conditions developed late in the afternoon. From about 3:00PM to 6:00PM about 6 inches of light powder fell. I usually don't break out the snow blower at night, but enough snow fell late yesterday afternoon that I needed to get it running to clear paths to allow restaurant guests to get access to the inn.

In addition to snow blowing, I have also started the process of removing snow from a section of flat roof over part of the inn. As you can see from the picture, the snow on the roof is about waist high. I could wait a few more weeks before I started this winter job. In past years, it has gotten shoulder high before starting to remove it, but now that the snow blower is back, I don't need to shovel walks around the inn. I might as well shovel the roof to keep the upper body in shape.

Clearing snow from a roof at the inn. Click to enlarge..

Lots of other things have taken place over the last couple of days besides snow removal which have kept me off my computer. Of course we have been out skiing in the new snow... that is a given. I was able to bracket a meeting at the Killington Grand Hotel on Monday on the Killington Wine Festival with an hour of skiing before and 2 hours after. (Including a couple of passes at skiing across the bridge between the Killington Grand and the Snowshed Base Lodge.) The Wine Festival will be the subject of future posts (Tenth Annual this year! July 22 thru 24, 2011)

Monday's excursion on the snow was punctuated with multiple high speed loops on Superstar. From 9:00AM to 9:45AM I was clocking in loops at about 6 1/2 minutes up and down Superstar. I had a knapsack on with my meeting material. Once the ticket checker figured out what I was doing, I was waved thru each time to keep my speed up. Fortunately (for me, not for the resort) there were not many other people skiing Superstar at the time.

Frozen Arctic air has descended on Killington Click to enlarge..

Today, Mary and I skied out of the car at the Snowdon Quad. Very cold air had descended on Killington. Temperatures this morning while we were out were in the single digits. That did not stop us from enjoying the resort, but it did keep us covered up from head to toe all morning.

We did a typical loop off the backside of Killington Peak over to Bear Mountain. The resort had groomed most of the trails to capture the fluff that had fallen overnight. We observed many drifts that were waist high or better in places. Hitting them was pretty much an instant stop, unless you were able to cant your skis airborne to ride over them.

The flat and fast grooming was great for cruising, but I also sought out some powder. Upper Dream Maker had not been groomed. I was not on my powder skis, choosing my all mountain skis from my quiver this morning. On Dream Maker that was a mistake. I got about a 3rd of the way down before I augured in. As the trail was not groomed, I got caught between two bumps buried by snow. About waist deep. I needed to figure out how to kick off my skis and swim out of the hole. It took me a while as Mary waited patiently for me at the junction of Dream Maker and Sky Burst (she went around upper Dream Maker). Once I righted myself, it still took a little work to get down. The snow was a little slabby. Every time I was on the down side of a buried bump, a mini avalanche would get started. But it was worth the excursion off groomed terrain to try to challenge the mountain.

A few more runs off the Sky Ship and we called it a day. I looped Superstar a couple of times, while Mary chose to do a Bitter Road before heading back to the car. Superstar on skiers left was groomed chunky and ski racer firm. There were a few wind blown areas, but overall the snow accepted edges nicely. On my bonus run (while Mary was waiting), I went down skiers right. The surface was covered with a couple of inches of soft powder, most likely blown over from the left side of the trail. Cruising on 2 inches of soft velvet was a nice way to finish the morning on the mountain, before heading back to the inn for another snow removal session.

.....Let it snow!

Ben ready to take flight on the Super Pipe at Bear Mountain 

With the exception of some of the epic powder days I can take advantage of because I live in Killington, today was the day. Probably in the top 5 non powder ski days in the last several years.

The morning was filled with bright sunshine and moderately chilly temperatures. Even though it was in the low teens, the bright sunshine at Bear Mountain made it seem warm.

Runs of the day were all over the place...Probably the best in bright sunshine was Royal Flush. Beautiful, well organized, soft bumps the whole length of the trail. And the bright sunshine is such a bonus on the Killington Basin side of the resort.

The surprise run of the day was Ridge Run (formerly known as West Glade). Feet of soft snow covered the trail. Soft bumps, with no icy troughs to be found anywhere, made Ridge Run a do over. I was skiing with 4 other guys on this trail. We all formed a single line, about a skier length apart, just cutting a line down the trail. Straight out of your favorite ski movie. It is not often that we even ski this trail, so to have it be a do over is just a testament to how great the snow is right now at the Killington Resort.

Superbowl Sunday usually sees reduced crowds at Killington. With more snow in the forecast for tomorrow afternoon, it is a great time to be out on the mountain.

....Let it snow!

Stash woods....lots of snow! 

I am definitely getting old... my legs are just burnt out!

Beautiful soft snow was the order of the day at Killington. Whether your choice was a groomer, a bumps run, au natural, or the woods, all you could find today was beautiful soft snow. (If you overlook the snow making whales on Superstar.)

I skied from the car today, starting at the Snow Shed Quad. Being by myself today, I was not too adventurous, but there was plenty of good stuff to be found lying around almost anywhere. I started my day on Upper Royal Flush. It seemed like a good choice, but once in it I had my concerns. The trail was covered with about 6 to 8 inches of new snow, but wind overnight created this slabtastic crust. The legs got pushed around a little, which given the shallow pitch of the trails was interesting in itself. Fortunately, this was the only trail which exhibited this type of surface.

All the traditional trails on Snowdon were well snow covered. On even the simplest groomed run, moguls were developing in the soft snow.

On the other side of the mountain, there was plenty of fun to be had in the Stash. The Stash Woods were in great shape. Lower down on the stash, the soft snow was bumping up on some of the features favored by skiers. Many boarders in the Stash today used the soft surfaces as an opportunity to get some air off the jumps. I doubt the soft snow created a softer landing zone, but psychologically it must have as there were a lot of people taking air today.

Upper Dream Maker, Old Needles Eye, and Vertigo were all bumps. Needles Eye and Cruise Control were your typical groomed cruisers, except the grooming did not stick. Skier traffic quickly broke up the surface into small snow bumps requiring the average skier or rider to make a turn or three.

I finished out on Old Superstar. Beautiful soft snow filled with soft, sub-knee height bumps. The bumps are all natural, but they were really spaced well; a testament to the quality of the skiers taking Old Superstar. You could get a nice rhythm on it.

Following Old Superstar, I tracked tight down skiers left on Superstar. Huge, hard, whales of snow mound the trail, the result of days of snow blowing. Some of the whales are approaching the height of the lift towers. Soft snow accumulated in the troughs to the left of the whales, which set up a nice bump run to the bottom. These bumps were not as well organized, so you needed to pick and choose your line a little more carefully. But why would you ski on a section of groomed flat trail when there is all this new snow to play in?

We finished up with a net gain in snow of 8 3/4 inches for this storm. Not epic, but with the snow at the stake now over 2 feet, it looks like we will have great skiing and riding for a long while to come.

....Let it snow!