Winch Cat stabilizing Back Hoe on Mousetrap at Killington.
Click to enlarge. 

It is a beautiful sunny day in Killington. Temperatures, which have been unusually cool the last month, are in the mid 60's. Just what a ski resort want's to see in late October (not!).

But the beautiful weather is making it pleasant to work outside to get ready for winter, which we all know will come soon enough. Heavy machinery is out and about all over the area. The Killington Road around the Rams Head Base Lodge was seeing a lot o work maintaining the drainage channels at the side of the road. New rip rap was being installed to hold the banks.

On the mountain there was some interesting work taking place leading to the new fan gun mount on Mousetrap. A Winch Cat, normally used to hold grooming machines steady on steep trails, was tethering a crawling Back Hoe. A ditch was being dug down Mousetrap leading to the new Fan Gun Mount. What ever they were doing, it looks like a few more days before the new toy is installed and tested for the season.

Snow making at Killington Peak has of course been suspended due to the weather. Snow cover on upper trails is clearly visible. Sharp lines form a demarcation point between snowmaking and natural terrain. Any natural snow that fell the last couple of weeks has melted away. The Beast could use a little help from Mother Nature to get this party started!.....Let it snow!

Looking across the Roaring Brook Valley from the Birch Ridge Inn. 

And no..it's not an election...there will be no run off other then r@!nwater or snow melt in the spring.

The annual rite of passage from summer through fall into winter which we call Foliage Season is coming to a close in the Killington area. While there are a few hold outs among the forest, the vibrant fall colors of just 10 to 15 days ago are being rapidly replace with the dull gray of twigs against a darkening sky.

While it happens every year, the passing of Fall Foliage season is still bittersweet. From the first blush of spring to the onset of twig season, the Green Mountains are bursting with color. And now it is virtually all gone.

But, as they say, life goes on. The falling of the leaves in Killington means that the falling of snow is not far away. The purifying process of turning the country side white will rapidly erase the doldrums of twig season.....Let it snow!

Bluebird day at Killington 

Oh...I wish I were skiing!

On my morning drive to see what is happening on the mountain I was amazed at the beauty of it all. Yesterdays storm which went out to sea to the south and east of Killington has dragged down cool dry air from Canada. The net is that Killington is covered in a cloudless azure blue sky today. The remaining fall colors, sparse as they are, contrast perfectly with the snow covered mountain tops and the brilliant blue.

Skiing and riding will come soon enough to Killington. The upper reaches of the resort are gleaming today, while the lower slopes are seeing what little snow cover they had melt away in the fall sun. Temperatures at the K1 base area were in the mid 40's, not suitable for making snow on the lower elevations of the resort. Workers were visible at the base lodge completing some outside work prior to the season, but the tell-tale signs of the resort opening soon are not present. With the weather predicted this week in the area, it will probably be a couple of weeks before rush to open preparations are completed.

It will all come soon enough. Today is a day to enjoy the last bits of sunshine before winter sets in......Let it snow!

Panorama of Killington Resort taken late Saturday, 10/17. Click to enlarge. 

While many eyes stay focused on the activities of the Killington Resort as it prepares for the upcoming ski season, local government commissions of the town of Killington are not standing still either.

On Monday evening, October 19th, AMS Planning and Research, an arts management consulting practice, will present their results of a preliminary feasibility study on the economic viability of developing a performing arts center/entertainment venue by the town of Killington. AMS was retained by the town of Killington via the Economic Development and Tourism Commission (EDTC) to complete the study. The study was also funded in part by the Vermont Community Development Program.

According the meeting invitation sent out from the town manager's, Kathleen Ramsey, office, the meeting, which is to take place at 5:30 PM at the town offices on River Road will review:
- A report on data collected to date;
- An outline of observations and recommendations on development of an indoor/outdoor arts venue in Kilington; and
- A go/no go recommendation on whether or not to proceed to Phase II of the feasibility study. Phase II of the study would include development of an operating model and analysis of economic impact of developing a performing arts/entertainment venue in Killington.

Many Killington citizens are interested in hearing this report, especially in light of the towns announced intention to investigate purchasing the "Fireside Lodge" property on the Killington Road as a potential venue site.

Back on the mountain, the Killington Resort suspended snow making operations on Saturday. Weather conditions were forecasted to bring some wet weather through the area on late Saturday afternoon and evening. Delightfully, as far as visitors to the area are concerned, the storm that was forecasted appears to have gone further out to sea off the New England coast than expected, leaving the Killington area cloud covered but dry. The resort has said through their public statements that they will resume snow making operations as soon as weather conditions allow, which are expected during the week.

.....Let it snow!

Last of fall foliage behind the Birch Ridge Inn at Killington 

Snow is not the only thing falling from the sky on the mountains around Killington these last few days. Fall foliage is on its last hurrah, as all of the leaves on the trees are starting to come back to earth after a summer in the tree tops searching for the sun.

The coastal storm that is dropping rain and wet snow on southern New England looks like it will bypass the area. This is good news for those leaf peepers still exploring the area as they will get one last look at the remaining color dotting the countryside. The mountains around Killington are one light wind storm away from twig season. While it happens every year at this time, it is still an insult to the senses as the landscape changes from vibrant hues of red, yellow, and orange to a dull foreboding gray. Of course, the first general accumulating snow fall will reset the area back to resplendent beauty. We will just have to wait it out and hope Mother Nature does her thing by bringing the area back to pure white with some urgency.

The Killington Resort is continuing to make snow on the upper elevations of the resort in anticipation of the 2009/2010 ski season. The sound of snow guns echoing through the Roaring Brook Valley is common for this time of year. It is the sound of anticipation for the ski season to come. It will be here soon.....Let it snow!

Snowmaking in progress on Killington Peak 

Much has been made in the last several days in the blogosphere about Killington readopting the "Beast of the East" mantra as their new/old marketing slogan. While being generally well received by Killington afficianados, most question if the resort is readopting the slogan just for marketing, or if the resort is going all in and adopting the "Beast" slogan as an operating philosophy. For any readers who may not be familiar with the meaning of the "Beast of the East" there are various interpretations out there. The simplest is the "First to Open, Last to Close" philosophy which translates from marketing jargon into the longest ski season in the eastern United States.

"First to Open" has become a highly charged debate, subject to loose interpretation and wanton hype by ski resort marketing departments all across the continent. Some resorts will claim they are "open" by blowing snow on a short trail near a base lodge, maybe with a freestyle hit or two, and allowing skiers and riders to hike up to get to the snow. Others will rush to blow snow on a higher elevation trail and truck skiers and riders to it. (Killington in the bad old days used this strategy for several years.) Many will rush to open a trail with several inches of man made snow, knowing full well they will be open for several hours before it melts away and they have to close. It is all great fun, of course. It generates "buzz" for the snow sports industry. It gets people talking about their favorite and not so favorite resorts.

Killington has reinterpreted the "First to Open" slogan in recent years as meaning the "First to Stay Open with top to bottom Lift Serviced skiing". "Stay Open" and "Lift Serviced" are the operating principles here, which coincidently drives some of the debate. Under past regimes, Killington would "Open" and "Close" at will in the early season. As I mentioned earlier, they would also truck skiers up to and down from higher elevation trails to get the season going. Many dyed in the wool skiers and riders don't mind the open/close cycles or truck rides...they just want to be on the snow. From a business standpoint, however, it creates some very interesting tradeoffs. The Killington Resort clearly is pushing to have a consistent product available to a broad audience of customers with their "Stay Open" and "Lift Serviced" definition of "First to Open".

The possibility of being the "First to Open" with the ability to "Stay Open" and have "Lift Serviced" skiing and riding is not mutually exclusive. However, it takes a strong assist from Mother Nature and Mother does not always cooperate.

The Killington Resort is continuing to push forward to open for the season. Their stated goal is "Early November" which we have to take at face value. They are continuing to make snow on higher elevation trails, which is clearly visible in todays main picture. They are also moving forward with installing new fan guns at high traffic areas on the mountain.

Last weekend, I hiked up to Mouse Trap to see the progress they were making with a new gun installation. A week or so ago they installed a massive concrete footing at the junction of Mouse Trap and Great Northern to support a new fan gun. Concrete takes time to cure, so it was exposed to the elements.

Fan gun footing at Mouse Trap Click to enlarge.

This junction is in a very high traffic area. To open the resort (remember "First Open") this area is usually covered with man made snow to support "Top to Bottom" skiing.

With that in mind, I focused one of my cameras with a high optical zoom onto the area while I was out taking pictures this morning. If the resort is going to open any time soon, there was a big hole in the mountain that needed to be filled. From what I could tell, the resort has backfilled the fan gun base; something that they would need to do before anything else in the area. (Think mounting the fan gun and blowing snow.)

Fan gun footing at Mouse Trap now backfilled Click to enlarge.

The fan gun itself is sitting in the K1 parking lot waiting to be hauled up the mountain to be installed. When that will happen, only the resort knows. I am sure we will hear of it at the time. But it is one of the subtle signs that will be an indicator pointing to the resort opening for the winter.

.....let it snow!

Snow making visible on Rime from K1 Base Lodge 

Cold temperatures and snow flurries continued at Killington last night, signaling that the change in seasons is at hand. Fall colors on many of the trees in the area are starting to thin. We are entering what Mary and I affectionally call "Twig Season" here at Killington.

Even though there has been an almost constant snow flurry in the air, temperatures at lower elevations are not yet cold enough to support standing snow. This morning, cold surfaces around the inn were snow covered, but grassy surfaces and roadways were just wet.

The Killington cloud had lifted, at least temporarily, this morning to reveal snow making operations on Killington Peak. The Resort has reported that they began making snow on the upper trails of Killington Peak yesterday morning at 1:00 AM. With the lifting of the clouds this morning, snow making operations are clearly visible for all to see.

From what I could tell from looking at the mountain, snowmaking is confined to the Northridge area. There are no signs of snowmaking visible from the base areas on Great Northern on Bunny Buster. In years gone by, to create top to bottom skiing and riding, Great Northern and Bunny Buster saw significant snow making activities to get the resort open.

When Killington will open for skiing and riding is anyones guess. The cat will be out of the bag as soon as snowmaking operations are visible on lower elevations. If you have not started your snow sports conditioning routines yet, now would be a good time.......Let it snow!