ineedsnow Posted February 24, 2020 Share Posted February 24, 2020 This is where my skiing days started.. https://www.masslive.com/news/2020/02/holyoke-firefighters-battling-blaze-at-vacant-mount-tom-ski-lodge.html 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ginx snewx Posted February 24, 2020 Share Posted February 24, 2020 32 minutes ago, ineedsnow said: This is where my skiing days started.. https://www.masslive.com/news/2020/02/holyoke-firefighters-battling-blaze-at-vacant-mount-tom-ski-lodge.html Should have let it burn Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ineedsnow Posted February 24, 2020 Share Posted February 24, 2020 30 minutes ago, Ginx snewx said: Should have let it burn Looking at what has happened to it I agree.. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
amarshall Posted February 24, 2020 Share Posted February 24, 2020 12 hours ago, radarman said: Buttery goodness I was at Killington Saturday. Great conditions minus the crowds and the bitter wind. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
radarman Posted February 24, 2020 Share Posted February 24, 2020 2 hours ago, amarshall said: I was at Killington Saturday. Great conditions minus the crowds and the bitter wind. We skied Bear, the South Ridge, and even made a pleasant run down Great Eastern to the skyship base and did Valley Plunge for the first time ever. Sun was strong and crowds were basically nil. Snow on south faces softened up. Pretty much a winner. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ChasingFlakes Posted February 24, 2020 Share Posted February 24, 2020 Anyone been to Le Massif de Charlevoix? Looks like a lot of great sidecountry terrain and great views. Would like to check it out sometime. Only ski area in Quebec I've been to is Mont Tremblant and I was pretty young. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
snowgeek Posted February 25, 2020 Share Posted February 25, 2020 Anyone been to Le Massif de Charlevoix? Looks like a lot of great sidecountry terrain and great views. Would like to check it out sometime. Only ski area in Quebec I've been to is Mont Tremblant and I was pretty young. I’ve been eyeing that place for several years but haven’t made the trek. Looks awesome. I heard they had great tree skiing and a nice triple black lol. Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
amarshall Posted February 25, 2020 Share Posted February 25, 2020 8 hours ago, snowgeek said: I’ve been eyeing that place for several years but haven’t made the trek. Looks awesome. I heard they had great tree skiing and a nice triple black lol. Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk We skied Mt Orford in Quebec when we were kids. I remember two triple blacks but I just looked at their trail maps and they're gone now. I knew i wasn't making it up https://www.firsttracksonline.com/2000/03/05/mont-orford-a-rough-cut-gem/ 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sugarloaf1989 Posted February 26, 2020 Share Posted February 26, 2020 On 2/24/2020 at 6:52 AM, ineedsnow said: This is where my skiing days started.. https://www.masslive.com/news/2020/02/holyoke-firefighters-battling-blaze-at-vacant-mount-tom-ski-lodge.html I skied there in January of 1998, just before they closed. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bwt3650 Posted February 26, 2020 Share Posted February 26, 2020 Driving up to Stowe tomorrow for a few days...I know winds are going to roar in the morning..anybody have any thoughts on likelihood of upper lifts spinning at all tmrw? I know at jay, they would probably be shut all day but don’t know how Stowe gets effected and whether they would give it a go in the afternoon. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ChasingFlakes Posted February 27, 2020 Share Posted February 27, 2020 3 hours ago, bwt3650 said: Driving up to Stowe tomorrow for a few days...I know winds are going to roar in the morning..anybody have any thoughts on likelihood of upper lifts spinning at all tmrw? I know at jay, they would probably be shut all day but don’t know how Stowe gets effected and whether they would give it a go in the afternoon. The hike to the summit of jay takes 15-20 mins from either side. I prefer the upper lifts to be shut off on powder days. You can normally get up to the summit as quick or faster by taking a lift and hiking, as opposed to the tram. Not sure about Stowe. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GCWarrior Posted February 27, 2020 Share Posted February 27, 2020 5 hours ago, bwt3650 said: Driving up to Stowe tomorrow for a few days...I know winds are going to roar in the morning..anybody have any thoughts on likelihood of upper lifts spinning at all tmrw? I know at jay, they would probably be shut all day but don’t know how Stowe gets effected and whether they would give it a go in the afternoon. Winds look like they howl at elevation through Friday. Others may have better local insight but I’ve found that the four runner quad runs a lot of the time when other mountains have wind holds. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bwt3650 Posted February 28, 2020 Share Posted February 28, 2020 Was at hunter today for a few hours before heading up to Stowe for the weekend..it was bulletproof, un-skiable ice...some of the worst conditions I’ve seen this year. They had tons of guns blowing but wasn’t really helping yet. Must be killing them to blow so much so late in the season but they really have no choice..it was that bad. Stowe on the other hand should be awesome in the morning. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bwt3650 Posted February 29, 2020 Share Posted February 29, 2020 By far, best day of the year at Stowe. Lines were long in the morning but after lunch the four runner went on line and it was incredible out there. Literally, powder up to my knees on Starr. It is a great weekend to get out there in nne. The snow is that good right now. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sankaty Posted February 29, 2020 Share Posted February 29, 2020 Pico was fantastic today. Not as fluffy as Stowe appears to be, but soft, wind-packed snow virtually everywhere. Woods were fantastic. Bump trails were sublime with soft snow even in the deep troughs. Giant Killer, which always seems to be a mess, was lovely on the left side. I picked a perfect day to debut my new Elan Ripstick 106s. Love them! Managed 22 runs today and 35K vertical feet, which is the most I've had since I started keeping track. Giant Killer 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rimetree Posted February 29, 2020 Share Posted February 29, 2020 Jealous of what VT has seen the past few days. Leaving Crotched today. Conditions pretty bad after the rain Thursday but improved yesterday. Despite that we had some fun. Just getting up high for the views makes it worthwhile.... 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
amarshall Posted February 29, 2020 Share Posted February 29, 2020 Loaf was amazing today 18". They opened the snowfields. My brother has been here 30 times and it was his first time seeing it open. Biggest crowd I've seen there and king pine lift was down all day. Brackett was really packed but we hiked way around to almost burnt mountain. Sent from my SM-G975U using Tapatalk 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HoarfrostHubb Posted February 29, 2020 Share Posted February 29, 2020 I did the snowfields back around 1992. Pretty neat stuff Meanwhile down here in Mass, we tried Wachusett this afternoon. Three runs and we bailed. Awful ice. They could have run the guns since Thursday night (and were posting they would on social) but nope. Pure porcelain. So we headed out Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Angus Posted March 1, 2020 Share Posted March 1, 2020 I just checked the sugarloaf twitter account and they said King Pine was off-line due to maintenance. Again, I would never advocate compromising safety but that is aggravating! That's the new lift that replaced the lift that had the catastrophic failure a few years back. I skied Cannon today and the regulars said mountain ops had to put the place back together last night after the weather left trees and branches down all over the mountain. There was considerable boilerplate under the 3" that fell during the day. I skied Kinsman Glade which should not have been open IMO given the natural snow depth...dodging stumps and other obstacles the whole way down. Again, the regulars said they had lost a lot of snow over the week. I'm kind of ho-hum about the snowfields but I think the Brackett Basin thing is great - I was very much a doubter too until I skied there last April 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ChasingFlakes Posted March 1, 2020 Share Posted March 1, 2020 What does it take to open the damn slides at whiteface? I know that they're basically all ice so snow doesn't stick too well, I guess they just need a certain wind direction and snow consistency for it to fill in? I would have guessed they'd be open after 29". Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
amarshall Posted March 1, 2020 Share Posted March 1, 2020 The snowfields were a novelty. I absolutely destroyed my skis on the rocks. The locals all made lines at the edges around the trees. The dumbass (me) went right down the middle for the allure of deep untracked powder. Sent from my SM-G975U using Tapatalk Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bwt3650 Posted March 1, 2020 Share Posted March 1, 2020 10 hours ago, ChasingFlakes said: What does it take to open the damn slides at whiteface? I know that they're basically all ice so snow doesn't stick too well, I guess they just need a certain wind direction and snow consistency for it to fill in? I would have guessed they'd be open after 29". I noticed that too. Never been to whiteface, but the thought had crossed my mind to ski them this week and was surprised they were closed when I checked the report yesterday. I know when they open its only for like a day or two under perfect conditions, but thought maybe this would have done it...Maybe with the warmer winter the falls aren't completely frozen over..Anyone know the when the last time they were open? The go-pros I've seen of that terrain looks sick. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ChasingFlakes Posted March 2, 2020 Share Posted March 2, 2020 Gonna head to Jay or Smuggs in the morning. Havent been to smuggs since that one big 3 day event last January, and have been to Jay on 3 separate occasions since. However Jay may hold onto snow longer tomorrow, so I'm conflicted. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
snowgeek Posted March 2, 2020 Share Posted March 2, 2020 Gore was nice today. Super bluebird day. Nice soft bumps in the glades. Crystal clear view of the high peaks. . 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ChasingFlakes Posted March 2, 2020 Share Posted March 2, 2020 Smuggs was really nice in the morning before the temps rose and the rime and sleet started around 10am. It was still fun and floaty but a bit heavier and more difficult to maneuver in tight spots. Been rain/zr in Montgomery Center since I arrived. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GCWarrior Posted March 3, 2020 Share Posted March 3, 2020 Skied Snow Ridge Saturday. Could have gone anywhere really but I was looking for a different sort of adventure. Trip was well worth theI’m extra driving despite lack of vertical. 29” of glorious LES skis like an absolute dream. I skied probably close to 40 runs. I lost count after a while. Main lift services a lot of the hill and there is a lot of traversing at the bottom. Place skis much bigger than it’s stats. You can journey out far to skiers left into a big ravine. Sorta a mini mini version of the octopus garden at MRG. Cliffs and steep gullies. Snow pocket T bar is awesome. Lift only runs occasionally but offers some deep turns in untouched powder. There are a some fun trees with several mandatory airs off to far skiers right. As with anything at Snow Ridge you can just keep trAverse along the ridge and ski back to a lift at the bottom. Overall the place was really cool. The lifts are very dated and seem to be held together by duct tape. Place has a great vibe and is worth a trip if you get the chance. 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ChasingFlakes Posted March 4, 2020 Share Posted March 4, 2020 Went to Burke Mountain Tuesday. It was spring conditions, I wore a sweatshirt and was still hot. Real fun, some unique trails there I liked powerline the most. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ChasingFlakes Posted March 4, 2020 Share Posted March 4, 2020 I went to Burke yesterday, pics are at the end of the previous page. Today I opted to break out the snowshoes and snowboard to do some laps on Gilpin Mountain, which is adjacent to Jay Peak to the SE. It tops out at 3,015 and the base parking area sits around 1,850 ft. It was tough going through the rain crust. But I stuck to the N aspect on my second run and the W winds helped blow the 3-4 inches that had fallen into that zone. First run on Gilpin: 2,150-2,750ft Second run: 1,850ft to 3,015ft (Summit) Looking towards the dip. Bomb hole end of run 1 Run 2: I believe I am crossing the catamount trail here. Pines start to really thicken above 2800ft Looking E off the summit at 3,015ft. 4 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
J.Spin Posted March 5, 2020 Share Posted March 5, 2020 16 hours ago, ChasingFlakes said: Today I opted to break out the snowshoes and snowboard to do some laps on Gilpin Mountain, which is adjacent to Jay Peak to the SE. It tops out at 3,015 and the base parking area sits around 1,850 ft. It was tough going through the rain crust. But I stuck to the N aspect on my second run and the W winds helped blow the 3-4 inches that had fallen into that zone. Thanks for the update CF, it was great to get the detailed Gilpin Mountain BC report with images and maps. These trips can be a bit of a challenge and not as enjoyable under less than optimal snow conditions, but getting out for the exploration is still a huge chunk of the fun. Checking my reports, I guess my last trip to Gilpin was back in 2001, and we were actually using snowshoes as well back then because we didn’t yet have skins. Looking back at my trip report, I see we generally topped out at ~2,600’ where we were because the terrain seemed to be getting a bit flatter. Note that if you have multiple vehicles you can get a partial assist on laps by parking the 2nd vehicle lower on the pass, which is what we did on our visit. You can also hitch a ride if there’s enough activity, such as on weekends. That’s kind of a nice addition, but certainly not necessary. At some point I’d also like to visit Domey’s Dome, which is another peak there that is supposedly fun for backcountry touring. The access there isn’t quite as slick because it’s back a bit farther from Route 242, but it would be fun to check it out during a longer session. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ChasingFlakes Posted March 6, 2020 Share Posted March 6, 2020 On 3/5/2020 at 10:54 AM, J.Spin said: Thanks for the update CF, it was great to get the detailed Gilpin Mountain BC report with images and maps. These trips can be a bit of a challenge and not as enjoyable under less than optimal snow conditions, but getting out for the exploration is still a huge chunk of the fun. Checking my reports, I guess my last trip to Gilpin was back in 2001, and we were actually using snowshoes as well back then because we didn’t yet have skins. Looking back at my trip report, I see we generally topped out at ~2,600’ where we were because the terrain seemed to be getting a bit flatter. Note that if you have multiple vehicles you can get a partial assist on laps by parking the 2nd vehicle lower on the pass, which is what we did on our visit. You can also hitch a ride if there’s enough activity, such as on weekends. That’s kind of a nice addition, but certainly not necessary. At some point I’d also like to visit Domey’s Dome, which is another peak there that is supposedly fun for backcountry touring. The access there isn’t quite as slick because it’s back a bit farther from Route 242, but it would be fun to check it out during a longer session. It was great to get out there regardless of the conditions. I could definitely use some skins as I can see snowshoes being tough in deeper dry snow. That's a great write up of your trip, looks like it was a good day to check it out. And you're right there is a lot of potential for tours on that side of 242 but there is a pretty big drainage that runs along the road there so access looks less than ideal. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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