PhineasC Posted February 4, 2022 Share Posted February 4, 2022 Well, Wildcat must be sinking its claws in to me because I skied there today even though it was raining and the natural trails were completely bare in some spots. LOL not my usually preferred conditions for sure. But it was soft, so little ice. Kinda neat this afternoon. It would be drizzle at the base, then about halfway up you'd hit a cloud layer where it felt like being pelted with sleet, and then above that it opened up into dry fluffy snow. Pretty cool, actually. Felt like ascending into the heavens. Also weird to have the upper half of the mountain be firm and fast and the bottom half sticky spring snow. Made things interesting at least. I don't think I have seen such a drastic delta in conditions between base and summit on any days I have been skiing. Maybe out west some day a long while ago and I forgot about it. Something about the mountain is clicking with me and two of my kids this season. The wife and the other two kids are pretty meh about it. It's a good place for us to go when the wife wants to take a day off. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HIPPYVALLEY Posted February 4, 2022 Share Posted February 4, 2022 Anyone know why Stratton has suspended lift ticket sales for tomorrow? Too much ice? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
radarman Posted February 4, 2022 Share Posted February 4, 2022 Hope folks got to enjoy that one. Great storm for the C and N Greens. Skinned up Bear early and caught OL nearly untouched and later Devils Fiddle in primo shape. Woods game on. 5 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PowderBeard Posted February 5, 2022 Share Posted February 5, 2022 18 hours ago, HIPPYVALLEY said: Anyone know why Stratton has suspended lift ticket sales for tomorrow? Too much ice? Not sure but lots of places are already done selling for the weekend. MRG posted they were sold out of tickets for Sat and Sunday last night and asked people to carpool because of parking issues. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HIPPYVALLEY Posted February 5, 2022 Share Posted February 5, 2022 1 minute ago, PowderBeard said: Not sure but lots of places are already done selling for the weekend. MRG posted they were sold out of tickets for Sat and Sunday last night and asked people to carpool because of parking issues. Understandable for places Killington north I think Stratton and Mount Snow might’ve had massive icing issues yesterday. I’m just guessing but a friend of mine up in Westminster Vermont said there was half inch of ice at her place at about 1000 feet. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HIPPYVALLEY Posted February 5, 2022 Share Posted February 5, 2022 My neighbor skied Pico yesterday and this morning and said Conditions were best of the year. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bch2014 Posted February 5, 2022 Share Posted February 5, 2022 One of the coldest ski days of my life atop the flyer at Jay. Wind is ripping out of the north. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bwt3650 Posted February 5, 2022 Share Posted February 5, 2022 2 hours ago, bch2014 said: One of the coldest ski days of my life atop the flyer at Jay. Wind is ripping out of the north. the magic of tower 16…But I bet andre’s and north glade are waist deep. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ginx snewx Posted February 5, 2022 Share Posted February 5, 2022 On 2/3/2022 at 7:33 PM, PhineasC said: Well, Wildcat must be sinking its claws in to me because I skied there today even though it was raining and the natural trails were completely bare in some spots. LOL not my usually preferred conditions for sure. But it was soft, so little ice. Kinda neat this afternoon. It would be drizzle at the base, then about halfway up you'd hit a cloud layer where it felt like being pelted with sleet, and then above that it opened up into dry fluffy snow. Pretty cool, actually. Felt like ascending into the heavens. Also weird to have the upper half of the mountain be firm and fast and the bottom half sticky spring snow. Made things interesting at least. I don't think I have seen such a drastic delta in conditions between base and summit on any days I have been skiing. Maybe out west some day a long while ago and I forgot about it. Something about the mountain is clicking with me and two of my kids this season. The wife and the other two kids are pretty meh about it. It's a good place for us to go when the wife wants to take a day off. Think I mentioned when you first moved up there you would grow to love Wildcat. Pretty quintessential New England trails. We called it our Medium SR with Berkshire East being the Baby Sr. Trails are similar in a lot of ways. Once you know SR it really grows on you as well and as someone who loves long groomers SR is the best at it. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lava Rock Posted February 5, 2022 Share Posted February 5, 2022 Good day at Saddleback. Cold and windy. Been 10yrs since we skiied there. Nice improvements and more to comeSent from my SM-G981U1 using Tapatalk 4 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ginx snewx Posted February 5, 2022 Share Posted February 5, 2022 5 minutes ago, Lava Rock said: Good day at Saddleback. Cold and windy. Been 10yrs since we skiied there. Nice improvements and more to come Sent from my SM-G981U1 using Tapatalk Loved that place, heard it really rocks now Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bch2014 Posted February 6, 2022 Share Posted February 6, 2022 6 hours ago, bwt3650 said: the magic of tower 16…But I bet andre’s and north glade are waist deep. Trend in almost all the glades was super scraped to rock at the top, with good snow as the crowds dispersed lower down in the glades. Definitely better than most things I’ve skied in the east this season though. Trails that skied well were UN, Kitzhubel, and Northwest Passage. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PhineasC Posted February 6, 2022 Share Posted February 6, 2022 7 minutes ago, bch2014 said: Trend in almost all the glades was super scraped to rock at the top, with good snow as the crowds dispersed lower down in the glades. Definitely better than most things I’ve skied in the east this season though. Trails that skied well were UN, Kitzhubel, and Northwest Passage. I guess the 157” Jay has reported this season all blew away already. Very convenient! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bwt3650 Posted February 6, 2022 Share Posted February 6, 2022 1 hour ago, PhineasC said: I guess the 157” Jay has reported this season all blew away already. Very convenient! Weird how it all landed in Randolph. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cold Miser Posted February 6, 2022 Share Posted February 6, 2022 18 hours ago, Ginx snewx said: Think I mentioned when you first moved up there you would grow to love Wildcat. Pretty quintessential New England trails. We called it our Medium SR with Berkshire East being the Baby Sr. Trails are similar in a lot of ways. Once you know SR it really grows on you as well and as someone who loves long groomers SR is the best at it. Was having this discussion the other day with a guy I work with. He is a very good skiier, loves ripping down the mountain fast, not a mogul guy, just quick on the diamonds. The whole thing turned into, "you could never keep up with me, blah, blah". He was talking to a group of us. I told him that I haven't skiid in like 15 years, but when I was going all the time, it was the long, access road type trails that I liked. Nothing more satisfying than taking your time, enjoying the ride down a long trail. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PhineasC Posted February 6, 2022 Share Posted February 6, 2022 2 minutes ago, Cold Miser said: Was having this discussion the other day with a guy I work with. He is a very good skiier, loves ripping down the mountain fast, not a mogul guy, just quick on the diamonds. The whole thing turned into, "you could never keep up with me, blah, blah". He was talking to a group of us. I told him that I haven't skiid in like 15 years, but when I was going all the time, it was the long, access road type trails that I liked. Nothing more satisfying than taking your time, enjoying the ride down a long trail. I like to mix it up, but I do prefer firm and fast groomers to bump runs. I find that in NH at least the days when the bumps are softer and fun are far less frequent than the days when they are just frozen humps with ice lanes in between. Not so fun IMO. You need to time it right based on the weather and skier traffic Some of these resorts try to hide bad grooming practices and lack of snowfall/snowmaking by just leaving a trail alone and letting it go “natural” (AKA to shit). You kinda need snow for that to work… 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cold Miser Posted February 6, 2022 Share Posted February 6, 2022 1 minute ago, PhineasC said: I like to mix it up, but I do prefer firm and fast groomers to bump runs. I find that in NH at least the days when the bumps are softer and fun are far less frequent than the days when they are just frozen humps with ice lanes in between. Not so fun IMO. You need to time it right based on the weather and skier traffic Some of these resorts try to hide bad grooming practices and lack of snowfall/snowmaking by just leaving a trail alone and letting it go “natural” (AKA to shit). You kinda need snow for that to work… Awful. I was never a bump guy. I get the appeal, but man, I just think of the futre of people's knees. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bwt3650 Posted February 6, 2022 Share Posted February 6, 2022 Active gfs run…be nice if we could keep it all snow. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PhineasC Posted February 6, 2022 Share Posted February 6, 2022 35 minutes ago, bwt3650 said: Active gfs run…be nice if we could keep it all snow. Some signs a northern stream NW flow pattern might set up. That’s one thing kinda missing so far this season. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bwt3650 Posted February 6, 2022 Share Posted February 6, 2022 7 minutes ago, PhineasC said: Some signs a northern stream NW flow pattern might set up. That’s one thing kinda missing so far this season. Makes sense…that’s what that bread and butter look is I guess. Would be a great look up here. You do well with that too, right? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Boston Bulldog Posted February 6, 2022 Share Posted February 6, 2022 The goods are certainly still out there for those willing to look. Mad River was knee deep just outside of the boundary yesterday. Certainly some caution is still required with the thin base under the new snow, but tons of fun lines are back in play 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PhineasC Posted February 6, 2022 Share Posted February 6, 2022 2 hours ago, bwt3650 said: Makes sense…that’s what that bread and butter look is I guess. Would be a great look up here. You do well with that too, right? Yeah, not as well as J. Spin and gang but upper tier for NH. If they get 4”, I get 2.5 or 3 kinda deal. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
amarshall Posted February 7, 2022 Share Posted February 7, 2022 18 hours ago, Boston Bulldog said: The goods are certainly still out there for those willing to look. Mad River was knee deep just outside of the boundary yesterday. Certainly some caution is still required with the thin base under the new snow, but tons of fun lines are back in play I was at Sugarbush. Lot of snow snakes still. Fun day had by all. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MRVexpat Posted February 7, 2022 Share Posted February 7, 2022 Was in PFs hood (briefly) on Sat as we got up to the nose via the Teardrop trail on the west side of Mansfield. 0 degree temps and 50+ mph gusts made our stay on the summit a brief one but I managed to break out the phone for a quick picture. The tree skiing on the way down was dreamy! Still some schwack here and there but the vast majority of woods skiing in the Central and Northern Greens is "in" right now. The next day at Sugarbush brought more powder skiing and slightly warmer temps. Had to dig a bit deeper at my old haunts to find freshies after the Sat assault but the old stashes delivered! 6 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PowderBeard Posted February 7, 2022 Share Posted February 7, 2022 On 2/6/2022 at 10:19 AM, Cold Miser said: I was never a bump guy. I get the appeal, but man, I just think of the futre of people's knees. If a skier is tired or not going into the bump and absorbing it with their legs and core then knee injuries and soreness is an issue. I did about 8 solid bump runs yesterday and don't notice my knees at all but it feels like I did a few hundred sit-ups and squats today lol. The knee injury concerns in my head are more about the DIN setting. It's a balancing act between pre-releasing or saving a knee. I keep the DIN on my bump/hard pack skis relatively low (10) and if I release it is because I have lost some control and am hot-dogging it, rather just release and save my knees. I have my DIN higher on my powder skis because I'd rather not release out of them because chances are that is a recipe for a head/neck injury and I would rather a knee injury. Would love to hear other views on this. Hit Magic yesterday and the bumps and some of the woods (e.g., east side stuff) were fun and could get a good edge in. Did a few laps with the Freeride Team on Broomstick - Black Line and lower sections of Red Line. Pretty amazing to watch 6-10 year-olds just flying through bumps and throwing 360s off rocks and ledges. Got to love Magic! This is a pic Kinderspeil my buddy took, "a beginner trail." Pretty good spacing so you could really zip them. 6 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GCWarrior Posted February 8, 2022 Share Posted February 8, 2022 Finally able to post. Pico was pretty amazing Friday! Fresh tracks all day. Upper Pike was great first run, untouched powder. The glades and off map stuff were what really put the day over the top. Top day this season for me by far! Ski on all day and fresh tracks every run can’t really beat that! 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
powderfreak Posted February 9, 2022 Share Posted February 9, 2022 Since I was able to get out of my usual neighborhood, I'll post some thoughts on Waterville Valley as a first trip. Had a great day of skiing and I liked the Waterville set up. This is what is considered a "business trip" in this line of work but headed out to chat with some some of our normal ski reps and meet some new ones in a large industry demo-day. Tried about 10-12 different skis from different brands throughout the day, but the only one I didn't want to give up was the next generation Atomic "Bent" Chetler 10. Skied 4 runs on that ski alone and may take the brand rep up on a pair. It's 100 underfoot but skis like 90 and the shovel/tip design really excelled in today's conditions (90-100 underfoot is my personal sweet spot for a daily driver eastern skiing mix of groomers/glades/ungroomed). That Bent Chetler got my seal of approval for the day out of the flagship skis from brands like Salomon, Head, Dynastar, Rossi, K2, Black Crows, etc. Waterville Valley reported 1-2" of new snow but that may have been at the base. I love a good conservative snow measurement; it's one of my favorite things. In the morning before things warmed up a bit, I'd say a dense creamy 4" was more accurate up on the hill. We call these conditions "visiting the cream cheese factory." Very surfy and great for testing wider width skis. Attachment limits mean another post is needed.... 2 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
powderfreak Posted February 9, 2022 Share Posted February 9, 2022 Conditions at Waterville got heavier later in the day once the precipitation tapered off and the sun even came out. Temps warmed up above freezing and the snow fell out of the trees. Again though, great conditions for testing all-mountain skis and having interesting conditions for brands to showcase their boards made for eastern/western conditions made for a great day. Some lower angle but wide-open glades were fun in the wet snow...surfy. Temps were 33-35F at this point as the snow fell/dripped out of the trees. Basically a 1,600 vertical foot high speed quad was the only lift we rode... and a ski area really wins my heart with 1500-2000ft laps off a high-speed lift. That's a huge plus in terms of maximizing ski time and not sitting on a lift. For whatever reason, I love longer vertical foot gains in short periods of time. Lapping that is fun regardless of terrain... but there were a few good steep rollovers in there. Lower Bobby's Run was something we did several times. Tracked out crud and push piles, mixed with moguls is fantastic ski test terrain. I know @MarkO has talked about a smaller local slope nearby there as he has a cabin in the area... I'd love to know if that's what we saw across the valley. In the photo above there's that small three trail ski area across the valley. It made me think that's the one Mark talks about. Fun to see a different neighborhood. Overall, fun day, diverse conditions, and WV has some vertical that is lap-able from a single base area (seems good for kids, can't get lost, end up at bottom regardless) on a high speed quad. There are some ancillary lifts that would be good on crowded days, along with another high speed servicing learning terrain in the middle of the mountain. Aesthetically pleasing layout for the overall size of the hill; laid out well. 4 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bch2014 Posted February 9, 2022 Share Posted February 9, 2022 31 minutes ago, powderfreak said: Conditions at Waterville got heavier later in the day once the precipitation tapered off and the sun even came out. Temps warmed up above freezing and the snow fell out of the trees. Again though, great conditions for testing all-mountain skis and having interesting conditions for brands to showcase their boards made for eastern/western conditions made for a great day. Some lower angle but wide-open glades were fun in the wet snow...surfy. Temps were 33-35F at this point as the snow fell/dripped out of the trees. Basically a 1,600 vertical foot high speed quad was the only lift we rode... and a ski area really wins my heart with 1500-2000ft laps off a high-speed lift. That's a huge plus in terms of maximizing ski time and not sitting on a lift. For whatever reason, I love longer vertical foot gains in short periods of time. Lapping that is fun regardless of terrain... but there were a few good steep rollovers in there. Lower Bobby's Run was something we did several times. Tracked out crud and push piles, mixed with moguls is fantastic ski test terrain. I know @MarkO has talked about a smaller local slope nearby there as he has a cabin in the area... I'd love to know if that's what we saw across the valley. In the photo above there's that small three trail ski area across the valley. It made me think that's the one Mark talks about. Fun to see a different neighborhood. Overall, fun day, diverse conditions, and WV has some vertical that is lap-able from a single base area (seems good for kids, can't get lost, end up at bottom regardless) on a high speed quad. There are some ancillary lifts that would be good on crowded days, along with another high speed servicing learning terrain in the middle of the mountain. Aesthetically pleasing layout for the overall size of the hill; laid out well. The mountain in the background of your photo is Snows Mountain. https://www.waterville.com/press-releases/2017/2/18/reopening-snows-mountain-one-of-new-hampshires-ski-areas MarkO’s ski area is Campton Mountain, which is closer to the exit 28 on 93 https://www.camptonmountain.com 1 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
powderfreak Posted February 9, 2022 Share Posted February 9, 2022 5 minutes ago, bch2014 said: The mountain in the background of your photo is Snows Mountain. https://www.waterville.com/press-releases/2017/2/18/reopening-snows-mountain-one-of-new-hampshires-ski-areas MarkO’s ski area is Campton Mountain, which is closer to the exit 28 on 93 https://www.camptonmountain.com Awesome thanks! Love the attempt at keeping it going. It stands out as a small local hill from the larger ski area. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Create an account or sign in to comment
You need to be a member in order to leave a comment
Create an account
Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!
Register a new accountSign in
Already have an account? Sign in here.
Sign In Now