The 2022 - 2023 Ski Season Thread

[ineedsnow]

looks like Wachusetts last day is Saturday 

MOUNTAIN UPDATE

 

Happy Monday skiers and riders! We are closed today through Wednesday. We are reopening for 3 final days this Thursday Friday and Saturday!!

Bonus Days!
April 6th-8th
Thursday and Friday hours: 9am-4pm
Saturday hours: 7:30am-4pm

[Angus]

they have plenty of snow. I skinned up this AM and it is deep with plenty of ice!

[greenmtnwx]

Aside from K-Mart looks like things winding down next two weeks. I know the last month has made up a lot of ground but to be honest all in all I would rate this ski season pretty poor. Very slow start, terrible middle and a strong third quarter followed by not so great finish. Mostly though, it lacked the cold, the number of chances and the overall ski vibe to me. The lack of any winter in the population centers I feel hurts the overall ski vibe too. A really, really good month long stretch saved it from being a disaster, but was not a great year. One other factor often overlooked with ski conditions is the effect of rain, thaw/freeze issues even on top of a massive dump. For example, the 50” of snow we had in a couple of weeks skied as poorly as that kind of base can. Lots of glaze after and untimely thaw/freeze. 
 

[powderfreak]

The situation and year that has happened in the western US makes me happy because it shows the "big year" is certainly possible.  The record season.

This season ~220" of snow has fallen at 3,000ft.  In 2016-17 it was a high-water mark of 375".

This season out west has made it seem possible that a 400+ or even 500+ year could exist back in the inter-mountain East.  2000-01 was like 425" I think for the resort.  These type of incredible records from patterns sustained for months... it keeps the dream alive.

What's happened out west is right there with 2015 Boston area snowfall.

[STILL N OF PIKE]

11 hours ago, powderfreak said:

The situation and year that has happened in the western US makes me happy because it shows the "big year" is certainly possible.  The record season.

This season ~220" of snow has fallen at 3,000ft.  In 2016-17 it was a high-water mark of 375".

This season out west has made it seem possible that a 400+ or even 500+ year could exist back in the inter-mountain East.  2000-01 was like 425" I think for the resort.  These type of incredible records from patterns sustained for months... it keeps the dream alive.

What's happened out west is right there with 2015 Boston area snowfall.

Given the amount of snow needed to (400”+ ) break a record a place in N greens would probably need to go close to wire to wire 

What is the highest monthly total at the snow boards , in your records 

[drstuess]

The situation and year that has happened in the western US makes me happy because it shows the "big year" is certainly possible.  The record season.
This season ~220" of snow has fallen at 3,000ft.  In 2016-17 it was a high-water mark of 375".
This season out west has made it seem possible that a 400+ or even 500+ year could exist back in the inter-mountain East.  2000-01 was like 425" I think for the resort.  These type of incredible records from patterns sustained for months... it keeps the dream alive.
What's happened out west is right there with 2015 Boston area snowfall.

Crazy out there. Friend is a troller at Snowbird, said 3 feet last 24 and dumping, another 2 ft projected. Season has been constant control work. They may have a shot at 1000"? Crazy to think about as still ~200" away, but for this season the century marks come easy...

Sent from my SM-S901U using Tapatalk

[MRVexpat]

The benefit of having your dad retire is you now have a private amateur ski photographer at your service. Got up to the Loaf this weekend! Still a bunch of snow up there. Sunday had decent conditions despite the mixed weather event/re-freeze. Just got to zoom around the mountain. Place is unlike anywhere in the east. 

[tamarack]

14 hours ago, powderfreak said:

The situation and year that has happened in the western US makes me happy because it shows the "big year" is certainly possible.  The record season.

This season ~220" of snow has fallen at 3,000ft.  In 2016-17 it was a high-water mark of 375".

This season out west has made it seem possible that a 400+ or even 500+ year could exist back in the inter-mountain East.  2000-01 was like 425" I think for the resort.  These type of incredible records from patterns sustained for months... it keeps the dream alive.

What's happened out west is right there with 2015 Boston area snowfall.

NNE had its own "big month" at Pinkham Notch, as the 81" set a new March record.  The season total of 201.9" is 5th greatest and another 13" will put 22-23 into 3rd.  (Top 2 are out of reach, 285" in 57-58 and 323" in 68-69.)

[STILL N OF PIKE]

4 hours ago, tamarack said:

NNE had its own "big month" at Pinkham Notch, as the 81" set a new March record.  The season total of 201.9" is 5th greatest and another 13" will put 22-23 into 3rd.  (Top 2 are out of reach, 285" in 57-58 and 323" in 68-69.)

Ya , they crushed it 

[HoarfrostHubb]

22 hours ago, Angus said:

they have plenty of snow. I skinned up this AM and it is deep with plenty of ice!

I know per their lease they need to shut it down prior to April 15 so they can start to clear the road.  Plus no one is there so it is a money loser.  
 

I almost wonder if they could have done something similar to the May 2015 stunt when they ran the triple and one trail

[powderfreak]

Good grief.

Alta, Utah.

 

[SJonesWX]

1 hour ago, powderfreak said:

Good grief.

Alta, Utah.

 

20 FOOT base depth. some years we are lucky to have a 20" base depth around these parts.

[STILL N OF PIKE]

1 hour ago, SJonesWX said:

20 FOOT base depth. some years we are lucky to have a 20" base depth around these parts.

Mammoth reporting 264” base . Wild West 

[LaGrangewx]

This was my first season living in Colorado and the West has definitely had an awesome year. However, the front range ski areas of Colorado have missed out on the historic snows that other areas have received. Most are hovering around average to maybe slightly above while the central and southern resorts and also Steamboat are well above average. A-Basin is skiing great right now but for example they’re at around 225” season total meanwhile Alta has a 250” base. Utah and California have been the bullseye for the record totals. The last season out west that compares was 2010-2011 and I think that year was actually even better for a wider portion of the west outside of just Utah and the Sierra

[powderfreak]

This shit is bonkers out there. Man, the operations excitement cannot be matched.

Mid-day a slide breaks loose, crosses the highway and onto open beginner terrain at Snowbird.  Employees then are doing a probe line, with Avalanche dogs searching for any burials.

Immediate 1pm Interlodge (Marshal Law) was called.  Everyone inside immediately.

[ORH_wxman]

8 minutes ago, powderfreak said:

This shit is bonkers out there. Man, the operations excitement cannot be matched.

Mid-day a slide breaks loose, crosses the highway and onto open beginner terrain at Snowbird.  Employees then are doing a probe line, with Avalanche dogs searching for any burials.

Immediate 1pm Interlodge (Marshal Law) was called.  Everyone inside immediately.

That’s the one big negative with such an epic snow season out west…you get the avalanche risk ramping up almost exponentially. Been a lot of that type of stuff reported recently. 
 

It’ll be funny though seeing a lot of places skiing into July this year though. Baker and maybe a few places in the Sierras like Mammoth or Alpine could probably do August if they wanted to. Esp if they get some late spring snows to reinforce. (Which seems to happen a lot in epic seasons)

[greenmtnwx]

Jackson Hole just phenomenal. Crazy to think they close Sunday with just an epic amount of coverage. 

[bwt3650]

Aside from K-Mart looks like things winding down next two weeks. I know the last month has made up a lot of ground but to be honest all in all I would rate this ski season pretty poor. Very slow start, terrible middle and a strong third quarter followed by not so great finish. Mostly though, it lacked the cold, the number of chances and the overall ski vibe to me. The lack of any winter in the population centers I feel hurts the overall ski vibe too. A really, really good month long stretch saved it from being a disaster, but was not a great year. One other factor often overlooked with ski conditions is the effect of rain, thaw/freeze issues even on top of a massive dump. For example, the 50” of snow we had in a couple of weeks skied as poorly as that kind of base can. Lots of glaze after and untimely thaw/freeze. 
 

Jay will go to May, if not a few weekends deep on Jet and Haynes. While I agree that it was as bad a start as you can get, Feb and March were good up here. Plenty of pow days and as deep a base as there has been in the last several years currently. Not epic, not memorable, but pretty decent. The base will take a major hit later this week, but the skiing sun-weds looks phenomenal. We had fewer thaw/freezes than the last 3 winters. The population center ski season is Christmas through Presidents’ Day and those once or twice a year skiers has a crap year…but overall, I would rate it better than you did up here.


.

[powderfreak]

6 hours ago, bwt3650 said:

Jay will go to May, if not a few weekends deep on Jet and Haynes. While I agree that it was as bad a start as you can get, Feb and March were good up here. Plenty of pow days and as deep a base as there has been in the last several years currently. Not epic, not memorable, but pretty decent. The base will take a major hit later this week, but the skiing sun-weds looks phenomenal. We had fewer thaw/freezes than the last 3 winters. The population center ski season is Christmas through Presidents’ Day and those once or twice a year skiers has a crap year…but overall, I would rate it better than you did up here.
.

Agreed, we did have some good storms in each month beginning in November. December had a real fun run prior to the holidays too.  Then the late season snows.

It wasn’t a great year but we’ve seen much worse overall.  I think the previous two winters were worse.

We definitely may have avoided and recovered from rain faster up here… I remember several events that we pulled a rabbit out of a hat with changing over to 3-8” snows after rain.  That stuff goes a long way in a ski season to keeping conditions ok.

The mid-season time of mid-Jan to mid-Feb was bleak but it recovered with a few solid events.  Stake got up to a respectable 90”, still 75” today.

The one thing I find interesting about @greenmtnwx’s post is the lack of winter in the population centers.  I have never ever considered that in a winter vibe type way.  I’m curious as to how that plays into it?  If anything it’s worse because it leads to more crowds.  Ski town vibes don’t really change at all in my experience whether it snows in NYC or not.  If anything it makes people up north antsy because they want to ski that snow and it’s going to waste in I-95 corridor.

Or is it if one lives down there and spends a lot of time there…  it’s hard to get in the mood? Maybe that’s what he means. Winter at home midweek is non-existent so it detracts from the overall winter in general from a personal perspective? 

 

[mcglups]

Excellent day of skiing today at Wildcat, from the top the Atlantic Ocean was clearly visible, and the crowds were minor/non-existent and the snow softened up and was very enjoyable, just the lowest sections were getting slow/slush towards days end. I've never skied this time of year, and look forward to four more days to round out the season. I've never skied this much in a single season, I think it will be 37 days! Now the question is whether this builds enough momentum to purchase new skis now, or will I shift into the next sport, we shall see. Hope everyone who is still in the snow mode got some.

[GCWarrior]

Great last couple days at Magic and Berkshire East.  Both skied really well and softened nicely in the afternoon.

Magic

 

Beast

[bwt3650]

An idea of what the base looks like on lower mountain snow making trails. Last foot is solid ice from December. Woods still very much in play today and though the naturals are showing signs of cracking, there is still a lot of snow on this mountain. The real melt starts Thursday, so need to get through this week to see how deep into May we go and what trails besides jet will last.


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[mcglups]

Wildcat Spring Soup was fun yesterday but I definitely need to proper wax for my skis. Just about very person I talked to on Friday (season pass holders, folks who skied 50, 88, 101, 115 times this year) all had spring wax. Sounds like I need to make an micro investment in wax equipment!

[STILL N OF PIKE]

1 hour ago, mcglups said:

Wildcat Spring Soup was fun yesterday but I definitely need to proper wax for my skis. Just about very person I talked to on Friday (season pass holders, folks who skied 50, 88, 101, 115 times this year) all had spring wax. Sounds like I need to make an micro investment in wax equipment!

Big puddles at the base near the lift lines ?

[NW_of_GYX]

Trees still skiing great at loaf. 
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[mcglups]

9 hours ago, STILL N OF PIKE said:

Big puddles at the base near the lift lines ?

Mostly at the bottom of each trail, at the bottom of catapult it was like water skiing! Friday had more flow on the upper mountain, but today it was melting throughout. Sunday is the final day for Wildcat, and that'll be 40 days for my season, well worth $525. Itching to get into the next season events on my bike and into the ocean, but very grateful for how this winter turned out.

 

 

[powderfreak]

This is absolutely insane.  I cannot believe he survived this in Tuckerman’s Ravine.

https://www.instagram.com/reel/CrEqc6dLNWM/?igshid=YmMyMTA2M2Y=

[Angus]

That is horrible to watch - there has been at least one instance in the last 10years of the body of the skier/boarder emerging 4-5weeks later after falling into a crevasse. 

Wrapped it up yesterday with a 1/2 day plus at SLoaf. Started the morning skinning up to the summit where I met another skinner who had been working their way across NNE - Stowe Thursday, Wildcat Friday and SLoaf Saturday - said SLoaf by far had most snow. Talking to ski patrol on skin up, they estimated they had lost at least 2 feet on a man-made trail we were on over last two days. The pond skin - something I don't pay attention too but had a friend participating yesterday- was oversubscribed - they added 100 spots - was a party, had a huge crowd and looked like everyone was having a great time! 

As @NW_of_GYXsaid, everything was still open - btw, where is that picture you posted taken? - after my skin up in the AM and skiing bumps for two continuous days - may legs were shot and I avoided the steep bumpy stuff yesterday but the front side snowfields were still great.

Weird winter - 15 days of lifted served NE skiing with everyday being really good - least good condition wise was probably last weekend at Cannon with the summit never unlocking. 6 days in Arlberg (Lech/St. Anton) at Xmas with subprime conditions was nevertheless a wonderful experience, and a dozen plus mornings at WaWa skinning. what for me was so disappointing was my lack of nordic skiing - normally 40+ days - I probably got a dozen. It was so bad that when I finally did purchase my Weston ski track pass, the conditions were terrible, it was frankly so depressing I bagged on it after a few weeks! Sadly, only one day at Great Brook which mustered less than a full week being open. 

I'm bringing my skis to the tuner this week just so I am not enticed to get 'get one more day' time to move on! 

[HoarfrostHubb]

Daughter was doing a service project at Wachusett Mountain State Park so I stopped by the ski area for a minute.  Some trails still looked skiable despite the lack of grooming and extreme warmth.   Not bad

 

[NW_of_GYX]

9 hours ago, Angus said:

As @NW_of_GYXsaid, everything was still open - btw, where is that picture you posted taken? 

Stump shot glade. Love all that steep terrain around gondi line etc. Another fantastic day at loaf. Low clouds never made it up to the valley although you could see them just to the south. Today might have been warmer and calmer than yesterday. Just an unreal weekend up there!