Hi all;
Was anybody on the hill this past weekend? If so, how bad was it? Enough base to last until the weather gets better?

I'm patiently, (not really patiently), waiting for true spring skiing to arrive. I saw a bit of Saturday's snowboard event from Stratton on TV yesterday and it looked absolutely bulletproof! All the trees were encased in ice and the surfaces were like a terrazo floor.

I've been there on Friday and found the mountain in a good condition, mostly Loose Granular snow with rare frozen spots.

In addition to wind damage there was a 1/4" thick ice on ungroomed trails / woods, with snow beneath it.

My family and I were there on Friday with plans to ski Friday and Saturday. After about 4 hours of skiing on Friday, we decided to pack it in and head home. This was our 20th ski day of the year and by far the worst conditions. There is more then enough base to ski into April but with the cold weather on Friday, the mountain was bullet proof. Just not a lot of fun, IMO. We will return when things start to warm up for, hopefully, a long spring season. Eric

midwestblues wrote:

... the mountain was bullet proof.

On Good Friday, the only part I found to be bulletproof was the usual suspect: area in front of Saddle Lodge.

But then, I was skiing mostly off High Peaks and Straightbrook lifts - I had a good skiing on those trails.

Upper Stielhang and Hulabaloo in combination with sunny and serene High Peaks chairlift were choices of the day.

We have plenty of base to last all of the way through April, and into May, and probably June with Rumor and the Dark Side

Denison wrote:

midwestblues wrote: ... the mountain was bullet proof. On Good Friday, the only part I found to be bulletproof was the usual suspect: area in front of Saddle Lodge. But then, I was skiing mostly off High Peaks and Straightbrook lifts - I had a good skiing on those trails. Upper Stielhang and Hulabaloo in combination with sunny and serene High Peaks chairlift were choices of the day.

I agree completely. I was surprised how much nicer the upper Mt. was compared to the lower mt. as far as the wind was concerned.

Over all it was hard and fast, but very edgeable except for a few ice patches.

Sunday was quite nice as well. Almost the same conditions, just no wind.

Cover? Plenty of cover.

At this point it looks like it could be an extended spring season, if they stay open. Other wise we'll just have to hike!

Denison wrote:

I've been there on Friday and found the mountain in a good condition, mostly Loose Granular snow with rare frozen spots. In addition to wind damage there was a 1/4" thick ice on ungroomed trails / woods, with snow beneath it.

nothing about that report sounds good to me

hard and fast sounds good to me

skimore wrote:

Denison wrote: I've been there on Friday and found the mountain in a good condition, mostly Loose Granular snow with rare frozen spots. In addition to wind damage there was a 1/4" thick ice on ungroomed trails / woods, with snow beneath it. nothing about that report sounds good to me

Remember that when it's 85 deg, 90% humidity and the black flies are eating the crap out of you this summer!

Adk Keith wrote:

skimore wrote: Denison wrote: I've been there on Friday and found the mountain in a good condition, mostly Loose Granular snow with rare frozen spots. In addition to wind damage there was a 1/4" thick ice on ungroomed trails / woods, with snow beneath it. nothing about that report sounds good to me Remember that when it's 85 deg, 90% humidity and the black flies are eating the crap out of you this summer!

I'd rather have a fishing pole in my hand than be skiing on ice

Sunday was a real bluebird day. Lots of base. The snow will last well beyond closing. They'll close with more snow than we've seen in years. The base is just so dense that it will survive a lot of warm weather and rain. Watch for them to change to a weekend only operation after March 30.

I skied with the family Sat, Sun and Wed and thought the mountain was in good shape. I don't like loose granular, but it really wasn't bad, except for a few spots that were wind swept. On the slopes the "snow" seemed to stay spread out enough so you could always get an edge. Summit was very nice Wednesday morning with 2 inches of snow mixed with the granular.