mcglups

light snow flakes in Newport at 809 a.m. at 7 a.m. there was a tiny dusting on a part of my car, so something in the micro range happened beforehand

They should be getting some! Heading their for Friday

It is very interesting on the mind to watch this storm evolve! I live in Newport RI and heading to Sugarloaf ME for the week, but strangely enough it looks like both locations might actually end up with a decent snow from this storm. I don't think they have enough snow to ski the summit, but I hope to get back up there in late February or early March. I think VT has better snow right now, but the travel rules with COVID are easier for Maine, got my results today and safe to travel, so gearing up now!

Enjoyed a week at Sugarloaf, looking forward to returning when the entire mountain is open! Monday was hard frozen granular because of the Sunday drizzle and overnight freeze, making for some challenging first day of the season. Tuesday was very cold and very windy and first runs were good, but then it was difficult because of the overall conditions. Wednesday was really good, the snow had dried out, the sun returned, and the wind was calmer. I could envision the expanse of the entire mountain and successfully skied from the top to the bottom without a stop! Thursday was an improved repeat of Wednesday along with 1-2 inches of natural snow. Friday was very enjoyable. The entire mountain staff was very helpful, I somehow broke my pass and they replaced it. Snow making was in full effect, but guns were never pointed at lifts or interfering with main runs. Crowds were minor, besides a brief delay on day one, there was never a lift line. Social distancing inside building was plentiful, attributed to low head count of mid-week activities. --- I drove up on Sunday and didn't see any snow until I got within 50 miles of the mountain. The drive home today will be quite different and aiming to take the longer path to check out the 3+ feet swath in New Hampshire, just seeing snow drifts on the highway gets a sense of being part of it! Onward for the 2020-2021 mountain season!

51 degrees and light SW winds. Looking forward to remaining all rain for this one, however, won't be surprised if our temps drop more than predicted.

With this storm coming up and what appears to be below freezing temperatures for the week out, I'm looking forward to checking out Sugarloaf for the entire week of 12/13. Due to the COVID situation, I'm aiming to ski just mid-week and also during the colder (December to February) and skipping March, even though March is the best experience, it is also the time that slack protocol with masks due to warmth/sun-angle will likely become a problem. Bring it on!

Power out in Newport. Windy indeed!

I like to ski this day, but not this year. To make up for it, I'm going to make my first ever trip to Sugarloaf for 12/13 to 12/19. Mixed in with work remotely, a few good hours each day on the slopes, and some good luck for cooler temperatures, should make for a reasonable first outing for the season!

Yes. The COVID situation is real and something we've been managing in my area, hoping our active case rate stays low as current VT guidelines have us not requiring quarantine

Plans are a making! Got the IKON pass and planning accommodations for Sunday through Friday for three weeks (mid-December, mid-January, early-February) in VT/NH/ME and then Sunday through Saturday for late-February in MT for a potential of 20 days of skiing. Aiming to utilize the pass to at least break-even, and venturing to other mountains as well. Accommodations will vary from hotel chains to local places. In my mind I'd like to ski 8 hours per day, but in practice it is usually 5 hours, which will work out fine as I need to work several hours each day. Windy days will be the safest on the mountain, as people will remain bundled up. Hoping for the best, and definitely going to spend money locally in each community to support the economy, including checking out mountains I've never skied, this will be the year to try them out!

Cannon today. Good conditions, still a solid layer of hard stuff underneath, we need a good dump of natural snow or less rain. Overall, a good day

Went to Killington today, last time was in the early 1990's. The place is really big, but I'm not a big fan of the layout, I'm sort of more of a fan of a single peak mountain, I felt like I had to make lateral moves all day to try things out. Overall, tremendous uphill capacity for the lifts, but with 90% of the lifts running and only 50% of the trails, it made for a busy experience on some of the trails. Snow on the other hand was "ok". It definitely got choppy as the day transpired. New England needs some natural snow, big time!

Loon today. Cold, fast, crowded inside, north quad had issues so I rested in a chair for 19 minutes. On it tomorrow!