Back on Top

February was quite a roller-coaster of a month, swinging from five stars to two stars and back again. Fortunately, it's ending on a good note. Yesterday's snow storm brought up to a foot and a half of snow to the north country and conditions are now excellent with more snow predicted for Friday night.

T.S. Elliot must have been a skier when he wrote "April is the cruelest month," because March is on average the snowiest month only to see all that delicious white stuff get washed away with the spring rains. Don't put your skis away yet, there is likely to be another month of excellent snow conditions yet to come.

Snow depths are now ten inches above the historical peak for the entire season and we've still got another three weeks before typically hitting maximum snow depths. Let's see how deep we can go. On Mt. Mansfield we're already at 85 inches of snow pack. Can anyone say 100.

The Snow Detective is headed up for some turns on Saturday, so check back here Saturday night for a fresh perspective and maybe even some nice photographs.

A tough week

That rain on Monday really did a lot of damage to the conditions in the North Country, all the way up to the Canadian border. Right after the rain the temps dropped to sub zero and surfaces are rock hard. Plus the large crowds of President's Day vacation week are quickly scraping off anything that's soft. The groomed runs are loud and scratchy but skiable. The glades unfortunately are still pretty treacherous.

However, things are looking up. Jay Peak got four inches last night, which was unexpected. Small accumulations here and there are improving things slowly. Forecasts are for moderate snow Friday, so the weekend may not be lost.

Don't put your skis away just yet. There is still plenty of good skiing to come. The Mt. Mansfield snow stake is reading 78 inches, which is down from 85 before the rain, but still about three inches above a typical year's deepest accumulation--and the deepest snow depths don't typically come for another week or two. The best skiing may be yet to come, and that's saying a lot for a pretty spectacular year so far.

Still great but farther

There is still great skiing to be had, but you're going to have to travel for it. Wednesday's storm delivered plenty of rain in Massachusetts, lots of ice across south/central Vermont and New Hampshire and good snow along the northernmost sections of New England.

Places I'd recommend for this weekend are Mad River Glen, Stowe, Jay Peak, Sunday River and Sugarloaf.

Don't forget, it's President's Day Weekend, one of the busiest ski weekends of the year, and then vacation week next week, so the mountains are likely to be crowded.

Tough Going

Warm temps have brought a mixture of rain, sleet and snow to the north country in the last few days. This has made for difficult skiing. Several inches of sleet covered by several inches of powder do not make for a good mix.

Sorry folks. I advise you wait for better conditions.

Mad River Glen Rocks

I'd always heard good things about Mad River Glen--about how it's a skiers mountain and a throwback to the good old days. But I'd never gotten around to getting up there. Boy what I've been missing.

My wife Carolyn and I skied there on Sunday and had a GREAT time. It's a haul from Boston; about half an hour past Killington, but in my opinion worth it. Tickets cost $25 less and the terrain is terrific with lots of challenging stuff and plenty of glades. It's a local Vermont family mountain with lots of young kids, most of whom will blow your doors off, and a super friendly non-corporate atmosphere.

I only gave the conditions three stars, but that's because the cover is thin and scrapped off in many places. Mad River doesn't make snow, which means the cover might be thinner, but since it's all natural it doesn't easily turn into the steel boiler plate you often find at some other more famous mountains.

A single chair (that is one person) accesses most of the most challenging terrain, which I actually found to be quite enjoyable and surprisingly fast, getting you up some serious vertical in no time. I'm a fairly social guy but there is something nice about not having to sit next to people you don't know and either pretending they're not there or making small talk.

And don't be intimidated by its challenging reputation. It has trails that will suit all levels. A word of caution though, they don't distinguish between black diamond and double diamond trails. If you decide to ski diamonds and aren't careful you might find yourself out of your league.

I suggest you check it out, unless you're a snowboarder. Sorry, Mad River Glen is for skiers only.

Excellent Skiing

Reports from North Country are that the skiing is very good right now. They've been getting small batches of snow every other day or so, which is making for some sweet conditions.

For instance, Jay Peak has gotten a total of 25 inches during the past week: 1/18 6", 1/20 6", 1/22 3", 1/23 8".

Conditions have improved enough that the glades are now skiable on most mountains.

Now is the time to go, as there are some nasty rumors that there might be some warmer weather and -- God forbid -- the R-word in the forecast for early February.

See you out there.

Still Good, but How Long?

(Photo: Killington, Dec. 25) Despite the recent rain, the conditions are still good and the snow deeper than usual. However, the ungroomed glade skiing is a problem since the snow is now covered with a heavy crust.

Go now, because it's unclear how long our better than average conditions will continue. Warm temps and good snow are likely to hold through the holiday weekend, with even some light dustings of new snow.

It's very unclear how long our good fortune will last. Some predictions beyond Jan. 4 are not looking good. We may be in for some warmer temps and rain.

So the New England Snow Detective's advice is to go now. While the going is still good.

Best December EVER

(December 19, 2007 at Attitash)

I kid you not. That's what they're saying up at Mad River Glen, and they're not prone to the usual ski industry hyperbole. MRG got 3" last night with more coming today. They got 16"-20" from the Northeaster last weekend and they've gotten five feet in the past two weeks.

And it's not just Mad River Glenn. All of northern New England has been getting pounded with lots and lots of powder.

Early in the week was cold and very windy, but temps are climbing and the winds have subsided. I advise you go before the weekend, because it could get crowded.

See you up there.

Upgrading to Five Stars

Christmas has arrived early. This weekend's storm has worked out well for everyone. All the northern New England ski areas got a good dumping on top of their already significant base. In most places the precip came down as sleet for a time in the middle, but turned to snow again. Very northern Vermont, which has just been having an amazing early season, got the most with Stowe getting 18-25, Jay 24 and Mad River Glen (see photo) getting 16-18.

The weather service is predicting the next two days to be cold and windy but then warming up a bit mid week and staying nice through the Christmas holiday. There may also be small amounts of fresh snow during this next period.

Enjoy,

Gino Del Guercio

Fresh Powda

Parts of northern New England got a sweet new layer of fresh powder on Tuesday and Wednesday, although there was a small bit of rain on the lower elevations at the start. Snow depths at high elevations are now up at 39 inches.

Here's how the latest snow showers played out:


Cannon 2-4"
Jay Peak 9"

Mad River 3-5"
Smuggler's 6"
Stowe 5-7"
Sugarbush 8"

More To Come
But this is just the beginning. This current storm sweeping through is predicted to mostly stay along the coast, possibly giving slight accumulations in the mountains. But then on Sunday everyone is looking forward to getting pounded with a heavy Nor'easter. This is shaping up to be one hell of a Christmas for New England skiers.

Enjoy

Snow Snow Snow

It just keeps coming. Northern New England got 2-6 inches on Tuesday Dec. 11. In some places it got wet for a while, but it's cooling down now and everyone is looking forward to more snow. (photo credit: Attitash)


New Snow Report
Kids ski instructor extraordinare Gary Vanasse reports he went to Attitash on Sunday with fellow instructor Jodie Swider: "Skiing was very good. It was typical early season New England. Cold and winter, hard packed, and somewhat skied off by the end of the day. There is about ½ foot of snow on the ground, and it was snowing lightly when we left. About 1/3 of the mountain was opened, and over all I would say it was a good ski day. It was very quiet on the mountain and REALLY quiet when we left at 2:00 PM."

Thanks for that Gary.

Mount Mansfield Stake
Current snow depth at Mount Mansfield in northern Vermont is 36 inches, which puts us about two weeks ahead of schedule for average snow depth. I rate the next few days with four stars, possibly jumping up to a top rating of five stars if we get six inches of new snow or more. It's definitely time to go skiing.

We have a Winner
Rich Higgins (on right) of North Easton, Mass., won two lift tickets to Sunday River courtesy of Jackson's Ski Outlet in Easton. He was the first to send in a snow report. Thanks Rich. Enjoy the skiing.

Check back here for more free lift tickets.