Mother Nature is spreading the love.
Yesterday morning was all about the massive snowfall totals at the North Carolina High Country Ski Areas. This morning, Cataloochee and Wintergreen, among others, were hit with fresh snow.
There’s about 10-inches in Maggie Valley this morning, and as a result, Cataloochee is 100% open. Resort officials are encouraging skiers and snowboarders to purchase their lift tickets ahead of time to avoid the risk of sell out.
Meanwhile, southern Virginia finally got a little bit of appreciation! Wintergreen nearly doubled its snowfall total overnight, with 5 inches of fresh snow, bringing the season total to 9 inches. There are 15 open trails, and four lifts spinning.
“Some of the best conditions of the year,” the resort marketing team said this morning.
It looks like me constantly asking you to “think cold” finally paid off. The conditions are excellent out there, but the temperatures are low. I’m spending some time outside for my work at North Carolina Public Radio today, and I am dressed almost exactly like I would be to head to the mountain. Long johns: on. Gloves: packed. Jacket: puffy.
It looks like only Massanutten will have temperatures that are in the double-digits before a late-afternoon warmup.
Remember, the colder the day, the thinner the socks you’re going to want to wear, to ensure that the blood in your feet is flowing. On the extra cold days, here’s what I keep in my backpack:
- Hand warmers
- An extra fleece/polyester midlayer
- Balaclava
- An extra winter hat
Y’all have been out and about throughout the southeast, reporting in on how great a day you’re having. So let’s get into some of your findings. Here’s what’s going on around the southeast today:
Sugar
Discord user DaBluBarron1918 was at Sugar. Here’s what they had to say:
Sick day at Sugar. Snow at peak was over 8 inches for sure. Bolder dash was…pure ice. Woopdeedoo and Tom were amazing, Gunther was best. After noon the temperature dropped, and wind picked up. It became brutal out there around 2-3.”
It looks like Boulder Dash was a bit icy yesterday, so keep that in mind if you’re headed there today.
Timberline
Another 2.7 inches of fresh snow have landed at Timberline, continuing the fantastic run of natural snowfall the resort has had pretty much all season long. There are 20 of 20 trails open, as The Drop finally has its ropes dropped today. Here’s what the Timberline team had to say this morning:
Snowmaking has been running continuously since Monday morning, expanding coverage and refreshing conditions throughout the mountain. You’ll find soft but dense, machine groomed surface on our open terrain today with a mix of light snowmaking snow and natural snow. The Drop opens today, making us 100% open!”
The forecast today calls for a low of -1 and a high of 13 with partly cloudy to sunny skies. Snowmaking is on.
Snowshoe
An inch of freshies, 43 open trails and temperatures below 0 degrees this morning. More from the snow reporting team:
The cold never bothered us anyway! Bundle up and prepare for a cold one! NWS has issued a wind chill warning in effect until later this evening but there is too much fun to be had to stay cooped up inside. Backcountry Snowmobile tours open today, and we’ll be adding Upper Gangway and Camp 4 to the slope roster this morning pending patrol approval. Do be sure to layer up today, leave no skin exposed, and take plenty of breaks. Check out our “How To Dress For A Day On Snow” blog post on our social pages for some quick layering tips.”
Wintergreen
It’s about dang time Wintergreen got some of the goods!
Discord user ThinkSno was there yesterday. Here’s what they had to say:
I was there today. 29 runs and 10K vertical in 4.5 hours. 4-inches of natural snow overnight Dobie was in good shape for beginners. I did a couple of runs there to warm up, then went over to the Highlands, which was also in great condition. I then went over to the Acorn lift. The bottom of Eagle Swoop and Lower Sunrise were quite icy. The sun came out after lunch, but the wind kicked up so it felt cold, especially on the Highlands and top of Eagle Swoop. Wintergreen started blowing snow around 1 p.m. on the icy spots, and on Big Acorn. The Big Acorn run looks about ready to open.”
If your child has a snow day tomorrow, I can’t think of a better way to spend it.
Massanutten
Attention experts: No Hessitation opens today at noon.
“We want you to be a part of the grand opening celebration!” the resort said on its Instagram page. “Meet at the top of the Peak Express Lift at 11:50 a.m. tomorrow for the opening countdown and ribbing cutting ceremony.”
Upper Paradice opens up today as well. The resort is aiming to be 100% open by Friday.
Channeling His Inner Zeb
Nothing will make you feel like a kid again like trying a trick on snow that you recently watched in a ski or snowboard film. That’s even true for Shilo Sanders, the college football star at the University of Colorado at Boulder (and son of NFL and MLB superstar Deion Sanders), even if he spends his Saturdays in the fall playing football in front of thousands of screaming fans.
Sanders posted a video of himself boardsliding a box at Breckenridge in Colorado recently. His caption was simple:
“I been watching too much @zebpowell.”
The Rest
Don’t forget: Clear your calendar from February 9-11. That’s when Massanutten and SkiSoutheast will host team up to host our summit. It’s a great way to meet like-minded, snow-loving people, and possibly make some lifelong friends in the process.
Thanks to everyone that has already joined us on Discord.
Think snow!
Think cold!
Click here to join us on our new SkiSoutheast Discord channel. It is a great way to meet new snow loving friends and shares experiences, ask questions, and more!
And as always, email me at [email protected] with your thoughts and photos.