I made it out to Cataloochee this weekend. Saturday was really nice especially between around 2:30 to 4:30pm. By that time, nearly 3 to 4″ had accumulated, which was a nice prelude to Sunday.
On Sunday, after having to cross-country ski down my hill to check out the road conditions, it was a go. Made the trek up to Cat and it was glorious. Getting into the lift line, I overheard some young buck with a grin on his face say that he got stuck for nearly five minutes in the powder . . . you could tell he loved it.
Let’s get right to it and take a look at these epic resorts:
The storm delivered to the Virginia mountains (3rd highest December snowfall recorded in Blacksburg, VA) . . .
Wintergreen: “*URGENT MESSAGE*
Mother Nature blessed us with 20 inches of snow, unfortunately the power at Wintergreen is out. We are addressing the problem as quickly as possible, however, we will have a delayed opening this morning. We will keep you updated on opening status as we learn more information. Thank you for your patience.” As per Facebook @ 8:15am.
In addition to this, Wintergreen is also encouraging 4WD or AWD vehicles only to access the resort.
We are all rooting for you Wintergreen! Stay tuned for more updates on them . . .
Massanutten: “The snow ended last night around 9:30 but not before dropping another 1″+ leaving us with a total of 4″ – 6″ on the hill. Upper Showtime will open today and we’ll be spinning lifts from 9:00am – 5:00pm. Schools Out Special today if you are out of school for weather related closures, $40 lift and $20 equipment rentals.”
Omni Homestead saw 7″, while Bryce saw a couple of inches as well.
The North Carolina Mountains saw unprecedented snowfall (in some areas nearly 2 feet)! . . .
Appalachian Ski Mountain: I remember Brad Panovich mentioning in a recent report that App might come out on top . . . did it ever! With 100% open, 10.5″ plus 9.5″ puts them at 20″ of snowfall and still counting. App has got to be the place to be for those who are off school/work today.
Beech: The big dog delivers with a grand storm total of 23″!!! Could we see that unprecedented 24″ mark by the end of this all, Beech has the best shot. Check it out if you want good day . . . or a good week at the resort.
Wolf Ridge: 5.5″ 24hour snowfall with a storm total of 13.5″
As per Wolf this morning, “Snow Day Special for students and teachers who are out of school due to the SNOW…$15 lift tickets, $7 ski rental and $15 snowboard rental. We’ve had another dusting of fresh powder over night and it’s still coming down! We are skiing to the top today from 9 am – 10pm with 3 lifts and 9 slopes open. If you decided to venture out for adventuring today with us at The Wolf…be safe on the roads. Call 511 for the latest on road conditions.”
Wow, they opened with a bang, this year. Looks like those new snow guns aren’t even needed yet.
Cataloochee: With another 4″ since the last reporting, Cataloochee came out with a whopping 20″ since the storm began. Looks like we are still seeing flurries on the webcam, so it’s not over . . . until it’s over. 100% of terrain open (including powder turns in the meadow). Also, the road is clear for all vehicles.
Ski Sapphire saw a storm total of 12″, respectively.
Southern West Virginia got walloped . . .
Big news out of Winterplace is they got a grand total of 15″! Really looking forward to their opening.
Snowshoe: saw 4″ of fresh (with an 8″ 48hr total). With the addition of Silver Creek this Friday, that 3-For-All Pass would be a nice addition to your quiver, right about now.
Canaan, Timberline, and Wisp missed out on this one, but the next system is getting charged already!
Anyone want a dish of a second helping:
The storm is not over yet . . . What’s happening is that the Low Pressure system has moved east through the area. But low pressure systems turn counter-clockwise, so it is wrapping freezing moisture back around into WNC and SW Virginia. The forecast looks like this area will get another 1 to 3″ of snow before the Winter Storm Warnings expire around 2pm. 3″ might be a bit much, as the storm makes the final push . . . Look for additional accumulations around the 1 to 2″ mark. Leftovers anyone?
That will do for today.
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