Welcome to Tuesday everyone. It’s another good looking morning and today will be just as nice. I didn’t see any trip reports from yesterday on the messageboard, but I’m sure some people made it out on the slopes and I am very jealous. As I said I would, I was checking out the web cams all day and it looked like such fun out there. I didn’t make it out to anywhere last night as I was still recovering from the weekend, but I definitely plan on going somewhere tonight.
A few places in the re
gion did make snow last night. App, Wisp, Wintergreen, and Snowshoe all turned on the guns last night and it really is awesome to see them still providing the best product possible for their customers.
<<<It looked like a blizzard at App this morning as they had their guns going in full force!
Conditions are pretty good today and there is still so much terrain to ride in the Southeast it’s crazy. Out of the ski areas open today, 236 of the 253 trails at those places are open! It really is a bummer to see ski areas start close up at the end of the season when they still have so many trails open. Once customer numbers drop off it really isn’t worth it to stay open. The more money they make means more improvements for us to enjoy next year! That’s how I look at it.
Today would definitely be the best bet to ride, as tomorrow and Thursday look pretty nasty. An approaching system is going to soak the region with a couple inches of the underdeveloped stuff before it changes over to snow later on Thursday. I feel like I’m having déjà vu as the next few days seem like a repeat of this past weekend. We have a day of REALLY wet, nasty weather before colder air arrives and snow starts falling at the higher elevations the next day. Hopefully, Friday morning will be a repeat of yesterday morning where I came into work and was stoked to see that several inches of snow had fallen at all of the ski areas. We shall see.
In general, it seems like we’ve been in a pattern the past few weeks where we have a couple of absolutely beautiful days followed by a couple really nasty ones. On one hand it is a bummer, but on the other hand when you consider the fact that the region was (and still is) in a borderline drought, it’s not completely a bad thing. It is what it is. All of the open resorts are still holding on well though, especially considering we are a week into March now.
That’s all I have for this morning. Enjoy today’s skiing and riding if you can. Here’s a look across the region…
Appalachian Ski Mountain – 29°- Open today on 100% of the mountain with a groomed surface. Once again they made snow last night and will continue to make snow whenever possible up until their closing date of March 27th. Awesome! They are in great shape right now. Ice skating is also open today.
Beech Mountain Resort – 25°- They are open today on 13 of 15 trails with a groomed surface. Don’t forget that their discounted March rates are in effect. You can get a full day lift ticket for just $20 and looking at the cams this morning up there, that is a really good deal. The riding should be awesome up there today.
Sugar Mountain – 31.1°- Open today on 100% of the mountain with a natural and frozen granular surface. They also have March madness rates in effect until the end of the season. Lift tickets are 25% off. Their Spyder Sample Sale is still going on as well. Tubing is closed today but skating is open.
Snowshoe Mountain – 18°- They are open on 59 of 60 trails today with a groomed and frozen granular surface. Here’s what they have to say – " We have another beautiful day on tap on the mountain. We’ll see a very similar day to yesterday, with plenty of sunshine and mild afternoon temperatures. We were able to make snow in limited areas overnight and once again our expert grooming team was out grooming all 59 open slopes. Sunday’s new snowfall and cold overnight temperatures the last few days have helped us significantly improve conditions across the mountain. We should start off with a firm corduroy surface this morning, which may become a little sandy as skier traffic increases throughout the day. With sunshine and mild temps this afternoon, we may see some spring-like conditions before the day is over. But it’s going to be a great day on snow and Snowshoe continues to offer the region’s most open terrain. We anticipate remaining nearly 100% open through the weekend, with almost 244 skiable acres available for your enjoyment. Sunday will mark the end of the season for the Silver Creek area, but we don’t anticipate losing any additional terrain at this time. That will depend on the weather, as we head into a period of questionable conditions. Wednesday, Thursday and Friday should all bring us some precipitation, but right now it’s really 50/50 whether that falls as rain or mixed precipitation or more snow. So keep those fingers crossed and keep doing your snow dances and we could have a spectacular weekend on hand.
Tonight we kick off our annual Burton Women’s Snowboard Camp. These lucky ladies will be treated to 2 days of on-snow instruction, some fun evening gatherings, great swag from partners like Burton and Smith, as well as the chance to demo the latest and greatest women’s equipment from Burton. Our top-notch female instructors will help provide a fun, pressure free environment for ladies of all ages and abilities to progress their skills. Whether you’re just learning to link turns, or you want to elevate your skills in the terrain park, this camp is for you! Spaces still exist and you have time to get to the mountain before the on-snow portion begins tomorrow. Camp registration is just $99 and lodging/lift ticket packages for the camp start at $162 for 2 nights lodging and 2 days of lift tickets, as well as breakfast daily. For complete details and to register for the camp, please call 877-441-4386!
Don’t forget, this week is the last week for night skiing, as Silver Creek will be closing for the season on Sunday, March 13th. The tubing hill will close for the season following Saturday’s session. But value season pricing is just around the corner, and with this new snow we’ll be sure to be providing great conditions through the end of the season, scheduled for March 27th. And we have more great events coming up, including WV SKI FREE day on Sunday, March 13th and our Last Hurrah party and pond skimming event on Saturday, March 26th. Visit snowshoemtn.com for a complete list of events and great deals for the remaining 3 weeks for the season, including 50% off lift tickets when packages with lodging during a stay between March 18th and 27th. That means you’ll enjoy the region’s most open terrain for just $26 a day!
Finally, we can’t forget to mention that 2011.2012 season passes are now on sale. As the season winds down it’s time to think ahead. If you purchase your 2011.2012 season pass by April 30th you’ll save up to 28%. Plus, purchase before the end of THIS season, and come up and enjoy your last fix of fresh snow, and you’ll SKI FREE! That’s right, purchase next year’s season pass now, and SKI FREE for the remainder of this season! There’s still great snow to enjoy and plenty of time to do so. Visit snowshoemtn.com or call 877-441-4386 to purchase your passport to Snow Country!!
Wisp Resort – 28°- Open on 27 of 32 trails today with a groomed surface and they did make snow last night. Discounted ticket prices are in effect as there are several specials today. There will be tubing and skiing tonight. Ice skating is also open tonight.
Massanutten – 46°- Open today on 100% of the mountain with a groomed surface. They will be skiing and riding today from 11am until 7pm. Both terrain parks are also still open with a number of features set up. This Sunday is Heroes on the Hill Day, where military personnel receive a free lift ticket.
Wintergreen – 28° – Open today on 24 of 26 trails with a groomed surface. They did make snow last night! There will not be night skiing again until Friday and tubing will reopen tomorrow. I really want to try out Wintergreen sometime next season based on what I’ve seen and read over the past few weeks.
Canaan Resort – 27°- They are closed until Friday when they will reopen for their final weekend of skiing and riding.
Timberline – 27°- Open today on 34 of 39 trails with a groomed surface. There will be no night skiing tonight, but they backcountry is still open with a 3-9” base. Don’t dig in with your edges too hard on that!
Winterplace – 28°- Open today on 100% of the mountain with a groomed surface. Those 53 automatic snowguns they bought this past summer were such a good investment. March madness rates are in effect.
Bryce Resort – 27°- Open today on 6 of 8 trails with a groomed surface and they will only be having a day session. Bryce will close for the season this coming Sunday.