Happy New Year’s Eve.
I can’t think of a better way to close out 2023 and ring in 2024 than by skiing and snowboarding. And it looks like Mother Nature agrees, because more snow was delivered last night in North Carolina, Maryland, and West Virginia.
App Ski, Beech, Sugar, Canaan Valley, and Timberline all received fresh snow. Get out there and take advantage of the last batch of goods for the year. We’ve got some real-life winter weather happening, and the treetops are covered at Beech, making it look like a bit of a snow globe after another 2 inches fell.
There are a ton of New Year’s Eve-related festivities happening at the ski areas in the southeast, so let’s get into it all.
Ober Mountain
Ober is hosting a New Year’s Eve Preparty with the classic rock tribute band Liquid Velvet performing from 3 p.m. to 6 p.m. The Knoxville-based group will bring you songs from Toto, Fleetwood Mac, Pat Benatar, Heart, and Kansas, and cap the night off with a trip to the top of the mountain in the Ober Mountain Aerial Tramway.
There are now four trails and three lifts open at Ober. The terrain park on Lower Castle Run is open, as well as Upper Bear, Lower Castle Run, and Cub Way.
Appalachian Ski Mountain
There is a special bonus midnight blast session tonight. The slopes are open until 11:30 p.m. A night session will cost $45, and a half-night ticket is $35.
“People looking for a good value will discover that this is the best ticket value that we offer, at a time that is actually convenient,” said ski area president Brad Moretz in a press release.
There will be a torchlight parade at 11:45, ice skating from 10 p.m. to midnight, and fireworks to kick off 2024.
App Ski got about a half inch of fresh snow. Discord user Coop72 – real name, Steven Cooley – was out there yesterday, and has a trip report for us:
Morning runs where great when the ropes dropped. I pretty much lapped Orchard Run all day due to the crowds and it being a quad chair. Did a total of 23 run. Snow was really good all day!”
Wisp
There’s some more fresh snow in Maryland.
Wisp got under an inch overnight but it’s all very welcome, as the previous rainstorm had reduced its base to under a foot deep.
Wisp’s New Year’s Eve party features entertainment from Rick K. Roadtrip, and the party runs from 8 p.m. to midnight.
Hatley Pointe
We have an update! In a recent Instagram post, Hatley Pointe announced that it would begin snowmaking next week. Here’s what they said:
What a year it was! The transformation is almost complete! Our crews are still flying and it’s been a surge of activity on the mountain lately. Great things coming in 2024, beginning with snowmaking! We are finishing up equipment checks this week, and will begin making snow next week. Stay tuned and we’ll let you know when the flurries are falling!”
Cataloochee
Lower Snowbird is now open. So is Alley Cat. There are 12 trails open, and all five lifts are spinning.
Sugar
Gunther’s Way is open.
So is Tom Terrific. There are 13 trails open today.
Sugar’s New Year’s celebration will start inside at 9 p.m. with live music, dancing, and hors d’oeuvres. Tickets for that are already sold out though. The alpine torch light parade starts at 11:45, and a fireworks show kicks off at midnight. That is free to attend.
Beech
There are a ton of events tonight at Beech. A free silent disco in the Beech Mountain Brewing Company brewhouse runs from 7 p.m. to midnight. DJ Big C will be in the village performing from 7 p.m. as well, there will be live music from Winston Ramble, and fireworks will go off at midnight.
Oh yeah, and the resort got 2 inches of fresh snow. There are 11 trails open and five lifts spinning.
The Red Baron Room is now open. The speakeasy-style bar is tucked beneath Beech Mountain Brewing Co. Taproom and Grill.
Timberline
More fresh snow at Timberline today.
Here’s what the snow reporters over there had to say:
About half an inch of natural snow fell Saturday night. Snow showers continued throughout the day on Saturday, refreshing conditions for a light, sugary, and granular surface. All open terrain has been machine groomed. Night skiing is available this evening. Summit terrain will close at 4:30, with night skiing terrain available off the mid-mountain quad lift. Please be advised that night skiing will pause from 7:30pm to 8:15pm for our New Year’s Eve torchlight parade. The Snow Squall terrain park is closed this morning for a rebuild before our New Year’s Eve rail jam. It will reopen later this morning.
The forecast today calls for a low of 24 and a high of 35 with cloudy skies and snow showers in the afternoon.
Snowshoe
It’s the last day in Almost Heaven for the SkiSoutheast team members that have spent the past week or so cruising Snowshoe. Some trace amounts of snow landed in town overnight, but not enough to open up significantly more terrain.
Here’s the report from the Snowshoe team:
We’re closing out 2023 with some fantastic snow conditions here at the ‘Shoe! We picked up another dusting and the mountain is looking very picturesque this morning. Temperatures are expected to top out in the mid-30’s today before more cold and snow arrive tonight. Please ski/ride under control at all times and follow all safety signage. If you’re unfamiliar, brush up on the Skier Responsibility Code before heading out! We’ve got a celebration for every taste on the mountain tonight – Come ring in the New Year Snowshoe style! Update: Tickets to the parties at Hoot’s as well as the Basin are now SOLD OUT! Hurry and lock in your spot at one of our other shindigs
Resolutions
I have a few New Year’s resolutions this year, but the one that stands above all of them is this: ride my snowboard more!
I’ll go into more detail later this week about what exactly my resolutions are, but I want to hear from you. What are your ski and snowboard-related resolutions? Drop me a line, either via email or Discord.
Ski and snowboard-adjacent resolutions count too!
Don’t be shy! We’ll feature some of them in an upcoming FirsTrax report.
Reminder: Don’t make any plans for February 9 through 11.
For the first time since 2020, we are hosting a SkiSoutheast Resort Summit. This one will be at Massanutten Resort. The weekend is an opportunity to meet up with like-minded snow sports lovers from all over the southeast.
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.