Category: Reports by Event

2006-2007 Season, December, Jay Peak, Powder Day

Sloppy Seconds Powder Day at Jay

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After yesterday’s romp (which was my first open to close day of the year), I was rather tired and a wee bit sore. I opted for a late start and desired to leave early when my legs inevitably gave out. I ended up skiing from approximately 9a-1p which was about what I had expected.

What I had not expected was how bad the conditions would setup over night on the mountain. Temps dropped and the snow froze up a bit and got some wind buff. I skied a few open trails before ducking back into the woods and did not like what I saw. Northway and trails in that drainage were total skating rinks and the upper section of The Jet and Haynes did not look so good (I didn’t ski either, but after seeing a few slides for life from the lift, you kinda get the feel for how things are skiing). Natural trails were obliterated. They opened up Kitzbeuhel today but it was just nasty.

Out of a dozen runs I think I ended up in the woods about 10 times picking out trusty powder shots where I suspected base levels would be adequate and dangerous hazards would be minimal (relatively). I found way more pow than I had expected. Each run featured about 25% untracked or barely tracked in places I suspected had been trounced yesterday. It was slim pickings though… pick a line, get six turns, stop, reassess, likely traverse, repeat. By noon time the fresh lines were gone but sloppy seconds were still available. After a few more desperation runs for safe shots, my legs had enough and I called it a day. Pictures will be posted later.

Photo Gallery

2006-2007 Season, December, Jay Peak, Powder Day, Video

Finally, a Powder Day at Jay!

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On the previous Tuesday, Jay had only ten trails open. A four short days later, the trail count suddenly tripled to thirty. Essentially, Jay dropped the ropes on trails folks had been poaching and let everyone have at the dust on dirt. It was all good! Amazing what six inches of snow feels like when you have been deprived for weeks. Equally amazing what said powder will make people think is skiable.

Derick Hot Shot started off really nice; nicer than Tuesday at least, but got beat up quickly. That was the theme of the day for the open natural snow trails. The moguls under the Jet Chairlift finally started to setup but still featured lots of icy spots. Haynes was a skating rink. Patrol took note and put up fencing along some trees.

Traverse trails like Taxi were open on natural snow sporting deep water bars and rocks. Beginners and intermediates were not having fun on such trails despite their Green Circle rating. Later in the day, patrol roped a particularly bad section of Taxi towards the end of the traverse which forced beginners and intermediates down a disastrously thin Lower Can Am. Not even I had much tolerance for the mess on Lower Can Am, I can only imagine what the other skiers were thinking.

Off the Summit, Vermonter was our first run and a total disaster. Not sure if it ever got better. Northway was in much better shape from the Summit. Upper Milk Run was also particularly terrible and not worth the effort.

Trees were navigational but only with high caution levels and careful line choices. I backed off several lines due to obstacles or being unsure what was hidden under the six inches of fresh. A base had been established, but nothing substantial. One rock, stump, or snow snake could easily trip someone up and send them flying. Where we found lines, the skiing was sensational (relative to the weather we have had this December). A lot of folks were selecting some questionable tree shots. Knowledge of how things setup and what is doable in low base periods is advisable before just jumping into any open hole on the side of the trail. Things were especially crunchy lower down on the mountain.

Video from Today at Jay Peak

Photo Gallery

2006-2007 Season, Cannon Mountain, December, Powder Day

Powder Day Cannon Style: Earned Turns With Lift Assistance

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Damn, I love this mountain. Season Pass to Jay Peak be damned; when Cannon Mountain gets hammered with snow, I am there and paying for a lift ticket. Especially when said lift ticket is only $25.00! Granted the price of admission provides access to only one chair and one route down, but it cuts back substantially on time skinning up and allows for multiple summit trips. Cannon reported in with just over a foot of fresh snow, but my adventures to the summit of the mountain brought boot to knee deep powder snow on multiple runs suggesting either the wind deposited all the snow in all the right places or Cannon under reported what accumulated at the Summit. Given my runs from the summit were down untracked trails, I suspect no one bothered to measure snow depths on the upper mountain.

Despite having a Season Pass to Jay Peak and both ski areas reporting in a similar foot of fresh snowfall, my suspicion was that Cannon was going to have better terrain accessible by skinning. Also, lift serviced on the Peabody Quad servicing Ravine sounded much more fun and relaxing than Haynes and The Jet at Jay Peak on Telefest Weekend, not to mention the two for one email campaign that Jay Peak launched for this weekend. At Cannon Mountain, I found modestly crowded slopes but not over crowded like at Jay Peak the past two weekends. Additionally, snow quality was substantially better and never deteriorated and the Peabody Quad was ski on almost the entire day. If I choose Cannon over Jay Peak just to enjoy a single groomed run, I would have made a sound decision. But there would be much more skiing to be had at Cannon besides the Ravines.

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2006-2007 Season, Earned Turns, Jay Peak, November

Earned Turns at Jay Peak Under the Guns

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With Jay Peak planning to open for the Season this coming Saturday of Thanksgiving weekend, I planned a double purpose trip to Jay Peak. Instead of fighting the crowds on Saturday morning to get my Season Pass picture taken, I opted to visit the office this morning and take care of business before the rush. The other purpose was of course to make some turns and claim my seventh day of the season. While Jay Peak’s Faux Sneaux left much to be desired, claiming day seven before Thanksgiving is not too shabby, especially considering the first major New England ski areas just opened yesterday.

Arriving at The Jet triple and clicking into my skis, I happened upon a pot of gold. White Gold that is. With snow guns firing and a bright sun blazing across a deep blue sky, a rainbow had formed at the nozzle of every single snow gun. The end of the rainbow led to a bountiful pot of white gold. I have never chased the end of a rainbow before; but now that I have, I know that the story is true.

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2006-2007 Season, Earned Turns, November, Stowe

Early October Earned Turns on Mount Mansfield

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“Damn, I wish it was still October.” Not often are these words spoken in New England by skiers. But based on short and long term forecasts, there is a distinct possibility that October will have been a better month to ski New England than November. Which is not to say that the skiing on Mount Mansfield on November fifth was not more than satisfactory and excellent for November. But it sure was no October 2006.

Austin, Marc, and I all arrived at the Gondola lot early Sunday morning for some skiing on Mount Mansfield. Snow Guns were firing hard on Upper Nose Dive and on the other side of the mountain. We opted to ascend via Nose Dive and make plans for the descent once we were higher up. A short hike up Nose Dive was required before we could put skins to the snow and beginning skinning. Snow coverage was still substantial and wall to wall after a short hundred vertical feet of dry land. It is still hard to believe how much snow has stuck around for so long considering the date!

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