Open, -2º at 7:30 a.m. and clear skies. Forecast high today 11º. We had 4 inches of snow yesterday morning. When the cold front came through late yesterday it brought a dusting of snow.

We shoveled yesterday. Above is a picture of Ian and Raili working on the Turkey. The picture below is Dick and Raili also on the Turkey. Chuck and I worked on the Woodcock and Snow Goose.

The skiing…..thin coverage, there are rocks poking thru, a few twigs here and there. There are place where the skiing is ok, and then under the hemlocks there are places that the coverage is thin and the trail is bumpy.

Turkey, Woodcock and Snow Goose are open this morning. Peregrine and Grouse are still being worked on. Is the skiing perfect? No. Is there skiing? Yes.

Closed today, hopefully open with limited skiing on Thursday. The temperature was 19º at 7 a.m., expected high 25º. The skies are sunny and clear early this morning. A cold front is coming thru this afternoon and will bring a snow squall and wind. Tonight’s low is forecast to be -2º.

Tuesday’s snow is enough to help get us skiing again. But only with a lot of work from Ian, and anyone he can get to help him. He will drive around today to pack the snow down. The snow that fell yesterday was/is light and fluffy. That means more work to get the snow to pack down and become a firm skiable base. Once Ian packs the trails out, he is then counting on the wind to move more snow into the trail, the packed out trail catching the blowing snow. (Like your driveway catches snow and makes drifts.) As the cold front blows through this afternoon another inch of snow is expected.

So, we are moving in the right direction. We are getting snow instead of the “R” word. But there is some work involved in getting to the skiing part. The skiing will be marginal in spots. Hope to see you soon!!

AND keep doing your snow dances!

Solstice Bonfire

Closed, today, Monday, 14º at 7 a.m. 1 inch of snow yesterday over what remains of the base. Some areas in the woods still have great coverage. Some low areas are melted out, and some areas are patchy with stones and grass poking through.

Snow forecast for Tuesday: sounds like about 3-5″ for Peru, which might not be quite enough to get back open. Cross your fingers and your toes, and put a little extra effort into your snow dance!

Events:

Friday, December 20 5:30pm. Winter Solstice Party, with West River Sports This event is a pot luck, please bring a dish to share. Remember your head lamp. If we get enough snow this week, bring skis. If the snow is bad, bring snow shoes or ice grippers. For this event it looks like the weather will cooperate and stay cold. The event will happen unless it rains. It’s always great fun to enjoys the solstice bonfire with friends.We may or may not have enough snow for skiing.

AND on December 21st, from 10am until 2pm, if there is enough snow, a ski demo day hosted by West Hill Shop from Putney. Jim is bringing different types of skin skis. They have a mohair type strip on the bottom of the ski as the grip. Great skis, good time to test drive. Again, if there is enough snow, come and test out some new skis. If there is not enough snow, the event will be postponed.

Closed, 22º and overcast at 7 a.m. The ground is still white in most places with really frozen snow. That was quite a bit of rain. 1.2 inches measured on Tuesday morning. And .34 inches yesterday. It did snow overnight. A dusting, which is slightly more than 2 flakes and just enough to cover the icy spots, which makes walking tricky. But not enough to help the snow for skiing.

The Single Chair Weather Blog, from Waitsfield, Vermont has a good summery for the next week, if you want more info on up coming weather and weather events.

There is still time to get an early season pass. The snow will return and the skiing will be great again. Be ready. And when it happens get out and enjoy!