Looks like there is still enough of powder left in VT. So take a day-off and enjoy it while you can – after all, it is already March, 1st.
Here is today’s snow report from Ski Vermont:
Jay Peak
Trails Open: 77
Lifts Open: 8
Current Temp: 31 degrees
New Snow past 24 hours: 1-2 inches
Last Snow: Feb 28 1 2
Base Depth: 24-40 inches
Primary Condition: PP
Killington
Trails Open: 140
Lifts Open: 17
Current Temp: 33 degrees
New Snow past 24 hours: 1 inches
Last Snow: Feb 27 8
Base Depth: 42-54 inches
Primary Condition: PDR
Smugglers Notch
Trails Open: 78
Lifts Open: 6
Current Temp: 34 degrees
New Snow past 24 hours: 1 inches
Last Snow: Feb 27 8
Base Depth: 24-64 inches
Primary Condition: PP
Stowe
Trails Open: 115
Lifts Open: 10
Current Temp: 32 degrees
New Snow past 24 hours: 1 inches
Last Snow: Feb 28 1
Base Depth: 36-60 inches
Primary Condition: PP
Sugarbush
Trails Open: 111
Lifts Open: 12
Current Temp: 34 degrees
New Snow past 24 hours: inches
Last Snow: Feb 27 6
Base Depth: 38-66 inches
Primary Condition: PDR
Looks like it is New York’s turn for powder/wet snow. It is snowing hard in NY while Vermont got somewhere between 1-3″ of new snow last night. If you decided to make it a long powder weekend, make sure to be prepared for a long drive from the tri-state area.
Jay Peak
Trails Open: 71
Lifts Open: 7
Current Temp: 32 degrees
New Snow past 24 hours: 1 inches
Last Snow: Feb 25 2 8
Base Depth: 20-36 inches
Primary Condition: WETSN
Killington
Trails Open: 137
Lifts Open: 16
Current Temp: 30 degrees
New Snow past 24 hours: 0 inches
Last Snow: Feb 25 14
Base Depth: 42-54 inches
Primary Condition: PDR
Smugglers Notch
Trails Open: 78
Lifts Open: 6
Current Temp: 34 degrees
New Snow past 24 hours: inches
Last Snow: Feb 25 3
Base Depth: 24-64 inches
Primary Condition: PDR
Stowe
Trails Open: 113
Lifts Open: 10
Current Temp: 33 degrees
New Snow past 24 hours: 0 inches
Last Snow: Feb 25 3 5
Base Depth: 36-60 inches
Primary Condition: PDR
Sugarbush
Trails Open: 109
Lifts Open: 12
Current Temp: 32 degrees
New Snow past 24 hours: 1-6 inches
Last Snow: Feb 25 12
Base Depth: 26-42 inches
Primary Condition: WETSN
When there is a foot+ of fresh snow, stay away from green trails. Stick to black diamonds or intermediate trails. Or if you do ski/ride green trails – have a shovel ready! (No joking around – we actually saw one snowboarder riding with a shovel!)
There was not even a hint – other than the weather forecast which is often off the mark – that we might get some snow on Tuesday morning. But here it is – northern Vermont blanketed in fresh snow. An awesome picture was posted by Smugglers Notch on twitpic.com. I hope that we will see more of it in October.
Ascutney Mountain resort had a price freeze for the 2009/2010 ski season. Unlike most other resorts in southern Vermont, Ascutney Mountain set September 30th as a deadline to buy discounted season passes. This year they offer premier passes that are valid seven days without any restrictions, advantage passes that are valid every day except holidays and Saturdays and college season passes.
An adult Premier Pass is offered for $839.00 plus tax which I assume is 6%. The deal is quite typical in a sense that it takes about 13-14 days to breakeven. Another interesting detail is a holiday calendar – Ascutney has only 10 peak days.
I was also surprised to find out that Ascutney charges $62.00 for peak and weekend lift tickets and $60.00 for midweek ski tickets. It means that you only save $2.00 if you prefer to ski midweek. Seniors and juniors will see even less of a difference between the peak and midweek prices – $1.00.
1) You can view our photostreams from Vermont on Flickr.
“If you ski 10 + days per season, don’t miss your chance to buy a season pass and save big on lift tickets!” proclaims a widely popular advertising pitch. It is somewhat correct: buying a season pass makes sense when you log a lot of days. The question is: How many days do you need to break even?
We already covered Bromley Mountain, Stratton and Okemo Mountain Resort – all located in southern Vermont. Now, it is a turn for another southern resort – Mount Snow. Located in West Dover, Mount Snow ski resort is within a relatively short drive from NYC and features 250+ snow fan guns, 87 trails and numerous terrain parks. Considering such impressive package, it is not surprising that Mount Snow attracts a lot of skiers and snowboarders. And if you plan to frequently visit it, here is a breakdown of an adult Nor’easter season pass numbers.
We strive to be as accurate as possible, however, if you notice a mistake, please let us know and we will correct it.
Mount Snow season pass and lift ticket calendar
Q: How much does it cost to by a peak pass at Mount Snow Resort?
A: If you buy it by October 12, it will cost $1,015.43 including taxes.
Q: How long does it take to breakeven if I buy a pass by October 12?
A: It takes about 13-14 peak (13.54 if you want to be precise with numbers) days to breakeven.
Q: What is a total number of the peak days at Mount Snow?
A: There are 17 peak days in the 2009/2010 ski season. (If you buy a regular peak lift ticket. )
Q: What is the holiday lift ticket rate?
A: $75.00 for a one-day peak lift ticket.
Q: What if I ski all 17 peak days using my Mount Snow Nor’easter pass?
A: You will pay approximately $59.73 per day.
That’s it for today. Next time we will visit Magic Mountain. Stay tuned.
“If you ski 10 + days per season, don’t miss your chance to buy a season pass and save big on lift tickets!” proclaims a widely popular advertising pitch. It is somewhat correct: buying a season pass makes sense when you log a lot of days. The question is: How many days do you need to break even?
We started off our “ski school finance 101” with a post on Bromley mountain. Now, let’s check out its neighbor – Stratton Mountain Resort. You can access and read our Stratton review – as always, we welcome comments and quest bloggers familiar with this ski area – and if you consider frequently visiting it during the 2010 ski season, here is a breakdown of some ski deals.
In the 2010 ski season, Stratton offers a number of season passes: ultra, premier, standard, value plus, value, midweek super, parent, Sunday as well as a transferable pass.
We selected an adult standard ski pass because it is valid seven days a week and has no restrictions. Stratton resort has not announced ticket prices for this upcoming season yet, so we took the 2008/2009 data as a reference point.
We strive to be as accurate as possible, however, if you notice a mistake, please let us know and we will correct it. Buying a season ski pass is an expensive expenditure. You should explore all of your options, family commitments and a credit line limit before clicking on a submit button. Ready? Let’s pull out our financial calculators.
Stratton Mountain 2009/2010 ski deals and holiday dates calendar
Q: How much does it cost to buy an adult standard pass at Stratton Mountain resort?
A: If you buy it before October 12th, it will cost $1047.53 including tax.
Q: How long does it take to breakeven if I buy a season pass before October 12th?
A: It takes about 13 days of skiing during the peak period. (13.4 to be exact if using 2008/2009 peak ticket prices.)
Q: What is a total number of the peak days at Stratton Mountain resort?
A: There are 19 peak days in the 2009/2010 ski season.
Q: What is the holiday lift ticket rate?
A: We don’ know 2010 numbers yet. However, a holiday lift ticket was $79.00 in 2008/2009. We did not take into account various promotions or savings program such as X2 card.
Q: What if I ski all 19 peak days using my standard adult pass?
A stuffed turkey or a ski vacation? I faced this dilemma a week before Thanksgiving. “Hmm, we can combine a Thanksgiving dinner with the early ski season vacation in Vermont! Mount Snow anyone?” I came up with a solution and immediately sent out emails trying to lure my friends into joining me. I promised to take gravy and cranberry sauce and hoped to have enough people to split the cost of lodging.
Those who know me well tend to take my ideas cautiously – I am a big proponent of skiing at Mount Hood in June and driving seven hours to Jay Peak for one day of powder skiing. But this time around, I had no problem selling the early ski package. Perhaps I was lucky, or maybe my friends felt it was a good time to get out of NYC. In any case, we packed an old Ford Taurus and hit I-91 in pursuit of skiing happiness.
Mount Snow in November
Most ski resorts have some terrain open by the end of November. They also offer attractive discount packages that make it a lot of sense to visit ski resorts early in the season – at least for those who can ski intermediate and advanced terrains. But we had a couple of beginners and, soon enough, I realized that convincing friends was easier than finding a ski resort that would work for all of us.
I scratched Tremblant because nobody wanted to spend a day at JFK airport. After all, it was Thanksgiving — when traffic and flight delays are as traditional as turkey and cranberry sauce. Jay Peak was very tempting; it offered huge discounts and the customer- service person sounded very optimistic about the possibility of having green trails open. However, nobody (except me) wanted to drive for seven hours, which steered enthusiasm away from Jay Peak and toward the Stowe ski resort. Stowe customer representatives sounded confident that a skating rink would be open no matter what; they weren’t sure about having beginner trails by the opening day.
Just when I thought that things were going south, my Internet search led me to an unlikely candidate located in southern Vermont – Mount Snow. The Mount Snow ski resort not only offered reasonable rates, but already had a bunny slope and one green trail open. Plus, it was just three and a half hours away from NYC. It worked for us and addressed all of our needs, so the decision was made and a condo was booked in Snow Trees Village — along with lift tickets.
We arrived at Mount Snow early on Thursday, and soon enough realized it was not easy to find someone who could help us locate our condo. Though a bit frustrated, once we finally found the condo, all logistical issues faded away. And how could they not? The one-bedroom place was spacious, had a deck, grill, and a fireplace. Plus, we brought with us a collection of fine spirits, turkey, and cranberry sauce.
Mount Snow early season skiing
The next morning — in good spirits but with heavy hangovers — we drove to the base lodge and, finally, hit the slopes. Certainly, frozen granular, occasional bare ice patches, and a limited number of trails made it difficult to enjoy skiing a whole day. But frankly, it would have been naïve to expect prime season conditions at the end of November. Sure, we hoped for an unexpected snow storm; however, having a great time with friends certainly helped to outweigh the limited November skiing at Mount Snow.
September is now almost over and the 2009/2010 ski season is not that far away. There is always a hope that Mother Nature will bless us with an unexpected blizzard. But even if she does not, it should not terminate your early season plans – just be realistic about certain aspects. Pick a resort that offers various amenities: an outdoor swimming pool, saunas, hot tubs, and a skating rink are great alternatives when the weather turns ugly. And, most importantly, round up a great company of friends!
Mount Snow resort got its name for a reason: The snowmaking crews there make a lot of snow. The Mount Snow resort has more than 250 snowmaking fans, the most fan guns in the entire North America. When the ski season starts in November, they start coating the mountain’s four faces, 87 trails, and 12 freestyle parks with white powder. Add 156 inches of average annual snowfall, and you will get a Vermont ski resort with huge snow base depths and varied terrain – all just four hours away from NYC.
Mount Snow resort
Mount Snow prides itself on opening early in November and closing in late April. My first visit there came over Thanksgiving weekend a couple years ago, and I can personally attest to the fact that they do everything possible to have decent early season runs. The caprices of the weather in the northeast can make skiing conditions quite unpredictable, so make no mistake about it – icy crust is very common here. However, for a snow-starved skier in the northeast, icy corduroy is better than no frozen granular at all, and the management at Mount Snow resort seems to understand it by having 10 to 15 trails open during the very early season.
On my consequent ski trips to Mount Snow resort, I encountered various snow conditions but for the most part had quite positive experiences. There is plenty of terrain for all skills and levels; however, intermediate and advanced skiers should have a better choice. While the green trails are generally wide and gentle enough for beginners, icy conditions often make the trails quite challenging. Also, consider the length of certain trails. For example, Long John and Deer Run are very nice cruisers running from the summit; however, they are quite long and could be strenuous on total beginners armed only with the “pizza pie” stopping technique. Knowing how to control your skis and speed is extremely helpful in these situations and you should not overestimate your skills when it comes down to alpine skiing or snowboarding.
At the same time, there are plenty of trails for skiers and snowboarders comfortable in linking turns and taking on all levels of the beginner and intermediate terrain. The Main Face is a home for many signature trails including Snowdance, Standard, and above-mentioned Long John and Deer Run. However, if you are desperate to push the limits – and your luck – there is the whole North Face to do that. The majority of the trails are kept ungroomed for those who need extra adrenaline, steep pitches, and moguls. Aside from the famed Ripcord, an often icy and steep double black diamond trail, there are five glades for skiers and snowboarders preferring ripping through the wooded areas.
And, of course, freestylers will enjoy 12 parks, rails, boxes, and tree skiing areas at Mount Snow resort. On the top of it, there is a mini-pipe for those learning tricks, and a super-pipe build for big air stunts. Needless to say, Carinthia is a freestyle heaven for freestylers who want to learn first Tailgrab or master Frontside 360 Nosegrab. Finally, the Sunbrook area is the place where you can find the scenic cruisers and music blasting from chairlift towers along the Beartrap trail.
Mount Snow resort
At the end of a day, there are many ways to relax. The Mount Snow Grand Summit Health Club is open until 9 p.m.; they have various spa services and a heated outdoor swimming pool that I was told “is an extremely relaxing and romantic thing to do on a quiet starry evening.” There are also dozens of restaurant and bars in the area, including the Snow Barn bar that has a reputation for the best pizza in the valley.
While the Grand Summit Hotel is a nice place to stay, it is also pretty expensive lodging option. If you are on a budget, consider the condos and townhomes. I stayed in a very nice one-bedroom condo at the Snow Trees complex and can say only positive things about it. It had everything that you might need on a ski vacation: a fireplace, deck, privacy, and access to all amenities offered through the ski resort. It was relatively cheap and a short drive to the main lodge. There was only one problem with that particular lodging option: the roads around Mt. Snow resort. On a day when it rained – welcome to the northeast – and Mother Nature was in a bad mood, slush and mud made certain local roads quite challenging for a regular car.
Yet, having rain, sleet, and snow – all in one weekend – is not unusual for Vermont. The caprices of the weather can make a ski vacation in Vermont akin to a gamble, but 250+ fan snow guns, 80+ trails and just a 4-hour drive from NYC is a risk worth taking.
1) You can view our photostreams from Vermont on Flickr.
I admit that I may hold a rather biased view of Bromley Mountain. After all, I kicked off the 2008-2009 ski season by attempting to snowboard at the “Unforgiving Boarder Cross” Park; I received my first telemark lesson (Stay tuned because we will publish a separate article dedicated to telemark programs at Bromley) there and enjoyed many good powder days at Bromley resort! Though these fond memories no doubt affect my judgment, my friends–who are not as attached to the place–agree that Bromley ski resort is worth a trip to southern Vermont.
Just having fun at Bromley ski resort
There is an appropriate time and place for every adventure, and a ski vacation is no exception. Certain ski resorts are best suited for experts, and some are geared toward beginners. From this perspective, Bromley Ski Resort could be classified as an excellent all-around resort for “weekend” warriors, who log eight to twelve days of skiing per season.
While Bromley resort may not boast the highest vertical, even by Vermont skiing standards, the relatively rare crowds, convenient ski lift system, and diverse ski terrain should satisfy skiers of most levels, including some advanced skiers and snowboarders. A beginner skier or snowboarder will certainly benefit from a couple of days at Bromley mountain. They will appreciate designated ski lifts and gentle terrains for novice skiers and snowboarders. Furthermore, should you need a ski lesson to learn the first turns or to hone existing skills, consider signing up for a group lesson. There is a very good chance that you will receive a private instructor for the price of a group lesson! The morale of a story is that on many weekends–not including certain holidays–Bromley is not crowded at all.
Bromley ski resort on a snowy day in December, 2008.
Bromley Ski Resort is also very telemark friendly. The rental shop has one of the largest selections–at least in the area–of telemark skis and boots. Last year, the resort’s management organized a telemark festival, in which anyone could try demo equipment or sign up for a free clinic that lasted for over three hours. Certainly, if the opportunity arises, the resort will organize similar events this season. So keep your eye on updates and be prepared to give teleturn a shot!
If you are interested in snowboarding and jumps, I would wholeheartedly recommend the Unforgiving Boarder X course, located directly behind the Plaza. Cambered turns, jumps, and turns will test your ability to control your skies and snowboard. Alternatively, you can make your way toward the Sun Mountain Express and ride to the top of the mountain. From the summit, you can consider a myriad of options. One word of advice: if you snowboard, keep your speed up when descending the Pushover and heading toward the main lodge. The connecting trail is quite flat!
In addition to the above features, Bromley ski resort provides excellent lift ticket deals. Personally, I favor the Sunday Afternoon Passport deal, valued at $29. Always check the resort’s Web site for new updates and deals. Chances are that Bromley will have mid-week specials that might even include lunch in one low price.
Once you are done with skiing and riding, you can take a break at the lodge. While the lodge is not particularly fancy–though Bromley mountain provides fancy Tazo teas alongside Lipton–it serves its main task of allowing you to relax, eat, and drink. There are no spas or massage tables–just a gigantic and cozy fireplace, a cafeteria, and a ski shop. Frankly, I think these amenities are more than enough. However, simply because the facilities are not luxury does not mean that the cafeteria will not burn a hole in your plastic card. Prices are comparable to other resorts, and yes, there is a minimum on credit card charges.
One final issue to be aware of is that being nicknamed the Sun Mountain is both a blessing and a curse. On some particularly harsh winter days, the sun can soften ice surfaces and make skiing and riding more pleasurable–unless, of course, you like bobsleighing. However, during the spring ski season, you might wish to find a shadow and corn snow, instead of the puddles and slush that cover many trails. It is simply impossible to ski once the sun rises in late March or early April. Nonetheless, as mentioned above, there is a time and place for every adventure, and ski vacations are not an exception.
1) You can view our photostreams from Vermont on Flickr.
) Compare this deal with adult peak pass at 
VERTEXPRESS ON FLICKR
