Author: ml242

Mount Washington Season Finale

Posted on by ml242

During the ski season I’ve said it often: “You don’t know ’til you go.” But last week — after Memorial Day and before the first heat wave of the summer season — wasn’t one of those times.

Mount-Washington

Not exactly. You see, I’d been watching the weather closely and was really optimistic about the skiing on Mount Washington. The Memorial Day snowfall closed the auto road on Saturday and reduced skier traffic in the ravine to those willing to come up via the trail. But snow conditions were only one part of my calculation.

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Tagged: Backcountry, Mt Washington, NH8 Comments

Closing Day at Sugarbush, VT

Posted on by ml242

In one of the more amazing closing days I can remember, Sugarbush decided to reopen for free skiing on May fourth. Skiing in May is an adventure no matter where you might be, on a glacier, a volcano, or a strip of man-made snow in Vermont.

Sugarbush-VT-Snowboarder

We’ve all heard the rumors that resorts don’t like to stay open late into the spring, because people move on to other activities.

Today, the crowd wasn’t buying it, and neither was the resort. There was a parade of spring revelers, removing clothes or donning costumes to shred the one remaining slope.

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Tagged: Sugarbush, VT4 Comments

A Farewell to Winter in the Catskills

Posted on by ml242

No two ski seasons are ever the same, even if the locations remain a constant. I spent another closing day at Plattekill this year, but I didn’t wear my Yankees hat, or even ski in a t-shirt like so many other times.

View-Towards-Powder-Puff

On our first ride up, the trees were encased in thick ice, evidence of a freezing mist that had blown through a couple of days earlier. Conditions started relatively fast but were quick to soften. There was no White Ribbon of Death, the snow was simply too forgiving.

Beyond the unseasonable weather, it was classic Plattekill. We were practically alone on the hill. The other cars in the lot certainly didn’t add up to lift lines or entangled skiers on the slopes.

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Tagged: Catskills, Plattekill4 Comments