Crunchy conditions in the Northeast to say the least… It was 32F in the Smuggs parking lot at 7:15 am, and I was wondering what I was doing there… We received about 1″ of ice last night – I was hoping for snow – and that sealed the surface and made everything bullet proof. The parking was a sheet of ice, and I had a tough time putting my boots on since it was so slippery! However, I was lucky enough to start skinning right after the groomer had made a pass, otherwise, it would have been impossible, as the non groomed surfaces are shear ice.
Still a lot of snow in the woods, but sadly, the surface is too icy to ski.
I went up the long way today since I was in no hurry to catch up with the groomers, and enjoyed a nice leisurely stroll up the mountain. As it was, I reached the top before the ski patrol came up – and I assumed they had a delayed opening this morning due to grooming. I had to enjoy the fresh corduroy all on my own… I took the long way down, and the corduroy was pretty nice, but the base is definitely very hard. Check my Instagram feed for some videos with sound to hear what it sounds like on the non-groomed terrain!
Note the little tree completely encased in ice… tough little guy!
The forecast is for above freezing temps to persist until tomorrow afternoon, when it drops like a rock down to 5F for Saturday, with a -30F windchill. Skiing every day will be a challenge, even at the resort, until we get new snow…
Manon Belzile 