Tuesday, December 31, 2013

Nordic Skiing is Closed for Now

We received some wet precipitation overnight on Sunday which is being followed by cold temperatures Monday and Tuesday. This has caused the snow on the Nordic terrain to freeze up pretty solidly. There is a very thin base on the trails and this will prevent us from getting a groomer out on the terrain to soften it up. Due to these conditions we are currently closed for Nordic skiing until we get some more snow. If you'd still like to get out into the woods for a bit, we will be open for snowshoeing, just watch your step on the firm surface.

Saturday, December 28, 2013

Nordic Terrain is Open

The Nordic Center will be open today for ungroomed cross-country skiing on our lower elevation trails. Our Ski Patrol and Mountain Operations staff were able to check on conditions this morning and determined that we have enough snowpack to for daily skiing. However, due to some bare spots, water bars and an icy base, we recommend skis with metal edges. Please note that while we've received some natural snowfall in the past few days, conditions are still considered early-season and are for advanced skiers only. Trail tickets will be $10.
Skiing not in your repertoire? You are welcome to go out for a snowshoe. We're renting snowshoes for $20, and your trail ticket also includes complementary use of our Sports Center, which offers a pool, hot tub and games.
When skiing on ungroomed natural snow trails, please be aware of hidden and unmarked obstacles, such as waterbars, stumps, rocks, and thin areas. And, keep in mind that conditions may change throughout the day. Hiking or skiing when we are closed is prohibited.

Friday, December 27, 2013

Nordic Center Still on Standby

The Nordic Center will remain closed for skiing until we get more snow. 

The base isn't deep enough to support daily traffic right now, and running skis over it would just damage it further. We won't be able to get a groomer out on the snow because the base is thin and there are many bare spots on the trails. 

However, you are welcome to go out for a snowshoe. We're renting snowshoes for $20 and trail tickets will be $10. Keep in mind that a trail ticket also includes complementary use of our Sports Center, which offers a pool, hot tub and games.

Don't forget, Nordic Season Passes are still on sale as well as the Nordic 10 and Nordic 5 Packs, which come loaded with 5 or 10 trail tickets that you can use any time this season.

Stay tuned for more updates when we get some more snowfall.

Monday, December 23, 2013

Open for Snowshoeing

We've had a few days of warm and wet weather that significantly reduced the snow pack on the Nordic Terrain. We are now beginning a string of days where temperatures will be below freezing. This will cause the snow that is left on the Nordic terrain to freeze up pretty tightly. We won't be able to get a groomer out on the snow because the base is thin and there are many bare spots on the trails. The Nordic Center will remain closed for skiing until we get more snow. However, you are welcome to go out for a snowshoe. We will be renting snowshoes for $20 and trail tickets will be just $5. 

Please Stay Off The Nordic Trails

A request and a reminder this morning. Due to the warm and wet weather we have closed the Nordic Center until further notice. We have lost a lot of snow on the terrain and the snow that remains is extremely soft. We are asking that everyone please stay off of the terrain until we open again. We are trying to keep the snow that is still there in good shape, staying off of the snow will help. 

Thanks for your understanding. Hopefully we'll get some more snow soon so we can open back up!

Sunday, December 22, 2013

Nordic Center Temporarily Closed

Have you seen the Winooski River lately? Then you've seen our Nordic terrain.

It's kind of a mess out there following yesterday's rain, and with the ice storm last night, Nordic and backcountry trails will be closed until further notice. That terrain is completely dependent on natural snowfall, and this weekend's weather event washed away any base depths we had developed over the last week. The trails just can't handle any daily traffic right now. We want to ensure the best possible experience in our backcountry, and it's simply no fun skiing out there at this time.

We'll reassess in the coming days, once we clean up from this storm, and we should have a better idea of when our Nordic will open up again soon. But it looks like we're going to need a big Christmas gift of snow from Mother Nature

~Mike.

Tuesday, December 17, 2013

Rounding Into Shape

We've picked up about a foot and a half of snow in the past seven days. All the new snow is helping to get the Nordic and backcountry terrain into decent shape. The trails above Bryant are skiing quite well. We did some skate grooming on Sunday and you'll find that grooming (covered by a couple inches of snow) on Broadway, World Cup, Picnic Loop and Valley Loop. We plan to freshen up Nordic grooming on Wednesday. While conditions are improving keep in mind that they are still considered early-season and will be for advanced skiers only. There are water bars and thin areas on the trails. Nordic tickets will be $10 today.

Saturday, December 14, 2013

Nordic Is Open!

I've got some great news for all the Nordic fans out there - we're open for the season!

Our patrol staff went through some of our Nordic terrain yesterday and determined that the 6 inches of fresh snow we received was enough to open. Now, keep in mind that since Nordic is completely dependent on natural snowfall, it's still thin coverage and early season conditions out there. Expect to see a few water bars and such every so often. Skiing is for advanced skiers only at this time. 

With that said, we're 100 percent open and we'll be offering $8 tickets for all Nordic skiers this weekend. Broadway, Maple Loop and Spruce were all groomed for skate-skiing. That's five kilometers of fresh terrain for you to enjoy. If we get hit with some more snow tonight, (and we're expecting we will) that should allow for much better coverage across the Nordic and backcountry terrain.

Have fun and be safe!

~Mike

Wednesday, December 11, 2013

Nordic Terrain Currently On Hold

We plan to open for alpine skiing and riding on Friday December, 13th. 

Since there is no snowmaking on the Nordic terrain, we are fully reliant on natural snow, therefore Nordic often opens later than the alpine trails. 

A little bit of recent snowfall has helped out the base a little, putting a couple inches on top of a frozen base on most of our Nordic terrain. Our mountain ops crew will take a look soon to see if we can get a limited amount of terrain open for this weekend. 

Keep checking back here - hopefully we'll know more later today or tomorrow morning.

UPDATE: It looks like there isn't quite enough of a base to open Nordic terrain in conjunction with alpine skiing and riding this weekend. It needs about 5-8" of solid wet, heavy snow to create a good base, and we're a little shy of that amount right now. As such, barring some significant snowfall in the next two days, we don't anticipate having Nordic open until at least next week.

Friday, December 6, 2013

Welcome to Winter 2013!

Hello, Bolton Valley!


I'm Mike and I'm the new Snow Reporter for the '13-'14 season. I'm stoked to be here at Bolton and I can't wait to get to know everyone. We're going to be doing some really fun things with the Snow Report this year, so be sure to follow that when we open up next week.

Now, trust me when I tell you we're all as excited as you are about getting up on the slopes again, and fortunately, after a bit of a warm spell, we're looking at some colder temps outside today. Overnight drizzles turned into snow early this morning, and we've picked up about an inch or so of the white stuff. It's currently 29 degrees and overcast here at the base, and it looks like we could be seeing some more snow showers starting this evening and on-and-off through Monday night.

Our snow makers are also expected to start working their magic again tonight. So that's awesome.

We're in full-on winter mode here around the resort and hopefully you're all ready to get going when we open up on December 14th. With a little luck, who knows - we might even be able to start the season on Friday the 13th instead.

So, who's got dibs on first chair?

~Mike

Happy Holidays $25 Lift Ticket Special Love to rip all the early-season turns? This is your chance.
  • Lift tickets from Opening Day through December 25th are just $25 when you purchase online by December 15th. You'll get an email with a print-at-home voucher that you can use any day from Opening Day through Dec. 25th. This makes a great early holiday gift for friends or family. Or, heck, treat yourself! You deserve it.

  • $65 Happy Holiday ski and stay lodging package. When you book a slopeside hotel room for two and arrive on one of the twelve days from December 13-24, you pay only $65 per person for a night of lodging and a day of skiing. 
    • Includes continental breakfast and free access to our Sports Center which includes an indoor pool, hot tub and sauna.
  • Get a 5 lift ticket package for less that the price of 3 when you purchase by Dec. 15. Redeemable at any time during the '13-'14 season.
  • On December 15th, guests dressed in full Santa Suits will receive a FREE lift ticket for the day.