The rain is not a great thing for the ski resorts…but it sure was nice to see the Watauga River FULL yesterday afternoon on my way home. It was still nearly full this morning on my way in to work. The bottom line is that we need the rain so you’ll hear no major gripes here this morning.
We received a bunch of emails this morning from people griping about how warm it was yesterday. Where were you guys for the last four weeks when temps were BELOW NORMAL for almost the entire period? If you didn’t like Monday, you’ll hate Tuesday! This morning we are seeing the following temperatures:
Beech Mountain – 49.7°
Sugar Mountain – 47°
Banner Elk – 41.8°
Hawksnest – 39.3°
Tuesday will be a great day to ski and ride particularly if you’ve been wanting to do so in shorts and a tee shirt! Sunny BLUE SKIES and highs that will approach record numbers are in store for those of us that plan to hit a mountain today. The forecast is for a high near 65° around the High Country.
Things are STILL looking on schedule for cold temps to return Wednesday night and we should see some snowmaking. Wednesday, Thursday and Friday nights will drop to near 25°. After some showers on Wednesday – Thursday and Friday look sunny. The weekend still looks somewhat snowy with highs in the 30s and lows in the 20s.
So make those reservations and get on up here!
A couple of people emailed to ask about records for this day…since we may break one or two today. Banner Elk saw a high of 65° on this day back in 1944. G-L-O-B-A-L W-A-R-M-I-N-G was going on back in the 40s, we were just too stupid to know it, right? Ha!
We took a quick tour around the webcams and we watched as some S-L-O-W, sweet grooming was taking place at Appalachian and Cataloochee and they look great this morning. App is 100% open with both terrain parks and ice skating!
<Hawksnest doing some sweet grooming this AM.
Hawksnest has done some great snow maintenance this morning as they have covered up those thin areas from Monday, and they are still grooming as we watch this morning and they are laying down some sweet corduroy that will make for very nice conditions there today. We’re reporting 9 trails open today as they have not updated their ski report since Groundhog Day. Maybe their stuck in that movie!
We spoke with Tom over at Sapphire Valley again this morning and they WERE able to get open on Monday and they are planning on opening today. They will be closed Wednesday and Thursday and then see what kind of cold air that they get Wednesday and Thursday nights for snowmaking and then make a decision for this weekend. So we are advising to call ahead if you’re interested in playing at Sapphire.
<Base area at Ski Beech is looking a bit thin
Ski Beech is not reporting any thin coverage, but they are evident this morning. They still have plenty of side-to-side coverage, but a look at the webcams this morning shows that the bottom of the mountain is looking pretty thin and there are bare areas up top as well. It looks like they have already completed grooming and things look pretty smooth…and will provide some good skiing and riding for Tuesday…just steer clear of the brown stuff.
The skies are already clearing as of 8:25am as we move through the ski areas to file this report and Beech looks pretty nice! Go enjoy.
Sugar Mountain looks darn nice this morning from top to bottom with only a hint of a thin area around trail merges. They are 100% open and offer skiing, snowboarding, ice skating at their new 10,000 sf ice rink and tubing as well!
<Wolf Looks Pretty Good
Wolf Ridge dropped a couple of open trails and now offer 14 of 20 and groomed conditions. They also have their terrain park open and snow tubing as well. They have a good base right now, but their sides are beginning to creep in.
SAME DAY, EQUAL CONDITIONS? No.
Several of our readers tried to "boost things up" by emailing us to ask US various questions as top why "xyz resort" seemed to always have worse conditions that "abc resort" etc.
The truth is when the weather is optimal – ALL resorts can provide good conditions. Some resorts simply do a better job of snowmaking and grooming and that is JUST THE WAY IT IS. It would be nice if all ski areas offered their season pass holders an equal product, but that would be unrealistic. The simple fact is, it at THESE TIMES when the weather is not optimal and we get a little rain and thaw…that you see the cream rise to the top.
It is a shame when a resort consistently seems to lag behind the others in terms of snowmaking, grooming and snow maintenance but we’ll just say that you guys should reward those that consistently put their best product out there – with your hard-earned money. We think that we’re seeing evidence of that within your emails and on the webcams.
I know if I ran a ski area, that my number one priority would be to sacrifice a little initial revenue to create snow at every opportunity, and I’d invest in more than the usual grooming equipment such that I don’t have to hurry my way around the slopes. I’d send a message to all potential visitors that MY snow would be equal to or better than everyone else’s no matter the day.
Of course as a wise person once told me, "It is EASY to walk in someone else’s shoes … when you don’t have to wear them everyday."
Just a thought.
So for those of you who emailed us over the last 48 hours trying to rile things up. We’ll take a pass for today and just sit back and watch the cams with you guys!
CHECK THE SLOPE CONDITIONS PAGE FOR THE DETAILS FOR EACH SKI AREA…
Enjoy your day…
Until Next time…
Be sure to visit www.SkiSoutheast.com for more news from the rest of the Southeast and Mid Atlantic ski areas!
Send your snow photos, videos, comments or emails to: [email protected]