Update (3pm) – We’re getting a little more snow still…and cold temps are definately THE NEWS! Also, we just posted the new Ski Poll that we alluded to in yesterday’s "Warren Miller" story – check it out and VOTE! Thanks!
You can see by the webcams at www.HighCountryWebCams.com that we got (and some areas are still getting) a light dusting of snow overnight. That’s great for the snowlovers headed to the mountains for the weekend. A little snow never hurts to excite the masses!
The shot of Beech Mountain Parkway is still showing some snow falling and a good dusting of white. The Blowing Rock road cam on Hwy 321 at the Shoppes on the Parkway is showing a mix of sun and clouds and almost NO snow on the ground. There must have been a power outage overnight because all of the Blowing Rock cams repositioned themselves. We aimed the Sunset Drive cam back up the street and there’s sunny skies there!
By going to some of the camera views in the more western portions of the state, like Little Switzerland, Spruce Pine or Lake James, you can tell that the snow is all but over as sunny skies prevail.
As of this post it is still cloudy and snowy up at Beech and Sugar, pretty at Appalachian. We’ve also zoomed the Extreme Front Sugar Cam in some and boosted the upload to every two seconds and you can see a decent crowd there already.
I don’t know about you guys, but we’re ready for some serious trends of good snowfalls…you know the one-foot variety. For now though…this cold snap is good for all of the resorts.
All of the ski areas cranked up the guns and all have done a little snow maintenance to get the thin areas taken care of and we should have a GREAT weekend of skiing.
The temp right now at Ski Beech is only 19°, Sugar is showing 25°, Blowing Rock is at 29°…which shows the variances that can happen in the one region of the High Country alone. As the crow flies from Beech to Blowing Rock…it’s not but a 5-10 minute flight!
Cataloochee is showing 34° at 1pm, Snowshoe in West Virginia is showing 19° (same as Beech); Winterplace is reporting 25°.
So it’s COLD out, wrap up in layers and protect your face as it will be a little on the breezy side.
According to the National Weather Service most of the snow is exiting the
Conditions should be GREAT no matter where you choose to ski as whatever small, thin coverage or bare areas there were yesterday are now history. When temps are in the 20s as they are now, the resorts can do great things with snow groomers and snowguns.
Have fun out there!
In closing — We receive emails from people all the time talking about the great service that they get (some complain as well) but I thought we share a nice email from a visitor doing business with Jeff Price Tennis and Ski in Columbia, SC. I am familiar with these guys and thought they could use the plug:
"I just wanted everyone to know what great folks we have here in South Carolina that work in the ski industry. Troy and Kristy of Jeff Price Tennis and Ski have been phenomenal to work with. They have bent over backwards to take care of me as if I were someone important. They made sure I was fitted properly and stylishly, literally, from my head to my toes. Troy and Kristy have gone out of their way by making special orders, making exchanges, and answering my endless questions. It’s as if their goal is to make me happy instead of trying to sell me something. Wouldn’t it be nice if we found this kind of service in every business???
Thanks,
Carolyn Walker
Lexington, SC