It’s in the 50s in Banner Elk this morning; 49° on Beech and over at Cataloochee; and mild everywhere in the Southeast this morning. The high temps ARE the news of the day thus far as they are on their way to an expected 60° or so across the region. Saturday’s temps will be in SHARP contrast to where we were this past Monday, when the highs were in the 20° range and the lows were below zero!
The NORMALS for today in Banner Elk are 42° for a high and 22° for lows. According to Ray Russell of RaysWeather.com, this past Monday’s temps made it the coldest day since January 19, 2005.
…and here we are today expecting a high of 60+ degrees! (Some areas will get close to 70°!
According to the National Weather Service, today will offer some light drizzle at some ski areas (while others further north will enjoy a drier day), Sunday will be more on the "light showers" side with neither day offering anything close to snowmaking opps.
So THE WEEKEND won’t be a pretty one – weatherwise. As far as snow coverage is concerned, most of the ski areas will hold up and make it through the tail end of this MILD PATCH and thankfully we’re seeing the return of WINTER on Monday as temps get close to normal (highs in the mid to upper 40s, and lows in the upper 20s) and allow for some nighttime snowmaking. The next few days after that look a bit cooler, so things will be looking better daily.
MAKING DO WITH WHAT YOU HAVE FOR TODAY…
Some ski areas are simply in better shape than others for today and we’ll just leave it at that. If you are already AT one ski area, then just simply get out and enjoy what you have. It’s better than any ski area that you’ll find back in Tupelo, Mississippi or wherever you’re from if you’re reading this from your lodging this morning. If you haven’t packed up or decided WHERE to ski today, we’d suggest checking the live cams on www.HighCountryWebCams.com and looking at the SLOPE REPORTS page (and compare that info to the weather forecasts via www.HighCountryWeather.com ) and then make your own call for this weekend.
Isn’t it cool as heck to be able to do THAT kind of research on the internet to find the best snow and weather at your fingertips?!?!
Speaking of "internet and making do with what you have" – I am on the road this week, and AT LEAST for today I am making do with internet – parked out in the driveway of a rental unit a half mile from where I am staying this morning because the wireless in my vacation rental isn’t working. That’s a bummer because otherwise I happen to be staying in one heck of a ski getaway MANSION!!! (More about that later!)
So I’m not really "making do" except for the internet thing…and hopefully FrontierNet is going to have someone get that fixed today. Once I’m not parked in a car in someone’s driveway, I’ll update you guys with more news, pics and videos.
I know that I’ll hear from some of you about the fact that "one shouldn’t be working on a ski getaway" but that’s "the way I roll" during ski season.
…and Speaking of Rolling…
I’m going to head out for some first tracks of my own this morning and I’ll give you guys some first hand news of the conditions here at beautiful Snowshoe Mountain.
I heard the groomers doing their thing before the sun rose this morning on some of the Sawmill side of the mountain. I watched groomers at Appalachian making for some good conditions there.
Our pick for where to go ski or ride today would be —-
Naw. I’m not going to do that today. What I will tell you is to use the tools that you have right here on this website. Check out the cams, check out the slope report page and look at the weather report – and then get your gear together and go hit the slopes.
So what if it isn’t pristine and worthy of a "Kodak moment". You will have a good time and you’ll thank me for it!
Just to be clear, there’s PLENTY of snow and skiable terrain at all the resorts to enjoy your day. Some weather forecasts are simply better than others across the Southeast and Mid Atlantic for today and some resorts have a better product than others for today and this weekend.
However, EVERY RESORT’S management crews are REALLY scrambling and doing their best to provide you and I with the best product that they can give us today – with the weather being the driving force. I know some of you will email me that one resort does a better job than the other, or that this or that resort doesn’t have as good of snowmaking plant – others will argue that some don’t invest in their system as good as "xyz rsort" and those are all valid points. However, until you walk a mile in some of the shoes that run our different ski areas, we shouldn’t judge too harshly…at least I don’t feel like doing that today.
My point is that at least until the temps drop back into more Winter-like numbers over the next day or two – I’m taking my "critic hat off" and just going to go out and "make do" with what we’ve got for today. Depending on where YOU are skiing today, some of you will find some pretty awesome conditions and remarkable snow coverage in the face of the recent weather pattern – and some of you will see some thin coverage and a bare area or two.
For now, check the slope reports, webcams and weather – and let me get out of this guy’s driveway!!!
Until later today…(hopefully)…come on FrontierNet, show me some love…
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