For the second morning in a row the temps were hovering around 12° as I crossed the Watauga River on my way into work. I couldn’t help but notice the rhododendron rolled up tighter than some cigars I’ve seen. The river had some ice in it as well. It’s pretty cold out!
The cold spots in the state are at Sugar and Beech Mountains where they dipped as low as 7° overnight and they are making snow…as did all of the North Carolina ski areas. Conditions are simply awesome for today and you’re missing out if you have not made it out on the slopes this season!
There are great deals to be had…so get your gear and your rears up here and enjoy some of the best ski conditions in years!
THE WEATHER LOOKS GOOD FOR THE NEXT COUPLE OF DAYS…and then "interesting" says Meteorologist, Matthew East
Matthew was skiing at Appalachian Ski Mountain on Monday and reported great conditions. I think it’s great when our state’s weather guys can get on a mountain and see for themselves how ski conditions are. A lot of time even these guys seem to think that ski conditions aren’t phenomenal after just a day or two of mild weather. Of course, it has been anything but mild for the last few days and conditions are great.
Matthew forecasts that will remain the case for the next couple of days even as some milder air enters the region for Wednesday and Thursday. Past that, he stated clearly that he has no confidence in forecasting for the weekend. He states that weather models are all over the place about this weekend’s forecast. Some are calling for a good snow event, some are calling for rain. We’ll keep you updated as we get 24 hours closer on Wednesday.
Also behind that system is colder air again and that bodes well for continued great skiing and riding into late February and into March!
CHRISTINE JOLLY SAYS "THANKS"
Christine and I corresponded a bit on Monday and she asked that we post her note of thanks to all concerned over the great turnout on Saturday at Ski Beech. She writes:
Dear Friends of SKiNC-
The Summit at Ski Beech on Saturday was awesome! We hope that everyone enjoyed themselves as much as we did. We laughed, we cried, but most importantly we skied! The weather was perfect; we are certain that Jon Jolly put in an order for that truly glorious day. We give our sincerest thanks for your generosity, love, and amazing financial support of Helena’s Educational Fund. My heart swells with grateful tears when I think that many generously donated in memory of man that they had only known as, “parisandrewsdaddy” and not met in person. For others that got a chance to meet him in person, they came to realize he was a proud father, a loving husband, a passionate skier, and general lover of life at its most extreme.
We can’t thank the SKiNC family and Ski Beech enough. The Summit of 2009 at Ski Beech was part of a grand celebration of life.
Thanks again,
Christine and Helena Jolly
Editor’s Note: Others have emailed that they are sending donations directly to Piedmont Federal for Helena and that is cool to hear. Jeff Jackson, aka "jeffryc" on the messageboard or "Captain America" due to his old-school, red, white and blue ski gear wrote, " Mike, I just sent a check for $100.00 directly to Piedmont Federal. I still start tearing up when I look at the front page picture. Thanks Mike! "
No – thank YOU Jeff.
If you’re interested in donating here’s the information one more time:
HELENA JOLLY EDUCATIONAL FUND
c/o PIEDMONT FEDERAL SAVINGS BANK
PO BOX 215
WINSTON SALEM NC 27102-0215
Reported Bases & Slopes Open:
Appalachian Ski Mountain – 85-112" – 100% Open with all 10 trails – Made snow but off during sessions.
Cataloochee Ski Area – 49-94" – 100% open with all 14 trails – Made snow
Ski Beech – 36-70" – Open with 12 of 15 trails – Making snow as long as temps allow
Sugar Mountain – 50-100" – 100% open with all 20 trails – Making snow as long as temps allow.
Wolf Ridge – 48-68" – Open with 11 of 20 trails – Making snow as long as temps allow.
Lots more is happening around the region…Be sure to click over to www.SkiSoutheast.com to see
what’s happening into the Virginias, Tennessee, and Maryland ski resort areas.
Send your comments, photos, videos and trip reports to: [email protected]