Don’t call it a comeback.
Well, maybe you can call it a comeback. We’ve got fresh snow at Beech, Snowshoe, Sugar, Winterplace, Timberline, and Canaan Valley Resort.
Snowshoe looks like it’s the big winner for snowfall totals, as the resort has seen 10 inches of fresh snow in just the last 48 hours alone. Canaan has landed 6-9 inches, and while rain hit the North Carolina High Country on Saturday, 2.3 inches of fresh stuff at Sugar and 2 inches at Beech are a nice parting gift for anyone who booked a trip in anticipation of that monster forecast.
My morning was spent at Massanutten yesterday.
After a soggy powder-day-turned-rainboarding-session on Saturday, I awoke to clear skies and temperatures in the 30s in Harrisonburg, Virginia on Sunday morning. And a bluebird day with hardly any chairlift lines was as good almost like an apology from Mother Nature for the miscommunication the day before.
There were 11 trails open at Massanutten and six lifts spinning. Upper and Lower Diamond Jim were occupied by some USASA slalom racers – bother skiers and snowboarders, which I love to see – but the part of the trail that wasn’t occupied by obstacles was ripping.
Upper and Lower Showtime were the day’s top dog. The upper portion of the run was relatively uncrowded during the mid-morning, with plenty of room for carving without interrupting the line of anyone behind you. Of course, if you have a need for speed, you point those tips downhill and send it straight. But just a warning if that’s your plan: the Ridge Triple lift drops riders off at the halfway point – at the top of Lower Showtime. There will be skiers and snowboarders starting their runs at the point where you are probably gaining the most speed. So check yourself if it’s an icy day, and be able to maneuver out of anyone else’s way. Stay in control!
As for Lower Nutten-To-It, its terrain park boasted the same features at it did before. I made a few appearances in there, but the ski and snowboard team was in the park throwing 360s and 540s, so after a few attempts, I got out of there as fast as possible to avoid embarrassing myself in front of literal children.
The most surprising thing to me during my two-and-a-half days (I only fit in a night session after a full day of work and travel on Friday) at Massanutten was this: Despite an absolute downpour of rain, despite temperatures that were drastically varying between 9 a.m. and 9 p.m., the snow was soft and playful, and even surfy, throughout the resort’s entire open terrain. I cannot stress enough how impressive that is. That doesn’t usually happen.
Yes, there was some ice during Friday night’s session. And there was a whole lot of crust off to the sides on Saturday. But Sunday morning, you’d hardly recognize there was any adverse weather at all.
And reader MeiMei Ma was there for the afternoon session, and picked up the slack after I left. She captured a beautiful shot from atop the Peak Express.
For anyone making the trek to Massanutten from North Carolina’s Triangle, I must strongly suggest stopping at one of the few breweries, vineyards, or distilleries along the way (or barbecue joints, if you don’t drink). It’s a great way to breakup the drive, for humans and dogs alike.
Without any more delay, here’s what else you need to know about skiing and riding in the southeast today:
Beech
Two inches of freshies today. Go enjoy that before the projected rain later this week.
Discord user Long Jawn Silver was at Beech yesterday. Here’s what they had to say:
Super sweet day out at Beech today! It brought down the goods at a pretty steady rate, I’d say accumulating up to about 2 inches at most. It hurt quite a bit that Chair 5 was down, resulting in long lines everywhere. That combined with the already long ride to the summit of Beech made me feel like I was spending more time that I’d like doing everything but skiing, but hey no complaints with the natural stuff coming down.”
Just a reminder, tomorrow night is student night. Ski and ride for $15 with a valid student ID card, progress report, or report card.
Snowshoe
We’ve got 10 inches in just two days at Snowshoe! The goods keep on coming. Discord user Davidski1963 was there yesterday. Here’s his report:
Upper Shay opened , went for the second run after the rope drop gold rush. It was good. Generally whole Western Territory has been great outside of the…rain event. Mystifying why signature runs like Widowmaker are still far from open. Crowds today were non-existent at Ballhooter especially, that was fun and remarkable.”
Canaan Valley Resort
Canaan landed another 4 inches of snow overnight. If you’re keeping score at home, that’s 9 inches in the last 24 hours, Nearly 10 inches in the last three days, and 15.1 inches of fresh snowfall since the start of the new year.
A shoutout to Sean Rowan for this video that captures the feel of the valley lately.
The Rest
Don’t forget: Clear your calendar from February 9-11. That’s when Massanutten and SkiSoutheast will host team up to host our summit. It’s a great way to meet like-minded, snow-loving people, and possibly make some lifelong friends in the process.
Thanks to everyone that has already joined us on Discord.
Think snow!
Think cold!
Click here to join us on our new SkiSoutheast Discord channel. It is a great way to meet new snow loving friends and shares experiences, ask questions, and more!
And as always, email me at [email protected] with your thoughts and photos.