Weekend Links

Here are a few quick time kills for the weekend.

Story from ABC News on Breckenridge Avalanche rescue dogs.  LINK

Form Powder Magazine Daron Rahlves training for ski cross, helmet cam POV.



Think Snow,
The Ski Guru

Revelstoke POV Footage from 1/2/10

This is pretty good.  Almost makes one want to go up to Canada.



Great White North RULES!

Bolton Valley, VT = Go Now

***Deal Alert***

Bolton Valley has really good snow.

pic from BV - taken 1/4

Best in VT from “The Blizzard” and they have been killing it all season. Here the lodging deals.

Call 877-9BOLTON to book

Stay Slopeside for just $69

From January 3-14, 2010 midweek rooms at the slopeside Inn at Bolton Valley are just $69 per night

$99* Holiday Ski and Stay Rate

Ski and stay slopeside over Martin Luther King weekend (1/15/10 - 1/17/10)

Get There - easy drive from Boston. Three hours on decent roads, speeding. Nidght skiing is a check.  Cool - wish you were there, check plus.

pic from BV - taken 12/30

Obviously the skiing is getting better.

Think Snow!

Saddleback, Maine = Snow Dominance!

Rangeley, ME - Since New Year's Eve Saddleback has received 38” - 48” of new SNOW!

The new snow totals at Saddleback trumped all others in the region. More cold air and snow in their forecast. The resort is currently operating with 64 open runs and has already tallied 114 inches of snow this season.

photo from Saddleback, skier Steve Prince

The Ski Guru loves this somewhat under the radar ski area. It presides in a town better known for snowmobiling and fishing (most of the trails named after fly patterns). Saddleback is a long hall from the major population centers of New England. Not an excuse. It is a must visit. The mountain has been going gangbusters in the past few years, building infrastructure around the outstanding terrain.

Major recent improvements

• A new chairlift (Kennebago Quad) which replaced the old T-bar (video below) 
• An enormous swath of glade terrain (Casablanca) that was able to open officially for the first time with the incredible new snow totals
• A state of the art base lodge, only a few seasons old

Keep thinking Snow, we got the cold air!

*** Update*** Squaw Valley USA

The Squaw Valley ski area has seen its share of snow this season.

simply put

• So far over 13' of snow
• December total 127 inches
• Base depths measure 50-70” at elevation 8,000 ft (Squaw’s peak elevation is 9050 ft).
• Squaw Valley has already received over a third of its average annual snowfall = 450”

Internet sidewalk find

Helmet cam video from Freeskier

Late night Snow Reporting 12/28/09

Always been a fan of making the phone calls for local intel when it comes to snow.

First call 10:46 pm ET

The Belfry 05471

reporter = no answer

Until moral improves...

...the snow will continue.

Another dose for Lake Tahoe and surrounding ski areas.



Sometimes The Ski Guru prefers Intellicast radar.

Word is flights are cheap to Tahoe around MLK weekend. Check Expedia or Kayak.

Deal Grabber from The Beast

The Ski Guru does not really feel comfortable calling K~town "The Beast" and does not like that moniker.

The Ski Guru is a big fan of the Deal Grabber launched last year. What is out there right now could be a winning ticket for Friday 1/8/10.

On sale Thurs, Dec. 31, 2009 from 8:00 am - 11:59 pm

100 tickets available for each day
For Monday 1/4/10 through Friday 1/8/10
$60 per ticket per day

Execute - supplies are limited. A normal midweek adult ticket is $77 - when you walk up to window.

Good deal Killington.

Off we go!

A couple weeks ago The Ski Guru was talking about Sniper Snow in the Northern Greens. The ski areas from Whiteface (4") to Jiminy Peak (3") have received snow today.

Click SnoCountry for NE updates.
This snow could float the Northeast into 2010.

image from Intellicast.com


Think Snow!

Powder Alert - Sugarbush decked with SNOW!

Less than 20 hours ago The Ski Guru was telling you about how Sugarbush was able to open an additional 6 runs because of the new snow they had received. I further insinuated that everyone at the resort was smiling while thinking about the season ahead. As I type this I doubt that even the most optimistic among them could have possibly imagined what is going to happen.

Castlerock, the mountains most famous expert terrain, is opening tomorrow (12/12) at 10 am. The lift line for the double will be long. There may still be a rock or two exposed, but the skiing will be off the hook. Check this LINK for all the details you need to know.


The area has benefited from what one of my friends up there like to refer to as “Sniper Snow”. More specifically that is defined as localized bursts of accumulation that the Northern Greens are often subject to as cold air plows over Lake Champlain, picks up moister from the unfrozen water, and dumps snow on the mountains as it tills over the peaks heading east.

This is real and it does happen. If you are looking to make some turns this weekend the Mad River Valley is a great destination to put in your sight (pun intended). The neighbor area, Mad River Glen, is also opening with a plethora of powder. Go up and get some!

Here is a LINK to some of today’s photos of the fresh POW POW POW!


Keep thinking Snow!

Lake Tahoe is getting Destroyed with SNOW

***Deal Alert***

Heavenly is still selling season passes for $369.00 - which is a deal. Check this LINK for details. Only 5 days left to get involved at time of entry.

Snow report: 10" today, 34" in last 48 hours = POWDER


Here is a video from Heavenly.

Ski Tahoe Powder!

Front Running in the Powder department = The Pacific Northwest

If you have not been paying attention The Ski Guru thinks now is a good time to start. The mountains in the PNW have picked up unprecedented snows so far this November. A few weeks ago I saw this article on the Powder Magazine website that raved about an 80 inch dump at Mount Baker in Washington (cool photos).

I reached out to a friend out at Mount Bachelor in OR to get the scoop. The resort opened to the public with lift serviced skiing and riding this weekend. The base this morning was up to a solid 39” after receiving 20” of fresh snow since Friday. The forecasts are calling for a mix of sunshine and snow showers through Thanksgiving weekend. Not a bad pick for some turns in if you can manage it into your schedule.

Here is a video clip the resort put together for opening day…enjoy.




Think Snow!

The sun gets up early.

The Ski Guru knows you need to as well if you want to make tracks in powder. More coming soon, will be at full speed in mid December...

Get the gear tuned.

photo ~ sunrise from Moonlight Basin, MT

PS ~ this lead entry could be my submission for the worst writting of the season contest.