Cannon,Burke,Loon 3/6-3/9 (with pics)

[Buckeye Skier 1330]

We made our yearly trip up to New England this past week. We based out of North Lincoln NH just down the road from Cannon and Loon.
The first 2 days were spent at Cannon and it was very good. The blacks were a little scratchy but the blues were in good shape most of the day. I really liked the Ravines and Cannon runs. When my wife took a break I explored Taft Slalom and Upper Hardscrabble along with Vista Way. They were pretty thin in spots but also had some smallish bumps that were right up my alley. The Tram was fun to ride but a pain to get to. I was impressed with how fast the Cannonball Express was, along with the Peabody you really didn't need the Tram. The second day there was absolutely no wind to go with the sunny skies.

Wednesday we took a ride up to Burke. It was another bluebird day with no wind. We walked into the Mid-Burke lodge about 8:30 to the smell of fresh skunk! A local told us one had taken up residence under the lodge. It smelled like it wanted everyone to know it was there. Burke is my kind of mountain. Laid back, uncrowded and quiet. A big version of our favorite, Laurel Mountain PA. We had never skied anywhere so quiet. I just loved the old trails like East Bowl and Powderhorn. The natural snow only blues, Mountain Marsh, Mcharg's Cut-off were a nice change to the groomers. The Wiloughbys and the Dippers were smooth and fast. The runs were much longer than I expected, going on and on. The Sherburne lodge was really nice also. Most times I dread going into the lodges for lunch, they are always so crowded and noisy. Not the Sherburne. A really pleasant experience. Overall Burke was my favorite for the trip. My only complaint is everyone's complaint, the speed of the Willoughby quad. But I guess that helps the place remain laid back.

Thursday was Loon day. It was cloudy with rain in the forecast. The rain turned out to be snow which started around noon and didn't let up, adding 3 inches by the end of the day. Things turned nice and soft. Some of the people we had talked to at Cannon and Burke didn't seem to like Loon too much. One guy even used the word "puny". We had to diagree with them. My wife fell in love with the place. Once I got to know my way around we were making long runs off the North Peak quad. There were more people at Loon but we were expecting that. You can get a lot of runs with those fast chairs. It's on our return list along with Burke and Cannon.

The whole area is beautiful with stunning views everywhere you go. We drove around to Bretton Woods and over to the Cog to get a good look at Mt. Washington. Hopefully we can get back up there next year.
Hear are some pics. http://www.picturehosting.org/galler...ckeyeskier1330

And thanks to NHPowderhound for posting pictuerhosting.org

[riverc0il]

tunneltotaft, i love it! buckeye, that was a good one good eye my man! upper hard looks fantastic.

great TR, glad you had a good time. loon is a different place on the weekend which is why it has earned a nasty reputation. it is a decent mountain though, just a different atmosphere and different typical clientel than places like cannon and burke. the price tag is a lot steeper. but mid-week it isn't a horrible place to ski. you got some great shots, especially from bob's lookout at burke.

[thetrailboss]

Glad I was able to help you out with Burke. Sounds like you had a good time!

[Bob R]

Excellent report. You got to bounce around a bit. I also saw you forwarded a nice lodging package to a fellow AZ member. Very classy.

[Buckeye Skier 1330]

RivercOil, they had the top of Taft roped off but the trail report said lower Taft was open. We had been skiing past that "tunnel" a few times wondering where it led. I spotted an instructor leading some kids into it. He told me it it led to Taft. Halfway through I said now this is a picture, stopped and shot it. Cannon is a heckuva place to take a camera, the scenery is awesome. Now I have a bunch of pictures that look like they came off of The Snow Way. Another thing, seeing the Tramline it is hard to imagine enough snow on it to make it skiiable. Those are some big rocks!
Trailboss, I now understand why you like Burke so much. Your tips were very helpful. You said the East Bowl was worth the hike up and you were right. I loved the feeling of isolation on it. And my second time down it I was able to keep up my speed better so the run out wasn't so bad. If we would have had good weather on Friday I wanted to go back to Burke.
BobR, I'm just glad somebody could use that pass this late in the year.

[riverc0il]

yup, i am familiar with the "tunnel" you went through. i thought all of taft was closed, so i had suspected incorrectly that you were having some fun the cut through comes out just below the rock band which tends to get pretty nasty during lean snow and towards the end of the season. the lower part of taft is usually nice, especially when it has been sitting in the sun and those bumps on upper hard looked like butter. in regards to tramline, this will be the second year since they opened the 'trail' that it did not open all season. it is a really nice run when it fills in. not all the rocks get covered but, just enough are exposed when it is open to keep things interesting