Jay Peak 3/11/12

[Zand]

Date(s) Skied: Sunday 3/11/12

Resort or Ski Area: Jay Peak, VT

Conditions: Spring, Bluebird, 50s

Trip Report:

Got up to the hill at noon and took the only spot left in the Stateside parking lot (drove around twice but had to park in the one open spot in the way back). All but 4 runs were off the Bonnie. Waited in a few 2-3 minute lines but nothing too much (except when the Canadians wait for each other INSIDE the RFID gate... everytime I saw people do this they were speaking French... not to be prejudice but I'm being serious here). Can-Am, Liftline, and Powerline had some nice soft bumps. Also hit Deliverance and Vertigo a couple times, nice and soft in the woods, as well as cooler snow so not as wet. Powerline is getting melted out a bit but otherwise the snow cover is great up there, especially in the trees.

Did Kitz Woods and Hells Woods over at Stateside, but being north facing they weren't as soft so I didn't stay over there. At Tramside, I hit Expo Woods, Andre's, and Staircase. Expo was nice and soft... Andre's sucked... slick and busy, and Staircase was pretty good other than a few bony spots... Ullr and Kokomo runouts both sucked with the warm snow.

They're in good shape up at Jay... hard to believe considering the weather, but it's for real. Bonnie was off the hook, everything was skiing great off of it.

 

[from_the_NEK]

Burke Season Total = 125"
Jay Peak Season Total = 227"

While both are roughly 100" below average at this point, that extra hundred inches is HUGE this year.

 

[thetrailboss]

Burke Season Total = 125"
Jay Peak Season Total = 227"

While both are roughly 100" below average at this point, that extra hundred inches is HUGE this year.

Yeah another season of Burke being 100 inches off and another March that is warm and snowless. :roll:

 

[xwhaler]

Burke seems to suffer a similar (though not as dramatic) effect as Ascutney...a lone monadnock to the east of the green mtn spine that gets most of the snow. That spine does have a way of sucking up the storms and letting them linger a bit doing great things to the MRV, Smuggs, Stowe, etc. but not making their way over to Burke.

 

[thetrailboss]

Burke seems to suffer a similar (though not as dramatic) effect as Ascutney...a lone monadnock to the east of the green mtn spine that gets most of the snow. That spine does have a way of sucking up the storms and letting them linger a bit doing great things to the MRV, Smuggs, Stowe, etc. but not making their way over to Burke.

I can see the comparison, but Burke is not quite as bad off as Ascutney is. Ascutney is literally in the shadow of Killington, whereas Burke is still a ways from the Greens. It does get (normally) snow from Nor'Easters and storms that hug the coast that the resorts west don't get. But that is in a normal year...whatever that is.

I'm not in the Northeast, but I certainly fear that this season sounds like 2010 when we lost all the snow due to a warm March, and then had a cold snowy April with a lot of closed places and nowhere to ski.

 

[from_the_NEK]

Burke seems to suffer a similar (though not as dramatic) effect as Ascutney...a lone monadnock to the east of the green mtn spine that gets most of the snow. That spine does have a way of sucking up the storms and letting them linger a bit doing great things to the MRV, Smuggs, Stowe, etc. but not making their way over to Burke.

Burke may not get as much as the Green Mtn Spine (GMS) but it is still part of the Eastern VT uplands which typically squeezes out more snow than the very much alone peak of Ascutney. Additionally, the snow that falls at Burke hangs around all winter and stays in FARRRRRR better shape than the smaller amounts that fall at Ascutney. Ascutney is much farther south, has a lower base elevation, and has much warmer over all climate.

Burke typically relies on small squall type storms that hang around and drop 3-6 inches every few days. It is rare to get over 20 inches in a single event (usually only once or twice a year). This year neither of those things happened.
The northern GMS resorts definitley goes bonkers with the upslope storms and got lucky with one BIG one this year. Otherwise they would be in far worse shape.

 

[riverc0il]

Burke Season Total = 125"
Jay Peak Season Total = 227"

While both are roughly 100" below average at this point, that extra hundred inches is HUGE this year.

Another interesting aspect of the Jay total is that one of their worst years is still better than most other New England ski areas' best year.

But so much of that total came from the Leap Day storm. Five feet I think they said? Can you imagine Jay ending a season below 200"? Would have happened without that storm.

I was up there on Saturday. In some trees near the Jet, I had a pre-release and dropped down to my crotch. I had to unclick my other ski and then I went down to my sturnum. Incredible how much snow that big storm dumped on them. Still not completely consolidated either.

 

[riverc0il]

Burke seems to suffer a similar (though not as dramatic) effect as Ascutney...a lone monadnock to the east of the green mtn spine that gets most of the snow. That spine does have a way of sucking up the storms and letting them linger a bit doing great things to the MRV, Smuggs, Stowe, etc. but not making their way over to Burke.

Depends how you define "suffer". Burke still gets more than all of the White Mountain ski areas on average. It just doesn't get that green mountain spine up slope. Burke has WAY better snow than Ascutney. Their topographic similarities do not equate to similar snowfall. Burke usually gets 200".

 

[NotEasyBeingGreen]

I'm not in the Northeast, but I certainly fear that this season sounds like 2010 when we lost all the snow due to a warm March, and then had a cold snowy April with a lot of closed places and nowhere to ski.

That would certainly drive me insane.

 

[Huck_It_Baby]

Was Big Jay accessible from the gates?

 

[BenedictGomez]

I'm not in the Northeast, but I certainly fear that this season sounds like 2010 when we lost all the snow due to a warm March, and then had a cold snowy April with a lot of closed places and nowhere to ski.

It's already looking like more seasonal temps will return in late March. I've been calling this for a few days now, it's going to be the fitting final chapter on the 2012 Murphy's Law Winter.

 

[thetrailboss]

It's already looking like more seasonal temps will return in late March. I've been calling this for a few days now, it's going to be the fitting final chapter on the 2012 Murphy's Law Winter.

That's really interesting because the forecast is similar here in UT!

Fingers crossed NE and UT get it!

 

[from_the_NEK]

It's already looking like more seasonal temps will return in late March. I've been calling this for a few days now, it's going to be the fitting final chapter on the 2012 Murphy's Law Winter.

Unfortunately, any snow that falls that late is going to be mostly on bare ground. :-?

 

[Zand]

Unfortunately, any snow that falls that late is going to be mostly on bare ground. :-?

Well... I suppose it'll help Jay at least. Might be too little too late for almost everyone else.