Mt. Sunapee - 1/27/10

[speden]

Conditions: loose granular over hardpack, 30's, some wind at the summits, sunny in the am, overcast in afternoon

My wife took the day off to work on getting more comfortable skiing blue trails. I'd say the mission was accomplished. She was able to ski Ridge, Bonanza, Lower Blastoff, Elliot, and Eggbeater, all harder than she's tackled in the past, and felt like she made a big jump in skill today.

I wasn't sure what the conditions would be like after the rain, but the snow had dried out nicely and was groomed into a predominantly sugar like surface. There was some exposed hardpack here and there, but not much, and no ice chunks or anything like that.

They must have had a deep base because coverage was fine everywhere we went. I guess they are planning to blow snow the next three days, so should be more powdery by the weekend. Areas of natural snow looked to be hit pretty hard, but the groomed trails were fine. The glades all seemed to be closed, and any bump areas I saw from the lifts looked in need of some freshening up.

So we had a fun and productive day with nearly empty trails. Maybe the rain event kept people away.

I took some pics in the afternoon, when it was overcast, so sorry the lighting isn't very good:

Here's one shot taken in the morning, when it was still sunny. This is what's left of the natural snowfall.

Here's a bump field under the Sunapee Express liftline. Doesn't look so great.

Upper Ridge

Jet Stream and Pipeline Park. They have a lot of features and even a small half pipe. Kind of on the cramped side, but looks like a good park.

Eggbeater

No line on the lifts

Here's the bump field on Upper Flying Goose. Looks like the kickers were blocked off.

Looking down at the base area from the North Peak Triple

I think this is Lower Blastoff

Looking across at the North Peak from Explorer. They were doing race practice on Lynx most of the day.

 

[zinger3000]

No apologies necessary for the pictures - I thought they were just fine.

Sounds like you had a good day.

I've never been to Sunapee before, but I'm going there mid-week in early-mid March. (I got a gift card for there for Christmas.)

 

[powbmps]

It's amazing how the rain chased everyone away. I was there yesterday and the place was empty, even with the school programs going on. Weather looked about the same, but the wind was pretty nasty.

Were they blowing any snow? They are supposed to start tonight, but website doesn't show any updates.

 

[speden]

They weren't blowing any snow while I was there. Temps were still too high during the day. Looks like it will get cold enough tonight, and even better tomorrow.

 

[Glenn]

Pics look great! And it looks like they're doing well despite the rain. Congrats to your wife for getting more comfortable on teh blue runs.

 

[speden]

Thanks, she had a good day. It sure helps to learn when the trails aren't crowded. Usually she can only go on weekends, when everything is jammed.

 

[Glenn]

I agree. When my wife starting out, less people helped. It can be pretty intimidating for a new skier to have a bunch of people darting around who are close by.

 

[hammer]

How much stuff was loosened by the groomers?

A few years ago, we went after a sleet event, and I don't know if it was the sleet or the groomers but we had thick layers of heavy granular over hardpack/ice. Was not fun to ski in, and my daughter did a face plant on Ridge which makes her averse to going back to Sunapee.

Wish my wife and I could head out on a weekday. Not as easy to learn and build up confidence when you have to deal with human slalom gates on the greens and easy blues.

 

[speden]

How much stuff was loosened by the groomers?

A few years ago, we went after a sleet event, and I don't know if it was the sleet or the groomers but we had thick layers of heavy granular over hardpack/ice. Was not fun to ski in, and my daughter did a face plant on Ridge which makes her averse to going back to Sunapee.

The surface didn't seem heavy or particularly slow to me. The groomers probably loosened up an inch or two. By the afternoon some of the snow piled up in places, but not enough to trip people up.

Your daughter should give Sunapee another chance. It was probably just bad luck she had a fall on Ridge. That's a pretty mellow trail. My wife really liked the Elliot Slope trail. It's kind of hidden behind the terrain park, so not a lot of traffic, and good pitch for an aspiring intermediate. Plus it has some small hills and banks you can experiment with.