Smuggler's Notch - 2/27/2011

[snowmonster]

Date(s) Skied: 2/27/2011

Resort or Ski Area: Smuggler's Notch

Conditions: Powder; 4 inches overnight; sunny in the morning then cloudy in the afternoon; temperatures in the twenties

Trip Report: Day 2 of the snowmonster and trailboss ski weekend would have been some bc skiing either on Mt. Mansfield or Lincoln Gap. However, trailboss' wife found some cheap tickets to Smugg's and we decided to save our energy and hit this resort to which neither of us have been. Conditions were very promising. We woke up to a good coating of snow in Burlington and the promise that even more snow had fallen at elevation.

We headed up Madonna mountain and dove into some nice powdery trails like FIS and Freefall. After that warm-up, we headed for the glades. I can't name them, however, because I didn't bother to look at a trail map. We just kept looking at where the snow looked deepest and just kept going into the woods. We turned our attention to Drifter and enjoyed a great run down Shuttle. A bend on the upper part of Drifter had a snow fence and I could see tracks going around the fence. I was tempted to do the same then empty out onto Shuttle but thought better of it. We then hit Sterling Mountain and yo-yoed the lift. Again, it was a search for soft snow and the woods were deep. It was amazing that, even if it was a holiday weekend and the place was busy (but not crowded), there was still a lot of untracked powder in the woods. There was even a run where I thought my skis just went on auto pilot and my mind was blank. It was a trance: I followed where my skis turned in the silent snow.

In the late afternoon, we returned to Madonna. On the lift up, we kept staring at this scar on the mountain that could only be a glade. We headed for it (Doc Dempsey's Glades). It was tight and steep in parts (it reminded me of Kitz Woods at Jay) then opened up in sections. It was a long way down through some sections that had been scraped off. Some parts needed jumping. We eventually got out and enjoyed a lazy meander back to the base.

I think that Smuggs is a great mountain that sometimes gets overlooked. It has great terrain and comes at an affordable price. I think it's reputation as a family mountain overshadows the fact that this place has some really awesome terrain that can humble you. I'm glad that I was able to hit it at a great time. I'll be back!

Obligatory base lodge photo:

FIS:

Signs in the glades:

Trailboss on Freefall:

Looking towards Sterling with Stowe poking out in the distance:

Untracked woods:

The view at the end of the day:

 

[thetrailboss]

Well, after a fun evening out with friends, SM and I headed to Smuggler's Notch with our $35 tickets for a day of fun. Wlopowski stayed home and studied for her test while we enjoyed great snow and great terrain.

The lodge is old school and reminded me of Peabody Lodge at Cannon in that it was V-shaped and the bathrooms were in the basement.

First run was down FIS, which was full of chowder and pow from both Friday and Saturday Night. Nice, steep pitch and a firm yet edgeable base under the snow made for good turns:

As we got lower we spotted Moonshiner's Glades and hit it. A major strength of Smuggs is that, like Burke, one can ski bumps, groomers, and trees in a single run. These woods were great:

And if you look closely there you can see two people. I could see that they were bent over and I feared that they were doing CPR or rescue breathing on someone so I approached:

When they both looked up with bloodshot eyes and a cloud of smoke I realized that I had come upon a "safety" event of a different kind. Only at a Vermont ski resort.

We skied Moonshiner's Glades to Lower Chilcoot and to the Madonna Double for a spin down Doc Dempsey's Glades which my eyes had spied before we hit FIS. It had about 6-10 inches of nice snow on top of some icy bumps and base, but it was a nice ride:

Anyone for "Max Air?"

We skied down to Link and Father Bob's to the base before decided to head down Upper Drifter to the other side of Madonna:

We hit Shuttle to head over to Sterling side:

Before riding out Lower Rumrunner to Sterling Base.

No real crowds at the doubles and the staff did a good job keeping the lines moving:

Next up was a descent down Smuggler's Alley:

Before SM hit his namesake glades:

No need to fear, they were open...and very nice!

Bootlegger started out nice:

But the steep pitch was slick and required care to get around a 20 yard chute which opened up to some nice soft chowder bumps:

We took a lunch break before heading back out for some more good skiing.

 

[thetrailboss]

And then it was back out to find some more good terrain on Sterling starting with a run down Pipeline, which I rode the entire way down, while Snowmonster hit Pirate's Plank Woods.

We then descended Hangman's Drop:

Before showing off on Upper Exhibition:

And then hitting Powder Keg/Lower Pirate's Plank

We then repeated but threw in Highlander Glades. During our run in there, SM told me that he was having a zen-like experience letting the skis ride in the pow:

By now it was getting late so we headed to do two more runs off of Madonna. The first being a run down Drifter to Shakedown, which was fun even if it was getting skied out:

By now we had time for one run and we opted for a long, easy, scenic run down Chilcoot to Dan's Ford and Playground to the base:

We toasted to an amazing day at a new mountain:

So for those that think that Smuggs is a beginner hill, I think I have provided plenty of proof that there is more than that. It is a legit mountain with some big mountain skiing and good variety. The lifts, though older, were smooth and kept the traffic on the trails to a minimum. Very nice vibe and friendly folks. A real gem.

 

[BLESS]

hahahahah the "safety" pic is a classic. Ill bet those guys were happy you werent johnny law. Altho Im not even sure mr lawman would even bother these days if he/she were off duty and skiing $ glades.

 

[djspookman]

nice report guys! I grew up skiing at smuggs and love it. Definitely not a beginner hill. There are more woods runs there than regular trails if the trails aren't enough either. There used to be more signs on Doc's too. Glad you had a good time. I can't wait to get back up there when visiting the folks in a couple weeks, yahoo!

 

[thetrailboss]

SM on Doc Dempsey's

 

[thetrailboss]

Snowmonster seems to know when the camera is rolling so he can hide in the trees and avoid detection while he is poaching Poacher's Woods:



:wink:

 

[thetrailboss]

Highlander (short clip)

 

[deadheadskier]

. We turned our attention to Drifter and enjoyed a great run down Shuttle. A bend on the upper part of Drifter had a snow fence and I could see tracks going around the fence. I was tempted to do the same then empty out onto Shuttle but thought better of it.

Smart move. Unless you are one of the first 3 or 4 skiers heading out there, it's really not worth it. Perhaps more work has been done, but it's essentially a traverse out to a couple of short, but very steep and narrow chutes through dense soft woods. 6 feet wide for most of it, boney with rock and stumps, ice flows that become mandatory 4-8 foot airs to tight landings with no room to chuck speed at all. You need deep snow to control speed out there, which gets scraped away after a few skiers. It's too narrow to control speed with turning. I have only caught it good once. The other times I have been out there have required throwing my skis down the ice flow and climbing down the trees on the sides. not fun.

 

[WWF-VT]

Thanks for the report / tour of Smuggs. I'll be skiing there for my first time this Saturday.

 

[thetrailboss]

Smart move. Unless you are one of the first 3 or 4 skiers heading out there, it's really not worth it. Perhaps more work has been done, but it's essentially a traverse out to a couple of short, but very steep and narrow chutes through dense soft woods. 6 feet wide for most of it, boney with rock and stumps, ice flows that become mandatory 4-8 foot airs to tight landings with no room to chuck speed at all. You need deep snow to control speed out there, which gets scraped away after a few skiers. It's too narrow to control speed with turning. I have only caught it good once. The other times I have been out there have required throwing my skis down the ice flow and climbing down the trees on the sides. not fun.

Yyyyeeeeeaaaah. No thanks.

 

[wa-loaf]

Damn, who's house it that? I want to be their friend! :smile:

Smuggs looks great, it's been over 10 years since I've been. I think maybe a trip with the kids next March is in order.

 

[thetrailboss]

Damn, who's house it that? I want to be their friend! :smile:

Smuggs looks great, it's been over 10 years since I've been. I think maybe a trip with the kids next March is in order.

The mountain's "Top of the Notch" lodge.

 

[djspookman]

Smart move. Unless you are one of the first 3 or 4 skiers heading out there, it's really not worth it. Perhaps more work has been done, but it's essentially a traverse out to a couple of short, but very steep and narrow chutes through dense soft woods. 6 feet wide for most of it, boney with rock and stumps, ice flows that become mandatory 4-8 foot airs to tight landings with no room to chuck speed at all. You need deep snow to control speed out there, which gets scraped away after a few skiers. It's too narrow to control speed with turning. I have only caught it good once. The other times I have been out there have required throwing my skis down the ice flow and climbing down the trees on the sides. not fun.

haha, agreed.. I had a fight with a stumpy balsam fir out there once and the result was a few facial bleeds. It is a fun billy goat run though!

 

[snowmonster]

hahahahah the "safety" pic is a classic. Ill bet those guys were happy you werent johnny law. Altho Im not even sure mr lawman would even bother these days if he/she were off duty and skiing $ glades.

For the record, that picture was not shot at 4;20.

nice report guys! I grew up skiing at smuggs and love it. Definitely not a beginner hill. There are more woods runs there than regular trails if the trails aren't enough either. There used to be more signs on Doc's too. Glad you had a good time. I can't wait to get back up there when visiting the folks in a couple weeks, yahoo!

Glad you liked it. We forgot to take a photo of a STOP sign in Doc's.

Thanks for the report / tour of Smuggs. I'll be skiing there for my first time this Saturday.

I know you'll enjoy this place.

Damn, who's house it that? I want to be their friend! :smile:

Smuggs looks great, it's been over 10 years since I've been. I think maybe a trip with the kids next March is in order.

You're long overdue at Smuggs, wa-loaf. I think the kids would love it too.

Smart move. Unless you are one of the first 3 or 4 skiers heading out there, it's really not worth it. Perhaps more work has been done, but it's essentially a traverse out to a couple of short, but very steep and narrow chutes through dense soft woods. 6 feet wide for most of it, boney with rock and stumps, ice flows that become mandatory 4-8 foot airs to tight landings with no room to chuck speed at all. You need deep snow to control speed out there, which gets scraped away after a few skiers. It's too narrow to control speed with turning. I have only caught it good once. The other times I have been out there have required throwing my skis down the ice flow and climbing down the trees on the sides. not fun.

haha, agreed.. I had a fight with a stumpy balsam fir out there once and the result was a few facial bleeds. It is a fun billy goat run though!

Thanks for the heads-up and the information. I figured that with the new snow, this was the time to hit it. Next time, perhaps?

 

[deadheadskier]

I wouldn't bother. There is better stuff on that ridge coming from the Sterling side back towards Madonna. Then ofcourse the Birthday bowls.

 

[snowmonster]

I wouldn't bother. There is better stuff on that ridge coming from the Sterling side back towards Madonna. Then ofcourse the Birthday bowls.

The birthday bowls? Aw, man, now you have me intrigued! When are you heading up there? I want a site inspection.

 

[skierbum]

Did you guys ever hit the triple black, Black Hole?

If so, is the hype about it real?

 

[djspookman]

Did you guys ever hit the triple black, Black Hole?

If so, is the hype about it real?

It's pure marketing.

Remember, trail ratings are subjective to a resort... IE, Stratton's Black Diamonds are no where near the steepness of the Blacks at Smuggs, MRG, or Magic.

Black Hole is essentially a steep, narrow glade. Fun too!

 

[thetrailboss]

Did you guys ever hit the triple black, Black Hole?

If so, is the hype about it real?

That was closed.