$towe 3/23/2014

[Loaf Nut]

Date(s) Skied: 3/23/2014

Resort or Ski Area: $towe

Conditions: Dust on Crust

Trip Report:

Last-minute trip to $towe on Sunday, taking advantage of CSC Discount day. I-89 was very icy and snowy from White River Junction to Waterbury, thanks to a serious snow squal. Saw one plow truck in 60 miles... all the other VT DOT employees must've been attending Sunday mass.

It was still snowing and very windy when we pulled up to $pruce Camp at 8:30. But how bad can +3F and zero visibility be when you're greeted by heated walkways and automatic doors en route to the lodge?

We rode up "Gondola" (only at $towe) for our 1st run and headed down Upper, Upper Middle, Middle, Lower Middle, and Lower Perry Merrill (plus Perry Merrill Runout) for a warm-up run, where we were greeted with 6 inches of dust from Saturday night on top of the 6 feet of crust the mountain has gotten this month. We soon found that the glades were even dustier. We got sick of the 3-chair wait that built up at the FourRunner by mid-morning and headed across the transfer gondola. $pruce Peak was deserted and untouched through lunchtime. Mr. Golden Sun came out to play around 11am and the bluebirds were chirping all afternoon. The Cliff House thermometer even reached +1F by 2pm!

Best day of the season (so far).












Edit: Videos from the past few weeks, mostly from Stowe and Killington (and night skiing at Mohawk): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5-RgMrlsgYc
Sorry, I didn't record much of the woods on Sunday.

 

[k123]

Can't wait to see your pics! I was there Friday and Saturday, best riding of the season for me as well. It was already amazing before that additional half foot of snow on Saturday night, wish I could've stayed another day!

 

[Angus]

there too yesterday, had never been to Stowe when everything was open, got to ski upper goat & upper liftline for first time and even ventured over once to ski/ride easy mile/toll house double (now that I've done it, never again!). Took two runs late morning off gondola, once to ski out of bounds off Sterling - "meh", I got lost versus my companion - we got separated - saying it was great. the second ride up the gondola was to get back to the forerunner lift. Other than that many, many runs off the forerunner quad or occasionally lookout double and mountain triple to get out of wind. snow was deep and soft, it was cold, the crowds were non-existent. no lunch and skied 7+ hours, I'm sore today but it's a good sore.

 

[Loaf Nut]

Yeah, today's soreness was well worth it, though! We couldn't believe how empty the mountain was, especially since the lots looked full and the lodges were fairly crowded. The woods between the gondola and the quad had relatively untouched lines even late in the afternoon.

 

[billski]

LOL, you had me going there. A couple sentances in I was thinking, "did we ski at the same mountain?" It took me a minute to invert everything you said into reality. Great time!

 

[Tin]

Great stuff, I remember standing next to that sign mid-winter and it being as tall as me. So much snow there right now. Surprised there are no tracks in that bottom pic (if it is the spot Im thinking of, found some running water at the bottom of it on accident a few years ago).