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The Doctor will see you now

Rockin’ for Hugh. With 21″ of new SNOW in the past 3 days, 74 trails open, bluebird skies, and skiing with dear friends, the only prescription I wanted was a run on Doc Dempsey’s from the top! Talk about Doctor Feelgood; Doc’s was loaded with fresh POW! I skied it with my friend and long-time Smuggler Barry from Philly. Barry and I also took runs with his wife Anna, daughter Haylee, son-in-law Jacob, and their Burlington, VT friends Jamie and Patrick.

Conditions tomorrow look quite similar, with mostly sunny skies and high temps in the mid-40s. We plan to have 6 lifts operating (including Madonna I), 74 trails open, and 139 acres of freshly groomed terrain. If I were you, I’d be here tomorrow. Ski U soon.

Barry on Doc Dempsey’s aka Doc’s.
Unknown Skier on Docs.
STOP… in the name of POW!
Today’s Blogger Rockin’ Ron on Docs. Photo by Barry Cohen.
Jacob, Haylee, and Anna getting excited to ski on Madonna Mountain!
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21″ New SNOW past 3 days!

Rockin’ Ron for Hugh. It’s a good day for me to be a Snow Reporter. It’s a better day for the real Snow Reporter Hugh Johnson to have the day off to… SKI! As the headline says 21 inches of new snow in the past 3 days. Today’s forecast is sunny and breezy, with highs of 38 degrees at the base and 32 on top. We have top-to-bottom skiing and riding on all 3 mountains with 7 lifts operating, including Madonna I. We have 74 trails open. Ski U soon.

… can’t see the trees for the SNOW!

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Friendly Waves

Rockin’ Ron for Hugh. Wednesday’s forecast is rain with highs of 46 degrees at the base and 43 on top. Wear your weatherproof gear. We plan to have 32 trails open with terrain for all abilities and 5 lifts operating. Due to weather concerns, no Madonna lifts will be operating. 19 trails will be groomed, including Black Snake and Snow Snake. That’s all I got. Ski U soon.

Snow Sport University Instructors wave hello on their way to work.
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Morse Mountain Morning

Rockin’ Ron for Hugh. Here’s the down low for up high on Town Meeting Day. For today, we plan to have top-to-bottom skiing and riding on all 3 mountains, with 6 lifts operating, including Madonna I, and 35 trails open. The forecast is windy, then rainy, with highs of 47 degrees at the base and 42 on top. Good Morning from Morse Mountain!

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Once a Smuggler…

Rockin’ Ron for “Birthday Boy” Hugh. Today was a Foggy Day in Smugglers’ Town, but that didn’t deter anyone. I skied with my friend and fellow Smuggler Marcus Mudget, who worked at Smuggs from 2000-2014, with a big chunk of that time as Snow Sport University’s Maintenance Manager (he also played Silver Long Johns in a Friendly Pirate Show). His wife Tammy also worked here as the White Room Coordinator. He hasn’t been on skis since he left here 10 years ago, but you wouldn’t know that from how he confidently cruised down the slopes. We took runs on all 3 mountains. His trail pick was Lower Rumrunner, while mine was Lower FIS. Great to ski with you, MARCUS! You know what they say? Once a Smuggler… always a Smuggler.

For Tuesday, we plan to have top-to-bottom skiing and riding on all 3 mountains with 6 lifts operating, including Madonna I. 31 trails will be groomed, including Upper F.I.S. and Smugglers’ Alley. Bring your waterproof gear, there’s a chance of rain (or clear snow as we say in the Snow Report Biz). Ski U later.

Marcus gets ready to ski Madonna and Sterling for the first time in a decade!
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“Activities” on the Slopes

Rockin’ Ron for Hugh. My colleagues from the Activities Department, Seth “Carv-ison” Crevison and “Air” Cassidy Koons, joined me for a splendiferous day on the slopes! We skied and rode all 3 mountains. A groomed Upper FIS was a favorite, as well as Lower FIS – as Fletch once said, “shake it up and let it FIZZ!” There were also some bumps to be had as conditions softened up on Harvey’s and Bootleggers’. Whilst having lunch on the deck at the Black Bear, we ran into Activities Director Stacey “Hockey Mom” Comishock. It felt like we got the band back together. BTW Activities operates the Tubing Hill and the daily Bonfire in addition to many off-slope offerings like Bingo, Karaoke, Gaga Ball, Family Phew’d, Winter Carnival, and MORE.

Anywho, today was great, but… tomorrow is looking… how do I put this… ugly. Showers and windy conditions are in the forecast tonight and tomorrow. So, check back here and on the Trail Report for updates. Ski you soon.

“Air” Cassidy! Flights leaving daily from Birch Run Terrain Park.
Me and My Shadow. Seth carving it up on Upper FIS.
Snowboard and Skis—can’t we all get along? Seth and Cassidy (Activities Supervisors) are on the Midway trail with Madonna Mountain in the background. See the photo below.
The Midway trail in the near background, as viewed from Upper FIS on Madonna Mountain. See the photo above.
Cassidy hitting the bumps on Bootleggers’. Photo by Seth Crevison.
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Greetings from Mr. Groomer!

Rockin’ Ron for Hugh. Mr. Groomer and his cohorts are always hard at work keeping up our supply of corduroy! Thank you for grooming 32 trails/133 acres (including Upper FIS) for today’s skiing and riding pleasure. Today’s forecast is sunny and breezy, with highs of 47 degrees at the base and 43 at the top. 6 lifts will be operating, including Madonna I, and 42 trails will be open (more trails may open as conditions soften). Surfaces are machine-groomed and variable. Ski U soon.

Good morning from Morse Mountain! Check out the optical illusion of the grooming machine as a Lift Chair.
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Morse / Report / Uphill Info / Shanty

Rockin’ Ron for Hugh. I had a fun morning on Morse Mountain helping shuttle kids on Mogul Mouse’s Magic Lift for Snow Sport University. It’s great to see them progress in their on-snow abilities! In between groups, I got to catch up with my friend and co-worker Stacy “Webmaster” Maynard, who was also shuttling. Then, I snuck a run on Snow Snake… YES!

REPORT: Tomorrow’s forecast is sunny and breezy, with highs of 34 degrees at the base and 29 at the summit. We plan to have top-to-bottom skiing and riding on all 3 mountains, with 7 Lifts operating and 72 trails open. 34 trails will be groomed – that’s 132 acres of freshly groomed terrain. We’ve received 21 inches of new snow in the past 5 days. We’ll be making snow tonight on Sterling Mountain on Bootleggers’ and Thomke’s.

UPHILL ACCESS: Morning uphill on Sterling will be closed on Wednesday, but Madonna will be open. NEW! Evening uphill on Madonna and Sterling will open starting Wednesday night, February 21. The evening uphill schedule is as follows: Madonna on Monday, Wednesday, and Friday 6 to 8 pm, closed Sunday. Sterling on Tuesday, Thursday, and Saturday, 6 to 8 pm, closed Sunday. Morse is open from 5 to 10 pm daily except Thursday. Remember to check the snow report daily for any changes before you go, as there may be closures at times when weather disrupts grooming schedules. Check here for more specific guidelines on our uphill policy.

Boot, scoot, and boogie UPHILL, or as Hugh says, “use the Shoe Leather Express.”
Mogul Mouse’s Magic Lift and the Magic Learning Trail.
Check out the Ski Shanty video by Rockin’ Ron the Friendly Pirate on YouTube/@SmuggsTV. It’s a sea shanty about skiing pirates that namechecks Smuggs trails and features Smuggs staffers Hugh “Snowman” Johnson, Caleb “Mr. Rizz” Kessler, Angie “Dispatcher Extraordinaire” Shorey, Jason “Nemo” Niemi, and Seth “Carv-ison” Crevison. The video was produced by Thaddeus Homan of Smuggs TV. The song was inspired by long-time Smuggs Guest Kim Riegel.
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Boom Boom GROOM!

Rockin’ Ron for Hugh. Let’s do the numbers: ALL 8 Lifts, 71 of 78 trails, 34 groomed trails – totaling 135 acres, and 21 inches of SNOW in the past 5 days… it all adds up to FUN! Today’s forecast is partly sunny skies with highs of 23 degrees at the base and 19 at the summit. So grab your coat, grab your hat, and hit the slopes in seconds flat. Ski U soon!

Grooming Lower Morse Liftline.
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Snow Snake

Rockin’ Ron for Hugh. Snow Snake is a hidden treasure of sorts, being an intermediate trail on Morse Mountain, which caters to beginners. It winds around the mountain like a … snake! It also has some steep, pulse-pounding pitches. I always have fun skiing this trail!

The forecast for tonight into Wednesday is a chance of snow (yes, please) and blustery. Tomorrow’s high temps are 18 degrees at the base and 9 degrees on top. Due to snowmaking on Upper Chilcoot, Madonna I will again be closed. 6 Lifts will be operating, but they will have a delayed opening of 9 am. All 29 open trails – featuring terrain for all abilities – will be groomed – that’s 120 acres of corduroy. Ski U soon!

These two kids from the Philadelphia, PA area, get ready to rip it on Snow Snake!
If you’ve conquered all the green trails on Morse Mountain, you might be ready for Snow Snake – swirling, twirling turns, and steep pitches.