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If you build it, they will come

Pond Skimming is this Saturday, April 1st. Registration opens at 10 am, at the Smugglers’ Notch Tent in Parking Lot #1, to the first 100 people. Pond Skimming starts at noon in the Zone.
Nick is feeling the Springtime vibe!

Spring skiing and riding yesterday followed by a powder day today! We received 4 inches of new snow overnight and 11 inches in the past 5 days. I had a blast playing in the drifts where the wind had moved the new snow on trails like Drifter. I also found some great turns in the trees where the snow was more like a fluffy blanket, like in the Alley woods and Poacher’s Woods. I was also lucky enough to get fresh tracks on Full Nelson. The calendar says spring, but I am not going to turn down another powder day before the season is over!

Tomorrow we plan to have top to bottom skiing and riding on all 3 mountains with 4 lifts operating, including the Madonna I Lift. Madonna and Sterling are 100 percent open. We have 72 trails open with terrain for all ability levels. Surface conditions are packed powder and machine groomed with average base depths of 12 to 54 inches. We plan to groom 32 trails tonight, including Upper FIS, Drifter, Snow Snake, Howie’s Wanderer, Smugglers’ Alley, and Thomke’s for a grand total of 130 acres of freshly groomed terrain. Currently, it is partly sunny and 17 degrees at the summit of Sterling with winds of 15 to 25 mph. Tomorrow’s forecast is calling for partly sunny skies early with snow in the afternoon 1 to 3 inches of accumulation possible on top, a high of 38 degrees at the base, and 30 degrees at higher elevations.

To see this week’s No Bull Video Snow Report go to https://youtu.be/3d–XLZv_RM

The Nordic Center is open with 17 km of cross-country trails and 15 km of snowshoeing trails.

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It’s almost that time!

Mountain Operations Manager and Pond Sculpting Guru Mike McAdoo started moving snow today!

Annual Pond Skimming

LOCATION: Sterling Mountain Practice Slope

DATE / TIME: April 1st : 12:00 noon – 2:00 pm

Presented by Zero Gravity.

Elvis, a gorilla, guys in bikinis – you’ll see it all on the Practice Slope during Pond Skimming! Registration for this free event starts at 10:00 am at the Smugglers’ Notch tent in Parking Lot 1 for the first 100 people only. The first skimmer launches toward the pond at 12:00 noon. Prizes awarded for best costume. A “don’t miss” for spectators!

Today we have top-to-bottom skiing and riding on all 3 mountains with 4 lifts operating, including the Madonna I Lift. We have 73 trails open with terrain for all ability levels. 33 trails have been groomed for today, including Shuttle, Drifter, Smugglers’ Alley, Jolly Rodger, Snow Snake, and Howie’s Wanderer for a grand total of 133 acres of freshly groomed terrain. Surface conditions are packed powder and machine groomed with average base depths of 12 to 54 inches. Currently, it is sunny and 24 degrees at the summit of Sterling with winds of 5 to 10 mph. Today’s forecast is calling for sunny skies early with increasing clouds, a high of 39 degrees at the base, and 31 degrees at higher elevations. Great conditions!

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Skimmin’, Chillin’, and Grillin’

OLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERALifts and Trails

Tomorrow we plan to have top to bottom skiing and riding on all 3 mountains with 4 lifts operating. We have 60 trails open with terrain for all ability levels. Surface conditions are machine groomed and spring conditions with average base depths of 18 to 48 inches. We plan to groom 26 trails tonight, including Ruthie’s, Snow Snake, and Thomke’s for a grand total of 120 acres of freshly groomed terrain.

OLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERAWeather

Currently it is cloudy and 33 degrees at the summit of Sterling with winds of 10 to 15 mph. Tomorrow’s forecast is calling for cloudy skies with temperatures between 35 to 50 inches.

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The big event is tomorrow!

OLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERA9th Annual Pond Skimming

Registration for this free event starts at 10:00 am at the Smugglers’ Notch tent in Parking Lot 1. The first skimmer launches toward the pond at 12:00 noon. Prizes awarded for best costume. A “don’t miss” for spectators! Presented by Sierra Nevada Brewing Company.

 

OLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERAChillin’ & Grillin’ Tailgate Party

Join us in the Sierra Nevada beer garden for a refreshing brew and refuel at the all-day-long Chillin’ & Grillin’ Tailgate Party.  Impress us with your bumperside party planning skills and you could win the Ultimate Tailgate Prize! Stop by our Vendor Village and the Smugglers’ Notch tent to enter for a chance to win awesome prizes! Drawings will be held throughout the afternoon for cash and prizes. MORE PRIZES THAN EVER THIS YEAR! Enter our Chillin’ 50/50 raffle where proceeds will benefit a local charity of the winner’s choice.

OLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERACambridge Day

Hey neighbors! You’re invited to enjoy a day of skiing and riding at Smuggs! Cambridge and Jeffersonville VT residents get FREE lift tickets, FREE equipment, FREE group lessons* for ages 5 to adult, and a special $15 Vermonter rate for FunZone 2.0 (don’t forget your socks and sneakers) – just show a valid ID with your Cambridge or Jeffersonville address.

A reusable Notch Card is required for lift tickets and lessons and can be purchased for $5 plus tax.

OLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERALifts and Trails

Tomorrow we plan to have top to bottom skiing and riding on all 3 mountains with 5 lifts operating, including the Madonna I lift. We have 55 trails open with terrain for all ability levels. Surface conditions are machine groomed and spring conditions with average base depths of 18 to 48 inches. We plan to groom 33 trails tonight, including Drifter, Snow Snake, and Jolly Rodger for a grand total of 128 acres of freshly groomed terrain.

Weather

Currently it is partly cloudy and 31 degrees at the summit of Sterling with winds of 0 to 5 mph. Tonight’s forecast is periods of snow with 3 to 5 inches of accumulation possible. Tomorrow’s forecast is a chance of snow/mix early then skies becoming sunny with temperatures between 35 and 50 degrees.

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If you build it they will come

 

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The view from above

Mike McAdoo and Arlo Pouliot have been very busy the past few days moving snow around in the Zone Terrain Park. First, they removed all the rails from the park and then they starting pushing. This winter we made some big piles of snow in the upper half of the Zone. They were left there to be used at a later date, well that time has come. Mike has been pushing the snow down from the upper half of the Zone to the pond. Arlo has been using the winch cat to push the snow up from the lower half of the Zone to the pond.  All of their hard work is paying off, because the pond is looking great! The 9th Annual Pond Skimming, Chillin’ & Grillin’ Tailgate Party is this Saturday, April 6th!

 

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The Pond is really starting to take shape

Lifts and Trails

Tomorrow we plan to have top to bottom skiing and riding on all 3 mountains with 4 lifts operating, including the Madonna I lift. We have 57 trails open with terrain for all ability levels. Surface conditions are machine groomed and variable with average base depths of 18 to 48 inches. We plan to groom 39 trails tonight, including Drifter, Smugglers’ Alley, and Snow Snake for a grand total of 134 acres of freshly groomed terrain.

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Winch Cat pushing snow up from below

Weather

Currently it is partly sunny and 20 degrees at the summit of Sterling with winds of 15 to 30 mph. Tomorrow’s forecast is calling for sunny skies early with increasing clouds, a chance of snow/rain late in the day and temperatures between 22 and 41 degrees.

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Virginia to Vermont

3 mtn glades

Liza and Julia in 3 Mountain Glades.

Rockin’ Ron for Hugh. As I was leaving Patrol and heading to MI, I heard my name being called. It was my friends Liza and her daughter Julia from Virginia. They are 2nd and 3rd Generation Smugglers who vacation here in the summer and winter. Liza and her siblings learned to ski on Morse, Madonna, and Sterling mountains, and now it’s her kids’ turn (or turns, if you will). Julia was telling me about taking lessons with Matt McCawley, himself a 2nd generation Smuggler, being the son of Squatch and Judy. Matt successfully challenged her to do Black Diamond trails and gave her an appreciation of the glades. It was a blast taking runs with them!!

LIFTS & TRAILS

For Wednesday we plan to have top to bottom skiing and riding on all 3 mountains with 4 lifts – including MI – operating and 63 trails open!

drifter

Julia leading Liza down Upper Drifter.

GROOMING

33 trails/130 acres are on the grooming schedule for Wednesday, including Smugglers’ Alley, Shuttle, and Snow Snake.

SNOW

5 inches in the past 3 days. 375 inches this season.

EVENTS

Saturday, April 6th – Pond Skimming, Chillin’ & Grillin’ Tailgate Party and Cambridge Day.

Tuesday, April 9th – Ben & Jerry’s FREE Cone Day at the scoop shop in the Village Lodge.

Sunday, April 21st – Easter Sunrise Service – load at the Sterling Lift from 6:00 am – 6:30 am.

Visit smuggs.com for more details.

 

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Happy April No Fooling

 

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Summit of Sterling

The month of April has started off very nicely with fresh snow and sunshine!  The cooler temperatures last night made the new snow light and fluffy.  The wind moved the snow around a little and I was able to find some sweet drifts to play in.  The new snow moving around also filled in the low spots and in between the bumps.  The new snow will also be really nice mixed in on the groomers for tomorrow!

 

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The snowpack is so deep our snow gauge is buried

New Snow

We received 4 inches of new snow last night, 5 inches in the past 2 days, and 275 inches this season so far.

Lifts and Trails

Tomorrow we plan to have top to bottom skiing and riding on all 3 mountains with 4 lifts operating, including the Madonna I lift. We plan to have 61 trails open with terrain for all ability levels. Surface conditions are machine groomed and packed powder with average base depths of 18 to 48 inches. We plan to groom 36 trails tonight, including Drifter, Snow Snake, and Bootlegger for a grand total of 125 acres of freshly groomed terrain. Morse Mountain will close after April 7th.

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Are you ready to do some skimming on April 6th? Construction of the pond started today.

Weather

Currently it is sunny and 16 degrees at the summit of Sterling with winds of 15 to 25 mph. Tomorrow’s forecast is calling for mostly sunny skies with temperatures between 20 and 45 degrees.

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Sterling Pond with Mount Mansfield in the background

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Don’t miss Spring events

Pond Skimming & Chillin' & Grillin'9th Annual Pond Skimming and Chillin’ & Grillin’ is April 6th

Pond Skimming

Sterling Mountain Practice Slope 12:00 noon – 2:00 pm

Elvis, a gorilla, guys in bikinis – you’ll see it all in the Zone Terrain Park during Pond Skimming! Registration for this free event starts at 10:00 am at the Smugglers’ Notch tent in Parking Lot 1. The first skimmer launches toward the pond at 12:00 noon. Prizes awarded for best costume. A “don’t miss” for spectators! Presented by Sierra Nevada Brewing Company.

Chillin’ & Grillin’

Parking Lot 1  8:00 am – 4:00 pm

Blue skies, long sunny afternoons … ahhhh, Spring! Join us for the ultimate tailgate party in Parking Lot 1, home of the finest tailgate scene since Soldier Field at the ’86 Bears.

Join us in the Sierra Nevada beer garden for a refreshing brew and refuel at the all-day-long Chillin’ & Grillin’ tailgate party.  Impress us with your bumperside party planning skills and you could win the Ultimate Tailgate Prize! Stop by our Vendor Village and the Smugglers’ Notch tent to enter for a chance to win awesome prizes! Drawings will be held throughout the afternoon for cash and prizes. MORE PRIZES THAN EVER THIS YEAR! Enter our Chillin’ 50/50 raffle where proceeds will benefit a local charity of the winner’s choice.

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Stockpiling

 

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Tower Fan Gun next to the pile of snow that it made last night

I want thank our snowmakers for all their hard work last night! They were busy making snow on the upper part of the Zone Terrain Park. We are stockpiling the snow in the Upper Zone! We have many events this season and one of my favorites is the Chillin n’ Grillin Tail Party / Pond Skimming. The snow in the Upper Zone is in reserve for when we need to build the “pond.” Our snowmakers will be busy again tonight in the Upper Zone.

 

New Snow

We received an inch of new snow last night, 7 inches in the past 5 days, and 313 inches this season so far!

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When you’re a Fan Gun, it’s OK to double park in Lot #1

Lifts and Trails

We are 100 percent open! Tomorrow we plan to have top to bottom skiing and riding on all 3 mountains with 6 lifts operating, including the Madonna I lift. We have all 78 trails open with terrain for all ability levels. Surface conditions are packed powder and machine groomed with average base depths of 24 to 54 inches

Weather

Currently it is sunny and 8 degrees at the summit of Sterling with winds of 0 to 5 mph. Tomorrow’s forecast is calling for mostly sunny skies with temperatures between 12 and 28 degrees.

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Snowmaking whales in the Upper Zone

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8th Annual Pond Skimming and Chillin’ & Grillin’

chllin posterSaturday, April 7th

Sierra Nevada Brewing Co. and Smugglers’ Notch have come together again for the annual Pond Skimming event in The Zone at Smuggs. Skiers and Riders will be dressed in ridiculous garb, all competing for gear, prizes, and the prestigious title of “Pond Skim Idol”!

CATEGORIES:
• Best Skim Style
• Best Dressed / Costume
• Best Digger (fall)

MORE PRIZES THAN EVER THIS YEAR!
On3P Skis – Jessies 171s
Brewfest Weekend for up to Four
2018/2019 Bash Badge
Arbortrek Canopy Tour for Two
Snow Goggles by SCOTT
Two Dead Session Lite tickets
Summer Daycation Tickets
2018 Brewster Ridge Disc Gold Membership
2018 Smuggs Youth Summer Pass
Hearth & Candle Gift Certificate
Brewster River Pub & Brewery Gift Certificate
Martell’s at the Red Fox Gift Certificate
Cheese Boxes (whoa)
$20 Fun Card to the FunZone 2.0
Smuggs Country Store Gift Basket
Brewster Ridge Disc Golf Discs
Two Free Tunes at 3 Mountain Equipment
T Shirts

POND SKIM REGISTRATION: 10:00 am in Parking Lot 1.

EVENT: 12:00 noon – 2:00 pm in The Zone Terrain Park
The first skimmer takes a bath at 12:00 noon!

SKIMMING RULES:
– Ages 8 & older
– Up to two skims per participant
– No poles or sharp objects
– Alpine or Nordic (traditional x-country or mountaineering gear) skis and snowboards are allowed. NO snow skates, jack jumpers, kayaks, etc.
– Inverts are not recommended

ENTERTAINMENT: Our very own MC Hugh Johnson and Jammin Sam will be lighting it up from 12:00 noon – 2:00 pm at the Pond. Jammin’ Sam keeps the party going in Lot 1 from 2:00 pm – 4:00 pm while our Chillin’ & Grillin’ party and prize giveaways heat up, directly following the Pond Skimming event.

CHILLIN’ & GRILLIN’ TAILGATE PARTY: All day Saturday in Parking Lot 1!
Kick back with a refreshing Sierra Nevada brew and refuel at the all-day-long Chillin’ & Grillin’ tailgate party. This year, we’ve changed the format up a bit to focus on how you tailgaters own your setup. Impress us with your bumper side party planning skills and you could win the official Chillin’ & Grillin’ prize! Furthermore, drawings will be held throughout the day for cash and prizes. Enter our Chillin’ 50/50 raffle where proceeds will benefit a local charity of the winner’s choice.

Get here early for a good time!