Archives: November 2018

We’re just a few days away from the 2018-19 Winter season! While we wait, there will absolutely be a loud version of Europe’s classic 1986 hit, The Final Countdown, playing on a constant loop. Well, we’ll listen once, but might leave it at that. This is Mike Chait, reporting for Hugh.

Opening With Snow. Lots of it.

Pushing out the piles.

So, here’s the rundown. Since our first snow, the mountain has seen a total of 48 inches with more in the forecast! Not all of that has stuck around, but currently, the mountain is sitting underneath a nice white blanket of snow. How much snow, you ask? Here’s the rundown:

• Sir Henry’s Hill will be open for beginners with private lessons available all weekend.
• Sterling will open on Friday morning at 8:30 am. As of now, the plan is to offer 100% of Sterling terrain. This is not a drill! Bring those rock skis and boards for the natural trails, but we’ll have a good amount of groomed terrain on Sterling as well.
• Madonna, yes, Madonna, will open on Friday and Saturday from 10:00 am – 2:00 pm ONLY. We plan to have the majority of Madonna trails open, but this terrain is offered to EXPERTS only. Now, please give us your complete attention once you’re done jumping out of your seat, as the following information is very important!
  • Madonna opening on day one is nearly unheard of. Anyone who has hiked that mountain in Summer knows it’s rocky, steep, and well, it’s a mountain; a big, gnarly one, at that.
  • We have NOT made any snow on Madonna yet. 100% of the snow on Madonna is natural. This means there are rocks, open water bars, and other very early season obstacles. The other day we measured 30 inches of natural snow on the ground at once. Now, after weather and settling, we’ve measured depths ranging anywhere from 0-14 inches. That’s why it’s not groomed. We tried to leave it as fluffy as we could, but the natural elements will take their normal course of action and we’ve seen a good amount of settling. That said, it’s yours for the taking!
  • Expect very minimal grooming, if any. Again, if you’re not confidently skiing and riding on any terrain Smugglers’ has to offer, you’ll probably want to stick to Sterling.

Special Deals on Lift Tickets

Bring a non-perishable donation for the Cambridge Food Shelf and receive a $20 youth or $32 Adult Full-Day lift ticket good for this Friday, Saturday, or Sunday!

Stay for a While

Our Thanksgiving festivities continue throughout the weekend with fireworks, bonfires, hayrides, and a signature performance from Vermont’s favorite fire dancers, Cirque de Fuego!

If your equipment still needs a tune, or you found some of those famed early season conditions on Madonna, the crew at 3 Mountain Equipment will be running a Black Friday Sale on tunes with their new Wintersteiger tuning machine! Check out details here.

We hope everyone is looking forward to this historic opening weekend as much as we are! See you on the slopes!

Snow, Snow, Snow!

Snowmakers continue to assault the mountain and temps look promising over the weekend for optimal conditions. Mother nature seems to have an interest in pitching in, too. We’re looking at up to 21 inches of natural snow over the next 5 days! The outlook is good for opening day on November 23. Buy your Pass or Badge now!

It feels so good to see forecasts like these again!

Smugglers’ Patrol is the Best

We couldn’t be more proud of our team. The Smugglers’ Notch Ski Patrol received the National Ski Patrol’s Most Outstanding Small Alpine Patrol award on a snowy afternoon last weekend in the Base Lodge. The award, given annually, accounts for a long list of honors. Smugglers’ patrol team graciously accepted the award after far exceeding the necessary criteria.

The National Outstanding Alpine Patrol award is presented to a patrol that demonstrates excellence in performance, leadership at the regional, divisional, and national levels. Individual accomplishments by the Smugglers’ Patrol weighed heavy into the patrol being awarded this annual prestigious award. The list of accomplishments is long and stood above and beyond the nearest 2nd place candidate patrol. – John Kane, Director, National Ski Patrol, Eastern Division

Presenting the award was John Kane, director of the National Ski Patrol Eastern Division. Kane, along with regional director and Smuggs patroller, Rena Perkins, cited Smugglers’ as providing the vast majority of support for region events despite being the third smallest patrol in the region. Support comes in the form of instructors, trainers/evaluators, and instructor trainers, in both outdoor emergency care and outdoor emergency transport programs. Smugglers’ patrol team also includes the regional director, treasurer, national historian, regional advisor, as well as 14 emergency care and transport instructors and one avalanche instructor. Furthermore, Smugglers’ is the only patrol to see two of it’s team inducted to the National Ski Patrol Hall of Fame.

Other factors in determining the most outstanding patrol are accomplishments the team has received over its fifty-plus years of National Ski Patrol membership. These accomplishments span from individual award recognition to lives directly saved by the patrol. The organization also recognizes Smugglers’ volunteer patrol team for their dedication and direct involvement in supporting their peers to become Most Outstanding Small Alpine Patrol.