Hugh's Views - Smugglers' Notch Vermont

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Morse / Report / Uphill Info / Shanty

Posted February 20, 2024 at 4:28 pm

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!

Posted February 20, 2024 at 7:09 am

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!

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Fantastic day on the slopes

Posted February 19, 2024 at 5:31 pm

We have been on a roll with snow storms! We received 5 inches of new snow in the past 24 hours and 26 inches in the past 6 days. The new snow that we received last night was nice and light due to the cold overnight temperatures. I skied Smugglers’ Alley this morning, and it was wonderful. The wind had moved the new snow around a little, and most of it was on the skier’s left side. The boot-deep snow on top of the smooth, groomed surface was heavenly. I headed for Madonna Mountain next, hoping that Upper FIS would be the same. I was not disappointed! The hard part was stopping to take some photos of a few skiers and snowboards as they floated by. I then took the cutoff to Lower Doc’s. The snow in Lower Doc Dempsey’s was not wind affected. It was a consistent blanket of new snow across the whole trail. Tomorrow, we plan to have top-to-bottom skiing and riding on all 3 mountains with all 8 lifts operating. We have 75 trails open with terrain for all ability levels. 29 trails will be groomed for tomorrow, including Upper FIS, Smugglers’ Alley, and Log Jam, for a total of 135 acres of freshly groomed terrain. Surface conditions are packed powder and powder with average base depths of 14 to 40 inches. Currently, it is sunny and 6 degrees at the summit of Sterling. Tomorrow’s forecast is calling for mostly sunny skies with a high of 24 degrees at the base and 16 degrees at higher elevations.

They don’t call it Exhibition for nothing

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Great conditions

Posted February 19, 2024 at 12:45 pm

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Another powder day

Posted February 19, 2024 at 9:27 am

3 to 5 inches of new snow overnight and 26 inches in the past 6 days. We have top-to-bottom skiing and riding on all 3 mountains with all 8 lifts operating. We have 72 trails open with terrain for all ability levels. 34 trails have been groomed for today, including Upper FIS, Smugglers’ Alley, and Snow Snake, for a total of 134 acres of freshly groomed terrain. Surface conditions are powder and packed powder with average base depths of 14 to 40 inches. Currently, it is 2 degrees at the summit of Sterling with winds of 10 to 15 mph. Today’s forecast is calling for a chance of flurries early, then partly sunny skies later, breezy, with a high of 16 degrees at the base and 8 degrees at higher elevations. Dress warm and enjoy the fabulous conditions!

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Snow in the forecast

Posted February 18, 2024 at 4:57 pm

We could see 1 to 3 inches of new snow overnight. Freefall opened from the top today, and I had to ski it. I could see a sweet drift at the top of Freefall from the Madonna I Lift as I rode past. The drift was on skier’s left, and it was a beautiful spine. I was just jumping from one side of the drift to the other over the spine. Freefall stayed open from the top for most of the day but is now open from the traverse on Upper FIS. The 21 inches of new snow that we have received in the past 5 days has made for some great skiing and riding. Tomorrow, we plan to have top-to-bottom skiing and riding on all 3 mountains with all 8 lifts operating. We have 75 trails open with terrain for all ability levels. 34 trails will be groomed for tomorrow, including Upper FIS, Thomke’s, Snow Snake, Ruthie’s, Garden Path, and Snake Bite, for a total of 137 acres of freshly groomed terrain. Surface conditions are packed powder and powder with average base depths of 14 to 40 inches. Birch Run and Knight’s Revenge Terrain Park are both open. Currently, it is cloudy and 15 degrees at the summit of Sterling with winds of 10 to 20 mph. Tomorrow’s forecast is calling for a chance of flurries early, then skies becoming sunny with a high of 14 degrees at the base and 5 degrees at higher elevations. Bundle up and enjoy the wonderful conditions!

Getting fresh tracks on Upper Madonna Liftline

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Another beautiful day

Posted February 18, 2024 at 12:01 pm

Top-to-bottom skiing and riding on all 3 mountains with all 8 lifts operating. We have 75 trails open with terrain for all ability levels. Freefall is open from the traverse from Upper FIS.

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Madonna is 100 percent open

Posted February 18, 2024 at 9:50 am

Freefall is open from the top. Madonna Liftline is open from top to bottom. We have 75 trails open with terrain for all ability levels. We have all 8 lifts operating. We received 21 inches of new snow in the past 5 days. 38 trails have been groomed for today, including Drifter, Ruthie’s, Snow Snake, Log Jam, Smugglers’ Alley, and Thomke’s, for a total of 149 acres of freshly groomed terrain. Surface conditions are packed powder and powder with average base depths of 14 to 40 inches. Birch Run Terrain Park is open with 8 features. Knight’s Revenge Terrain Park is also open. Currently, it is partly sunny and 12 degrees at the summit of Sterling with winds of 5 to 15 mph. Today’s forecast is calling for cloudy skies with a chance of snow showers and an inch of accumulation possible, with a high of 25 degrees at the base and 18 degrees at higher elevations. Fantastic conditions!

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Somebody shook the snow globe

Posted February 17, 2024 at 4:22 pm

The forecast only called for 1 to 2 inches of new snow today, but Mother Nature had a different idea. We received 4 inches of new snow today and 21 inches in the past 4 days! Tomorrow, we plan to have top-to-bottom skiing and riding on all 3 mountains with all 8 lifts operating. We have 69 trails open with terrain for all ability levels. 38 trails will be groomed for tomorrow, including Drifter, Shuttle, Smugglers’ Alley, Thomke’s Express, Snow Snake, and Hibernator, for a total of 147 acres of freshly groomed terrain. Surface conditions are packed powder and powder with average base depths of 14 to 40 inches. Tomorrow’s forecast is calling for cloudy skies with snow showers and an inch of accumulation possible, with a high of 28 degrees at the base and 20 degrees at higher elevations. Currently, it is cloudy and 7 degrees at the summit of Sterling with winds of 5 to 10 mph.

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It’s still snowing

Posted February 17, 2024 at 7:34 am

We received 2 inches of new snow overnight, 4 inches in the past 24 hours, and 17 inches in the past 4 days! Today’s forecast is calling for another 1 to 2 inches of new snow with a high of 20 degrees at the base and 13 degrees at higher elevations. Currently, it is snowing and 11 degrees at the summit of Sterling with winds of 0 to 5 mph. Today, we plan to have top-to-bottom skiing and riding on all 3 mountains with all 8 lifts operating. We have 72 trails open with terrain for all ability levels. 37 trails have been groomed for today, including Upper FIS, Snow Snake, and Smugglers’ Alley, for a total of 147 acres of freshly groomed terrain. Surface conditions are packed powder and powder with average base depths of 14 to 40 inches. Birch Run Terrain Park is open with 8 features.