Hugh's Views - Smugglers' Notch Vermont

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Spring conditions

Posted March 28, 2019 at 3:55 pm

Snow Sport University Ski Instructor Justin Falkenburg at the summit of Madonna with his class

Today the temperature got up to 41 degrees at the summit of Sterling. Everything was softening up and was skiing well. The Headwall was open, Freefall was open from the top, and Madonna Liftline was open from Catwalk. I ran into my good friends Lenny and Nikki this afternoon. We took a few runs on Madonna together. We started off with a cruiser run on Upper Chilcoot. Nikki skied Waterfall for the first time and did great!

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 1 Lift. We have all 78 trails open with terrain for all ability levels. Surface conditions are spring conditions and machine-groomed with average base depths of 24 to 54 inches. We plan to groom 28 trails tonight, including Chilcoot, Dixie’s Knoll, and Black Snake for a grand total of 125 acres of freshly groomed terrain.

Nikki skiing Upper Chilcoot

Weather

Currently it is cloudy and 38 degrees at the summit of Sterling with winds of 5 to 15 mph. Tomorrow’s forecast is calling for cloudy skies with a chance of mix with temperatures between 34 and 49 degrees.

Snow Sport University Ski Instructor Matt McCawley gap jumping from drift to drift on Upper Chilcoot

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Going back a few years

Posted March 18, 2019 at 4:13 pm

Smugglers’ Notch Ski Ways

Smugglers’ Notch Ski Ways opened in December 1956 on Sterling Mountain. Black Snake, Rum Runner, Hangman’s Noose, and the Practice Area were some of the original trails. Tom Watson Jr. renamed Smugglers’ Notch Ski Ways to Madonna Mountain in 1964.

Lifts and Trails

Tomorrow we plan to have top to bottom skiing and riding on all 3 mountains with 6 lifts operating. We have 65 trails open with terrain for all ability levels. Surface conditions are packed powder and machine groomed with average base depths of 20 to 50 inches. We plan to groom 41 trails tonight, including Ruthie’s, Evaporator, Wanderer, McPherson’s, Chute, and Smugglers’ Alley for a grand total of 153 acres of freshly groomed terrain.

Madonna Mountain

Weather

Currently it is 20 degrees with beautiful sunny skies and 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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Happy St. Patrick’s Day

Posted March 16, 2019 at 4:15 pm

Lifts and Trails

Tomorrow we plan to have top to bottom skiing and riding on all 3 mountains with all 8 lifts operating. We plan to have 48 trails open with terrain for all ability levels. We plan to groom 47 trails tonight, including Upper FIS, Drifter, Shuttle, Snow Snake, Garden Path, Wanderer, Black Snake, and Smugglers’ Alley for a grand total of 162 acres of freshly groomed terrain. For all the details on trail grooming check the trail by trail report tomorrow morning. Surface conditions are machine groomed and variable with average base depths of 20 to 50 inches.

Wade having fun at the ski and ride desk

Weather

Currently it is partly cloudy and 20 degrees at the summit of Sterling with winds of 15 to 25 mph. Tonight’s forecast is calling for snow showers 1 to 3 inches of accumulation possible. Tomorrow’s forecast is calling for partly sunny skies with temperatures between 14 and 28 degrees.

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Top to bottom skiing and riding on all 3 mountains

Posted March 15, 2019 at 2:43 pm

Upper FIS

Lifts and Trails

Our current weather forecast calls for today’s warm temperatures to begin falling this evening to near or slightly below freezing by 8 am Saturday. Temps will warm into the mid to upper 30s during the day. Today’s wet snow will likely become rather firm tomorrow. In order for us to provide the best skiing and riding surfaces possible, we will be delaying our upper mountain lift openings to allow for some last minute grooming. There is also the possibility of some early morning snow showers that will help improve conditions.

Coming up with a plan

Our anticipated lift opening schedule on Saturday will be as follows:

Village Lift – 8:00 am

Sterling, Mogul Mouse, Morse Highlands, and Sir Henry’s lifts – 9:00 am

Madonna I & II lifts – 10:00 am

All lift opening times assume we are not experiencing any wind delays, which does not look likely at this time. Lift crews will be in place to open upper mountain lifts earlier if conditions allow.

The George Tormey race will be held on the Practice Slope with first run starting at 9:30 am. T-bar will commence operating at 7:30 am for race crew and coaches and for athletes at 8:15 am.

Tomorrow we plan to have top to bottom skiing and riding on all 3 mountains with all 8 lifts operating. We have 65 out of 78 trails open with terrain for all ability levels. Surface conditions are machine groomed and variable with average base depths of 20 t0 50 inches. We plan to groom 40 trails, including Goat Path, Ruthie’s, Snow Snake, Dixie’s Knoll, Black Snake, and Treasure Run for a grand total of 149 acres of freshly groomed terrain.

Sterling Mountain seen from the Madonna I Lift

Weather

Currently it is partly cloudy and 44 degrees at the summit of Sterling with winds of 15 to 25 mph. Tomorrow’s forecast is cloudy skies with a chance of scattered snow showers and an inch of accumulation possible with temperatures between 18 and 35 degrees.

Events

We have too many events this weekend to list! For all the details just go to our events page.

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Freshly groomed terrain

Posted March 15, 2019 at 8:34 am

Groomer Dickie Guyette heading up Meadowlark after finishing the trails on Morse Mountain this morning

Lifts and Trails

Today we have top to bottom skiing and riding on all 3 mountains with 6 lifts operating, including the Madonna I Lift. The Village Lift is presently on wind hold. We have 65 trails open with terrain for all ability levels. Surface conditions are spring conditions and machine groomed with average base depths of 24 to 54 inches. 30 trails have been groomed for today, including Chilcoot, Snow Snake, and Black Snake for a grand total of 132 acres of freshly groomed terrain.

Weather

Currently it is cloudy and 39 degrees at the summit of Sterling with winds of 15 to 25 mph. Today’s forecast is calling for cloudy skies with a chance of some rain and temperatures between 44 and 59 degrees.

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Cat Trax Express

Posted February 24, 2019 at 8:32 am

Beautiful sunset seen from the summit of Madonna last night

Take a snowcat ride to the top of our world!

Our 12-passenger cabin snowcat ride gives your family thrills like you have never experienced before!

Whether you join the fireworks run on Thursday evening or one of the early evening mountain tours on Saturday or Monday you’ll want to come back for more!

Guided by experienced snowcat drivers with stories about the area and its natural history.

Evening Upper Mountain Tour
Monday & Saturday 4:45 pm
Meet at the Madonna/Sterling Base Lodge

Top of Morse Fireworks Tour
Thursday 7:15 pm
Meet at the base of Morse Mountain, near the Gazebo.

Lifts and Trails

We have 77 skiable trails and 41 lift accessible trails open today. The Madonna I lift, Madonna II lift, Mogul Mouse’s Magic lift, and the Village lift are presently on wind hold. We have 4 lifts operating, Sterling, Sterling T-Bar, Morse Highlands, and Sir Henry’s Glider. Surface conditions are packed powder and machine groomed with average base depths of 24 to 54 inches. 33 trails have been groomed for today, including Ruthie’s, Log Jam, and Black Snake for a grand total of 135 acres of freshly groomed terrain.

Weather

Currently it is snowing and 20 degrees at the summit of Sterling with winds of 20 to 30 mph. Today’s forecast is calling for snow and sleet with 1 to 2 inches of accumulation possible, chance of freezing rain becoming rain later in the day with temperatures between 26 and 36 degrees. Tonight’s forecast is calling for snow 3 to 5 inches of accumulation possible.

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Snow Snake Black Snake

Posted February 5, 2019 at 5:15 pm

Snowboarder with a tutu and Rockin’ Ron the Friendly Pirate (aka the author).

Rockin’ Ron for Hugh. Today wasn’t so pretty but it wasn’t ugly either. Clouds were threatening but they didn’t drop any clear snow. The conditions on Morse were quite enjoyable – Snow Snake was carv-a-licious! It was nice to see groups of Cambridge Elementary School 4th Graders enjoying Winter Wellness lessons.

GROOMING

39 trails, totaling close to 146 acres, are to be groomed for Wednesday. I suggest staying on the groomers – there will plenty of them. BTW – shout out to the Mtn Ops and Grooming crew!

From Snow Snake looking towards Black Snake and Practice Slope.

Pirate’s Ski gear. Thanks to Eli from Patrol for helping me score these skis.

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Soft conditions

Posted February 4, 2019 at 2:30 pm

Upper FIS

Lifts and Trails

Tomorrow we plan to have top to bottom skiing and riding on all 3 mountains with 6 lifts operating. We have 67 trails open with terrain for all ability levels. Surface conditions are variable and machine groomed with average base depths of 24 to 54 inches. 25 trails will be groomed for tomorrow, including Black Snake, Upper Chilcoot, and Garden Path for a grand total of 111 acres of freshly groomed terrain.

Capturing those special memories

Weather

Currently it is 38 degrees at the summit of Sterling with partly cloudy skies and winds of 5 to 10 mph. Tomorrow’s forecast is calling for a chance of light rain early becoming snow later with temperatures between 25 and 38 degrees, falling throughout the day.

Events

Friday 8th, Saturday 9th, and Sunday 10th

Checking out the trail map at the summit of Madonna

Black Bear Apres Sport Party

Choose from 20 different beers on tap, plus a wide selection of bottled beer. Join us at 2:00 pm for après sport entertainment – Jammin’ Sam plays guitar and sings. Weekend draft beer specials from Long Trail.

Saturday 9th and Sunday 10th

Free Family Fun Race

On Lower Madonna Liftline from 11 am till 2 pm. Find out who’s the fastest in your family.

Upper FIS

L.L. Bean Bootmobile Mountain Tour

Swing by the boot to grab some photos, play games, win swag, and have a chance to win a $300 L.L. Bean gift card. They’ll be on-snow, right by the Gazebo from 10 am till 2 pm!

Wine & Chocolate Weekend at Boyden Valley Winery & Spirits

What could be more lovable than wine & chocolate? An entire weekend filled with wine & chocolate pairings, Valentine’s themed cocktails, champagne cupcakes made with Frontenac Brut Rose, and a variety of locally crafted chocolates sampled and sold to you directly by the Vermont family members that craft Snowflake Chocolates! STiR Chocolates will also be available for sale. PLUS this year we will have Bobber’s Food Truck on site both days for some scrumptious lunch options to pair with your favorite wines! This incredible weekend is sponsored annually by The Vermont Grape and Wine Council. Boyden Valley Winery & Spirits in Cambridge will be the best place to kick-off your Valentine’s day plans from 10:00 am – 5:00 pm each day. Join us for our most indulgent event of the year. Contact Boyden Valley Winery & Spirits at (802) 644-8151 or by email at info@boydenvalley.com with questions.

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Top to bottom skiing and riding on all 3 mountains

Posted February 4, 2019 at 10:35 am

Garden Path

We have 6 lifts operating, including the Madonna I lift, with 67 trails open. Surface conditions are wet snow and machine groomed with average base depths of 24 to 54 inches. 38 trails have been groomed for today, including Smugglers’ Alley, Black Snake, and Dixie’s Knoll for a grand total of 145 acres of freshly groomed terrain.

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Eastern Cup

Posted January 26, 2019 at 11:04 am

Today’s race is a slalom race which starts at the top of Snake Bite and goes down onto the Practice Slope. The caliber of these skiers is just amazing! These are some of the best racers on the east coast and they are here to take on what ever Smuggs has to offer. Tomorrow’s race is a giant slalom which will begin at the pine tree start on Black Snake, which is near the top of Harvey’s Hideaway. These racers will built up speed on Black Snake before plunging onto the steep pitch of Snake Bite. They will be holding on with all they have to make it around each gate as they work their way down Snake Bite. Spectators are welcome. Black Snake will be closed tomorrow from the top of Harvey’s Hideaway down and Snake Bite will also be closed tomorrow for the race.