Hugh's Views - Smugglers' Notch Vermont

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Let the sun shine

Posted March 8, 2020 at 5:07 pm

It was another amazing day with tons of sunshine and mild temperatures. Our groomers did a wonderful last night on Upper FIS, Bootlegger, and Drifter. Our groomers will be busy again tonight with 37 trails to put corduroy on. Tonight we plan to groom Upper FIS, Ruthie’s, McPherson’s, Snow Snake, Dixie’s Knoll, Wanderer, Smugglers’ Alley, Thomke’s, and Treasure Run for a grand total of 148 acres of freshly groomed terrain. Tomorrow we plan to have top to bottom skiing and riding on all 3 mountains with 6 lifts operating. We have 70 trails open with terrain for all ability levels. Surface conditions are machine groomed and variable with average base depths of 16 to 56 inches. Currently, it is sunny and 33 degrees at the summit of Sterling. Tomorrow’s forecast is calling for mostly sunny skies with a high of 52 degrees.

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Top to bottom skiing and riding on all 3 mountains

Posted March 3, 2020 at 5:08 pm

**Ski Patroller Mike Duncan on Bootlegger**

Today’s mild temperatures made for some nice soft snow. I had a great day skiing Madonna and Sterling. The soft snow allowed you to ski the steeper terrain easier. I had my best runs of the day on Freefall from the top, Snake Bite, Smugglers’ Alley, and Bootlegger. The mild temperatures will continue through the night. The temperature will get colder in the morning. We plan to groom once the temperature falls below freezing. We plan to have the lifts on Morse Mountain open at their regular times. The upper mountains might have a delayed opening due to late morning grooming. Surface conditions will change with the cooler temperatures. Some trails may close tomorrow because of the snow surface not the lack of snow. There is snow in the forecast for tonight and tomorrow at the summit. Tomorrow the base area could see some mixed precipitation with a high of 37 degrees. 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 plan to have 74 trails open tomorrow with terrain for all ability levels. Surface conditions are machine groomed and variable with average base depths of 16 to 56 inches. We plan to groom 23 trails for tomorrow, that’s a grand total of 110 acres of freshly groomed terrain.

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More open terrain

Posted December 20, 2019 at 10:30 am

Today we opened Sam’s Run, Highlander Glades, and the bottom of Bootlegger.

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Great Conditions

Posted December 5, 2019 at 12:51 pm

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A couple photos from yesterday

Posted December 4, 2019 at 8:29 am

**Sterling Pond with Mount Mansfield in the background**

Yesterday was my day off, but with the conditions being so good I had to come up and take a few runs. Upper Exhibition is now open top to bottom, so I had to ski it. The 10 inches of new snow that we received in the past week along with 29 inches of snow this season has really made a big difference. We have many trails open with natural snow coverage like Upper Exhibition, Chute, Thomke’s, Bootlegger, Hangman’s, Lower Pipeline, Hangman’s Drop, Thomke’s Express, Jolly Rodger, Pipeline Escape, and Highlander Glades. Some of the intermediate trails are rated expert at this time. Last night our snowmakers were busy on Garden Path and Lower Morse Liftline. Today we plan to have Sterling Lift and Sir Henry’s Wonder Carpet operating. We now have 18 trails open with terrain for all ability levels. 8 trails have been groomed for today, including Smugglers’ Alley and Thomke’s. Currently, it is cloudy and 22 degrees at the summit of Sterling with winds of 0 to 5 mph. Today’s forecast is calling for cloudy skies with a chance of snow late in the day and a high of 26 degrees. We have snow in the forecast tonight through Thursday night with 3 to 5 inches of accumulation possible. Surface conditions are machine groomed and variable with average base depths of 12 to 48 inches.

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Great spring conditions

Posted April 7, 2019 at 4:49 pm

Lindsey having fun on Upper Madonna Liftline

Currently it’s partly cloudy and 37 degrees at the summit of Sterling. Tomorrow’s forecast is calling for a chance of rain with temperatures between 39 and 50 degrees. Weather permitting tomorrow we plan to have Sterling Lift operating with 30 trails open for intermediates and experts. We plan to groom 11 trails tonight, including Smugglers’ Alley and Black Snake for a grand total of 42 acres of freshly groomed terrain. Surfaces are machine groomed and spring conditions with average base depths of 18 to 48 inches. We plan to operate Sterling Lift Monday, April 8th through Friday, April 12th. We plan to have both the Madonna I Lift and Sterling Lift operating next weekend. We will then close Monday, April 15^th through Friday, April 19^th. We plan to reopen for Saturday, April 20^th and Sunday, April 21^st.

Ski Patroller Linda enjoying the soft conditions

Weeeeeeeeee

Dave having fun on Upper FIS

Spring Tele Turns

Always a good sign

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Spring Fever

Posted April 3, 2019 at 4:32 pm

Matt enjoying the spring conditions

It didn’t take long for things to soften this morning. I had a blast on the steeper groomed runs like Bootlegger, Smugglers’ Alley, Chute, Hangman’s Drop, and Upper Pipeline. In fact all the groomed runs were good. The natural snow was also good on Black Bear, Full Nelson, Harvey’s Hideaway, and Upper Exhibition. I want to thank the Sterling Patrol for a wonderful lunch today, it was unexpected and appreciated.

Geoff is race day ready with his sporty jacket

Lifts and Trails

Tomorrow we plan to have top to bottom skiing and riding on all 3 mountains with 4 lifts operating. We have 62 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 37 trails tonight, including Upper FIS, Drifter, Ruthie’s, Snow Snake, Midway, Smugglers’ Alley, and Black Snake for a grand total of 139 acres of freshly groomed terrain.

Sterling Patrol Chillin’ & Grillin’ getting ready for the April 6th Tailgate Party

Weather

Currently it is snowing and 29 degrees at the summit of Sterling. Tonight’s forecast is calling for snow showers with 1 to 2 inches of accumulation possible. Tomorrow’s forecast is calling for mostly sunny skies with temperatures between 16 and 38 degrees.

Construction continues on the skimming pond

Patroller Mac with a fresh dog right off the grill

Skiing and riding isn’t just about skiing and riding. It’s also about hanging out with your good friends!

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Happy April No Fooling

Posted April 1, 2019 at 3:42 pm

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!

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.

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.

Sterling Pond with Mount Mansfield in the background

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100 percent open

Posted March 27, 2019 at 4:17 pm

Sterling and Mount Mansfield seen from Lower Catwalk

Lifts and Trails

Tomorrow we plan to have top to bottom skiing and riding on all 3 mountains with 6 lifts operating. We have all 78 trails open with terrain for all ability levels. Freefall, the Black Hole, and Madonna Liftline are open from the traverse on Upper FIS. Surface conditions are packed powder and machine groomed with average base depths of 24 to 54 inches. Tonight we plan to groom 35 trails, including Bootlegger, Snow Snake, and Ruthie’s for a grand total of 138 acres of freshly groomed terrain.

Weather

Currently it is sunny and 35 degrees at the summit of Sterling with winds of 0 to 5 mph. Tomorrow’s forecast is calling for sunny skies early with increasing clouds and temperatures between 27 and 46 degrees.

This was one of the only clouds I saw all day

Events

This weekend we have many events like the Friendly Freeski Challenge, the Blast from the Past, and more many! For all the details check out our events page.

Tele Timmy on Upper Chilcoot

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Calm before the storm

Posted March 21, 2019 at 4:32 pm

Flying into Spring

Lifts and Trails

Tomorrow we plan to have top to bottom skiing and riding on all 3 mountains with 7 lifts operating. We have 65 trails open with terrain for all ability levels. Surface conditions are machine groomed and spring conditions with average base depths of 20 to 50 inches. We plan to groom 27 trails tonight, including Drifter, Thomke’s, and Hibernator for a grand total of 127 acres of freshly groomed terrain.

Bird’s eye view of a nice carved turn

Weather

Currently it is cloudy and 35 degrees at the summit of Sterling with winds of 5 to 15 mph. Tonight’s forecast is snow with 2 to 4 inches of accumulation possible. Tomorrow’s forecast is snow and another 4 to 8 inches of accumulation possible with temperatures between 27 and 35 degrees. We could see up to 28 inches of new snow by Saturday afternoon.

Time to reflect

Bootlegger was groomed last night