Hugh's Views - Smugglers' Notch Vermont

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Great day on the slopes

Posted January 3, 2024 at 4:39 pm

I would like to shout out to our groomers for another job well done! I had a blast today on both Smugglers’ Alley and Snake Bite. The conditions are good and are going to get even better. Tomorrow’s forecast calls for snow showers of 2 to 4 inches of accumulation possible, with a high of 27 degrees at the base and 22 degrees at higher elevations. Temperatures will be falling throughout the day. Tomorrow, we plan to have the Village Lift, Sterling Lift, Mogul Mouse’s Magic Lift, and Sir Henry’s Glider all operating. We have 15 trails open with terrain for all ability levels. We plan to open more terrain this weekend. All 15 trails will be groomed for tomorrow that’s a total of 63 acres of freshly groomed terrain. Surface conditions are machine groomed and loose granular with average base depths of 12 to 36 inches. Currently, it is cloudy and 25 degrees at the summit of Sterling.

Some cool rime ice at the top of Thomke’s Express

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Clouds in the valley

Posted December 28, 2023 at 4:00 pm

The view from the top of Smugglers’ Alley

We have one more day of warmer weather before the cold air returns. Currently, it is cloudy and 39 degrees at the summit of Sterling with winds of 5 to 10 mph. Tomorrow’s forecast calls for a chance of fog and rain with a high of 40 degrees. Rain turns to snow tomorrow night, with 1 to 2 inches of new accumulation possible. There may be some delayed lift openings on Saturday morning due to the late freeze and grooming operations. The falling temperatures will allow us to resume our snowmaking operations this weekend. Tomorrow, we plan to have Sterling Lift, Village Lift, Mogul Mouse’s Magic Lift, and Sir Henry’s Glider all operating. We have 14 trails open with terrain for all ability levels. 11 trails will be groomed for tomorrow, including Sam’s Run, Magic Learning Trail, and Treasure Run, for a total of 48 acres of freshly groomed terrain. Surface conditions are machine-groomed and variable, with average base depths of 10 to 34 inches.

Uphill Update:

We are tentatively planning to have Morse Mountain open on New Year’s Eve from 9:30 pm to 1:00 am for uphill travel. Please be aware of possible snowmaking operations on Midway. We plan to make a final decision tomorrow afternoon.

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Winter Weather Advisory

Posted February 28, 2023 at 7:33 am

44.56°N 72.75°W (Elev. 3343 ft)

Today

Snow and windy. High near 23 degrees. Chance of precipitation is 100%. Total daytime snow accumulation of 3 to 7 inches possible.

Tonight

Snow, mainly before midnight. The snow could be heavy at times. Low around 16 degrees. Chance of precipitation is 80%. New snow accumulation of 1 to 3 inches possible.

Wednesday

Mostly cloudy, with a high near 29 degrees.

Wednesday Night

Snow likely, mainly after 10pm. Cloudy, with a low around 24 degrees. Chance of precipitation is 70%. New snow accumulation of 1 to 2 inches possible.

Thursday

A 50 percent chance of snow showers. Cloudy, with a high near 29. Blustery, with a northwest wind 15 to 22 mph. New snow accumulation of 1 to 2 inches possible.

Village Lift is presently on wind hold. Sterling, Morse Highlands, Sir Henry’s Glider, and Mogul Mouse’s Magic Lift opening at regular time. Madonna 1 Lift is now open. We have top to bottom skiing and riding on all 3 mountains with 5 lifts operating, including the Madonna 1 Lift. We have 76 trails open with terrain for all ability levels. 36 trails have been groomed for today for grand total of 146 acres of freshly groomed terrain. Surface conditions are powder and packed powder with average base depths of 12 to 36 inches. Currently, it is snowing and 14 degrees at the summit of Sterling with winds of 15 to 20 mph.

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Calm before the storm

Posted January 19, 2023 at 5:04 pm

Madonna, Sterling, and Mount Mansfield seen from the Village Lift

Long time Ski Instructor Larry Arnold with his class on Lower Morse Liftline

The “Usual Spot” on Upper Rumrunner with the Sterling Lift in the background

I met Nick Anastasi from Smuggs TV this morning at the Village Lift. We did a three-mountain tour for this week’s No Bull Video Snow Report. We took Midway to the upper mountains and headed for the Sterling Lift. Smugglers’ Alley was groomed last night, so we made a left turn as we unloaded the Sterling Lift. The Alley was fun and flat. We then did a nice cruiser down Lower Rumrunner. It was nice riding your edges in the fresh corduroy. On our next run, we did Upper Rumrunner and then jumped into the Highlander Glades for some tree skiing. It was then time to let our skis roll down Treasure Run and Lower Exhibition. We then headed for the Madonna II Lift. We had a blast cruising down Lower Chilcoot. I love the turns and contours, and there is plenty of room to make some nice GS turns. The snow that we are expected to get tonight and tomorrow will freshen things up nicely. Last night we made snow on Upper Chilcoot and Waterfall. We are planning to make snow again on Upper Chilcoot tomorrow and then open the Madonna I Lift on Sunday. The Madonna II Lift will open at 8:30 am on Saturday and Sunday. Currently, it is cloudy and 22 degrees at the summit of Sterling with winds of 5 to 15 mph. Tonight’s forecast is calling for snow showers with 4 to 8 inches of accumulation possible on top. Tomorrow’s forecast is calling for more snow showers with another 2 to 4 inches of new snow possible on top with a high of 31 degrees at the base and 26 degrees at the summit. Tomorrow we plan to have skiing and riding on all 3 mountains. We plan to have the Madonna II Lift, Sterling Lift, Village Lift, Morse Highlands Lift, Mogul Mouse’s Magic Lift, and Sir Henry’s Glider all operating. We will have 37 trails open with terrain for all ability levels. 20 out of the 37 open trails will be groomed for tomorrow, including Black Snake, Wanderer, and Lower FIS for a grand total of 96 acres of freshly groomed terrain. Surface conditions are machine-groomed and variable with average base depths of 6 to 24 inches.

This weekend the featured beer for the apres sports parties at Bootlegger’s and the Black Bear Tavern is Labatts.

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It’s a little foggy this morning

Posted January 4, 2023 at 8:00 am

All lifts will have a delayed opening until 9 am due to low visibility. Today we plan to have the Sterling Lift, Village Lift, Mogul Mouse’s Magic Lift, and Sir Henry’s Glider all operating. We plan to have 16 trails open with terrain for all ability levels. 15 trails have been groomed for today, that’s a grand total of 69 acres of freshly groomed terrain. Surface conditions are machine groomed and variable with average base depths of 8 to 24 inches. Currently, it is foggy and 34 degrees at the summit of the Village Lift with winds of 0 to 5 mph. Today’s forecast is calling for a chance of rain and freezing rain, foggy with a high of 35 degrees.

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88 acres of freshly groomed terrain for Monday

Posted January 1, 2023 at 5:09 pm

Tomorrow we plan to have the Sterling Lift, Village Lift, Morse Highlands Lift, Mogul Mouse’s Magic Lift, Madonna II Lift, and Sir Henry’s Glider operating. All lifts will have a delayed opening until 9 am due to grooming. We have terrain for all ability levels with 19 trails open. All 19 trails will be groomed for tomorrow, including Smugglers’ Alley. Surface conditions are machine groomed and variable with average base depths of 8 to 26 inches. Currently, it is partly cloudy and 28 degrees at the summit of Sterling with winds of 5 to 10 mph. Tomorrow’s forecast is calling for snow showers and mixed precipitation at the base with less than an inch of accumulation possible. Tomorrow’s high temperature is 37 degrees at the base and 30 degrees at the top. Happy New Year!

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Welcome Winter

Posted December 21, 2022 at 4:52 pm

Photo credit: Smuggs Alpine Program Supervisor Blakely Olson

Currently, it is sunny and 22 degrees at the summit of Sterling with winds of 5 to 10 mph. Tomorrow’s forecast is calling for mostly cloudy skies with a high of 31 degrees and breezy in the afternoon. Tomorrow we plan to have Sterling Lift and Sir Henry’s Glider open. We also plan to open the Village Lift and Mogul Mouse’s Magic Lift to mid-station. We have terrain for all ability levels with 22 trails open. Surface conditions are machine groomed and packed powder with average base depths of 6 to 36 inches. 11 trails will be groomed for tomorrow for a grand total of 48 acres of freshly groomed terrain. We are presently making snow on Garden Path, Meadowlark, and Midway.

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Top to bottom on all 3 mountains

Posted March 28, 2022 at 2:51 pm

We received 4 inches of new snow in the past 24 hours and 14 inches in the past 4 days. Tomorrow we plan to have 5 lifts operating; Madonna I, Sterling, Village, Mogul Mouse’s Magic, and Sir Henry’s Glider. We have 49 trails open with terrain for all ability levels. 28 trails will be groomed for tomorrow, including Smugglers’ Alley, Upper FIS, and Snow Snake for a grand total of 118 acres of freshly groomed terrain. Surface conditions are machine groomed and packed powder with average base depths of 8 to 42 inches. Currently, it is cloudy and 2 degrees at the summit of Sterling with winds of 10 to 20 mph. Tonight’s forecast is calling for snow showers with 1 to 2 inches of accumulation possible. Tomorrow’s forecast is calling for cloudy skies with a chance of scattered snow showers with a high of 24 degrees at the base and 15 degrees at higher elevations.

Rest in Powder Mark “Arch” Archambault. You were one of kind and will be deeply missed!

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March 8th morning update

Posted March 8, 2022 at 8:00 am

Rockin’ Ron for Hugh. Due to the rapidly changing conditions, we have had some updates.

LIFTS: Madonna II will open at 9 am, Village and Mogul Mouse at 10 am. Sterling is on wind hold. Morse Highlands and Madonna I closed today.

TRAILS: 16 trails – all groomed – will be open for today.

LOT 1: There is no return access to Lot 1 this morning. Parking in Lot 3 will be the best option.

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Grooming operations

Posted February 17, 2022 at 8:34 am

The Village Lift, Madonna I Lift, and Madonna II Lift are presently on wind hold. Currently, it is raining and 40 degrees at the summit of Sterling with winds of 15 to 30 mph. Today’s forecast is calling for rain and gusty winds with a high of 51 degrees at the base and 44 degrees at higher elevations. We have 4 lifts operating today Sterling, Morse Highlands, Mogul Mouse’s Magic, and Sir Henry’s Glider. We have 19 trails open today. 15 trails have been groomed for today. The Birch Run Terrain Park is open.