# Bolton Valley 3/9/2013



## dlague (Mar 10, 2013)

*Date(s) Skied:* March 9, 2013

*Resort or Ski Area:* Bolton Valley

*Conditions:* Various Crunchy (early) - Soft PP (Afternoon) - Hard PP (evening)

*Trip Report:*

Our trip to Bolton Valley started from Concord, NH and the drive was a little less than two hours.  It was going to be a bluebird day!  Once we got there we were told my other friends there that the Timberline side of the mountain was skiing well, therefore, we parked there.  We were not thinking about later in the day since out lift tickets were valid through to 8 PM.  To clarify, Bolton Valley has two lodges one at the main part of the resort and on lower Bolton Valley there is Timberline Lodge.  The ski area is setup like Burke in some respects with two separate areas.  The main part (upper section) has night skiing and is open for skiing until 8 and the lower part of the mountain is open until 4.  As a result we later had to move all out boot bags from one location to the other.  If skiing you are good are there until 4 then no problem otherwise park up at the main village.

Well it turned out that skiing from Timberline allowed us to get started much faster and our first three runs were on that side of Bolton Valley.  Since we were with someone less experienced, we took the easiest way down (Sure Shot to Timberline) and the trail was perfect - nice packed powder that was quiet to ski on.  Next a few of us (my wife, brother-in-law and myself) decided to try something a little more interesting so we went down Intro and Twice As Nice.  Intro was great but requires speed to be maintained to make it up hill at the bottom.  Where as, Twice As Nice was not so nice.  It was frozen snow that was bumped out and skiing was a little tricky with some thin spots.  Finally we opted to do a last run down Show Time which is a nice wide fairly steep cruiser and that skied really nice and was fast.  

Next we headed over to ski Vista and Wilderness Peak.  This is the main part of the resort and we spent a majority of our time there.  The line for Vista Quad was a little long so we opted for the Wilderness Triple.  Our next run was down Peggy's Dow, Old Turnpike to Abenaki Trail over to the main lodge where we ate at Jame Moore Tavern - the food there was really good!  After a couple of beers and food we skied off the Vista Quad generally heading down Alta Vista and and then to a number of trails taking different paths to the base.  The conditions were getting soft and slow but still really nice.  Bolton Valley does not make snow on all trails therefore there were some thin spots.  Where they made snow, skiing was fabulous.  One of our favorite trails, Vista Glades, was closed unfortunately but it was a cruising type of day with non stop runs that were really fun.  Spillway another favorite was scrapped off but still ski-able.  One of our friends was getting a little tired  so my wife headed in with her to take a break while my brother-in-law and I decided to ski down Cobrass to Five Corners then to Timberline which makes for a very nice long run with much variation.  Timber line is relatively flat in some areas.  Cobrass had some rocks peering out and a few dirt spots which were all avoidable one large glassy ice patch was not and you had to ski over it.  This is a narrow trail therefore when there is too much traffic then these obstacles can be frustrating while people in front of you snow plow.  Which raises a question - Why do people ski down trails like these if they are just going to snow plow and make it hard for others to pass?  Once at the base of Timberline we made on last run over there and then packed all of our boot bags and brought them over to the main lodge (that was a hassle).  It was almost fifty and the parking lot at Timberline got really muddy and we were too hot transferring the bags and our gear.  

We had passes that were valid until 8 PM and made several runs until sunset which was absolutely beautiful!  As temps dropped the trails got really fast and we were cranking the runs out.  Did I mention that our kids were there too?  They spent the day in the progression parks they had three parks and they had lots of fun on them and really did not want to stop at 7 PM.

It was a long day 10 AM to 7 PM but we all had a boat load of fun.  This was a 2 for 1 day with Ride and Ski and we also had comps too so it was well worth it.  Their rates are good in either case.  We dressed in layers and shed them when we needed to which worked out well.  

Thank you Ride and ski it was a really fun day at Bolton Valley!


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## marcski (Mar 10, 2013)

Beautiful sunset pics. Bolton is a fun place. Tons of sidecountry of which I need a local to show me some more. .


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## Cornhead (Mar 11, 2013)

My first visit to BV was a good one, dusting down by the highway, foot-o-pow up at the hill, and no one there! I was blown away on a subsequent visit when I got off the lift and saw the sun setting behind the Daks, lake Champlain in the foreground. I had no idea that view was there on my first visit, it was a wall of grey. Thanks for the TR.


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## bdfreetuna (Mar 11, 2013)

Glad to see BV represented here. Did you by chance ski Preacher / Devil's Playground? That's some fun stuff


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## dlague (Mar 11, 2013)

We were going to go down Preacher since I went down that with my teenagers two years ago.  It looked a little thin in spots so we opted to not too!  I bet it would be really cool on a snow day!  Bolton generally gets quite a bit of snow but not so much this year!


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## vinnyv11 (Mar 11, 2013)

I was there last year and really liked the small vibe but some if the tree runs are awesome.  Devils playground is no joke definitely needs snow though.


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## ScottySkis (Mar 11, 2013)

dlague said:


> We were going to go down Preacher since I went down that with my teenagers two years ago.  It looked a little thin in spots so we opted to not too!  I bet it would be really cool on a snow day!  Bolton generally gets quite a bit of snow but not so much this year!



I would guess they get almost as much as Stowes 300 inch + in a average season?


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## dlague (Mar 12, 2013)

They generally do!  I am not sure how much Stowe got this year but there are some thin spots already!  Seems like they get lake effect snows from Champlain!  I have never seen it like this before!  They do have good coverage on most trails but Cobrass, Schuss,  and some areas on Wilderness Peak side have spots that are thin and will be showinig through after tonight for sure!


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## Solitude67 (Mar 12, 2013)

Really enjoy Bolton Valley while its so close to South Burlington its really a local mountain and does not attract a lot of out of area skiiers.  Skiied Burke for the first time this past weekend and agree with you on the multiple lodge issue.  At Burke it makes the most sense to park at the Mid Lodge unless you are primarily with beginner skiers but the pub at the base lodge is fantastic. Great craft beers, Rookies root beer and great food.  The investment by Jay Peak makes Burke the better choice and I'm optimistic someone will see the value in investing in Bolton Valley which has the great Vista Quad under the Wind Turbine with great trails like Spillway and Alta Vista and Brandywine under Timberline..


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## ScottySkis (Mar 13, 2013)

Solitude67 said:


> Really enjoy Bolton Valley while its so close to South Burlington its really a local mountain and does not attract a lot of out of area skiiers.  Skiied Burke for the first time this past weekend and agree with you on the multiple lodge issue.  At Burke it makes the most sense to park at the Mid Lodge unless you are primarily with beginner skiers but the pub at the base lodge is fantastic. Great craft beers, Rookies root beer and great food.  The investment by Jay Peak makes Burke the better choice and I'm optimistic someone will see the value in investing in Bolton Valley which has the great Vista Quad under the Wind Turbine with great trails like Spillway and Alta Vista and Brandywine under Timberline..



I had some really really great fun in the glades here, didn't even know they were as steep as they are.


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