# Your 2012-2013 Ski Season Recap



## deadheadskier (May 25, 2013)

Well, with the Fat Lady singing at Killington this weekend marking the end of lift serviced skiing on the East Coast it's time to reflect on what was and start getting psyched for next year.

Overall, I'd rate my season a solid A-.   Between working full time and returning to school as a full time student, I wasn't planning on having that great of a year, but my season exceeded my expectations both in the quantity of days I got in (25) and the quality of the conditions.  I got particularly lucky this year and the many storms we had seemed to coincide with my available time to hit the slopes.

The highlight of my year for sure was the AZ Summit at Sugarloaf during Nemo.  I always love the Summit, but we had been screwed on conditions every year until this season.  Aside from no Snowfields, the Summit was just about as good as it gets at Sugarloaf.  I think the 100+ Azers in attendance would agree.

Other highlights for me this included killer conditions at Killington during snow.down and numerous small to medium powder days elsewhere.  I was also very pleased to ski at a dozen different areas for the year including a couple that I hadn't hit since the 80s.  

The only reason I gave an A- grade to my season is that I was in horrible shape this season and really didn't ski as well as I would like.  If I were in better shape and exceeded 30 days, I would have given it in A.  Only really regret this season outside of fitness and quantity of days is that I wasn't able to squeeze in a day in May and my season ended a bit earlier than I was hoping for on April 29th.

Overall though, I'll take a season like this past one every year.  Despite the January thaw and several weeks of less than optimal Spring Skiing conditions, I'd say our weather / snow surfaces this season were above average for the east. 


Loon 11/19; Sunday River 11/26; Wildcat 12/20; Gunstock 12/27, 12/30, 12/31, 1/21, 1/27, 2/24, 3/10, 3/11, 3.30, 4/7; Attitash 1/6; Sugarloaf 2/8, 2/9, 2/10; Ragged 2/18, 3/21; Pat's Peak 2/25; Shawnee Peak 3/3; Killington 3/23, 4/29; Sugarbush 4/14; Bretton Woods 4/15


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## tmcc71 (May 25, 2013)

I'm not quite done yet. I'm heading to k in am to grab day 161.    I rate this season. A solid a+.   I skiied 17 mountains over the course of over 8 months.   Most were at Sunday river jay and sugarloaf.   I cant wait to close this season properly and epic-ly tommorrow.


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## ss20 (May 25, 2013)

B+
I started at Butternut on December 15 to get in my final turns before the apocalypse (remember December 21?).  And ended in a beautiful spring glade with an inch of fresh snow on April 15.  By far, my latest tree skiing ever!  In between there was a lightning hold, steeps, trees, and any snowy vistas at the top of Vermont.  I even found a way to make Okemo a pretty good mountain!  See video:





There were some major downsides to this season as well:  Only one day in the epic mid-late March.  I did not get to experience the new and improved Killington.  Smuggler's Notch had under-par conditions MLK weekend.  I didn't get in as much bump skiing in as I wanted.  That's my true mogul in skiing!  Still a pretty uplifting season, after all, conditions could go downhill for next year.  
I love bad puns


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## snoseek (May 26, 2013)

I'm gonna lump the fall in with this year as it may have been the highlight. I did things slightly different.

Left work Oct 17, spent a a few days riding up at E Burke, so nice up there. From there i got in the car and drove west as usual, only many weeks early. Stopped off in Nebraska and rode some singletrack by the platte river, better than you'd expect and a welcome break from driving. From their continued on to Grand Junction, skipping Denver as it was snowing on the Front range. Stayed with some friends the first few nights and decompressed from the drive. 

Few days later set my tent up out in the North Fruita desert and just basically road the shit out of Fruita/Moab/Western slope for the next three weeks. It was F%^cking awesome, I love the desert-this set the stage for a very healthy me also. When it got cold i got a room in town and I took a couple rest days and did some off roading down in Telluride area. Overall the weather in that few weeks was fairly mild for November and sweet Colorado sun as normal. After getting my fix of singletrack and desert I continued my drive west to Tahoe.


Arrived in Tahoe just before Thanksgiving. Immediately got out the skis and hit the manmade, followed by riding the epic South Lake trail system right out my back door in the afternoons. The climbs here are crazy and I got up to the snow line a few times. The riding here might be as good as anywhere i've been honestly. Took Thanksgiving weekend off and spent it up in Reno cooking/drinking/and tons and tons of resting (which at this point i needed). Immediately after Thanksgiving we started getting same really big storms, the first series on the warm side and they got progressively colder as December wore on. It was a ridiculous amount of snow that came down in December. Every days was the same; wake up, ski powder, go home and cook dinner, hot tub, fatty, sleep. Skiing wise it was one of the best months ever for me and to give you an idea mott was open well before x-mas, earliest opening ever actually. 

January was dry. One small storm that really only produced at Heavenly only (14 inches) but the skiing remained good as the temps were cold and the base was set. I mixed in days where I would drive down to folsom or auburn to ride my bike but was selective as gas is $$$ in California and I'm not taking in any money. In hindsight I should have taken a part time job, will probably do that next winter...nights.

February was dry also. Two years in a row Tahoe has been a bitch in the dead of winter. The base was still good but the condtions were starting to slide. I spent a lot of time that month exiting the ski areas gates and hiking/skiing sidecountry. Not many out there and there was some decent corn at times. I was getting frustrated and increasingly broke, snow was finally starting to fall to the east in the rockies and at the end of the month I took what very little i had left  and drove back to colorado to catch a storm cycle, because 8 weeks is just too long to go in winter and Tahoes forecast was bleak. I said my fairwells till next year and drove. 

That week in Colorado was perfect, nice blower pow. Started in summit county and backtracked to Grand J to hit powderhorn who had gotten the jackpot for the state in that last few storms. While the rest of the state was sitting on a thin base powderhorn was WAY above average. I mixed in a couple rabbit valeey/zion curtain rides also. Good stuff. Eventually it was time to head back east as i was flat broke, work was calling as the guy i hired to replace myself (permanently) didn't work out. I safely packed away my smoke for the summer and drove back in the beginning of march, earliest ever for me.People backhere were warning me the skiing sucked, stay west. They were right when i first arrived but things changed quickly...


There was about a week of pretty shitty skiing when i got back here. Getting paid allowed me to buy tickets and honestly my schedule was very light (slow till easter). My first couple days were at Cannon and Sunday river, fun but definitely firm...damn. And then the snow came. That day at Saddleback, I think it was a tuesday, there were a couple others on the board that were there, man that was good!!!! Deep, light, pow with a nice base, one of my best days of the year. From there i skied lots over the next few weeks and by the time i ended my season a Killington i skied around at 13 different areas in New england mostly shopping for bargains or chasing weather. It was liberating not being tied to a pass. I wouldn't have had that perfect spring day at Stowe.

All in all I got lots of skiing in, didn't count but likely over 100 with lots of other fun stuff also. Skiing wise the season gets a b- but overall im giving my winter an A+. Now its time to make some money so i can do it all over.....


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## polski (May 28, 2013)

Real solid season and, as of yesterday, it's over. 

Not sure whether this beats 2010-11 in my book - I had 35 days on skis that year compared to 30 this year, but far more earned vertical this year than ever before, with six days on Mt Washington. And just a real good mix of experiences.

Late start, first trip 12/28, but quickly built up fine downhill stamina despite starting out about 20 lbs heavier than I was at the end of the season before last. Plenty of two-day trips where I skied long and hard on day 2 with no problem. Skinning up, though ... well,  speed was not one of my attributes. Gotta have a better conditioning plan for next season.

Notables:

- Trip of the year goes to 2/21-22 Jay in 2' of upslope powder. One of those trips where the stars align (and props to my old friend AZer caffrey for urging me up to Jay instead of somewhere further south in the Greens, which wound up getting half the snow). 

- got a midweek season pass at MRG for the first time, as they removed blackouts from it. Made that worthwhile including some survival skills training early President's Week ... and some excellent conditions there too including great powder on 3/20. Also stayed at the Barn and did a bit of exploring up the 19th Hole, including a fine little dawn powder patrol on 3/20.

- actually had a couple injuries for the first time, one to a knee and one a godawful shin bruise courtesy of a stupid freak accident involving a tree. The knee injury was weird (I suspect an MCL sprain) as it didn't hurt when I skied, only when walking/descending stairs/etc. Obviously the solution to that was to ski more! The shin thing actually required a minor surgical procedure and kept me off the slopes a couple weeks, although I didn't miss any primo conditions then.

- I'd actually never skied in May before yesterday. Early to mid-May is always tough for family and work reasons. Yesterday was the latest I've skied by a full month.


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## polski (May 28, 2013)

p.s. Biggest regret: I managed not to make it to Magic this year.

But a great season all in all. Here's perhaps my favorite photo of 2012-13, from Gulf of Slides Trail (looking up at the first gully/avy runout)


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## snowmonster (May 28, 2013)

I know that the lift served season is over but I think I have another day or two in me still. I'll check back on this thread in a few weeks.


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## gmcunni (May 29, 2013)

in a word, disappointing.

unfortunately I spent the season unemployed.  I knew it was coming in the fall and chose to be conservative with discretionary spending so i didn't get a season pass to my local hill nor the new skis i'd been wanting.  My plan was to take advantage of mid-week opportunities and chase "discount days" around new england, leveraging CSC days and other options.

had some minor personal injury/physical issues which took the edge off my passion and willingness to take a chance on a few questionable days at the beginning of the season.  then in Feb my daughter sustained a horrific injury skiing at Sugarbush on the first run of what was supposed to be a long weekend of skiing.  I didn't ski for a few weeks after that but when i returned i was even less driven to sneak in days.  i basically used up remaining discount tickets i had or kept it very local and quick.

i wanted very much to ski for the first time in May and while there options were there I hurt  my knee even more than it had been playing softball in late april which made skiing not an option.

i think i ended with 22 days.  my goal had been 25 as a minimum.  2 new mountains (mt ellen + stowe), i missed out on 2 others that were planned but fell through (greek peak + gore)


*2012/13 Season -* 
Ski Sundown - 12.28 1.16 1.20 2.26 3.29
Crotched Mountain - 12.30
Pat's Peak - 12.31
Mohawk - 1.4 1.18 1.25 1.26 2.1 3.30
Sugarbush - 1.7 1.8 3.24
Stowe - 1.9
Mt Snow - 2.8 2.9 4.9
Magic - 3.3 3.10


between poorer physical condition, age and injury i objectively look back at this past season as the first time i didn't improve my skills on the slopes.  at best i ended the season at the same skill level as the previous year.


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## crank (May 29, 2013)

Très bien season du ski pour moi,

I have not skied more than 15 days in a winter since my ski bumming days 30 years ago and the last few seasons have seen totals like 5 and 8 days.  My goal this winter was to hit 25 an I ended up with 33!  I had also been overweight and out of shape and I managed to lose 30 lbs and greatly increase my fitness level.


Took an early season weekend with my son and nephew to Sugarbush and Jay.  Not a ton open but enough to have fun and we had Jay's waterpark pretty much to ourselves.

Then a post Xmas trip to Smuggs, Quebec, Jay, skied 5 days out of 7 and 3 were powder.  Face shots even at Smuggs!  This was also the first ski trip my girlfriend and I took together and we had a great time!

Other highlights were 6 Days in Utah.  We stayed in Ogden and other than a day at Alta and a day at Snowbasin we explored Powder Mtn for 4 days in a row.  (they were getting 4-8" every day and no one else was really getting any.  

Spent 4 days ripping MRG, Sugarbush and Stowe with a bunch of great skiers from Epicski forum... all mountains were 100% open.

Drove home to CT and then back up to southern VT with my son for a fresh 8-10" storm at an uncrowded Magic.  Then stuck around for 2 sunny 50 degree days at Okemo and Killington.

Spent a weekend each at Burke and Sunape (2 firsts for me) and lucked out with 5-6" each trip.  not a ton of pow but enough to make conditions a heck of a lot nicer than they were when we drove up.

Went to Big Sky and Moonlight basin in March with the gf's ski club and again we hit a snowy week. Plus we had slope side accommodations at Huntley's for a reasonable price with the group rates.

And that was it.  After returning from Big Sky I was done with skiing and have been busy with work, working on my boat and mountain biking.  Thinking about taking more time off next year and driving out west for a month.


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## 4aprice (May 30, 2013)

A very very good season for me even though I wouldn't rate it in my top 5.  I could basically break the season into 3 parts.  

Part 1 (the Pocono season) started pretty slow.  Got on the snow December 1st when CBK opened with the Glen Lift servicing Oak Grove and Turkey Trot, got 10 runs in that day in the fog.  While the beginning was slow the good snowmaking system scratched and clawed its way through the holiday season and was able to get the mountain fully open in early January.  The boy's racing season started up the 2nd week of January leading to one of the funnest days of the season at of all places Wisp Maryland.  A 55 degree mash potato bump day in January.  Racing season also got me to Blue Mt for 2 days the beginning of February with their seeded bumps (always fun) and 3 days at Elk which was in terrific shape at the end of the month.  In between trips the homestead (CBK)supplied some fun sliding.  Wrapped up that part of the season with the ski team dinner the 1st weekend in March.  

Part II (travel season) started with the boy qualifying for Eastern High School Championships in the last race at Elk.  The races took place at Cannon the 2nd weekend of March so it was off to New Hampshire for 3 days.  Racers had a practice day Friday so the wife and I and some other parents went over to Loon for a day and skied Cannon on Saturday and Sunday.  Details can be found in the TR's I wrote on what a fantastic weekend it was.  The following weekend we traveled to Vermont to see the daughter perform in a play at college.  Of course we were not going to pass up skiing.  Big thanks to Scotty and others on this board who posted the details of the Killington Spring Pass as it started that weekend.  Hit Pico and Killington that weekend both with good conditions.  The following Saturday boarded a Delta flight to Salt Lake for 7 days of skiing. First time in quite a few years that we hit no fresh snow while out there, still it was warm and we had an awesome time.  Part II ended with a red eye flight home Easter morning getting to NJ in time to hit church and Easter meals with family.

Part III (Spring)  Spring was spent at Killington with the Spring Pass. Had some great days and really appreciated Killington's management doing what they did.  Really enjoy some of those runs off of K1 and Needles Eye.  Ended the season on Cinco de Mayo with 10 runs on Superstar and Sky Lark both a sea of bumps and very warm weather.  It was my 1st ever day in May.  

Got somewhere in the area of 75-85 days this year.  Only regrets were no powder days (over about 2") and would have liked to have seen more natural snowfall. (can't have everything)  Those are the 2 categories that keep this past season out of my top 5.

Alex

Lake Hopatcong, NJ


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## Cornhead (May 30, 2013)

Well, after the disaster that was last season, this one was friggin awesome! I had quite a few, right place at the right time moments. The best was the AZ Summit at da Loaf. 15" of fresh, and all the people on the coast were trapped. They were all there Sunday. Thank God for first tracks, thanks Nick. The mini Summit at Sugarbush was pretty sweet too, again we got some freshies, so much for the "AZ Summit Curse". Had an awesome day at tiny little Snow Ridge in North Central NY, we got there an hour early and just admired the foot of fresh blanketing the mountain. Rambo, I, and the other twenty people there had a blast, for $18 I think. Just stay away from the lasagna, sorry Rambo, it sounded good, hey what'd ya want for $4.95? Got to ski Gore four times this year, I missed that place, and the new terrain there is awesome. I had a great late Spring too, three days at Killington, one at Sugarbush. Sorry I didn't pull the trigger and hit it last Sunday.

I met and skied with quite a few AZer's this year too, Jaytrem, Xwhaler, Vinnyv11, Spring_Mountain_High, Ski3PO, Huck_It_Baby, Marcski, and of course Scotty! Everyone was great, it was a pleasure skiing with all of you.


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## dlague (May 30, 2013)

Well I have to rate our season as A+!  Reason - we skied 38 days at 18 different ski areas!

Our season actually starts now in the following fashion:



> - summer is gear buying season (already scored boots and have identified other gear for everyone in the fam - wait for the deal)
> - search for BOGO deals starting in August (killington being one of them)
> - hope for snow
> - we go to a couple ski movie events TGR (comp to Sunday River) and Warren Miller (four BOGO deals per ticket)
> ...



Lo-lights (nothing real bad)



> - skiing at Waterville (early season) after a refreeze (skiing on golf balls), but made it interesting
> - skiing at Attitash (spring) after a refreeze ungroomed trails were ice and the summit chair was painfully slow
> - skiing at Saddleback  after a refreeze shut down all of the best skiing and it was the coldest day which would be
> fine but Rangley Double is so slow that you could never lap fast enought to warm up!  The ride there was interesting to say the least.




Hi-lights



> - skiing at Jay Peak on two powder days with one of them being for Hope on the Slopes (American Cancer Society)
> - skiing at Burke on a powder day that got deeper as the day progressed
> - skiing at Killington for the start and the end of the season (bookends) great spring bumps
> - skiing Waterville during Christmas vacation and poaching trails that had 1-2 feet of powder (WHY WERE THEY CLOSED)
> ...



There are way more hi-lights, but gotta end somewhere!  

Just cannot wait for the 2013-2014 ski season!


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## ScottySkis (May 30, 2013)

4aprice said:


> A very very good season for me even though I wouldn't rate it in my top 5.  I could basically break the season into 3 parts.
> 
> Part 1 (the Pocono season) started pretty slow.  Got on the snow December 1st when CBK opened with the Glen Lift servicing Oak Grove and Turkey Trot, got 10 runs in that day in the fog.  While the beginning was slow the good snowmaking system scratched and clawed its way through the holiday season and was able to get the mountain fully open in early January.  The boy's racing season started up the 2nd week of January leading to one of the funnest days of the season at of all places Wisp Maryland.  A 55 degree mash potato bump day in January.  Racing season also got me to Blue Mt for 2 days the beginning of February with their seeded bumps (always fun) and 3 days at Elk which was in terrific shape at the end of the month.  In between trips the homestead (CBK)supplied some fun sliding.  Wrapped up that part of the season with the ski team dinner the 1st weekend in March.
> 
> ...



I'm glad to be of service lol hope to get up to K next winter several times.


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## boston_e (May 30, 2013)

My season was largely centered around getting my kids on skis... 7 and 4 year old.  We had taken them each a bit over the past few years, but this season we really stepped up and they both really seemed to get the fever.

I only did 2 days on my own, but got about 15 in with the kids and it was awesome to see them improve, get into it, really seem to grow to love it etc etc.... and for that I'd give the season an A+


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## HD333 (May 31, 2013)

Solid B+ for us.  Ski time = Family time for us and we had a great season on that front.  

Passes at Gunstock again, definitely got our money's worth out of them. I had a mid week Wa Wa pass as well the paid for itself.  Didn't count days but it was definitely over 30.
We did not put the kids in a ski program this season with the hopes of taking more road trips, so we skied/rode as a family all season with the exception being when one of our girls decided she wanted to snowboard. The private lessons were WELL worth the money, she picked it up quickly after 2-3. After that we skied in the AM most days then her and I switched to boards after lunch, glad we got a second locker having to store 4 pairs of skis and 2 boards was like doing a puzzle at the end of the day!!  
It was nice to get in the woods again after last season, the girls didn't miss a beat and neither did the wife. 

I got to hit a few Mountains with friends, Stratton & Attitash which was nice. We road tripped to Okemo as a family to preview it and had a great weekend. 

No injuries thankfully, other than my daughters pride when she realized it was going to take some time to pick up boarding. 

I say B+ not A because we didn't do as many road trips as a family as we wanted to and we didn't get to hook up with 2 families we try to ski with every year due to conflicting schedules and sickness which bummed us out.  We also faced ongoing struggles with the house in NH which isn't really a 4 season house but we make it work, those battles and the fact that we outgrew Gunstock made us decide to do a slopside seasonal rental at Okemo next season after our preview trip which we are looking forward to.


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## speden (Jun 1, 2013)

Bad season for me.  Early in the season I lost my balance off a little jump, landed hard, and this somehow ripped a bunch of ligaments and muscle tissue around my tailbone and lower back.  Yup, just snapped stuff like I was put together with old rubber bands.  Funny thing about the tailbone is you don't even realize you have one until you injure it, then you find out it's pretty important every time you sit down.  So my season was done and five months later it's still sore, but improving very, very, very slowly.  So I'm just hoping I'll be back out there next season.


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## ScottySkis (Jun 2, 2013)

Okay it was very very good. I waited for snow to fall. Went to Plattty x mas day, good day kind of tired but still good day. Went to Elk nice 1000 vertical hill in Pa for my first time in Pennsylvania since I was a child, definitely recommend it for PA hill good snow making and grooming and some nice bump runs for sure. Hit platty several times and seen more people in lodge then ever before but this is a good thing. Meet few other A zoners this year and that was very cool. Then Sugarbush mini A zone trip what can I say but for me best skiing of past winter snow and snow and more snow and skiing side country was awesome. Also a nice trip to MT snow and a few nice trips to Gore which is a great hill with some sweet gladed trails for those who don't know it really beats all of south Vermont resorts. Great ski season hope to be in better shape for the next one.


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## deadheadskier (Jun 2, 2013)

speden said:


> Bad season for me.  Early in the season I lost my balance off a little jump, landed hard, and this somehow ripped a bunch of ligaments and muscle tissue around my tailbone and lower back.  Yup, just snapped stuff like I was put together with old rubber bands.  Funny thing about the tailbone is you don't even realize you have one until you injure it, then you find out it's pretty important every time you sit down.  So my season was done and five months later it's still sore, but improving very, very, very slowly.  So I'm just hoping I'll be back out there next season.



bummer

Hope your heal fully for next year.  Nothing worse than having a ski season derailed due to injury.


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## Mpdsnowman (Jun 6, 2013)

My season went very fast. I normally avg 40 times out. This year was 34. But its how fast it went by that marks this year for me. We didnt get snow locally here until the mid part of December. Next thing you know its end of January and then the end of February for the meet. It just flew by....I will say this, snow quality was awesome every time I went. No ice, lots of powder, good times, great people....

I would say this last vid we shot in March pretty much sums up my season...


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## J.Spin (Jun 16, 2013)

I’m still putting together our full season recap, but we recently finished compiling our 2012-2013 Bolton Valley Photo Gallery, so I figured I’d pass that along for now since it’s at least a pictorial view of how the season went down at Bolton Valley.  Snowfall was definitely well on the lean side this season at just 78.5% of average (245”), but it was certainly a step in the right direction relative to 2011-2012 and still meant that there was plenty of powder to keep things feeling like the Northern Greens.  I’ve added a link and a few images below:

http://jandeproductions.com/2013/06/15/2012-2013-bolton-valley-photo-gallery/


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## SkiFanE (Jun 18, 2013)

I'm going with a B+, okay A+ if you consider I'm old and still un-injured after 40+ years of skiing (knock knock).  Every season my biggest goal is to make it through without injury.  Actually...I sprained a thumb (I'm guessing), but nothing that caused me to miss a run.

2 months shorter than last year, didn't count my days but I'm guessing 50.  Started opening weekend at SR to closing weekend..then a day at K in late April...so Nov-Apr, last year was Oct-May.  Have to say...I'm still improving and feel better and tighter in the bumps than last year.  More comfy with air.  Got some great runs on some great trails at SR that are often flash in the pans, as far as being open.  Hardball, Ruby Palace one day was epic...  Honestly it's one big blur of awesomeness - every day was great.  My youngest (7yo) has become a racer with awesome parallel stance, he's now faster than me...tucks down trails I am too scared to (keeping up with 12yo sister), but such control considering he's not even 4 feet tall yet.  So to see them improve and love it as much as we do made the season that much better.  

Summer can end...I'm ready.


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## skiadikt (Jun 19, 2013)

down in days (about 30 - all at k) but probably the best consistent quality i can remember. seems i was always catching some dumpage and even on the weekends after a thaw/freeze, k would be blowing on a couple runs that turned the weekend from just ok to surprisingly good. it was the best 208" ever skied ...


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## ScottySkis (Jun 19, 2013)

skiadikt said:


> down in days (about 30 - all at k) but probably the best consistent quality i can remember. seems i was always catching some dumpage and even on the weekends after a thaw/freeze, k would be blowing on a couple runs that turned the weekend from just ok to surprisingly good. it was the best 208" ever skied ...



Glad k got only 42 inches less then average.


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## snowmonster (Jun 25, 2013)

*Phase One is complete.*

With a full on heat wave bearing down on Boston, it's time to finally call it a season. Besides, with the Stanley Cup over, it must be full on summer, right? The ski racks on my car have now been replaced by a surfboard carrier and, in the next few days, my boards will be getting their annual summer tune and wax. Time for the season recap:

I give this season a solid A. Despite a late start because of personal reasons, I got in 37 days (December 15-June 15), which ties the most number of days I had (2010). 

Highlights::beer:

1. Four days of holiday skiing in Utah with thetrailboss - Deer Valley, Canyons, Alta and Snowbird.
2. Two trips to La Belle Province for awesome skiing - L'Estrie/the Eastern Townships (Bromont, Sutton, Orford and Owl's Head [technically, a separate trip]) and Quebec City (Mont Saint Anne and Le Massif de Charlevoix).
3. Finally skied Big Jay!
4. Powder days at Deer Valley, Canyons, Wachusett (yes), Sunday River, Mad River Glen, Jay Peak and Stowe. This includes skiing around my neighborhood -- over the tops of cars and down a NELSAP golf course during Nemo.
5. Skied the farthest limits of Brackett Basin without going on the Golden Road.
6. Finally skied the Corner Store  and Dorothy's Crotch at Sunday River.
7. First trip ever to the Blue Hills.
8. First time to hit Hillman's Highway and Batman in the Great Gulf.
9. Closed out the lift serviced season at the Loaf on May 5.
10. Closed out the season in Tuckerman Ravine on June 15 as 1 of only 4 people who were skiing that day east of the Rockies (right, riv?). 

Lowlights:

1. Missed the AZ Summit because of the MA travel ban.
2. Missed Airplane in the Great Gulf because of a miscalculation.
3. Should have skied Whaleback on closing day. I passed by it on the way home from MRG and should have spent an hour just riding the lift. Too bad it's gone now.
4. Did not ski the BC more often. Teardrop and Hellbrook at Stowe, King Ravine and Oakes Gulf in the Presidentials and Camel's Hump in Vermont are still on the hit list. Sigh. 

Overall, a great season. We had great snow for the most part and I did most of the things I wanted to do. Seriously, I can't ask for more -- except maybe another trip out west but that's what the future is for.

In closing, thanks again to all you Alpinezoners for sharing your knowledge, your friendship and your stoke. I'm a late comer to this sport (never believe anyone when they say that, if you start this sport after puberty, you're destined to be lousy at it) and, if it weren't for the enthusiasm on this site, I probably would have been a once a year skier who's content with skiing the greens at Wachusett. Instead, I became the snowmonster and, though my bank account took a beating from the gear, the trips and the passes, I am much richer in friends, memories and experiences. Otto Schniebs was right: "skiing is more than a sport, it's a way of life." Skiing was truly more than a sport to me: I learned more about myself through it. I think I am more courageous, more daring and more persevering now than when I started. I guess I always had those in me. I just needed this sport to prove it to bring them to the surface. I'll take these lessons with me going forward.

It was a long journey from here, my first day on skis on February 5, 2005:



To here, my last lift-served day on May 5, 2013:




And here, my last ski day on June 15, 2013:
 

What a journey it's been! This closes the first phase of the ski story of the snowmonster. I'm ready for the next phase.

TRs to follow.


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## Conrad (Jul 13, 2013)

With 21 days of skiing in this season, I had what was easily my best season since I don't believe I have ever skied more than 10-15 days in one year. I stuck to Sunday River and Sugarloaf where I have a pass, but I also hopped on $9 days at Cranmore and Wildcat and a free day at Titcomb. Combining that with a day at Loon and a weekend at Jay Peak, I visited five new ski areas this year. This was also the first year my ski lifts hobby took off and I took hundreds of photos of ski lifts and am just beginning to write ski lift reports for remontees-mecaniques. I also became acquainted with Sunday River's network of secret trails and I can't wait to get out there next season having heard some tips from a local and fellow student at school. Sugarloaf was a bit more of a hit or miss, but I did get to explore Brackett Basin. Jay Peak was probably the most epic trip of the season  with snow falling the entire mid-April weekend and it was unbelievable for me how gnarly their terrain was. The season ended on a high note, as I met snowmonster and skied Sugarloaf on closing day with a sizable selection of trails open and 70 degree weather.


For future reference, here are my trip reports:
Sugarloaf 12/1 12/19 2/2 2/10 3/9  3/23 5/5
Jay Peak 4/13 4/14
Sunday River 12/22 12/28 12/31 2/16 2/22 3/30 4/4
Wilcat/Attitash 4/1
Saddleback 3/24
Titcomb 3/3
Loon 1/13
Cranmore 1/4


Having taken a ton of photos I put together this slideshow video with a selection of them:
http://youtu.be/Ds4k8XPfFNo

However, first and foremost is this montage with video highlights of the season:






Finally I want to share what would be my picture of the year. People are always amazed by how far away I am from the mountain when they see this photo taken from deep within Brackett Basin.

High Quality Version: http://tinyurl.com/pgc7afr

One last notable highlight is that this is my first year on AZ. I hope that next year's ski season is at least as good as this year's and maybe I will meet more AZ'rs on the slopes next season!


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## J.Spin (Oct 16, 2013)

J.Spin said:


> I’m still putting together our full season recap, but we recently finished compiling our 2012-2013 Bolton Valley Photo Gallery, so I figured I’d pass that along for now since it’s at least a pictorial view of how the season went down at Bolton Valley.



I typically work up my ski and weather summaries over the summer, but I’ve now got those both completed, so I’m passing along some of the J&E Productions 2012-2013 Ski Season Summary here.  I’ve got links to both the skiing and weather summaries below, which focus on the valley and mountain weather/skiing in our area of the Northern Greens respectively.  Long story short, it was a subpar season, but not horribly so, with plenty of powder as usual (~77% of outings as detailed in the included list of reports).

Weather:  http://jandeproductions.com/2013/09/08/2012-2013-waterbury-winter-weather-summary/

Skiing:  http://jandeproductions.com/2013/10/13/2012-2013-ski-season-summary/

*Snowfall:*  Compared to the snowfall-deficient 2011-2012 Ski Season, the 2012-2013 Ski Season was certainly a step up, but it was still generally below average for snowfall in the mountains of Northern Vermont.  It was Bolton Valley that seemed to fare the worst of the northern resorts along the spine of the Green Mountains, perhaps due to their west slope location and this season’s dearth of upslope snow; they reported just 78.5% of their average snowfall.  Heading northward, Stowe and Smugg’s fared a bit better at around 85% of average, and Jay Peak reported roughly average snowfall.  Down at our house in the Winooski Valley, snowfall was 88.6% of average, so not too shabby by most accounts, but a bit below the mean like some of the local mountains.  These past two seasons have actually been the first pair delivering back-to-back below average snowfall in our area since we started keeping track in 2006.  Those numbers can be seen in both our Waterbury Winter Weather Summary Table, and the table of Bolton Valley annual snowfall below; this past season’s snowfall is highlighted in blue:







One item of note this season was the lack of big storms targeting Northern New England – two of the largest storms to hit the Northeast dropped the bulk of their payloads south of Vermont while exiting stage right toward the Atlantic.  The first of those, nicknamed “Nemo”, hit in the second week of February, and pounded Southern New England with up to 40 inches of snow.  The Green Mountains were on the northern fringe of that storm, but still wound up with 1 to 1.5 feet of snow up and down the spine.  The other storm of note was during the March 5th – 8th period, and it dropped another 30 inches on some Southern New England locations, but nothing way up north.  There were some periods of snowfall to highlight up in Northern Vermont however.  The second half of December alone dropped almost 50” of snow down at our house, significantly more in the mountains, and produced some fantastic skiing for the holidays and into early January.  Another period of note was the second half of March into April.  Cold temperatures in the latter part of the season helped preserve wintry conditions on the slopes, and we received some decent snowfall as well – the largest storm for the season in my valley records hit the area near the end of March, with 21.3” of snow down at the house, and multiple feet for the mountains.  The mountain snowpack finally responded during that late season stretch as well, and that’s detailed a bit more in the snowpack section below.  Snowfall continued right into mid April, and the season was capped off with almost two feet of fresh snow on Mt. Mansfield for Memorial Day weekend.  That was a sweet way to end the powder skiing for the season.

*Snowpack:*  Aside from the spikes associated with a couple of early season storms, the mountain snowpack was below average going into mid December.  That changed quickly though, with the onset of all that new snow during the second half of the month.  The above average snowpack achieved during the holidays didn’t actually stay that way during January’s warmth and lack of storms.  After consolidation, the snowpack generally trundled along at or below average through February’s continuation of relatively low snowfall.  From mid February to mid March, the snowpack sat there essentially stagnant for an entire month; to wit, on February 21st, the snowpack was at 65”, and roughly a month later on March 18th, it was still at 65”, without any notable consolidation of more than a few inches.  The late season stretch from mid March to mid April represented a nice rebound for the mountains however, with some quick gains from the big Northern New England March storm getting it above average, and the snow depth staying at least modestly above during the period.






*Tree Skiing:*  One metric used as a rough guide for the start of off piste skiing in the Northern Green Mountains is the point at which the snow depth reaches 24” at the Mt. Mansfield stake.  For those unfamiliar with how this metric was established, it’s described in some detail in the 2011-2012 ski season summary.  With the incorporation of this season’s data, the mean date remains at December 12th ± 19 days, with an average depth at the stake of 25.9 ± 2.7 inches.  After the very slow start in 2011-2012, in which the 24” depth wasn’t attained until January 3rd (more than a standard deviation later than the mean), this past season was notably earlier.  The plot below shows the date at which 24” was obtained for each season since 1954, with 2011-2012 shown in red, and 2012-2013 shown in green:






This past season, the date (December 22nd, Depth=28”, Green Star) was still later than average due in part to the slow first half of December, but unlike last season it was well within the 1 S.D. bars (thin vertical black lines).  Note that the 24” mark is being used as an indicator of when the first forays into appropriate off piste/tree skiing terrain typically start in the Central and Northern Greens.  In terms of empirical tree skiing observations, personal experience again lends some support to the use of 24” mark this season, as we began venturing into the trees the very next day on December 23rd at Bolton Valley.  It should be noted though, that while the 24” mark was attained on December 22nd this season, the 40” mark was attained the very next day on December 23rd.  The 40-inch rule (i.e. reaching a depth of 40” at the stake), is used as an indicator of when most off piste/tree skiing around here is ready to go.  Although I haven’t looked into the data, this season has got to represent one of the quickest ascents from 24” to 40” – it’s interesting to note however that after rising to 42” of depth on December 23rd and 24th, the snowpack settled back to 36” for a couple of days before rebounding to 45” on the 27th.

*Snow Quality:*  As an monitor of snow quality for the season, the chronological list of our ski outings has once again been compiled, with those days in which we were skiing powder indicated by a *P*, and those days in which powder skiing wasn’t available indicated by an *X*.  The availability of powder suggests a fairly high level of snow quality, and the absence of powder generally indicates that temperatures rose above freezing at all elevations.  Each listing below represents a link to the full report where images and more information from the outing can be obtained.  Outings with an *X* may still be providing decent skiing such as wet snow, corn, etc. (or else skiing was typically avoided) but aside from the spring period, there’s going to be a price to pay in terms of snow quality associated with these episodes when temperatures eventually cool back down.  The pattern of snow conditions in the Northern Green Mountains was fairly typical this past winter, with those days lacking powder skiing showing up in three distinct periods: 1) the early season with its usual temperature fluctuations, up through mid December before the weather pattern changed and the cold weather stabilized, 2) a thaw period in mid January, and 3) the period starting in mid March where spring weather began to make inroads.  However, with the way the weather patterns this past spring continued to provide cool temperatures and snowfall, powder skiing generally dominated until mid April.  Having analyzed the skiing in this way for the past three seasons, a surprising level of consistency is noted, with an overall average of close to four out of five days providing powder, despite notable differences in the demeanor of these recent ski seasons.  The 2010-2011 season, which was above average in snowfall, provided powder on 78% of outings, the 2011-2012 season, which was well below average in many ways, revealed the same 78%, and most recently the 2012-2013 season, which was slightly below average in this area, produced a very similar 77% of outings with powder.  The percentages don’t take into account differences in the number of outings each season, but with all three seasons falling into the range of 50 to 60 ski outings, differences in the sample sizes aren’t huge.  The list of categorized ski outings with links to their full reports follows below:

*P  **Stowe, VT, Sunday 04NOV2012*
*X **Stowe, VT, Sunday 11NOV2012*
*X **Stowe, VT, Thursday 15NOV2012*
*P  **Stowe, VT, Friday 30NOV2012*
*P  **Stowe, VT, Saturday, 01DEC2012*
*X **Stowe, VT, Saturday, 15DEC2012*
*P  **Bolton Valley, VT, Friday 21DEC2012*
*P  **Bolton Valley, VT, Saturday 22DEC2012*
*P  **Bolton Valley, VT, Sunday 23DEC2012*
*P  **Bolton Valley, VT, Thursday 27DEC2012*
*P  **Bolton Valley, VT, Friday 28DEC2012*
*P  **Bolton Valley, VT, Saturday 29DEC2012*
*P  **Bolton Valley, VT, Saturday 29DEC2012 (Night)*
*P  **Bolton Valley, VT, Sunday 30DEC2012*
*P  **Bolton Valley, VT, Monday 31DEC2012*
*P  **Bolton Valley, VT, Tuesday 01JAN2013*
*P  **Bolton Valley, VT, Saturday 05JAN2013*
*P  **Stowe, VT, Sunday 06JAN2013*
*X **Bolton Valley, VT, Saturday 12JAN2013*
*X **Stowe, VT, Sunday 13JAN2013*
*P  **Bolton Valley Nordic & Backcountry, VT, Saturday 19JAN2013*
*P  **Stowe Sidecountry & Bruce Trail, VT, Monday 21JAN2013*
*P  **Bolton Valley Nordic & Backcountry, VT, Sunday 27JAN2013*
*P  **Bolton Valley, VT, Tuesday 29JAN2013*
*P  **Stowe, VT, Sunday 03FEB2013*
*P  **Bolton Valley, VT, Saturday 09FEB2013*
*P  **Stowe, VT, Sunday 10FEB2013*
*P  **Stowe, VT, Thursday 14FEB2013*
*P  **Bolton Valley & Backcountry, VT, Saturday 16FEB2013*
*P  **Bolton Valley & Backcountry, VT, Monday 18FEB2013*
*P  **Bolton Valley, VT, Thursday, 21FEB2013*
*P  **Bolton Valley, VT, Saturday 23FEB2013*
*P  **Stowe, VT, Sunday 24FEB2013*
*P  **Bolton Valley, VT, Tuesday 26FEB2013*
*P  **Bolton Valley, VT, Thursday 28FEB2013*
*P  **Bolton Valley & Backcountry, VT, Saturday 02MAR2013*
*P  **Stowe, VT, Sunday 03MAR2013*
*P  **Bolton Valley & Backcountry, VT, Saturday 09MAR2013*
*X **Stowe, VT, Sunday 10MAR2013*
*P  **Bolton Valley, VT, Saturday 16MAR2013*
*P  **Stowe, VT, Sunday 17MAR2013*
*P  **Stowe, VT, Tuesday 19MAR2013*
*P  **Bolton Valley, VT, Thursday 21MAR2013*
*P  **Bolton Valley, VT, Thursday 21MAR2013 (Evening)*
*P  **Bolton Valley, VT, Saturday 23MAR2013*
*P  **Stowe, VT, Sunday 24MAR2013*
*P  **Bolton Valley, VT, Saturday 30MAR2013*
*X **Stowe, VT, Sunday 31MAR2013*
*P  **Bolton Valley, VT, Tuesday 02APR2013*
*P  **Stowe & Mt. Mansfield Chin, VT, Saturday 06APR2013*
*X **Stowe & Mt. Mansfield Chin, VT, Sunday 07APR2013*
*P  **Stowe, VT, Saturday 13APR2013*
*P  **Bolton Valley, VT, Sunday 14APR2013*
*X **Stowe, VT, Saturday 20APR2013*
*X **Stowe, VT, Sunday 21APR2013*
*X **Bolton Valley, VT, Sunday 28APR2013*
*X **Sugarbush, VT, Saturday 04MAY2013*
*X **Stowe, VT, Sunday, 05MAY2013*
*X **Mt. Washington, NH, Saturday 18MAY2013*
*P  **Stowe, VT, Sunday 26MAY2013*

Below I’m adding the monthly images used in the detailed month-by-month section of the summary. The detailed monthly text can be found along with some closing thoughts in the full report:

http://jandeproductions.com/2013/10/13/2012-2013-ski-season-summary/

*October*





*November*





*December*





*January*





*February*





*March*





*April*





*May*


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## Smellytele (Oct 16, 2013)

I looked at the pictures which were nice. Too many words for this adhd brain to handle.


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## dlague (Oct 16, 2013)

Can't say I have ever analyzed a season that way!  Maybe from a 50,000 ft POV via someone else - wait I just did that!  I generally look at the number of trips, trip quality, and cost.  Last year we had our best price per skier visit at $13.41 and we skied decent resorts (normal average for us is around $23-$25).  What helped was the a $850 Waterville Valley gift card that I won,  Vermont and NH 5th grade passports, Ride and Ski card, a half dozen comps or so (from friends that do not ski and ski show), resident Sundays (Okemo, Bretton Woods), Tuesday nights at Gunstock, etc.  

It will be sad this year since our fifth grader will be in sixth grade.  He skied for free all season last year.  It also looks like the deals are not quite as easy to find as they were in years past...... and I have not won anything!


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