I hate to rub it in, but I just had a great Friday afternoon of skiing in powder and packed powder conditions at Bolton Valley, Vt.! And, now wait for this, it was a bluebird day to boot!
Vermont enjoyed a hearty helping of fresh snow this week—with more to come this weekend—so I left work behind and spent the afternoon skiing in the sunshine.
Boy, was I glad that I did.
There was still some powder to be found in Bolton Valley's glades and due to cold temps, it had remained light and fluffy. I did the extremely scientific measuring of my skipole in the snow to determine that there was about 12 inches of new snow. This was great training for my upcoming Utah trip!
Glades in Vermont can be tight, with little wiggle room between the trees and saplings. I found that to be the case on Preacher, which is a double-black trail from the top of the Vista quad chairlift. I found gullies for most of the way down, so I'll have to go back in there with someone who knows how to get to the glades on skier's left.
However, over on the Timberline Lift, I enjoyed well-spaced tree skiing in the relatively new glades called Wild Woods, pictured above. You get to these glades from Twice as Nice, and they are nice enough to do more than twice. The pitch is mellow and the trees are open and friendly (well, as friendly as trees can be, I suppose).
During an early run I tried Adam's Solitude glades from the top of Timberline, but it also was quite gully-filled; you know what I mean, when the trail closely resembles a luge and you forgot your sled. I did get some good turns in on the bottom half, but be warned that if you go in these glades you have a long runout trail at the bottom with whoop-de-dos. Snowboarders just love these kinds of trails (sarcasm intended—they are extra hard for boarders to absorb).
I didn't ski it today, but there is another new glade at Bolton Valley called Vista Glades and it can be fun. You'll find it by turning left off the Vista quad.
I made my way around the mountain this afternoon, even hitting the long Wilderness Lift double chair, pictured above. When you ski Bolton Valley on a clear day, as I did today, you get some tremendous VT and NY views. To the north, you can get a summit peek at Mt. Mansfield's snowy face; to the south, you can get views of Camel's Hump; and to the west you can see lanky Lake Champlain and the Adirondacks, including Whiteface Mountain.
It was a treat to take in this kind of powder skiing and sunny conditions in Vermont. And, I'm happy to report, the weatherman says more snow is on its way. I love spreading good news in my ski blog!
BOLTON VALLEY SKI RESORT AT A GLANCE
Base Elevation: 2,100 feet (reportedly Vermont's highest base)
Summit elevation: 3,150 feet
Vertical drop: 1,704 feet
Lifts: 2 quads, 3 doubles, surface lift
Trails: 27% novice, 47% intermediate, 26% advanced
