Sunday, May 17, 2026

THE END: Skiing Black Mountain (Day 46)

Skiing Black Mountain
Sunday, May 17th, 2026

Runs: 5
Distance: 3.49 miles
Elevation: 3,484 feet
Max Speed: 29.2 mph
Avg. Speed: 11.0 mph
Moving Time: 19 minutes, 4 seconds
Total Time: 1 hour, 32 minutes, 20 seconds

I got my three wake-up wraps and hash browns from the Gorham Dunkin and had a beautiful drive through Pinkham Notch, through Jackson, and then to Black Mountain. I was definitely up in my feelings about it being the last day of ski season, but I was excited to get a few more runs in, have glass of champagne, and listen to some live music! Parking was wildly easy with plenty of open spots. The runout was looking actually great! The parking lot was basically a river. I walked inside to get the $29 "I used both of my Indy days" deal and the cashier warned me that there's a rapidly growing dirt patch. I assured her I'm still looking forward to skiing and I had some practice with dirt yesterday at Jay. The vibes at the parking lot were immaculate and I was a little meleancholy that I was riding solo, but it was also nice to end with just-me. I got booted up with my leopard print shorts and scooted my way over to the double!


Snow Report
Sunday, May 17
Closing day is here.
After a record-breaking 7-month season, today marks the final day of skiing at Black Mountain. In 91 years, there has never been a season quite like this one. Black operated more days this winter than the previous two seasons combined, pushed closing day two full weeks beyond last year's record, and will finish tied as one of the final Indy Pass mountains spinning lifts in North America.
We will have a very white, full-width route from the Alpine Cabin spread across four trails, with 100% of open terrain groomed again this morning. By this afternoon, expect soft spring turns, sunshine, and rowdy bump lines everywhere. With temperatures approaching 70 degrees and both the Double and Triple spinning until 7 Pm, today is shaping up to be an all-time closing day.
70s Weekend rolls on with live music all day long. Matt Dolliver plays from 10 AM to 1 PM, Joe Agnello from 11:30 Am to 1:30 PM, Diana'as Bath Salts from 1:30 PM to 4 PM, and the Jonathan Sarty Band takes us all the way to the final chair at 7 PM.
The Alpine Cabin will be fully stocked for sunny champagne and fondue lounging, while the Base Lodge Buffet keeps rolling all day. Pizza, wings, drinks, spring skiing, costumes, and one final mountian party.
Shortly after lifts stop spinning, we'll raise a glass together for the second annual end-of-season champagne toast on the back deck. A proper send-off to a truly extraordinary winter.

Runs 1-4
Run 1: Summit Double - Chute - Jackson Standard
[0.65 miles; 3:56; 692 feet; 23.8 mph max; 9.9 mph avg]
Run 2: Summit Double - Chute - Jackson Standard
[0.74 miles; 4:01; 774 feet; 27.7 mph max; 11.1 mph avg]
Run 3: Summit Double - Chute - Jackson Standard
[0.72 miles; 3:42; 689 feet; 29.2 mph max; 11.7 mph avg]
Run 4: Summit Double - Chute - Jackson Standard
[0.64 miles; 2:57; 659 feet; 29.2 mph max; 13.0 mph avg]

The ride up the double was outrageously wonderful. Light breeze, abundant sun, conflicting music (the lift was blasting 70s music while the band on the back deck was blasting Dad Rock), and just wonderful vibes. Not a lift line in sight (I'll soon learn why). The unload was only a little dicey! I decdied I'll do what the plan was for Jay - get a run in, and then decide how many I want to do. The only open trails were Chute to Jackson Standard. Chute was actually wonderful! Big soft bumps and just enough pitch to get past the rapidly-melting flat part. There were some more dirt patches where the run made a left turn (a couple I almost sent right on over), and then I hit the patch. People were skiing over it, but I popped my skis off and walked down to the nearest muddy mogul.

The bottom half of the run was super fun! Just a few bumps and a long runout with a few bumps to get air over here and there. I figured it would only get worse, so I'd get a few more runs in in the meantime.

Back at the bottom, the lifty asked how it was, and I told him "it sucks, but it's 80 degrees in May!" Truly, the splashback from the slush felt kind of good! This time, I skied over the mud and it wasn't outrageouly horrible! My plan of attack was to aim for what slush was left and just straightaway it between, which kind of worked! I almost hit one massive, sharp rock, but everything else was good! My legs were slowly getting coated in mud.

Run #3 I thought was going to be my last before champagne, but I was actually getting kind of good at this mud skiing thing. I was definitely doing better than the snowboarders who were faceplanting in the mud left and right - I'll take it! I giggled everytime I went to turn and just sunk into slush. My Pit Vipers were basically coated in mud, too. This was one of those things that looks absolutely miserable, but once you get over it and commit it becomes fun as hell!

I landed on a goal of five runs. The sun was COOKING me (and I had no sunscreen oops) on the chair, and the snow was RAPIDLY melting. I had one more fun run down and after my fifth ride up, I parked  myself at the Alpine Cabin and got some champagne. The folks at the cabin were cheering on everyone who was getting off the lift, as it kept getting more and more sketchy! The bartender complimented me on knowing exactly what I wanted. I got a seat on the snow, faced the sun, and simply marinated. I eavesdropped on people's coversations and worked on my end-of-season video - it was a JOY. Once my champagne was done, it was finally time to head on down.

Run 5
Run 5: Summit Double - Alpine Cabin - Chute - Jackson Standard
[0.73 miles; 4:27; 673 feet; 27.5 mph max; 9.9 mph avg]

Time for my second to last run of the season, maybe skipping the last! I did get a little emotional - the usual: sad it's over, happy it happened, nostalgic for this season's memories, and mostly proud that I'm able to ski these absolute garbage conditions with a smile on my face! The bumps on Chute were wonderful, the flat part kept me moving fast, I knew which bumsp to get a little bit of air on, and then the mud patch... well, it was most of a mud field. My skis crossed, but I recovered! I turned on what used to be a slush pile, my skis crossed, and DOWN I WENT! Absolutely covered in mud! I didn't quit though! I got back up, made a turn, almost went down again, got a "nice!" from a woman hiking down, and then finished out my run strong!

Back at the car I hosed off with what water I had left from my Nalgene. I thought about calling it, but I was disgusting and kind of wanted to 1) dry myself off and 2) let my equipment dry off. I took my liners out of my boots, let them bake in the sun, and left my skis at my car to also bake in the sun. I took myself to the back deck to listen to the band, which was named "Diana's Bath Salts" - INCREDIBLE. They were a classic Dad cover band. I enjoyed the best tasting Sam Adams Summer Ale I ever had, chatted with a few people (notable one 2.5 year old who was making snow dinosaurs and attacking me with them), and then got a second beer when the final band went on. I enjoyed their music for a bit longer and eventually called it around 5:00pm. 

My pack-up was nice and easy and I finished up my season waving goodbye to Black Mountain. My drive home was wonderful and I only emotionally listened to Ski & Party 30ish times. I proudly did my grocery shopping at the Hannaford in Meredith on my way home, and was back in Boston just before 9pm. This was truly a PERFECT weekend, and I'm so grateful for it.

Map of Black Mountain (2025-2026)

Mt. Crescent & Mt. Randolph via Crescent Ridge and Pasture Path (Randolph Community Forest)

Mt. Crescent & Mt. Randolph via Crescent Ridge and Pasture Path (Randolph Community Forest)

Hike Type: Loop
Distance: 6.94 miles
Elevation: 2,077 feet
My Time: 3 hours
Book Time: 4 hours, 30 minutes
Parking: Large parking lot at end of Randolph Hill Road for Randolph Community Forest
Hiking Challenges: Randolph Mountain Club 100


The Hike 
I had a wonderful 45-minute drive to Randolph from Bethlehem. On NH-115, just past the Cherry Mountain trailhead, I saw a bear cub in the woods! The turn for Randolph Community Forest was a left at the height of land on US-2, just after Appalachia. I was suffering from pizza burps and insane heartburn at the end of this drive, but the views to Madison and Adams from the road made me feel better. Mt. Adams had a decent amount of snow remaining and was in the clouds, while Madison looked mostly snow and cloud-free! There was plenty of parking at the Community Forest trailhead, separeted by tree islands. I parked and immediately got swarmed by a few deer flies - bug spray on! A trailhead kiosk read:
"The Randolph Community Forest. Owned by the Town of Randolph and Managed by the Randolph Community Forest Comission. This Community Forest was permantly protected on December 4, 2001 through the combined efforts of the Town of Randolph, The Trust for Public Land and the Randolph Foundation. It is open to the pubic and dedicated to hiking, hunting, fishing, snowmobiling, other traditional recreational uses, sustainable timber harvesting, and ecological protection."

[8:45am - Start of Hike on Community Forest Road]
My hike started just past a gate on the opposite side of the parking area of the kiosk, signed as "Community Forest Road," which looked like an old logging road. It was mostly surprisingly dry with just one wet spot and grass that was starting to grow in. I was feeling super bummed about my camera, especially since it was so beautiful out. 

[8:46am - Mt. Crescent Trail]
The Mt. Crescent Trail, blazed in orange (along with every trail I'd hike today), started at a left turn off of the Community Forest Road, marked with a temporary trail sign. Right away, the trail began to climb moderately with rugged, leafy footing around mossy rocks. There were seemingly endless trout lilies that would for sure be blooming soon. I passed some blue spray paint marking property lines, an old logging road, and then saw some trout lily flowers! Interesting how there were more flowers higher up than down low - maybe they have more sunlight?

[8:54am - Mt. Crescent Trail/Peek Path]
I crossed the junction with Peek Path in another sea of trout lilies. I was super curious about the Ice Gulch, but I knew it is famously not climbed in spring, and I was not willing to find out why. I caught some tree views to Madison and Adams, a few conifers started to mix in, and then I came to the junction with the Castleview Loop trail! It looked like there was a viewpoint just below, so I took a short side trip to check it out.

[8:57am - Mt Crescent Trail/Castleview Rock]
I descended briefly on Castleview Loop and scrambled up a large boulder called "Castleview Rock," which provided a nice tree-framed view to Adams and Madison. I couldn't believe how crazy King Ravine was looking - I'm getting impatiently excited to tackle the Terrifying 25!

I scooted back onto the Mt. Crescent Trail and back into sunny deciduous forest, soon crossing another old logging road and the first of many young red trillium! This climb was slow and steady with moderate steepness. I was SWEATING. The trail later reentered a coniferous forest with woodpeckers chirping and red squirrels rattling.

[9:11am - Crescent Ridge Trail]
I turned right onto the Crescent Ridge Trail, which provided a momentary reprive from the climbing. It was nice to be hiking on relatively flat land in the shady conifers! The trail felt less-used and more rugged than the Mt. Crescent Trail, but looking at the map, I think the Mt. Crescent Trail also got dicey after tha tjunction. The Crescent Ridge Trail spent some time rambling along the contour line, navigating just a few wet rocks and a few easy streams.

After crossing the final stream, the trail turned left and began to climb up the shoulder of Mt. Crescent, which immediately got steep. Comically, one it got steep, piles and piles of moose poop began to appear (somewhere around the 2800' contour)! The trail continued to get steeper until I was simply struggling up a steep pine needle-covered slope. Thankfully, there were some peekaveiws to the Moriahs and Carters! Buzzing house flies cheered me on as I stumbled on up over rocks and more piles of moose poop to a brief walking break, where I passed the BIGGEST pile of moose poop I'd seen! It also looked recently... laid. 

The trail steepend again, climbed over more rocks and poop, and finally rounded the shoulder at a blowdown patch with obstructed views towards the Carters and Moriahs. I could hear wind, but I was still waiting to feel it! The trail crossed the height of land just near the summit (I didn't see a sign or a herd path to the true summit, so I didn't adventure too far) and soon came to the upper junction of the Mt. Crescent Trail!

[9:32am - North View and Mt. Crescent Trail]
Straight ahead was the continuation of the Crescent Ridge Trail. On the right was the North View, and on the left was the Mt. Crescent Trail and South View. I checked out the North View first, and WOW. There was truly a spectacular view of the whole Kilkenny Range and the Percy Peaks behind on the right. The dark mountaintops faded into a light brown at the lower elevations, but the light brown had a slight dusting of early spring green starting to show. The wind was also here, and it was howling! I went from cooking to cold in a minute! After I took my photo, I turned around and hiked along the Mt. Crescent Trail toward the South View. Even though it wasn't close, there was minimal elevation change to get there.

The walk from the North to South view was nothing short of an absolute delight. The ground was soft and dry and covered in needles with good footing through moss-covered trees and rocks with PLENTY of moose poop on the ground. I did look around hoping for a true summit herd path, but I didn't see any and simply did not care enough to bushwahck the extra ~20 feet. 

[9:39am - Mt. Crescent Trail/South View]
Even if the walk between the two views wasn't an absolute delight, the South View would have been worth it! It presented Mts. Madison, Mt. Adams, and Mt. Jefferson proudly. Between Mts. Madison and Adams was the Snyder Brook drainage and the Durand Ridge, with King Ravine on the right. The Great Gully had some good snow holding on, and Jefferson with either the Caps or Castelated Ridge was looming behind. Really a wonderful view. Down low, the drainages were outlined with conifers while the rest of the forests were a light green with the spring budding trees. The view ended at the Presidential Rail Trail and Route 2 - just wonderful!

I had a nice and easy walk back and couldn't stop wondering why this mountain wasn't on the 52 With-a-View? I'd say it meets all the requirements! Maybe Randolph didn't want the extra traffic? Who knows!

[9:44am - Crescent Ridge Trail]
I was a little on-alert due to all of the moose poop, as moose are truly the one animal I'm scared to run into in the woods, but like a big boy I continued on! The upper stretch of the Crescent Ridge Trail was on a narrow spine and was dark, spooky, and windy - I loved it! There were tree views into the Kilkenny as the trail easily descended. Even as the trail got steeper, the descent had great footing, and I was able to really cruise! I caught a tree view ahead to Mt. Randolph, which was surprisingly far away!

The trail began to mellow and traverse a few navigable wet spots with less, but still abundant moose poop. The poop increased again in a logged area and then it crossed a stream in what I believe was Carlton Notch, proper.

There was comically even more poop on this side of the stream. The trail rose and fell, dodging more and more piles of poop until coming to the junction with the Carlton Notch Trail.

[10:05am - Crescent Ridge Trail/Carlton Notch Trail]
[10:10am - Crescent Ridge Trail/Underhill Path]
Mt. Randolph was 1.3 miles away and I was feeling great - onward! The trail continued back into a dark coniferous forest covered in moss, passing a few vernal pools (and of course, piles of moose poop). Next, I hit the junction with the Underhill Path in a more open area (with more poop) before going back into the conifers - I guess the back-and-forth of forest types is primarily due to logging?

There was another short, steep push to a slope on a sub-peak (past more poop), traversed a prehistoric-feeling wet area with rotted boardsand then meandered into a clearing what was covered in trout lilies. There was a peek-a-view to Mt. Adams in this area.

[10:24am - Crescent Ridge Trail/Lafayette View]
A fun part of doing literally no research prior to a hike (bad advice!!) is that every little feature is a surprise! I stumbled upon the Lafayette View, which was stunning! Ironically, it was mostly of Madison, Adams, and Jefferson, but maybe I could make out Lafayette on the far far right? It was hard for me to tell from this angle. Either way, it was beautiful and just a treat to get another view!

There was a short, steep descent to another clearing, where I saw my first person of the day! I couldn't help but think "this looks skiable..." (turns out it IS, at least according to the Strava global heat map). There was a single blue-diamond blaze higher up in the clearing, I guess marking whatever the trail may or may not be? 

The trail descended slightly from the clearing, crossed a beautiful stream in a col, and then started to climb again, stomping over an endless amount of sticks. It wasn't until I saw the next pile that I realized I went about five whole minutes without seeing moose poop!

Not to worry, though, becuase it was back in abundance! I continued to climb through a partially overgrown section of trail, full of trout lilies, pre-bloom trillium, and some small flower of an unknown name to me. It was pretty! The trail steepened again with obstructed tree views back to Crescent, which looked far away!

The Crescent Ridge Trail rounded the shoulder with barely-visible tree views to the Kilkenny Range and then came upon a cleared view toward Mt. Crescent, the Mahoosuc Range, and Mt. Moriah - it was stunning!

[10:44am - Crescent Ridge Trail/Mt. Randolph]
I was greeted in the summit area with a bunch of blowdowns and plenty more moose poop, yay! I was a little disappointed to see no summit sign, cairn, or anything, but right before the trail started to descend, I saw a sign on a tree indicating the summit - yay again!

The Crescent Ridge Trail began to descend a little roughly to another obstructed view towards Mt. Madison, Mt. Adams, and King Ravine before continuing to steeply descend. I did make the mistake of steeping on a slippery root, slipping and catching myself at least three times, and ultimately falling on my butt and jamming my finger into a blowdown (which is still a bit swollen as I'm typing this three days later...). 

The trail soon opened up again and the temperature seemingly shot up - being in the sun and out of the breeze (and pushing 11am) really got me cooking! The descent eased up significantly, and now I was just walking through open hardwood forests with abundant sunshine. There were countless flowers and some above-tree views up to Adams, which simply looked ridiculously high up. I passed two delightful women at a steeper pitch, the interaction went like this:
Me: "Hey hows it going?"
Woman 1: "Oh goodness! We never see anyone on this trail!"
Woman 2: "No time for talking Mads, we got to keep going!"
And that was it - genuinely so quick, easy, and delightful!

[10:56am - Crescent Ridge Trail/Four Soliders Path]
[11:03am - Crescent Ridge Trail/Vyron D. Lowe Trail]
[11:05am - Crescent Ridge Trail/Lookout Ledge]
The trail flattened out and I crossed the Four Soliders Path, which looked simply nonexistent. I couldn't see a trail bed or a blaze, just the sign indicating it was there... It was also about five minutes before this junction where I saw my last pile of moose poop... tragic.

Next was the junction with the Vyron D. Lowe Trail and Lookout Ledge, which was simply spectacular. I could see Pine Mountain, the Moriahs, the Carters, the Howker Ridge, Mt. Madison, Mt. Adams, King Ravine, Mt. Jefferson, and the works. The sun was HOT, but I was truly having a wonderful time on this hike.

Just after there was another, smaller view with a bench, and then I got back onto a rugged descent toward the Pasture Path.

[11:10am - Pasture Path]
To my dismay and horror it said there were 2.7 miles to Randolph Hill Road, which is fine, just a solid bummer. I moped for about 14 seconds, had a snack, and continued on. There were a couple of gentle stream crossings followed by a larger one that required 10% brain power. I was pretty warm at this point, and the water was looking mighty fine... I stayed dry and hopped across two more medium-small ones and one small-small one. A dry spell was followed by another medium crossing, which was the lst for at least a few minutes. There were a good amount of blowdowns in this area and a few criss-crossing logging roads - thankfully it was well-blazed.

[11:27am - Pasture Path/Notchway/Four Soliders Path]
There was a small crossing at the Four Soliders Path junction (which had one single yellow blaze but still no discernable footpath) as the Pasture Path followed property lines blazed in blue. There was a lovely boardwalk section with a few muddier spots, but overall nothing too horrible. To my DELIGHT I was able to shave off at least a mile of the hike by turning onto Grassy Lane! The 2.7 miles was apparently to Randolph Hill Road a ways away from the parking area, this was a relief!

[11:38am - Grassy Lane]
[11:40am - Randolph Hill Road]
Grassy Lane was exactly as it was named - a grassy lane. There were beautiful private residences on either side, and at the top of the lane I continued left onto Randolph Hill Road, which was a little longer and gained a little more elevation than I wanted, but overall it was low-brain and easy hiking back to the car! There was a heavenly breeze, and it was time to get changed and get ready to ski!

[11:45am - End of Hike]
To my horror, there was a tick crawling up my shoelace as I was debooting. Thankfully, I flicked it off. I changed my clothes, and saw a tick-like shadow on my leg, and in no sane state of mind absolutely shredding my leg scratching it off (I KNOW that's bad, but I simply cannot help it!). I put my crocs on, and found the first tick again! Oh my goodness. I was UPSET. I did a big brush and search of my body, and confirmed it was only those 1.5-2.5. 

To wrap up this chapter of my day, I got my dry clothes on (my anglerfish t-shirt and my leopard print shorts), ordered a BUNCH of food from Dunkin, and drove into Gorham to claim the goods before heading down through Pinkham Notch for the last day of ski season!

Step-by-Step
- Start hike on Community Forest Road.
- At jct., turn left onto Mt. Crescent Trail.

Photo Album

Mt. Agassiz (Bethlehem, NH)

Mt. Agassiz (Bethlehem, NH)

Hike Type: Out and Back
Distance: 1.66 miles
Elevation: 574 feet
My Time: 36 minutes
Book Time: 1 hour, 7 minutes
Parking: Small parking off of main road at trailhead.
Hiking Challenges: Operation Alaska Benchmark Challenge


The Hike 
I natuarlly woke up around 4:45am without an overly firm plan. I tried to fall back asleep, but once I realized I was simply awake, decided to start my day! I felt nostalgic waking up in Emma's house without her there, as she was usually on her way to patrol on these mornings. I decided I'd definely make my way over to Black Mountain to get a few runs in for their closing day. On the way, I've had my eye on Mt. Agassiz, so I'd start there, and then maybe get another hike in somewhere in the Randolph area? I heard on the Sounds Like a Search and Rescue Podcast that Mt. Crescent is supposed to be good - we'll see!

I had a nice and easy drive from Fairfax, VT to Bethlehem, NH (I always forget how cute the town of Bethlehem is). The parking area isn't super clear, but you pull onto a dirt road and there spots for two cars on the left, and then two more cars on the left just after, and that's really it. I got ready at the car, dodging a few flies ('tis the season), and realized that I had forgotten my camera! Bummer. That's kind of what I get for staying up until 1am, packing, and then leaving at 4am yesterday...

The weather was absolutely lovely. It was sunny and temps were in the mid 50s. The birds were singing and a gentle breeze blowing. A dream! I hiked up the road just a little ways and then ducked under a gate clearly labeling private property, but welcoming hikers. The hike climbed up this access road, which I learned used to be a carriage road, and later was traversed by the "Magic Mountain Express" - a train-shaped tractor "ride" that brought tourists to and from the top of the mountain. There is also a brief ski history here, which was fun to learn about, too. 

The road was partially paved and partially eroded and mostly steep. I passed an enormous raven perched on a tree, turned in a flat spot and passed som eeroded old culverts and a sign for "Cry Baby" (which I would later learn is a mountain biking trail a part of the Bethlehem Trails Association). There were tree views ahead to Mt. Agassiz and over to Mt. Cleveland, and I began to climb again after passing something that looked like an old oil tank. 

The gnats were out as I started to climb steeply again past an old, busted bench and more Cry Baby signs. It smelled like the mountains in summertime, which brought me a lot of joy.

There was a narrow view from a small power cut as the trail somehow felt steeper again? Thankfully, before I knew it I was seeing the communication tower through the trees and I was nearing the top! There were a bunch more mountain biking trails from the top. First, on the left was a communication tower and ahead was a neat-looking abandoned-looking stone building surrounding anohter communication tower.

I found some old bolts on the ground and disc labeled "Mt. Agassiz 3". Around the corner I was SHOCKED to see a truly spectacular view towards Franconia Notch. From left to right I could see the Twins (in a cloud), Garfield, Lafayette (in a cloud), the notch, Cannon, the Cannonballs, at least North Kinsman, and Moosilauke! There was a lone bench thanking the landowners in a mowed lawn. Around here I found another disc, labeled as "Mt. Agassiz No 4."

Near the building there was a lot of broken glass from broken windows in the building, so I carefully looked around some more. I made it back to the "Mt. Agassiz 3" disc and followed the arrow to a third disc, which was fun to see. I had to decide whether to hike it three times to make all three discs "count" or to save it for later - I opted to save it.

I thought about descending on Cry Baby just to mix things up, but it very much seemed like a proper mountain biking trail, so I left it to the mountain bikers. I had a super quick and easy descent back to the car. I wondered if the parking lot is plowed in winter, because this would be a nice snowshoe up (with televators). To cap this warm-up hike, I passed a red trilium! 

Back at the car, I decided I'd hit Mt. Crescent and the Carlton Notch Trail loop with the possibility of extending the hike to Mt. Randolph as well - we'll see!

Step-by-Step
- Start hike up road from parking area.
- Summit, and turn around to descend.

Photo Album

Saturday, May 16, 2026

Skiing Jay Peak (Day 45)

Skiing Jay Peak
Saturday, May 16th, 2026

Runs: 4
Distance: 2.53 miles
Elevation: 4,570 feet
Max Speed: 27.5 mph
Avg. Speed: 10.2 mph
Moving Time: 15 minutes, 28 seconds
Total Time: 1 hour, 4 minutes, 27 seconds

The final weekend of skiing is among us. Jay pushed their closing weekend back a week, which was a treat becuase now I could end with Emma and Sarah in beautiful weather! I made it from late December to the end of April without missing a weekend, had a couple weekends off to start May, and now I'm back for one last hurrah! To my dismay, this was the first time every Emma wanted to get to the mountain for first chair (she had a bike race in Albany she had to drive to after), so I got home from the Midway Cafe at 12:30am, bed by 1:00am, and up and out at 4:00am! Ouch. I had a shocking stable drive up, though. I went right to the Stateside Base Lodge to use the bathroom, where there were only two other cars, and then made my way down to the 242 Lot, which had a whopping 8 cars. I guess it's partly due to it not being closing day proper, but Closing Day Eve. Either way, it was beautiful! I was sitting in a lawn chair with a Sun Cruiser in hand at 8:50am, and Emma and Sarah landed just after. We spent some time chatting and getting ready, took a shot of jagermeister, and then it was time!


Snow Report
THURSDAY, MAY 14 AT 1:16 PM
Final Laps in May
Spring skiing gets one more weekend.
And the weather is giving us a pretty good sendoff. Saturday looks sunny with temps climbing into the upper 60s. Sunday stays mild with parly sunny skies and temps in the lower 60s. Not a bad way to put final laps on the board.
We plan to run Jet only operations this weekend. Saturday May 16 through Sunday May 17, from 9:30AM to 5:00 PM. Sunday, May 17 is scheduled to be the final day of lift operations for the 2025/26 winter season.
Day tickets will be $45, with no additional discounts applied.
Please note, Jet only operations mean terrain will be limited to advanced skiing and riding. Guests should be comfortable on advanced terrain before heading up.
One more weekend, a little May sunshine, and a few final Jet laps to close out a season that was impressive from start to finish.
Base Area Info:
The Stateside Base Lodge will be open for guests to gear up, use restrooms, and get ready for the hill.
The Stateside Ticket Booth will be open. Tramside Customer Service will be closed.
Provisions General Store on Tramside will be open for food, drinks, and other basics.
The Pump House Indoor Waterpark will operate Friday through Sunday until daily summer operations begin June 19.

Runs 1-4
Run 1: Jet Triple - The Jet
[0.65 miles; 3:38; 1,155 feet; 23.8 mph max; 10.6 mph avg]
Run 2: Jet Triple - The Jet
[0.58 miles; 2:55; 1,158 feet; 25.2 mph max; 11.9 mph avg]
Run 3: Jet Triple - The Jet
[0.71 miles; 5:21; 1,155 feet; 27.5 mph max; 8.0 mph avg]
Run 4: Jet Triple - The Jet
[0.59 miles; 334; 1,106 feet; 25.7 mph max; 10.0 mph avg]

To our delight, The Jet was mostly in! You could technically make some top-to-bottom runs! The hike up from the 242 lot was by far the most physically taxing moment of the day. The ribbon of death was holding up pretty nicely, especially down low, which was DICEY last year! We giggled and reminsced on the ride up and just loved being out in the sun. We took some photos, and went to get our first run in! There was a slushy strip of... slush from the top to about 50 feet down. We decided to not be weenies and just commit - it wasn't TOO bad - only a few little rocks. The main stretch was an absolute dream to ski. Soft bumps that were just big enough to go "whee!" The run out was shockingly fast and in great condition. We got back on the lift, and both Emma and Sarah called their two more skip the last!

I wanted to get another run in, so they went over to the patrol shack to play bananagrams while I skied down the slush again, which was more like wet mud, and then had a wonderful run. Really, all I wanted was to get a run in where I skied a little better, and I achieved it! I took the chair back up and met them at the end of their game. We shared another drink, played some games, took some pictures, and were just having a wonderful time. Emma wanted to head out at noon for her bike race, so I decided to get another run in without them, which went well again! I did walk down this time in a feeble attempt to protect my bases. 

Again, my run was wonderful. I love skiing. I love that I put the work in to get halfway decent at it so I can enjoy it in the middle of May. I even got called sexy by someone for my leopard print shorts! It wasn't until I was back at the top that I realized I forgot my helmet! My goodness. Naturally, Emma and Sarah made fun of me (fair), and we took our final photos of the Vermonter of the season (some of our best, might I add). We had our moment of being Emo, Sarah and I got a recreation of our photo from last year, and then we skied right down to the car. We hung out for just a bit longer, but then went on the road. 

No time to be Emo yet, since we were all going to the same place! Back at Emma's we packed her up and then I walked up to Sarah's for a couple drinks and final hangs. THEN we finally said our goodbye and I had a lovely Emo walk back to Emma's to pick up my pizza and watch some movies with Lola The Dog. It was during this time I decided to push my ski season one day further by going to Black Mountain tomorrow for their closing day, probably getting a hike in on the way over.

Map of Jay Peak (2025-2026, Updated)

Wednesday, May 13, 2026

Eliot Path, Skyline North, Brookwood, Accord Path (Blue Hills Reservation)

Eliot Path, Skyline North, Brookwood, Accord Path (Blue Hills Reservation)

Hike Type: Loop w/ Spaghetti Spur
Distance: 6.59 miles
Elevation: 1,119 feet
My Time: 2 hours, 21 minutes
Book Time: 3 hours, 51 minutes
Parking: In ski area parking lot.
Hiking Challenges: Trail Trace the Blue Hills; Great Blue Hill Summits


The Hike 
To say I had a rough day would be an understatement! It all started when I went to brush my teeth at 4:30am and saw there was heavily flowing water into my bathroom from above... It continued at 4:45am when I did my yoga and heard a "splash." My kids at school were dreadful and nothing was going right! My main goal for hiking was to hit the Brookwood Farm trails, but I knew I needed to exercise to work out some frustration, so I figured I'd go rogue and pair it with at least a partial Skyline Loop.

I had a sleepy drive that had "heavier than usual traffic," like every day, and made it to the Trailside Museum/Ski Area parking around 3:45pm. It was partly cloudy in the mid-60s, so at least the weather was wonderful!

I started my hike behind a woman hiking with a cat-carrier backpack, which was interesting to see! I was not going for speed in the slightest, so I happily took my time hiking up (and naturally sped up near the top). I found myself constantly daydreaming of my upcoming trip to the Maine high peaks!

I summited Great Blue Hill, passing more people than I was used to. I loved seeing the green baby leaves against the blue sky. I continued down the Skyline North up and over Wolcott to Hemenway, where I admired the view back towards Great Blue Hill. I did miss this trail - it's been satisfying to knock off my remainder trails for my map, but this loop is too good!

Before climbing up Hancock Hill, I heard an owl! I spent a good five minutes looking around the Skyline/Breakneck Ledge junction for it, but was unsuccessful. I'll have to return...

I passed a couple taking a break in the middle of the trail on Hancock Hill, which I get, it's beautiful, but why in the middle of the trail when there's so much space? The tent catepillars were really thriving as I descended. I turned onto Hillside Street and was greeted by the lesser periwinkle flowers as I begrudingly climbed up Houghton Hill, which had me huffing and puffing, per usual.

Descending Houghton, I passed more hikers sitting in the middle of the trail. I crossed the lower stream and then the upper, which was mostly dried out, and then continued onto Wildcat Notch Trail, which had a massive, inconvenient blowdown blocking the way. I was starting to get hungry as I turned onto Half Way Path, Accord Path, and finally Brookwood Trail.

I crossed Blue Hill River Road and turned onto the gated half of the Brookwood Farm loop road, which was super scenic. I hiked across the mowed path towards the main farm, and then over towards 1057, which was in just dreadful condition. There was hardly a footpath to the property line, and no way to bushwahck to the main loop without getting scraped up by prickers. To my dismay, the main loop was also just dreadful. It felt like no one's been back here in years!

I passed a little swampy pond at 1079 and continued left, having to hurdle over a blowdown that's been there since the last time I hiked here years ago. To even greater dismay, there was no discernable path for the outer loop around the meadow. After just going at it, making ridiculous high steps to avoid ticks, I could just barely make out a footpath. This was miserable. This was actually worst than Field Path. It got a little better back in the woods, but I was VERY excited to be done with this area, and unless I shoot myself in the foot again, I will do everything in my power to do this hike in the winter forever more!

I decided I don't need further punishment by climbing back up Big Blue, so once I got back to the main side of the reservation I followed the Accord Path all the way back to my car, which was a good move. I noticed (again) a path that looks like it could be the abandoned Cliff Trail, smelled the food from the Hillside Pub, and eventually walked out underneath the chairlift at the ski area. I also saw the rope tow they're installing that was in theory going to be live for this past winter, better late than never! It also only went up 1/2 the hill, which was interesting, but not my business...

(EDIT: I just remembered Strava's Heat Map feature - it definitely was the Cliff Trail!)

TIME TO GO HOME.

Step-by-Step
- Park at the ski area parking.
- Start hike at 1023 on Eliot Path (red dots).
- At terminus/1055, turn right onto Elito Circle.
- At road, turn left.
- At next jct., turn right.
- Summit Great Blue Hill.
- Follow road and then gravel path around Summit Observatory.
- At terminus, turn left onto Skyline Trail (blue rectangles).
- At 1063, turn right onto Skyline Trail North (blue rectangles).
- At Hillside Street, turn right.
- At jct., turn right onto Skyline Trail South (blue rectangles).
- At jct., turn left onto Wildcat Notch Path.
- At 1093, turn right onto Half Way Path.
- At 1081, turn right onto Accord Path.
- At 1062, turn left onto Brookwood Trail.
- At terminus, cross and turn right onto Blue Hill River Road.
- At jct., turn left onto gated road.
- At jct., turn right onto mowed path.
- At terminus, turn left.
- At 1057, hike spur to property boundary, turn around, and then hike loop.
- At 1079, turn left.
- At 1077, turn right.
- At 1079, turn right.
- Follow road out to Blue Hill River Road.
- At Blue Hill River Road, turn right.
- At jct., turn left onto Brookwood Trail.
- At 1062, turn left onto Accord Path.
 - Follow Accord Path to ski area and car.

Nahanton Hill, Reservoir, Sassaman Notch Path (Blue Hills Reservation)

Nahanton Hill, Reservoir, Sassaman Notch Path (Blue Hills Reservation)

Hike Type: Lollipop Loop w/ Lollipop Spur
Distance: 4.17 miles
Elevation: 522 feet
My Time: 1 hour, 30 minutes
Book Time: 2 hours, 20 minutes moving
Parking: At Chickatawbut Overlook.
Hiking Challenges: Trail Trace the Blue Hills


The Hike 
"Heavier than usual traffic on your route" - Google Maps, again.

I was going back and forth on getting a hike in on this Wednesday afternoon. Traffic was abhorrent and I was already getting out late, but I rallied. It was going to be the last nice day until the weekend and I knew I'd feel better if I sucked it up. I made it to the Chickatawbut Overlook trailhead at 4:20pm (horrible). Thankfully, it was a nice partly sunny day at 67 degrees with a breeze - could be worse. The main objective for the day was the Blue Hills Reservoir, one of my three last sections - anything else would be a bonus - off I go!

As a gace of god, my mood was turned around 2 minutes into my hike when I heard the beautiful song of a Baltimore Oriole (thank you, Merlin)! I hiked the Tower Path over to the rock stairs on the back side of Nahanton Hill - I was determined to see a view! The blueberry and other bushes were starting to bloom, which made for a very scenic mini climb. My legs were feeling a bit tired from my first leg day in like six-ish weeks (and it was a weak leg day at that), so I was moving slow and steady.

The view from Nahanton showed hazy clouds north of Boston with mostly blue skies south - fun to see! I made it down and up the first Broken Hill, which is always a favorite of mine. The tent catepillars were also loving the first Broken Hill. The swamp between #1 and #1.5 was fully dried up, and just after I turned left onto the Squamaug Notch Path, which had even more tent catepillars and some red columbine flowers that I had never seen before (thank you, Seek!). I turned onto the Ridge Path and then started my loop around the Reservoir.

The path around the Reservoir that follows Chickatawbut Road was actually in great shape - I feel like my legs usually get tickled the entire time, but I had no tickling to speak of! There were a couple of fishermen on the wooded side along with what I believe to be a Great Egret. It was windy on this loop, but all nice.

The egret flew away as I got closer, naturally. I walked along the dandelion-lined path parallel to the woods, hiked the penninsula (the reeds that usually block the way were flattened - maybe from this year's snow?), and passed the two fishermen, who seem to have become friends! I then worked my way back to Squamaug Notch and the Skyline Trail to finish out the Broken Hills.

I hiked the Pocapawmet and Wampatuck Paths, landing on the Curve Path. The swamp that the Curve Path follows had some wildlife commotion going on, but I was not planning on finding out what it was! I decided to make my return via the Sassaman Notch Path, which is a really pretty old road. It makes it fun to imagine what life was like when it was an actual road proper. The path was a bit of a slog after a while, but eventually I was back in the notch, passing the tower, and back to my car!

Upon plugging this hike into my spreadsheets, I found that this was my 200th hike in the Blue Hills! How fun!

Step-by-Step
- Park at Chickatawbut Overlook.
- Start hike on Tower Path (yellow dots).
- At tower, turn left on Tower Path (yellow dots).
- At terminus, continue onto unnamed path up Nahanton Hill.
- At split, turn left.
- At 3103, continue onto Skyline Trail eastbound (blue rectangles).
- At 3144, turn left onto Squamaug Notch Path.
- At 3131, turn right onto Ridge Path.
- At Chickatawbut Road, turn right.
- Continue on path along road, hike around reservoir clockwise.
- Return to Ridge Path.
- Turnleft onto Ridge Path.
- At 3131, turn left onto Squamaug Notch Path.
- At 3144, turn left onto Skyline Trail (blue rectangles). 
- Before Chickatawbut Road, turn right onto unmapped Pocapawmet Path.
- At terminus, turn right onto Wampatuck Path.
- At 3153, turn right onto Curve Path.
- At 3135, turn right onto Sassaman Notch Path (red dots).
- Follow Sassaman Notch Path past the turn of red dots, turn left onto Tower Path (yellow dots).
- Return to car.

Tuesday, May 12, 2026

Green Hill Path, Field Path, Orchard Trail (Blue Hills Reservation)

Green Hill Path, Field Path, Orchard Trail (Blue Hills Reservation)

Hike Type: Spaghetti-ish Lollipop Loop
Distance: 2.47 miles
Elevation: 118 feet
My Time: 51 minutes
Book Time: 1 hour ,17 minutes
Parking: At end of Royall Street.
Hiking Challenges: Trail Trace the Blue Hills


The Hike 
Monday afternoon! I had a brutally slow and sleepy drive after work (I don't know why Google insists on saying "slower than usual traffic" when the traffic is always slow), fully fueled by leftover cheerios. Skies were grey, temps in the low-60s, and I was very low on energy. Thankfully, I had a small hanging chad that I needed to get done, no matter how much I didn't want to do it. I parked at the end of Royall Street and hiked right into the woods to meet up with the western end of the Skyline Trail, which was full of spiderwebs. 

On a plus, the Skyline Trail follows a wonderful stone wall before crossing a highway drain outflow surrounded by garbage... Anyway, I continued onto the abandoned interchange, past the... flooring(?) that has been decomposing for years, and made my way back into the woods at the start of Green Hill Path. To mix things up, I decided to hike Field Path counter-clockwise, yay?

Field Path has notoriously been one of, if not the most overgrown trail in the reservation. To my delight, some of the blowdowns have met a saw in the past couple of years! It actually used to be much worse. There was a good amount of unavoidable vegetation, but thankfully i made it out without ticks. The footing transitioned from leafy/stick-y to grassy, which was unpleasant in a different way. The only fun part of this trail is the little blowdown tunnel you get to hike through. The field that the trail might be named after appeared to be covered in pricker bushes now... bummer.

There were a few easy step-over blowdowns at the end, and I was free! The return on Green Hill Path was very leafy, but fine otherwise. Onto Orchard Trail, there was a LOUD flying insect near the beginning, and delightfully nothing elsewhere. This was in the best shape out of all three trails back here. I returned again on Green Hill, through the interchange, back onto the Skyline Trail, and at the same junction where I turned onto the trail, I veered right (not turn right, to be clear) onto the final trail I needed in this area - just a spur from Skyline to Royall Street. At the terminus, there was a sign pointing towards the Skyline Trail and Fowl Meadow - fun!

I could have driven over to Brookwood to get another hanging chad, but my energy was dreadfully low and all I wanted was to get my chicken from Costco and go to bed, which is EXACTLY what I did!

Step-by-Step
- Park at the end of Royall Street, enter woods on unmapped path.
- At terminus, turn left onto Skyline Trail.
- Follow pavement to Green Hill Path.
- At 6102, turn left onto Field Path.
- At 6103, turn right onto Green Hill Path.
- At 6102, turn left onto Orchard Trail.
- At 6104, turn left onto Green Hill Path.
- Follow path and pavement back to Skyline Trail.
- At terminus of the spur hiked in the beginning, follow different spur left to Royall Street.
- At terminus, turn right on Royall Street, return to car.