Skiing Cannon Mountain (Day 42/Indy Day 32)

Skiing Cannon Mountain

Sunday, April 12th, 2026

Runs: 18

Distance: miles

Elevation: feet

Max Speed: mph

Avg. Speed: mph

Moving Time: 

Total Time: 

After a nice, but ultimately disappointing-due-to-Strava-technicalities morning hike, the sun worked its magic and warmed Franconia Notch into the 40s, so I made my way over to Cannon to help celebrate their closing day! The drive was expectedly super simple and I parked very close to the road on the Artist Bluff side. I did my chores at the car, reloaded my Indy online, and headed into the lodge to use the bathroom and start my adventure of the day! There were endless people outside on the deck just enjoying the day. Vibes were excellent!

Mountian Report

"If you're brave enough to say goodbye to this season, Cannon will reward you next season." - Paule Coelho

It is hard to belive that just a few months ago, we sat around the conference table with our Mountain Ops team planning out winter operations. There is a sense of hopeful optimism for the season that is to come. It energized our team as much as it energizes you. Writing this today, those conversations, that planning, that energy turns into nostalgia. This season will be talked about for years to come as "that one season where it snowed almost every day in January and February, it was consistently cold and DJ's Tramline was open for weeks intead of days." To everyone who skied with us this season, you are a character in the Cannon story, and we thank you for makung us part of your ski season. As we turn to the final page, today isn't about saying goodbye, it's about remembering this legendary season, about taking some laps in the sun, enjoying a cold beverage on the deck with friends and reenergizing our optimism for next season. Alright, I'm done pratting, let's go skiing.

Our final day of the 25/26 season, we are locked in with a classic New England spring skiing day. Temps are chilly this morning as we wait for the sun to warm us up. We are looking at highs in the mid-thirties at the summit and the high-forties at the base. Wind will be light and variable. We are starting the day with mostly clear skies.

Zoomer Triple, Peabody Quad, Cannonball Quad, and Tuckerbrook Quad will spin at 9:00am. Groomers were out on 26 trails overnight. Snow surfaces will be firm in the morning before softening up by mid-day.

Ski and ride with caution! The spring skiing hazards have returned, including rocks, ice, and bare spots. Please keep your eyes peeled and watch your speed. Conditions on trails can and will change over the course of the day.

Heads up: Our Cannon Mountain staff party will take place tomorrow afternoon in the Cannonball Pub. It's our way of saying thank you to all the folks that keep this mountain running every day! The pub will still be open for the public for our regular apres hours.

While you're here: Cannon Sports Shop is having their End of Season Sale, now thru Closing Day! Stop in, shop around and score 30% off all apparel! #treatyoself

Runs 1-4

Run 1: Peabody Express Quad - Easy Link - Missing Link - Spookie - Gremlin - Rock Garden - Mickey's Margin - Gary's

[1.48 mi; 8:35; 1,400 ft; 29.0 mph max; 10.3 mph avg]

Run 2: Zoomer Triple - Rocket

[0.39 mi; 2:10; 682 ft; 23.3 mph max; 10.7 mph avg]

Run 3: Zoomer Triple - Zoomer

[0.38 mi; 2:34; 689 ft; 26.4 mph max; 9.2 mph avg]

Run 4: Zoomer Triple - Lower Cannon

[0.63 mi; 3:37; 591 ft; 29.4 mph max; 10.5 mph avg]

It made me smile seeing so many people out and enjoying the day - it was such a picturesque spring ski day! I didn't have much of a plan today besides see how I feel. The first stop was the Peabody Express Quad - the skiing sounded great with a few harder spots. The link trails were a little bit of a mess of "here's what's left!," but all navigable. Big Link was half closed, Easy Link was full of cookies, and Missing Link was super bumpy with rocky troughs. Either way, I went down Easy Link to Missing Link and got some speed to get on Spookie, which was the only artery linking the upper and lower mountains. The last bit of Spookie was full of fun, soft bumps, and then I continued through the upper reach of Gremlin to Rock Garden, which was... just okay. Definitely was boilerplate ice this morning, but has softened up. I cut over to Mickey's Margin, which was in varigous stages of disrepair, but then had a GLORIOUS trip down Gary's! Soft turns that made me feel like a good skier - I giggled the whole last bit!

Music was playing at the bottom of the Zoomer and there were flocks of people skiing down what was left of the Zoomer Run, many in Hawaiian leis. I took Rocket down Run #2, which was just as wonderful as Gary's. Zoomer was a mixed bag - some nice slushy bumpy turns with two comically narrow chokepoints where a little bit of grass skiing was nearly mandatory. I made it down fine, maybe not glamorously, but fine! Run #4 was back up the Zoomer and down Lower Cannon and all the way back to my car to shed some layers and swap my goggles for Pit Vipers!

Runs 5-10

Run 5: Peabody Express Quad - Easy Link - Big Link

[0.15 mi; 189 ft]

Run 6: Cannonball Quad - Taft Slalom - Upper Ravine - Spookie - Gremlin - Rock Garden - Gremlin - Lower Ravine

[1.60 mi; 2,000 ft]

Run 7: Peabody Express Quad - Easy Link - Big Link

[0.15 mi; 189 ft]

Run 8: Cannonball Quad - Upper Ravine - Spookie - Gremlin - Lower Ravine - Chute - Lower Ravine

[1.60 mi; 2,000 ft]

Run 9: Peabody Express Quad - Easy Link - Big Link

[0.15 mi; 189 ft]

Run 10: Cannonball Quad - Upper Cannon - Big Link - Easy Link - Missing Link - Spookie - Gremlin

[1.60 mi; 2,000 ft]

My next series of runs focused on the Cannonball Quad and top-to-bottom runs. Runs #5, #7, and #9 were up the Peabody and down Easy to Big Link, which seemed to be the least popular route off the Peabody, which is why I preferred it! Run #6 was down Taft Slalom which was a DREAM - so much fun to cruise down making wide, slushy turns. The second half of Upper Ravine was also an absolutely springtime delight. I flew up into Spookie, Gremlin, Rock Garden, and then found an open cut-through back to Gremlin and then Lower Ravine to finish strong. I was giggling the whole way down!

Run #8 brought me down the entirety of Upper Ravine, which again, was a DREAM. So much fun. The trail itself is delightfully windy, and it just became even more fun with the playful snow. From the end of Spookie, I noticed that there was a bit of Gremlin that was technically closed, but very skiable and many others were taking it, so I took it to skip Rock Garden, and it was great! This time, I turned onto Lower Ravine and finished on Chute.

Run #10 brought me to the other side of the upper mountain. Upper Cannon is cut very similarly to Upper Ravine, but it was much more frozen than Upper Ravine. Nonetheless, it was still super fun! I followed the Links to Spookie and then followed Gremlin all the way back to the Peabody.

Runs 11-14

Run 11: Peabody Express Quad - Easy Link - Big Link

[0.15 mi; 189 ft]

Run 12: Cannonball Quad - Profile

[0.48 mi; 880 ft]

Run 13: Cannonball Quad - Tramway - Big Link - Easy Link - Big Link

[0.63 mi; 880 ft]

Run 14: Cannonball Quad - Vista Way - Big Link - Easy Link - Missing Link - Spookie - Gremlin - Rock Garden - Lower Cannon - Gary's

[1.67 mi; 8:53; 2,110 ft; 29.9 mph max; 11.3 mph avg]

#11 was back up the Peabody and Easy/Big Link, and then I noticed the opened Profile! I was wondering about that. It looked VERY hard and frozen when I first took the Cannonball, but now that it was open folks were harvesting the corn quite nicely! I followed a comically narrow entrance chute to a shockingly delightful run! There were two choke points that were pretty easily navigable. By far the best run I'd ever done down Profile!

I got back on the Cannonball for #13 and went down Tramway, which was similarly as frozen as Upper Cannon - still fun though! Tramway spat me onto Big Link, which I wiggled onto Easy Link and then back to Big Link. 

Run #14 was down another run that had JUST opened - Vista Way. It had the famous "thin cover" sign up, and boy, they meant it! There were some really nice turns to be had. and also a little bit of truly unavoidable grass. As I was literally walking across the grass in my skis, I saw a patroller who said without prompting, "I was not the one to open this." I was glad they did! Still a fun little spring adventure. Once I survived, I followed the Links to Spookie and then cut over all the way back to Gary's to start my farewell tour!

Runs 15-18

Run 15: Zoomer Triple - Rocket

[0.39 mi; 2:05; 564 ft; 25.4 mph max; 11.3 mph avg]

Run 16: Zoomer Triple - Lower Cannon

[0.53 mi; 1:51; 505 ft; 29.0 mph max; 17.3 mph avg]

Run 17: Peabody Express Quad - Easy Link - Big Link

[0.15 mi; 189 ft]

Run 18: Cannonball Quad - Taft Slalom - Upper Ravine - Spookie - Gremlin

[1.73 mi; 5:21; 1,926 ft; 28.0 mph max; 19.4 mph avg]

Gary's was still a dream, as was Rocket. So much fun!! If it wasn't Sunday I would have rallied for more... alas... Run #17 was back up the Peabody and I wrapped up with a final full-mountain run connecting some of my favorite trails of the day. I flew down Taft Slalom wiht a smile on my face and giggled on the winding Upper Ravine. I shot up Spookie and skied all the way down Gremlin, both the closed and open stretch.

It was definitely bittersweet to be there for their closing day. The skiing was so fun and the vibes on the whole mountain were just immaculate but it's sad to say goodbye! Thankfully, Jay plans to be open until at least May 10th unofficially, so more weekend to be had! Now, time to work my way home for the last week before break.

Map of Cannon Mountain

Skiing Jay Peak (Day 41)

Skiing Jay Peak

Saturday, April 11th, 2026

Runs: 13

Distance: miles

Elevation: feet

Max Speed: mph

Avg. Speed: mph

Moving Time: 

Total Time: 

Back up Jay for another day of silliness! The main objective of the day was to meet up with some Friends who I ususally do not ski with, but who were spending the weekend at Jay. I couldn't afford to join the AirBnb, but was happy to join for the day! Everyone had a slow start. Emma and I got to the mountain around 10:00am - she planned to go for a bike ride but it turned out to be too windy for that to be even remotely pleasant, so she decided to ski with me - yay! I got a pass from patrol and went upstairs to boot up. I waited for Emma at the bottom of the Jet, but then she told me she got caught chit chatting, so I'd get started without her.

Snow Report

SATURDAY APRIL 11 AT 8:31 AM

Sweet Turns, Sweet Weekend

Spring lift hours: - Lower mountain: 9:00AM - 5:00PM. - Upper mountin: 9:30AM - 5:00PM.

9/9 lifts will spin on time today

A few flakes are floating around this morning before we pivot into a sunnier spring setup.

It'll be a bit of a gusty start, but winds should die down come afternoon. Surfaces are smi-frozen and a little inconsistent across the mountain to start the day, but with more sunshine and temps climbing into the mid 30s at the base, things should soften up as we head into the afternoon.

We cool back down overnight, setting up a frosty start Sunday. Temps dip into the teens down low, with 20s and even 30s higher up thanks to an inversion. Blue skies stick around for much of the day before clouds begin to move in late as a warm front approaches.

That shift brings a quick rebound, with temps climbing into the 40s Sunday and lighter winds for most of the day. Overall, a beautiful spring weekend shaping up.

Don't put the winter gear away just yet.

Nothing's ever set in stone up here, so give the Snow Report or Jay Peak App a look before you head out and while you're chasing laps.

Runs 1-4

Run 1: Jet Triple - The Jet

[0.71 mi; 3:34; 1,224 ft; 28.5 mph max; 11.9 mph avg]

Run 2: Jet Triple - Montrealer - Catwalk - Northway - Angel's Wiggle - Paradise Meadows

[1.32 mi; 5:06; 1,194 ft; 29.5 mph max; 15.5 mph avg]

Run 3: Bonaventure Quad - Goat Run - Upper Upper Exposition - Green Mountain Boys - The Flash - Harmony Lane

[1.31 mi; 5:53; 1,604 ft; 29.2 mph max; 13.3 mph avg]

Run 4: Green Mountain Flyer - Northway - Angel's Wiggle - Taxi - Boulevard

[1.72 mi; 7:10; 1,555 ft; 29.1 mph max; 14.4 mph avg]

Conditions were going to be interesting today! Mostly cloudy, mostly chilly, but maybe some sun and maybe some warmth? I did Run #1 by myself and decided to just do the Jet top to bottom to see how it felt, and it felt... mostly fine. I was going to ride the chair by myself but two... very kind... snowboarders said "are you riding solo? not anymore buddy get on over here!" Very kind... They said Haynes was super icy, but Jet really wasn't looking too bad, and it wasn't! Few slick spots, but nothing absurd.

At the bottom, Emma soon joined me and we skied the Montrealer down to the Wiggle, which was all in pretty solid shape! I still hate the new traffic flow on Montrealer, but it's fine... I STILL needed to ski The Flash, so that's where my sights were on next. We took the Bonnie up and skied over to Goat, which was... not great. We took Upper Upper Exposition to Green Mountain Boys, which was in significantly better shape! I wanted to hit Expo Glade, but it just wasn't warm enough for the snow to be worth the pain. The Flash was covered in sticks but such a fun, little trail! It's short, but starts off narrow and winding before opening up with two ways out - I really enjoyed it! I then put the cherry on top by ending on Harmony Lane and comically getting a PR on Strava (which was one second faster than Emma's PR, mind you). 

We got the text that Sarah had landed at Jay, so we were going to head over to see her (plus I was sweating and had to pee from a couple of lift beers). We took the Flyer up and both almost fell off of the chair unloading - either it was running slower than usual or the unload ramp had just melted enough where you can no longer jump up the second it hits the terminal to sling-shot off the chair - oops! We followed Northway to the Wiggle to Taxi, which was LOW tide, and then planned to "rip the shit" out of the Boulevard, but a family got in my way... curses! I want a new PR for there, too! I did not get my PR, but I did run into friends Matthew and Josh in the Bullwheel! They were a part of the crew that was up for the weekend, but they both seemed mostly done for the day (at 11:30am) - they were having a tough time in the corn and Josh ended up hurting his knee. 

Runs 5-6 

Run 5: Jet Triple - Haynes - Mont l'Entripide

[0.70 mi; 3:24; 1,211 ft; 32.3 mph max; 12.4 mph avg]

Run 6: Jet Triple - Montrealer - Catwalk - Northway - Angel's Wiggle - Taxi - Queen's Highway

[1.76 mi; 8:52; 1,285 ft; 26.6 mph max; 11.9 mph avg]

We picked up Sarah with a few on-duty patrollers behind her and hopped back onto The Jet. Emma and Sarah both had Ramen on their minds, and I could easily be convinced (EDIT: I shouldn't have, it did WEIRD things to my stomach...). We took Montrealer to Taxi and then followed Queen's Highway all the way down. I officially skied the skier's right side of the Tramside Carpet, which I had never done (but now I can mark it on my map!), and then we got out delicious ramen. We enjoyed it outside next to a GIANT inflatable Dermatone tube - it was the Vertical Challenge race day, so there were lots of vendors and what not at Tramside base. Also, the Tram was officially not running due to wind, tragic! I actually really did want to finally ski Green Beret... but oh well...

Runs 7-8

Run 7: Tramside Carpet

Run 8: Green Mountain Flyer - Goat Run - Upper Upper Exposition - Goat Run - Lover River Quai - Bushawhacker - Ullr's Dream

[1.69 mi; 7:46; 1,713 ft; 25.0 mph max; 13.1 mph avg]

Next plan was to get a couple runs and then get a drink. We rode the Tramside Carpet, where an older man in front of Emma tried to walk backwards on skis to talk to her? She put him in his place. We then skied over to the Flyer, flirting with the idea that we'd ski Expo Glade. We took Goat Run, which was in a stage of rapid deterioration, back to Upper Upper Exposition, and then gave up when we saw how hard and unpeleasant Expo looked. Instead, we had a joyous time down Lower River Quai and then cut over to Bushwhacker, which was thinly covered but super fun and spring-like! I was skeptical, but very glad we went in! After this run, we went into Tower Bar and saw it was mobbed, so we decided to pivot to either Howies or Bullwheel. They had paperwork to do for patrol and wanted to take the Metro, so I told them I'd take the Flyer and meet them when they're done.

Runs 9-10

Run 9: Green Mountain Flyer - Northway - Upper Milk Run - Taxi - Showoff Glade - Micky - Kangaroo Trail

[1.55 mi; 9:13; 1,545 ft; 25.7 mph max; 10.1 mph avg]

Run 10: Bonaventure Quad - Northway - Upper Milk Run - Taxi - Lower Milk Run - Kangaroo Trail

[1.34 mi; 7:49; 1,450 ft; 26.5 mph max; 10.3 mph avg]

Emma and Sarah did their chores as I checked out Upper Milk Run, which was in better shape than it had been this season, but the bumps were huge and HARD. Skiable, though! I continued onto Taxi and followed what were effectively detour signs to get to Micky through Showoff Glade. I did a bad job in Showoff, I did a great job on Micky! Super fun spring turns with a few creeks to pray over. From here I followed what's left of Kangaroo Trail on the way out. 

I met Emma and Sarah in the gear shop so Sarah could spend the rest of her Patrol stipend (she got a buff), but to my surprise they both debooted and didn't do their paperwork yet... I just wish they told me that before I made my way to the shop. I told them I'd get another run in and then meet them for a drink, so Run #10 was back up the Bonnie with a redemption on Upper Milk Run (I did a better job). This time, I followed Lower Milk (per usual, fine but less fun than Micky) and back to Kangaroo Trail. I met the patrollers who were fully in street clothes now, we each got a drink at Bullwheel, and sat out by the fire pretending it was warmer than it was while enjoying our beverages.

Runs 11-13

Run 11: Taxi Quad - Queen's Highway

[0.75 mi; 3:16; 545 ft; 23.8 mph max; 13.8 mph avg]

Run 12: Green Mountain Flyer - Ullr's Dream - Beaver Pond Glade - Kokomo - Ullr's Dream

[1.78 mi; 11:01; 1,686 ft; 29.1 mph max; 9.7 mph avg]

Run 13: Green Mountain Flyer - Northway - Angel's Wiggle - Taxi - Boulevard

[1.69 mi; 6:24; 1,503 ft; 36.3 mph max; 15.8 mph avg]

Emma and Sarah wrapped up and were ready to go home a bit before 4:00pm. Thankfully, we planned for this: Emma and I drove up in Emma's car, and Sarah drove seperately in case I wanted to stay but Emma wanted to leave - it worked! I said my goodbyes to them, talked to another patroller, Bonne, for a bit, and then tried to meet up with some friends I met in the fall who are friends with Matthew and Josh - Sergio and Gus. I found them at the top of the Taxi. Thankfully, they have LOUD ski suits so I was able to find them pretty easily. They were helping their friend learn to ski (at 4:00pm in April is NOT easy conditions at all). I said hi, did a quick catch-up, but then said my goodbyes because I wanted a few more big mountain runs in, but then Sergio decided to join, yay!

Run #12 was up the Flyer with Sergio - he said he skied Beaver Pond earlier and it wasn't horrible, so I was down! We shared a lift drink and had a nice time cruising down Ullr's. We both started a few years ago and seem to be roughly at the same level of skiing, which was fun! Usually my friends are MUCH better than me or still learning. We both made our way through Beaver Pond a few turns at a time, doding the occasional river and blowdown. It wasn't what dreams were made of, but it was sure nice to get in there! Kokomo was still going strong, so we cruised through Kokomo back to the Flyer.

It was just about 5:00pm (JayLight savings time!), so we knew it was time to call it. Sergio proposed the Metro, I proposed the Flyer, he bit! We did an easy run down Northway to Taxi, which truly skied the same it had all day. We said our goodbyes, he went down Queen's Highway and I BLASTED down the Boulevard, but did not get a new PR :(. 

I packed up pretty quickly and had a nice drive home to Emma's where we watched the second half of Hot Dog... The Movie! and the first half of "Zapped" - it autoplayed and was WEIRD before heading to bed. Tomorrow I planned to hike and ski Cannon's closing day!

Map of Jay Peak (2025-2026, Updated)

South Uncanoonuc & Uncanoonuc Lake (Goffstown Conservation Land)

South Uncanoonuc & Uncanoonuc Lake (Goffstown Conservation Land)

Hike Type: Loop w/ Spurs

Distance: 3.00 miles

Elevation: 755 feet

Time: 1 hour, 16 minutes (1 hour, 11 minutes moving)
Hiking Challenges: 52 Hike Challenge 2026; Operation Alaska Benchmark Challenge

The Hike 

Another weekend of driving up to Vermont! My detour today was exploring South Uncanoonuc - a little hill in Goffstown just off the highway. I had a sleepy drive after a pretty rotten Friday afternoon with anxiety and truly insane children, but it was a SCORCHING 75 degrees out and visually beautiful. I made it to the trailhead, tried to take care of a code-yellow but got interruped by another hiker (tragic), finished once the hiker left, and then got to work!

The trailhead at the end of Mountain Base Road had room for 10-12ish cars and was right near Uncanoonuc Lake, which was picturesque on this Friday afternoon! I started the hike on the Incline Trail, assuming that it would be unpleasant to descend later. The Incline Trail entered the woods, crossed a little bridge, and then began to follow power lines basically the whole was up the mountain. I passed a spooky cabin on the right and a woodpecker on the left. I soon learned why it was called the Incline Trail! It felt like an old, steep road all the way up, with only a few rocks and roots to give the calves a break. I described it in my notes as "relentless."

Eventually, the seasonal tree views began to appear and I stopped to stretch out my burning calves, checked my watch, and saw I had only hiked 0.25 miles! Brutal! There were some metal artifacts on both sides of the trail at different times and later the Incline Trail passed an unsigned junction with the Walker Trail. Near the top, I passed some private residences on the left, which was surprising to see. A partially busted sign indicated the Incline Trail and the Summit Trail on either side, and the Summit area just ahead. 

EDIT: after some digging on Facebook, I learned that the Incline Trail followst the path of an old Incline Railway! An article in the "Simplon Funiculars, Cablecars and Inclined Railways" Facebook group read:

"The Uncanoonuc Incline Railway and Development Company initially built a 4km single-track, electric standard gauge tram line from Shirley Junction, at the intersection of South Mast Street and Wallace Road in Goffstown, from where there was a connecting tram route to Manchester (New Hampshire). The new line ran along the present Worthley Hill Road at the foot of the mountain. The line was used from on September 15th, 1905 and was officially opened shortly afterwards. To promote tourism, the company then built a hotel on top of the Uncanoonuc mountain, accessed by a 725m long inclined railway which was cable-hauled in similar fashion to the Llandudno Great Orme Tramway. It was built with overhead electric supply, also like the Great Orme, which I presume was used for signalling as at Llandudno. The travel time for the lower tramway with an average gradient of 4.5 percent was uphill for 15 minutes and downhill six minutes. The inclined elevator/lift tramway took five minutes for a ride and had a maximum slope of 35 percent. In February 1923, the hotel burned down on the mountain top, and a bridge subsequently suffered the same fate in 1930. They were not replaced. The adhesion tram route to the lower station of the inclined railway ran until January 8th, 1938 and the inclined cable trams lasted until 1941, when a forest fire destroyed much of the railway plant.. The only Wikipedia article on the railway seems to be in German, and Google/Bing translators produced the usual gibberish when dealing with technical details. Why there apparently is not a US article is a mystery."

I worked my way up to the summit area, which was encircled by Perimeter Road and a wild amount of different communication towers. A blogpost titled "Towerspotting: Mt. Uncanoonuc from https://blogs.n1zyy.com/ lists the different towers as: (1) WGIR-FM's old tower, now used for backup, (2) A tall Crown-Castle tower (red/white), home to WGIR-FM's primary antenna system, (3) a self-supporter that [he] think[s] is owned by SBA; home to cellular, microwave, and some land-mobile stuff, (4) WMUR-TV's antenna and tower (red/white), (5) a short, abandoned(?) tower, (6) WMUR-TC's old antenna/tower from the analog-to-DTV cutover, (7) WZID-FM's tower, (8) a commercial land-mobile tower, (9) another commercial land-mobile tower, but much taller, (10) WNEU-TV tower, the most powerful on the summit, (11) a wide self-supporter that is likely owned by Goffstown, (12) a very short tower, and (13) an industrial communications tower.

There were towers on both sides of Perimeter Road with a few spurs inward to the true summit area. I took one from the south heading north towards a concrete rectulangular prism and found a Army Corps of Engineers Survey Disc! Yay! I wandered around a bit more, eventually returning to the junction with the Incline/Summit Trails.

I continued onto the Summit Trail, that had only a few old red/plum-colored blazes. A trail runner passed me and I soon came to a nice overlook that was inhabited by four teenage boys that were a little rowdy, so I didn't stick around. I continued into the woods, noticing a few more super old blazes and some more recently painted ones, and then crossed Summit Road before continuing my descent in some nice woods. I noticed a granite obelisk just off the trail, but we seemed to be firmly in Goffstown, so maybe a former property line?

I passed a trail junction for a trail that looked hardly used with orange blazes as I easily descended along the Summit Trail. Later on, I continued past the junction for the Walker Trail and crossed paths with a guy hiking his bike up! I could just make out North Uncanoonuc through the trees, but I wanted to get to Vermont at a reasonable hour tonight, so I continued on. I passed the junction with the Link Trail and noticed a few red-triangle blazes now appeared? This area/trail network is neat, but I wish they'd work on sprucing it up a bit! Mostly to unify blazing and trail junctions.

Afterwards, I hiked past a logged area on the left and could start to hear some spring Peepers down below! I made a plan to hike around Uncanoonuc Lake, knowing that a lot of it would be road walking. I was really just hoping to hit three miles!

I turned left onto the Bickford Trail to make my dream a reality, and then I turned right to steeply descend the orange-blazed Scout Trail. The Scout Trail appeared to cross a dam/dike at the western end of Uncanoonuc Lake, which offered nice views of the lake on the right and wetlands on the left, and then turned left back into the woods to avoid some private property. 

The Scout Trail continued left in the woods, but an unmarked spur led straight/right to the road, which felt weird taking since it was basically someone's back yard, but it was on the map, so I took it! I then had a nice walk along McFarland Road, which was a dirt/gravel road that passed a bunch of small, classic New Hampshire lake homes (as least classic per my experience on Governor's Lake in Raymond, NH). 

McFarland Road ended and I turned right onto Mountain Base Road, which brought me back to my car. There were some nice views of South Uncanoonuc through people's yards, but I was not going to be photographing them. There were a few boats out on the lake fishing, and soon I was back at my car and driving up to Vermont!

Step-by-Step

- Park at Incline Trail trailhead.

- Start hike on Incline Trail.

- At road, turn right and hike Perimeter Road counterclockwise, taking occasional spurs to the summit.

- At same jct., turn right to begin descent on Summit Trail (red/plum).

- At jct., turn left onto Bickford Trail (blue).

- At jct., turn right onto Scout Trail (orange).

- At McFarland Road, turn left onto McFarland Road.

- At terminus, turn right onto Mountain Base Road.

- Return to car.

Goffstown Conservation Land Map

Photo Album

Ponkapoag Loop w/ Golf Course, Unnammed, & Fire Trails (Blue Hills Reservation)

Chickatawbut Skyline, Bouncing Brook, Laurel, & Braintree Pass Paths (Blue Hills Reservation)

Hike Type: Loop

Distance: 4.92 miles

Elevation: 302 feet

Time: 1 hour, 32 minutes
Hiking Challenges: Trail Trace the Blue Hills; 52 Hike Challenge 2026

The Hike 

Another medium-slow drive after work to the Blue Hills! I'm realizing that past-me left all the trails I don't really care for (i.e., always flooded) for future me, and unfortunately future me is the current me! I wanted to get Fowl Meadow out of the way before it really grows in and the ticks pop off, but thanks to a post in the 125-Mile Club on Facebook I was able to check the gauge for the Neponset River and it confirmed that a lot of it would be flooded, so I guess it'll become a later problem... Anyway, I decided I'd get the few hanging chads I had around the Ponkapoag Loop instead!

I parked at Exit 3 and hiked past the new kiosk at the Ponkapoag Trail, soon turning onto the Hogdon Foot Path, which looked like it's been lightly traveled in recent months. I was hyper-aware of any taller vegetation after Monday's tick, but thankfully I would remain unscathed. The sun felt amazing once on Redman Farm Path (still curious if that's a racist name or not) as I walked along the very full Ponkapoag Pond Bog. There was a horse ahead of me and some VERY fresh poop, but thankfully we never formally crossed paths as it turned around at the bus turn around. I did check the entrance to the Boardwak, which had multiple closed signs and was clearly flooded by the second board. I wonder 1) when they'll fix the boardwalk and 2) what the new one will look like!

I almost crossed paths with another horse, but I was booking it to stay ahead. I hiked along the golf course which was looking spectacularly green and enjoyed the beautiful view from the dam. I passed a couple and their rambunctious off-leash dogs (apparently a dog recently attacked someone in the Blue Hills and they stabbed it??) and then I took the spur paths to and from the golf course for a mini-loop. Unfortunately, I had to pass the couple and their dogs again, but they had put the leashes back on the dogs, assumedly because there were more horses nearby.

I had a long walk along the south side of Ponkapoag Pond (this stretch always feels so much longer than the rest) and spent a good amount of the time simply dodging horse poop. I needed the walkway to the Fisherman's Beach parking lot, but I skipped the beach becuase there were people there. I hiked the Pipe Line toward the private property, which was surprisingly dry minus a ~15 foot flat spot that was just squishy with plenty of deer tracks. I hiked the little loop foot path that connects to it, which looked very little traveled, and then continued onto the Swamp/Acton Path towards the AMC Camps (the current and older maps don't agree on what this stretch of trail is called). I wanted to finish out the Pipe Line on this side, but it was clearly floodeed.

I needed the driveway spurs around the AMC Camps, and then I hiked an unnamed path behind the camp kiosk toward Ponkapoag Path, which was a mecca for deer poop - at least 9 piles in a short segment of trail!

I worked my way onto the Fire Trail and then over to the Prescott Foot Path, which had a good amount of old burnt-orange blazes, which I just love to see. I zoned out for a while on this stretch, but eventually made it back onto the Ponkapoag Trail and back to the car! Now, time to get home, inhale dinner, and go to SLEEP.

Step-by-Step

- Park at Exit 3/Ponkapoag Trail.

- Start hike on Ponkapoag Trail (green).

- At 5302, turn right onto Hogdon Foot Path.

- At 5218, turn right onto Redman Farm Path (green).

- At 5175, turn left onto Acton Path (green).

- At 5216, turn right onto trail towards golf course.

- At terminus, turn left and walk along forest edge on golf course.

- Cross golf course, and reenter woods on trail.

- At terminus, turn right onto Acton Path (green).

- At jct., turn sharply right onto Pipe Line.

- At private property, turn around.

- At jct. with Acton Path, turn right onto trail.

- At 5355, continue straight onto Swamp Path (old map)/Acton Path (current map) (green).

- After 5360, hike two driveways on left.

- After 5361, turn right onto unnamed path.

- At terminus, turn left onto Ponkapoag Path.

- At 5362, turn left onto Hemlock Road.

- At 5384, turn left onto Fire Trail.

- At 5365, turn right onto Swamp Path (old map)/Acton Path (current map) (green).

- At 5370, turn left to continue onto Prescott Foot Path (old map)/Acton Path (current map) (green).

- At 5343, turn slightly right onto Prescott Foot Path.

- At 5322, turn right onto Ponkapoag Trail.

- Return to car.

Blue Hills Reservation Map

Photo Album

Chickatawbut Skyline, Bouncing Brook, Laurel, & Braintree Pass Paths (Blue Hills Reservation)

Chickatawbut Skyline, Bouncing Brook, Laurel, & Braintree Pass Paths (Blue Hills Reservation)

Hike Type: Lollipop Figure-8 Loop

Distance: 5.56 miles

Elevation: 774 feet

Time: 2 hours, 2 minutes
Hiking Challenges: Trail Trace the Blue Hills; 52 Hike Challenge 2026

The Hike 

After a wildly sleepy, but otherwise painless drive, I was at the Chickatawbut Overlook and ready to cross of two hanging chads I needed in this area! It was a nice early spring day with temperatures in the low 50s and partly sunny skies with rolling clouds. Shorts and a long sleeve were perfect layers, and I happily was off!

I climbed up to the tower and wiggled my way up the back side of Chickatawbut. It was windy and chilly over here, but once I started gaining elevation I soon warmed up. It was also delightfully dry! I was ready for spring mud, but it seems the worst of it has since dried.

Once up on the Skyline Trail, the sun was shining brightly and the breeze had calmed down, making for some just wonderful hiking. I always forget how pretty this area is, too. Really all of the Chickatawbut sections minus the part directly connecting to MA-28 is wonderful over here. I went down Chickatawbut, up Fenno, down Fenno, up Kitchamakin, down Kitchamakin, up Nahanton, and then down Nahanton, past a wonderful view, into Squamaug Notch. I'm always curious about the foundation remnants on Nahanton Hill.

I climbed up the first Broken Hill. I always enjoy the forest here - it's open, piney, and formerly burnt so minimal understory - just super pretty. I walked over some avoidable mud, briefly descended to a little baby pond and climbed up the knob that is Broken Hill 1.5 (that's what I call it, at least). I followed the old fence posts up Broken Hill #2 and followed them all the way to #4. There were a wild amount of snapped, young trees on Broken Hill #2, I'm guessing they were weak from fire and the winter took them out. There was a nice tree view to the reservoir before the easy almost-scramble up #3 and I got a nice, unique view and springtime bush on #4. 

I made my way down towards Chickatawbut Road and turned onto the unmapped Pocapawmet Path, which brought me to Wampatuck Path. I ran into my firts person of my hike at the terminus of Wampatuck Path, who was a younger hiker on her phone with her two dogs off-leash, covered in mud, and coming right up to me. I can't stand lazy dog owners.

I was dealing with some recurring weird hip pain that started in my left hip and had migrated over to my right, but with mindfun walking it was fine. The swamp and Bouncing Brook were not nearly as full as I thought they would be, another sign of the spring melt drying out!

Once on Laurel Path, I giggled to myself as I hiked deeper and deeper into the reservation, to an area that is arguably one of the more remote spots of the reservation, which doubles as one of the spots closest to I-93. I made my way onto the Braintree Pass Path, maneuvered around an impressive blowdown, and admired the mental image of this area before they blew up the path for the interstate. Before the turn in the trail, there was a stone wall. I wonder if the stone wall continues on the other side of I-93?

I turned to continue onto the Braintree Pass Path, which was now an old road, and found truly the worst possible thing imaginable on me... a TICK. I scraped it off with the force of a butcher's knife and felt every small leg hair movement for the rest of my hike. HORRIBLE. This was the first tick I found since my hike on Smarts Mountain years ago. AWFUL. There were some geese being cute in Wild Duck Pool, though, so that was nice... I guess.

I continued from Braintree Pass Path to Skyline Trail, and was really kicking myself for saving the steep climb up Chickatawbut Hill for last! Either way, I suffered my way up, passed an adorable red squirrel holding a nut in its mouth, and followed Stowe and Tower Paths back to the car. A beautiful afternoon, even if a tick tried to have me murdered!

Step-by-Step

- Park at Chickatawbut Overlook.

- Start hike on Tower Path (yellow).

- At tower, turn right to conitnue on Tower Path (yellow).

- At 3075, turn left onto Sassaman Notch Path (yellow).

- At jct., turn right onto Thayer Path.

- At jct., turn left along fence to continue on Thayer Path.

- At terminus, turn left onto Skyline Trail.

- At Chickatawbut Road, turn right onto Pocapawmet Path (not on map).

- At terminus, turn right onto Wampatuck Path.

- At 3152, turn riht onto Bouncing Brook Path.

- At 3130, turn left onto Laurel Path.

- At jct., turn right onto Braintree Pass Path.

- At 3042, turn right onto Skyline Trail.

- From Chickatawbut summit area, go straight when the Skyline Turns off and then turn right onto Stowe Path.

- At jct., turn left to stay on Stowe Path.

- At terminus, turn left onto Sassaman Notch Path (yellow).

- At 3075, turn right onto Tower Path (yellow).

- At tower, turn left and return to car (yellow).

Blue Hills Reservation Map

Photo Album

Skiing Jay Peak (Day 40)

Skiing Jay Peak

Saturday, 4th, 2026

Runs: 22

Distance: 24.29 miles

Elevation: 23,084 feet

Max Speed: 30.5 mph

Avg. Speed: 13.2 mph

Moving Time: 2 hours, 2 minutes, 18 seconds

Total Time: 7 hours, 19 minutes, 32 seconds

After a soaking wet silly morning at Ragged and an absolutely goofy night at Passover, it was time to wake up super early and drive up to Jay Peak for our annual Eclipse Anniversary and Easter Weekend! I couldn't get an answer from the Patrollers when they were coming up besides "after first chair," so I set my 4am alarm and slowly worked my way north. The drive wasn't too bad - a little sleep before Hooksett, but super pretty otherwise with a few bouts of precipitation (liquid in NH, and wet snow in VT). I got to Stateside around 8:15am, got my pass from Sarah's locker, and took my sweet time booting up. It was just around freezing out, so I wasn't quite sure what to expect in terms of conditions. I also had no idea when I would see my friends. Sometime after 8:30am, the precipitation stopped and I headed out to get some runs in before they landed!

Snow Report

SATURDAY APRIL 4 AT 7:27 AM

Spring Break, Briefly

Lower mtn lifts: 8-4. Upper mtn lifts: 8:30-4. Lift Operations will shift to spring hours on April 6th - Lower 9:00 AM - Upper 9:30 AM - All Lifts close at 5:00 PM.

9/9 lifts will spin on time, with a slight delay possible on the Tram due to overnight icing.

Temps dipped overnight just enough to firm things up after the recent wet cycle, so expect a mix out there this morning with variable conditions underfoot. Patrol isi out there assessing terrian and some trail closures are likely where coverage is thin.

A quiet start with a few pockets of sun should help things come around, and with highs pushing into the low 50s today is shaping up for some good corn snow skiing.

Snow will soften through the late morning into the afternoon, especially on the lower mountain and sun exposed terrain, with that sweet spot landing somewhere in the middle of the day.

The pattern shifts again later today as winds turn back into the south overnight, bringing in thicker clouds and some light rain by Easter Sunday morning. Expect fog, scattered showers, temps holding in the 40s, and gusty south winds pushing past 45 mph, which could impact lift operations.

Looking ahead, things start to turn back the other way. A cold front arrives Sunday afternoon as things begin to dry out, with clouds thinning a bit, winds shifting to the west, and a few snowflakes possible by sunset. That leads into some upslope snowfall Sunday night with an inch or three possible by Monday morning.

Monday brings a return to more wintry conditions, with flurries, temps near freezing, and a bit of a reset after the recent warmth. Another colder front moves through Tuesday, with the potential for a period of moderate to heavy snow.

As always, conditions, weather, and operations can change quickly up here. Nothing's ever set in stone, so check back here or the Jay Peak App a look before you head out and while you're chasing laps.

Runs 1-2

Run 1: Taxi Quad - Queen's Highway - Grammy Jay

[0.92 mi; 3:25; 577 ft; 29.5 mph max; 16.1 mph avg]

Run 2: Village Chair - Queen's Highway

[0.52 mi; 1:51; 312 ft; 26.7 mph max; 16.7 mph avg]

I was one of few people out this morning, which was such a treat. There was a LOT of snowmelt in the past two weeks, which was a bit of a bummer, but the running water did make for nice ambiance! Queen's Highway was already crudded up, but it was skiing fast, so I took this opportunity to fly down the Grammy Jay - I only got my second fastest time on it. Tragic! Run #2 was up the Village Chair and down Queen's Highway toward Tramside base.

Runs 3-7

Run 3: Flyer Express Quad - Northway - Goat Run - Lower River Quai - Subway

[1.49 mi; 4:47; 1,650 ft; 28.9 mph max; 18.7 mph avg]

Run 4: Flyer Express Quad - Ullr's Dream

[1.81 mi; 5:48; 1,627 ft; 27.1 mph max; 18.7 mph avg]

Run 5: Flyer Express Quad - Northway - Goat Run - Queen's Highway - Grammy Jay 

[1.88 mi; 6:11; 1,742 ft; 30.5 mph max; 18.2 mph avg]

Run 6: Village Chair - Queen's Highway

[0.50 mi; 3:56; 315 ft; 26.8 mph max; 7.6 mph avg]

Run 7: Flyer Express Quad - Northway - Angel's Wiggle - Hell's Crossing - Paradise Meadows

[1.55 mi; 5:43; 1,506 ft; 27.6 mph max; 16.3 mph avg]

The line for the Tram was too long for me, which made sense since it was about 9:00am at this point. Thankfully, no line for the Flyer! My next two runs had nobody else on the chair with me, which was a TREAT! I did forget how much the towers make my teeth chatter when it's just me on the chair, though. Run #3 was down Northway to Goat Run, which was a little cruddy/cookie-y, but skied pretty well! Lower River Quai was hard and fast, and Subway was just a treat! Run #4 was down Ullr's Dream, which pushed "hard and fast" and borderlined "I'm just turning for the bit" - it was ICY. And Kokomo was closed :(. It seemed that most trail that weren't main groomers were closed this morning.

#5 was back up the flyer with two snowboarders sharing a Modelo, and one of them was already piss drunk at 10:00am. Slurring words, talking about peeing, sounded absolutely insane! Thankfully we did not go the same direction - if I were to guess he didn't make it past 11am. I took Goat Run all the way down, which again, was skiing well! Only bummer was the choke point before the s-turns was tough with folks not ready for it and everyone was congregating at upper upper expo and green mountain boys, so it was tricky to get by. From Shenangians, which was just ice, I went back down Grammy Jay, but not as fast as last time. I got the "on the way" text from the Patrollers, who also had Stevens! Team Snowboard was also on their way.

Run #6 was back up the Village and down Queen's Highway, and then Run #7 was up the Flyer and down Northway (medium) to Angel's Wiggle (medium) to Hell's Crossing (bad) to Paradise Meadows (bad to medium). Lots of ice practice today!

Runs 8-9

Run 8: Bonaventure Quad - Goat Run - Lower River Quai - Interstate

[1.23 mi; 4:26; 1,434 ft; 27.5 mph max; 16.6 mph avg]

Run 9: Flyer Express Quad - Northway - Goat Run - Boulevard

[1.53 mi; 7:30; 1,555 ft; 29.1mph max; 12.2 mph avg]

I still had some time alone before everyone landed, so I did a quick lap in the bathroom and hopped onto the Bonnie for a repeat of Goat Run to Lower River Quai. I need the Jughandle half of Interstate, but it was ungroomed and mostly dirt, so I think that officially is a next season task. Interstate skied great, though! The snow was starting to soften up.

I got the text that everyone was landing as I was on the Flyer for Run #9, so I took Northway to Goat all the way to Boulevard (which aboslutely ripped). After, I grabbed a drink and a breakfast sandwich from my car, met the Snowboarders in the parking lot, found the Patrollers and Stevens (they had chores to do), and got back to work!

Runs 10-14

Run 10: Bonaventure Quad - Northway - Angel's Wiggle - Hell's Crossing - Paradise Meadows

[1.33 mi; 4:33; 1,407 ft; 27.8 mph max; 17.6 mph avg]

Run 11: Jet Triple - Montrealer - Catwalk - Northway - Angel's Wiggle - Paradise Meadows

[1.18 mi; 9:09; 1,237 ft; 30.1 mph max; 7.8 mph max]

Team Snowboard and I headed over to the Bonaventure Quad - they were surprised I was up here so early after waking up in Boston... I agreed. If I knew nobody would be getting to the mountain until 11ish, I probably would have slept in some more! Either way, it was nice to be out (as always). We decided we'd take the Wiggle down and make our way over to the Jet to see how things were skiing over there. I'd say Hell's Crossing was 5% better, but still pretty hard and slick.

What fun! When we got to the Jet, so were Sarah, Emma, and Stevens! I was surprised to see them taking him up here on a day so hard and fast, but here we go! We rode on up, had a nice drink on the Jet, got our pole picture in a cloud, and skied on down. Montrealer was in MUCH better shape - actually, everything was. Angel's Wiggle was significantly better than Hell's, and Paradise Meadows was finally softening up. Spring had sprung! We shedded a layer after this one, too. I also put a silly surprise in my pocket!

Runs 12-14

Run 12: Taxi Quad - Queen's Highway - Raccoon Run

[0.69 mi; 2:25; 577 ft; 28.1 mph max; 17.1 mph avg]

Run 13: Village Chair - Grammy Jay

[0.55 mi; 2:42; 344 ft; 20.6 mph max; 12.2 mph avg]

Run 14: Village Chair - Queen's Highway

[0.53 mi; 2:33; 325 ft; 25.7 mph max; 12.4 mph avg]

Sarah, Emma, and Stevens didn't take the break with us so they were gonna get a run in on the Taxi, except they got on the Bonnie instead and didn't tell us so we were waiting for a while. Eventually, we got on the phone with Sarah and agreed to meet at shenanigans, which thankfully softened up delightfully! We took Queen's Highway to Raccoon Run and then the Village Chair to Grammy Jay (on the chair, we got the notification that the sunrise Tram service was cancelled due to weather). The surprise in my pocket was leftover boxed wine, so naturally I had Steven's slap the bag on the chair (and at the top of the Grammy Jay headwall!). Run #14 was up the double and down Queen's Highway back to Tramside for a potty break.

Runs 15-17

Run 15: Tramside Carpet

Run 16: Metro Quad - Deer Run - Ullr's Dream

[0.76 mi; 3:39; 505 ft; 23.9 mph max; 12.5 mph avg]

Run 17: Flyer Express Quad - Ullr's Dream - Kokomo

[1.76 mi; 8:22; 1,667 ft; 29.8 mph max; 12.6 mph avg]

We momentarily lost the patrollers (apparently they went into a different bathroom than we did), and in that time apart Emma caught an edge and SLAMMED into the ground at the base of the magic carpet - that carpet has a way of keeping us humble! We rode the carpet for the bit and then went over to the Metro for more slap the bag and a delightful time skiing down Deer Run, which was in just wonderful shape. Stevens' asked "where does that go?" and pointed at the Flyer. We all agreed he's ready to Ullr's, so we brought him on up! The clouds had mostly parted at this point, revealing some beautiful views from the top (plus minimal wind made the ride up NOT miserable!). The whole run was really in wonderful shape now that the snow had softened, and he crushed it! Made it down the headwall with only one moment of terror, and the rest was smooth sailing afterwards! Emma and Sarah started yelling at a fellow patroller about Kokomo being closed, and to our joy, it was now open, too! 

Emma and Sarah were going to head inside to get a drink and then some ramen, but the rest of us were excited to keep on skiing, so we did!

Runs 18-20

Run 18: Flyer Express Quad - Ullr's Dream - Kokomo

[1.80 mi; 8:50; 1,673 ft; 25.6 mph max; 5.2 mph avg]

Run 19: Flyer Express Quad - Northway - Goat Run - Lower River Quai - Perry Merril Ave - Shakedown Park

[1.38 mi; 8:03; 1,450 ft; 26.0 mph max; 10.3 mph avg]

Run 20: Taxi Quad - Rabbit Park

[0.42 mi; 3:39; 341 ft; 20.0 mph max; 6.9 mph avg]

Stevens, Snowboard Emma, and Elizabeth and I got back on the Flyer for another lap of Ullr's and Kokomo, which went really well - Stevens killed it on the headwall both times! We stopped into the Tower Bar to say to Emma and Sarah and accidentally did a shot of Jagermeister before heading back out... oops! Emma and I both lamented at how easily Jager goes down now, I shouted "THIS IS 30," which gave the older guy at the bar a solid chuckle. 

We got back on the Flyer without the aptrollers and did a run down Goat Run (upgraded to a black, Stevens' first black run!) to Lower Quai - Stevens yet again did great, even though I took a fall simply turning... We took Perry Merril down and Stevens wrapped on Chalet Meadows while Elizabeth, Snowboard Emma, and I hit the three boxes in the Shakedown Park (I CRUSHED it).

Team Snowboard wanted more park time and I was feeling a little silly, so we all got back on the Taxi. Stevens went down Boulevard while the three of us hit the Rabbit Park. There were two box features that I had my eyes on. First was a dancefloor into a standard box and the second was a swoopy one to w a wavy one. I fell off of both of them. I hit the first of each fine, but then got a little crooked going onto the second. Oh well! Both falls were super soft and easy, so no harm no foul (minus a sore wrist, which I already had).

Runs 21-22

Run 21: Bonaventure Quad - Northway - Sweetheart

[1.28 mi; 6:37; 1,677 ft; 25.4 mph max; 11.6 mph avg]

Run 22: Jet Triple - Montrealer - Northway - Hell's Crossing - Paradise Meadows

[1.19 mi; 6:24; 1,158 ft; 27.1 mph max; 11.2 mph avg]

Team Snowboard was going to continue in the park, but Stevens and I were gearing up for one or two more upper mountain runs. We got back on the Bonnie and had a smooth ride up - it was now truly a beautiful day! Partially blue skies, no wind, and soft snow! Northway was in great shape sans a few surprise giant bumps (fine for me, stressful for Stevens). We then skied down to Hell's Crossing from Northway and he said he was feeling good about going for the new cut - his first official black run! We went into Sweetheart afterwards, which was only partially open. We made it to the Jet right at 3:58pm, just in time for a two more skip the last!

At the top of the Jet, we took a classic pole picture with the Vermonter in full view, and then had truly a lovely run down Montrealer (he redeemed himself at the little chute) to Hell's Crossing and finally Paradise Meadows - it was such a lovely spring lap!

Afterwards we grabbed our stuff and migrated to my car for drinks and hot dogs - it was FINALLY parking lot weather! We also celebrated our annual solar eclipse anniversary, which got many giggles from passerbys. Elizabeth and Snowboard Emma eventually left and we all checked into the Stateside Hotel for a quick siesta and then dinner at Howie's with our favorite bartender, MJ. We got some fun gossip about resort happenings, and then had a super chill night watching The Office and the crazy weather rolled in.

It was a bummer to not ski on Sunday, but it was a treat to get home earlier and get brunch at the Jay Village Inn. I wanted to go for a hike on the way home, but it rained the WHOLE WAY HOME. Oh well, another day! Also, cheers to 40 days skiing this season!

Map of Jay Peak (2025-2026, Updated)

Skiing Ragged Mountain (Day 39/Indy Day 31)

Skiing Ragged Mountain

Friday, Apriil 3rd, 2026

Runs: 14

Distance: 13.22 miles

Elevation: 14,026 feet

Max Speed: 37.5 mph

Avg. Speed: 18.3 mph

Moving Time: 49 minutes, 47 seconds

Total Time: 2 hours, 41 minutes, 58 seconds

It's officially April, which means that the skiing is going to get silly, it's likely going to rain every weekend, and the looming cloud signaling the end of season is not too far away. To celebrate, Sarah and I decided to ski in pouring rain at Ragged since we had Good Friday off of work! I scooped her up just after 6am, we got breakfast at Hooksett, and made it to the parking lot around 8:30am and started cackling when we saw we were one of like, five cars there. I guess nobody else wanted to ski on a rainy Friday morning in April? Crazy! We got dressed in the comically empty lodge and threw on matching purple ponchos I snagged off of Amazon. We looked absolutely goofy and were already having a blast. We got to skiing just after 9:00am!

Mountain Report

Currently at Ragged Mountain

The 2026+27 Stash Pass is on sale now. Grab yours today!

The groomers are in prime spring form right now. Smooth corduroy in the morning giving way to soft, buttery corn snow as the day rolls on. This is the season's final stretch and conditions are going out on a high note. Come enjoy it.

For the Ski Touring Enthusiasts. The Uphill Route remains OPEN to mid-mountain. Please check in with our Guest Services team before heading up for the latest route information.

Runs 1-5

Run 1: Summit Six Express - Upper Exhibition - Birches

[0.74 mi; 2:49; 1,138 ft; 31.7 mph max; 15.9 mph avg]

Run 2: Summit Six Express - Exhibition

[0.84 mi; 2:52; 1,093 ft; 31.0 mph max; 17.4 mph avg]

Run 3: Summit Six Express - Upper Ridge - Newfound Ridge - Lower Crewcut - Town Meeting

[0.96 mi; 3:23; 1,063 ft; 32.0 mph max; 17.0 mph avg]

Run 4: Summit Six Express - Upper Ridge - Newfound Ridge - Main Street

[0.93 mi; 3:01; 1,125 ft; 30.5 mph max; 18.6 mph avg]

Run 5: Summit Six Express - Upper Ridge - Headwall - Upper Chute - Lower Chute - Main Street

[1.00 mi; 3:59; 1,109 ft; 26.7 mph max; 15.0 mph avg]

Our plan was just to work out way across the mountain. It still had all of the groomers/snowmaking trails open, which was a welcome surprise! They announced that this was their closing weekend, but they still had PLENTY of snow left. We were wondering/thinking that Exhibition was probably hard and fast by the looks of it, but there was one (1) person ahead of us on the chair and we saw him go down and it looked nice and soft! Also on this chair ride, we got torrentially downpoured on... fun! Lots of giggles were had before the first run.

Once we got off the chair we turned right onto Exhibition, and it was a delight! Easy turns on fast snow. We decided to start with Birches and work our way over - Birches is a fun one! Labeled as a black, probably because of a short double fall line and it's a little narrower than the blues (but by no means a truly difficult trail). It was in fantastic shape, and sopping wet, we got right back on the Summit Six Express!

Run #2 was a joyful run down Exhibition all the way. Run #3 was down Upper Ridge to Newfound Ridge to Lower Crewcut, which was... open! It was one of two ungroomed trails open (the other being Headwall) and it was dicey, but skiiable, I guess? We crossed it off the list and continued onto Town Meeting, which was super fun to making wide, sweeping turns on.

Run #4 was Upper Ridge to Newfound Ridge, which had a little crevasse (as we kept calling it) about 5" wide and a few feet deep, gotta watch out! We took this down to Main Street and again, it was just a treat.

We shared candy cigarettes I bought at Hooksett on our fifth ride up the Summit Six Express. The rain was on and off all morning so far, my pants were soaked, but the poncos were working their magic! Run #5 brought us down Upper Ridge to Headwall - I joked about straightlining it to get a new PR, but then I discovered it was ungroomed and was mostly dirt and rock, so I pumped the breaks and screamed down while making a few turns (classic). We followed Upper Chute to Lower Chute, which was a nice banked turn run, but not so nice that we couldn't see anything because of the fog that had rolled in. Oh well!

Runs 6-9

Run 6: Summit Six Express - Blueberry Patch - Raggedy Andy - Main Street

[1.11 mi; 3:21; 1,132 ft; 29.9 mph max; 19.8 mph avg]

Run 7: Summit Six Express - Blueberry Patch - Lower Ridge - Pines

[1.14 mi; 3:42; 1,099 ft; 32.3 mph max; 18.5 mph avg]

Run 8: Summit Six Express - Upper Ridge - Lower Ridge

[1.13 mi; 4:16; 1,093 ft; 27.5 mph max; 18.0 mph avg]

Run 9: Summit Six Express - Upper Ridge - Newfound Ridge - Main Street

[0.85 mi; 2:50; 1,053 ft; 28.4 mph max; 18.0 mph avg]

Continuing onto the further looker's left side of the mountain, we followed Blueberry Patch for Run #6, which was an instant favorite, with super fun rollers! From there, we followed Raggedy Andy to Main Street. The fog was pretending to lift, which was fun! We had the most fun peeling the frozen rain off of the chair backs and throwing it at each other, though. 

Run #7 was Blueberry Patch to Lower Ridge to Pines. Lower Ridge was fun with a few dirt islands to dodge. Run #8 was Upper Ridge to Lower Ridge, which was another favorite one. We were lucky - the sopping wet snow wasn't sticky at all, and actually pretty fast, so minimal skating was required! We took a quick break to use the bathroom after Run #8 (we also wrung out our sopping wet mittens) and got back our for a victory lap down Upper and Newfound Ridges (I wanted a photo of the crevasse) to Main Street. 

Runs 10-12

Run 10: Spear Mountain Express - Showboat - Showoff

[0.75 mi; 2:07; 973 ft; 31.4 mph max; 21.4 mph avg]

Run 11: Spear Mountain Express - Flying Yankee

[0.92 mi; 2:38; 984 ft; 32.6 mph max; 20.9 mph avg]

Run 12: Spear Mountain Express - Cardigan - Turnpike - Homerun - Barnyard

[1.21 mi; 4:23; 1,047 ft; 29.6 mph max; 16.6 mph avg]

We continued onto the Spear Mountain Express. We were definitely starting to feel colder now that we had a little break and were still sopping wet (not our upper bodies, though - thanks ponchos!). We flew down Showboat and Showoff, which is always a super fun one, and it was nice to finally ski Flying Yankee without a race or literally anybody else. We were getting ready to put a bow on the day once we got to Run #12, so we followed Cardigan, which then became the pick of the day. SUCH a fun trail, especially with the spring corn. Sarah took Jug Handle, I took the "headwall" onto Turnpike, and then we cut over to Barnyard, and the Barn was still open! There was one snowmaking pipe to hop over and a patch of grass to ski through, but it's always so fun and worth it.

Runs 13-14

Run 13: Barnyard Triple - Home Run - Turnpike

[0.35 mi; 1:21; 184 ft; 24.5 mph max; 15.5 mph avg]

Run 14: Spear Mountain Express - Cardigan - Jug Handle - Turnpike

[1.29 mi; 3:18; 1,030 ft; 33.3 mph max; 23.4 mph avg]

To wrap things up, we rode the Barnyard Triple (the lifty sang "skiiiiing in the rain... just skiiiiiiiing in the rain...") and we skied down Homerun to Turnpike, back to the Spear Mountain Express for our two more skip the last. We both decided Cardigan to Turnpike was our favorite of the day, and down we went! I took Jug Handle just to mix things up this time, and we giggled all the way down.

Back at the lodge, we joyfully changed into dry clothes, bought matching sweatpants that were 50% off, and started the schlep home. I wanted to get home a little early so I could nap before Ray's big Rocky Horror Picture Show themed Passover that night. We had lunch at Hooksett, and I was cozy in bed by 3:30pm!

Map of Ragged Mountain