Another Jay Weekend! I picked up Gen from the Lowell MBTA station and we did the long drive up, naturally stopping at Sierra, Taco Bell, and Target on the drive up. We had a lovely night with Emma and her mom but quickly got to bed for an early morning. It was going to be a Pow Day™!
Up and out the door by 6:45am, we made our way to the mountain just after 8am and the Stateside Parking lot was nearly full - oh boy. We got a seat in the lodge to do all of our morning chores and the Stoke™ was real! Lots of hussle and bussle, lots of excitement. We dropped Mum off at her ski lesson and Emma did the right thing and forced us to eat breakfast - the potatoes at Jay are spectacular. We were officially on the snow just before 9am with no line on the Taxi.
TK’s Forecast
Updated March 22nd, 2024
Stumped for superlatives…
I don’t know what else to say about this suddenly relentless March miracle snow cycle.
From the depths of despair two weeks ago, to the depths of bottomless powder today.
Our three hundred and thirteenth inch of snow for the season blew in on with the second blizzard in two weeks yesterday. Now we have almost an entire day with no snow falling from the sky. The first no new snow day since last Wednesday. Finally some “High Barometer Cold” with subsidence and sunshine. But faster than we can say, when it’s going to start snowing again? It’s starting to snow again!
This one is a bigger beast in many regards. We are tapping the Gulf of Mexico for an extra infusion of energy injection into the backside of our latest arctic blast. Multiple low pressure centers and frontal boundaries are set to consolidate along interstate 95 from New York City to Portland Maine. That means we share the wealth this time, many of our neighboring resorts shall share the bounty this time around. And for a change, we are not getting the most snow from this storm, but we are getting the driest snow.
Waves of strengthening low pressure systems arrive after the sun goes down, with snow returning just before midnight. The first wave is racing along Interstate-90, breaking the speed limit in an 80 mph west to east flow at 18,000 feet over our head. The second and third waves moving in from the south will be merging with the first wave near Boston early Saturday morning.
Here at ground level that means a surface circulation from the east and then north, meaning all cold and all snow**. That was not a certainty a few days ago but it is now**. There is warmer air way up there but it still should be
cold enough for snow. That, less dense, warmer cold enough for snow. That, less dense, warmer air aloft is coming in off The Atlantic Ocean - rich with moisture ~ over the top of, more dense, colder air below ("High Barometer Cold") tomorrow. That's called over-running, another dynamic that makes it snow hard.
If you read this blog the other day, it's about the only dynamic that was missing during the last 30 inches of snow since last weekend. Tomorrow 'over-running' is the primary dynamic.Any reason to snow!
Anyway…. We are snowing close to an inch and hour, and ~ are you sitting down? ~ there are not too many surface isobars here ~ meaning not too windy! Yes it will be very windy 3 miles in the sky, but only "light wind' ~ 15-25 mph~ at the summit during this snowstorm. Possibly near calm at the base lodges... Tailgate in springtime winter flakage beauty!
Snow winds down by about sunset. So that's about 18 hours of snow. Let's call it an average of .75" per hour. Another 13.5" of low density snow. (**It is not a zero chance we get some sleet or sandy snow to keep amounts a little lower ~ but either way it will stay dry).
High pressure moves in on Sunday with sinking air and sunshine. Not too windy either, maybe 10-20 mph if that, with highs in the 20s. A powder and spring sunshine Sunday!
Clear and cold Sunday night. Lows near 10° in the valley Monday ~ High Barometer Cold. Another beauty with afternoon highs near 32°.
More of the same Tuesday, a little less cold as we transition back into a more classic spring pattern.
The pattern gets active again after that. "We'll cross that bridge when we get to it" .. as my dad always used to say.
That bridge also includes starting to get serious about the April 8th forecast.
No down days!
Have a great weekend!
Talk again Tuesday.
-TK @ jaypeakresort.com
Snow Report
Day 116: Early Word (6:30a)
Kicking off this Nor’easter with 3-5” overnight, putting us at over a foot of fresh powder in the past 72 hours and upwards of a foot forecasted to fall throughout the day. The back end of March has brought us pow day after pow day here at Jay and today will be no exception. It will feel breezy with a high near 25 degrees today and the primary conditions out there are, you guessed it, powdery.
This is the perfect weekend to explore Jay Peak with 100% open terrain including our expansive natural glades, and of course plenty of groomed runs. Save your money when you buy your tickets in advance HERE. Print straight from one of our kiosks or reload a previous Jay Peak lift ticket from this season.
It looks like we’ll be able to run 9/9 of our lifts today. The Metro, Taxi, Village, and both moving carpets will spin at 8:00a. The Tram, Flyer, Jet, Bonnie at 8:30a. Last chair, for all lifts, is at 4p.
Runs 1-4
Run 1: Taxi Quad - Boulevard
[0.30 mi, 2:10, 364 ft, 16.0 mph max, 7.6 mph avg]
Run 2: Taxi Quad - Queen's Highway - Grammy Jay
[0.82 mi, 4:57, 581 ft, 17.2 mph max, 9.7 mph avg]
Run 3: Village Chair - Chalet Meadows
[0.18 mi, 1:37, 125 ft, 14.1 mph max, 6.7 mph avg]
Run 4: Taxi Quad - Kangaroo Trail
[0.46 mi, 2:27, 371 ft, 24 mph max, 11.1 mph avg]
The first four runs were part warming up and part technique work with our fearless ski instructor, Emma. I really appreciate these practice/instruction runs, I feel they set a really nice precident for the day of "actually knowing how to ski," that I find myself forgetting when I get too excited. The snow felt so different! Emma also told me to not fight it because I'll lose, so after the first few I was able to adjust and calm down. I INSISTED we take the Grammy Jay for the second run simply because I love the Grammy Jay, and it was as lovely as I wanted. Snow falling constantly - not snowglobe snow like we had at Saddleback - still lovely. The third run from Village Chair to Chalet Meadows was just for a commute, and then we wrapped up with Kangaroo, which is a fun one. There was one patch of ice that Gen was UPSET about, but she's okay. Kangaroo brought us right to the Bonnie, which was starting to produce a longer line than usual. We also took a quick pit stop for bathroom and to pick up Mum from her skin lesson.
Runs 5-7
Run 5: Bonaventure Quad - Northway - Angel's Wiggle - Paradise Meadows - Kangaroo Trail
[1.40 mi, 8:30, 1437 ft, 20.4 mph max, 9.6 mph avg]
Run 6: Bonadventure Quad - Northway - Purgatory - Hell's Crossing - Paradise Meadows - Kangaroo Trail
[1.30 mi, 7:08, 1424 ft, 20.6 mph max, 11.0 mph avg]
Run 7: Bonaventure Quad - Northway - Hell's Crossing - Paradise Meadows - Kangaroo Trail
[1.18 mi, 6:47, 1398 ft, 19.1 mph max, 10.1 mph avg]
The POW DAY continues! Mum is back from her ski lesson, I am getting used to the actual snow, and Gen is feeling good and ready to go up. Our first run up here was the classic Angel’s Wiggle route, which went quite well. It’s fun to ski with friends! There was a guy who we overheard say “no friends on a powder day!” to which we initially disagreed, but then we realized he was talking to his ~7 year old kid, which definitely changes things. Our second run went down a trail I really enjoyed on a normal day - Purgatory, but I had a majestic wipeout because apparently fresh snow skis VERY differently than hard pack. Thankfully, the fall felt like a fall into a cold pillow. My skis also popped off for no good reason - we would later get my dins adjusted at Fast Trax in Montgomery. The third was the best of the day so far, Hell’s Crossing. A really beautiful trail - Emma even got to play in the woods! Afterwards, Mum and Gen were done with the upper mountain, and Emma was EAGERLY waiting for me to consent to my first run in the woods. Oh boy!
Snow Report
Day 116: First Update (12:06)
The dump continues with 6-8” since the snow began last night, putting us at 19” of fresh powder in the past 72 hours and another foot forecasted to fall before tomorrow morning. […].
Runs 8-10
Run 8: Taxi Quad - Queen's Highway - Doe Woods - Chalet Meadows
[0.36 mi, 2:53, 341 ft, 18.7 mph max, 7.1 mph avg]
Run 9: Taxi Quad - Queen's Highway - Doe Woods - Chalet Meadows
[0.43 mi, 3:17, 344 ft, 17.9 mph max, 7.8 mph avg]
Run 10: Taxi Quad - Queen's Highway - Doe Woods - Chalet Meadows
[0.47 mi, 3:20, 364 ft, 14.8 mph max, 8.2 mph avg]
“Into the woods…”
Mum and Gen were going to take some runs off the Taxi, so we stayed on the lifts together and while they tackled Queen’s Highway/Chalet Meadows we went into the Doe Woods. First impressions: TERRIFYING, but then beautiful. I like gentle woods! Again, I was absolutely terrified and screamed a lot, but thankfully the grade is very easy. By the third lap I was getting more adventurous and choosing my own path - it’s fun to see your skis disappear in the fresh snow (as long as they stay on!). Emma said I did a good job - yay!
Runs 11-12
Run 11: Bonaventure Quad - Goat Run - Queen's Highway - Chalet Meadows
[1.25 mi, 8:42, 1411 ft, 14.6 mph max, 8.6 mph avg]
Run 12: Taxi Quad - Queen's Highway - Doe Woods - Chalet Meadows
[0.42 mi, 2:30, 348 ft, 19.0 mph max, 10.0 mph avg]
As the day meandered on, we got closer to closing time, so Emma and I decided we’d hop on the Bonnie for one more long run, which was a **** jOURNEY. Dear god. I VERY QUICKLY learned how bumps/moguls are formed and I did NOT enjoy it. I swear there were little mountains haphazardly spaces apart, and I was somehow supposed to “have fun” and “ski down”?? Absolutely atrocious. My quads were about to POP. Adding insult to injury, Emma hopped into Buck Woods (I was not about to tempt fate), I skied to our rendezvous point, and apparently she LAUNCHED herself out of the woods (skis got caught on something) and landed in a scorpion pose - AND I DIDN’T GET TO SEE IT! Absolutely tragic. Her back hurt the whole next day. After this tumultuous run, we decided to “two more skip the last” with a gentle run back through Doe Woods to celebrate my big accomplishment, which was a lovely way to wrap up our day. MY LEGS HURT.
End of Day Stats: 12 runs, 8.60 miles, 8,510 feet, 24.0 mph max speed, 0:55:38 skiing, 5:32:28 elapsed.
As the day meandered on, we got closer to closing time, so Emma and I decided we’d hop on the Bonnie for one more long run, which was a **** jOURNEY. Dear god. I VERY QUICKLY learned how bumps/moguls are formed and I did NOT enjoy it. I swear there were little mountains haphazardly spaces apart, and I was somehow supposed to “have fun” and “ski down”?? Absolutely atrocious. My quads were about to POP. Adding insult to injury, Emma hopped into Buck Woods (I was not about to tempt fate), I skied to our rendezvous point, and apparently she LAUNCHED herself out of the woods (skis got caught on something) and landed in a scorpion pose - AND I DIDN’T GET TO SEE IT! Absolutely tragic. Her back hurt the whole next day. After this tumultuous run, we decided to “two more skip the last” with a gentle run back through Doe Woods to celebrate my big accomplishment, which was a lovely way to wrap up our day. MY LEGS HURT.
End of Day Stats: 12 runs, 8.60 miles, 8,510 feet, 24.0 mph max speed, 0:55:38 skiing, 5:32:28 elapsed.
No comments:
Post a Comment