Snowmaking on the Horizon
I was lucky enough to get our skiing for a bit this morning at Black River Basin. I can't say it enough, I'm so proud of our hill operations team and their efforts to keep us skiing and riding under the most challenging conditions. I skied for about an hour and enjoyed seeing so many smiling faces out and sliding around. Kids were bombing the headwall, families were learning to ski on the rope tow, and a few adventurous folks were skimming across a small pond at the base with cheers coming from the lift above. While we might not have a lot of terrain open, people are having a great time out there making the most of it. Sure put a smile on my face!
Cold is Coming
After more than a week above freezing, I'm finally seeing some promise of cooler weather in the forecast. Our friends at OpenSnow are forecasting the return of snowmaking temperatures tomorrow night around midnight. Our snowmaking team is itching to get running again and is currently out on the hill at Jackson Creek getting the guns in position.
Our priority will be to refresh the areas of the hill needed to get back open at The Summit. We'll have guns in place ready to blanket Voyageur's Highway, Superior, and the Sugar Hills Learning Area with a fresh coat of snow. Looking at the temperatures in the forecast, I predict that we'll have enough snow made to be ready to reopen Jackson Creek Summit on Saturday morning, 12/30. I'd originally hoped to get that new lift running again by Friday, but the forecast has warmed slightly since Monday and that is looking unlikely. We’ll give it our best shot and see how much we can get made to get you back on the slopes ASAP.
At The Basin, we'll be focused on getting Maiden Voyage back open to provide top-to-bottom beginner skiing again. I expect to see that trail reopen for Saturday morning, maybe Friday, if we're lucky with the temps tomorrow night. While working on Maiden Voyage, we'll also get some guns working on resurfacing all of our currently open terrain including Oxbow, Sailor's Delight, and Starboard. Within a few days, we'll be back to our pre "Hawaiian-Christmas" terrain package and by the time next weekend comes around, we'll be well on our way back to winter as we know it.
Dudley's Grand Opening
Tonight is the grand reopening of Dudley's Tavern following its major facelift this summer. With new floors, new paint and updated decor, the bar as an entirely different and more energetic feel. We're excited to welcome Old Pine Road Band to be the first to play the new space this evening. The tavern will be open from 7pm-12am offering up plenty of time to drink, dance and be merry! I hope to see you there.
