It’s been a few weeks since I’ve been to Jay Peak, and with me off work this week for Christmas, I decided today would be a great day to head there. It was a very cold day on the mountain, but it wasn’t very busy, and the glades were definitely still in play, despite the rainstorm that hit the Northeast this past Friday. It wasn’t a powder day or anything, but conditions were good enough to have a great day.

As I mentioned, it was a very cold day. The strong winds didn’t help, particularly while riding the lifts. The Flyer Quad lived up to its nickname ‘The Freezer’ today. Every time you crested over the first hill, the winds just came barreling down on you. It’s the coldest I’ve been on a mountain so far this season. Despite the winds, all but the Village Double were spinning , though the Tram and the Flyer did start the day on wind hold.

Most of the mountain was open. There were only a few trails down low that were off limits. The groomers were fast, firm, and at times very icy. Fortunately, I don’t go to Jay Peak to ski groomers so this had little impact on me. I use the groomers to get to the trees, and back to the base. For reference, I’ve been to Jay two times this season and haven’t even skied The Jet yet. I use The Jet as a reference, because if I had to choose a favorite groomer at Jay, it would probably be on the list.

Jay has received an inch or two of snow since the rain storm on Friday, and I think that helped with conditions in the trees. The snow wasn’t soft and powdery like it was prior to the rain, but it also wasn’t extremely icy. You could hold an edge, and you weren’t slipping and sliding around holding on for dear life. Rocks weren’t a concern either. Coverage is still great in the woods. Some glades, such as Timbuktu, did have a lot of small broken tree branches on them. I believe this was due to all the wind the mountain has experienced in recent days.

My favorite glades today were probably Andre’s Paradise, North Glade and Buckaroo Bonzai. The snow in Andre’s Paradise was actually pretty good, I thought. The other two were just very quiet, and I always enjoy that. It’s hard to beat having an entire glade to yourself.

I forgot to mention yesterday that I’d reached 25 days on the season. Today was day 26. It’s hard to believe I’ve already skied that much!

Never Quit Skiing,

Lincoln

A DAY IN THE TREES AT JAY PEAK

SKIING THE NORTH SIDE OF SUGARBUSH

SKIING BUMPS AND TREES AT SMUGGLER’S NOTCH