SKIING WHITEFACE: HOW’S THE BASE HOLDING UP IN LATE MARCH?
I almost didn’t ski this afternoon. My big toe(s) have been bothering me over the last few days, which has been a thing all ski season, and I had a meeting at 12:30. That meeting ended up being canceled right around the time it was supposed to begin, and with the weather tomorrow looking potentially windy, I decided I’d just go on an ahead and head up to Whiteface, as tomorrow may be a better day to not ski if needed.
Fox seen from the gondola.
Lower Mackenzie.
It was a beautiful afternoon on the mountain with plenty of sunshine. Temperatures ranged from the 20s up high on the mountain to the upper 30s down low. It was pretty comfortable. I didn’t need a face mask or glove liners. The mountain was pretty quiet. There were very few people there and it felt like I had the runs to myself.
Victoria.
Lower Skyward.
With the temperature difference across the mountain, every run I experienced a variety of conditions. Up high, the snow was still winter like, but a little soft, with a firmer secondary surface. Once you got to mid-mountain it got a bit softer and spring-like, and down near the base it was really soft. Overall, the conditions were a lot of fun, and the skiing was great as a result.
The Wilmington Trail.
The Wilmington Trail.
Riding the Summit Quad.
They had 71 of 96 runs open, and the base on everything that was open was overall pretty good. There are a couple of outliers, such as Lookout Below, which definetly has some thin spots, but most runs are in good shape. The top part of Essex is still closed, but you can ski the bottom part via the cut at the top of Excelsior. Upper Northway is still closed. Hoyt’s High is still narrow in some spots. There was some terrain closed for racing today, which included Upper Thruway, Parkway and Draper’s Drop. You could ski Lower Thruway via Burton’s Cut.
Upper Skyward.
Mountain Run.
Lower Thruway.
My favorite runs this afternoon were Upper Skyward, Mountain Run and Lower Thruway. Upper Skyward was a treat with really nice packed powder on it. The snow on Mountain Run was a little softer, but it was great to carve through and it was quiet over there. Lower Thruway, along the right side, was very soft and not all mushed up. It felt like I was skiing through butter. Good stuff.
Never Quit Skiing,
Lincoln