Food, coffee & après ski
Occasional midday flurries made way for clearing skies this afternoon at Smugglers’ Notch, Vermont.
My friend and I skied off all three main lifts and enjoyed fast groomers and challenging moguls and glades. The ski area received 2 - 3 inches of snow over the last day. It was light, fluffy stuff that helped the ski conditions. The trees were white with snow and the temperatures were cool.
We sought out moguls, and they often had some soft snow on their crests. The bumps were...[Read more]
Saturday, March 16, 2013
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Filed in: Alpine / downhill skiing, Food, coffee & après ski, Smugglers' Notch
I had a first today: I saw deer roaming in the forest while I did a cross-country ski tour at Trapp Family Lodge Nordic Center in Stowe, Vt.! We saw three of them in the woods between the Russel Knoll Trail and Sugar Road. They saw us, but didn't raise their tails and take off—we were quite a distance away. How cool is that?!
As for the other animals I mention in the headline, they made up some of the trail names that we encountered today. Our rather long ski tour...[Read more]
Saturday, March 2, 2013
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Filed in: Cross-country skiing, Food, coffee & après ski, Trapp Family Lodge
I took to the slopes of Mad River Glen today after the mountains in the Mad River Valley—and in other high spots around the state—received up to 30 inches of new snow this week. (It just kept snowing!)
Check out my photos from the day. The mountain was 100 percent open and it was stuck in a cloud with occasional light snow. I was amazed at what the dampness did to the trees — I saw some very cool rime formations on branches!
The snow was not the light, fluffy...[Read more]
Friday, March 1, 2013
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Filed in: Alpine / downhill skiing, Food, coffee & après ski, Mad River Glen
On a sparkling day, the Skimeister and I enjoyed a ski tour in the Sterling Forest of Stowe, Vermont. This town-owned land has a network of backcountry skiing and snowshoe trails. It is also crossed by the Catamount Trail and a VAST snowmobile trail.
We parked near the Sterling Falls Gorge, picked up a map, and crossed an open meadow before heading into the woods on the Marston Trail. We enjoyed skiing on this trail and on a mellow section of the Catamount Trail — the...[Read more]
Saturday, February 16, 2013
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Filed in: Backcountry skiing, Catamount Trail, Food, coffee & après ski, Stowe
I travel up and down Interstate 89 quite frequently, but rarely do I have time to get off the highway to explore. Yesterday was the exception to the rule. I had time to ski in the afternoon before returning home so I decided to check out the Woodstock Nordic Center.
I've visited the quaint village of Woodstock, Vt., a number of times — but never in the winter. The Woodstock Inn's golf course is transformed with a blanket of white snow to become the base for...[Read more]
Friday, February 15, 2013
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Filed in: Backcountry skiing, Cross-country skiing, Food, coffee & après ski, Woodstock
You’ve heard the term “frozen granular,” right? Well I was on the definition of frozen granular today while doing some cross-country skiing. The Skimeister and I went for a ski at Stowe Mountain Resort Nordic Center and they had done their best to chop up previously frozen snow, mixed in with a dusting of new snow.
It was fast stuff!
It was great to get outside, and we were very thankful that a few cross-country centers have held on to their snow. We skied across a bunch of wind-tossed...[Read more]
Saturday, February 2, 2013
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Filed in: Cross-country skiing, Food, coffee & après ski, Stowe
We have had a Stowe kind of week. The two biggest Nordic centers in Stowe held on to much of their snow after last week's thaw, so we ended up skiing there again on Saturday.
My friend and I enjoyed a loop at the Mt. Mansfield (Stowe Mountain Resort) Cross-Country Center. We made use of a Catamount Trail Association coupon for two-for-one skiing in the afternoon. (Gotta love that member coupon book!)
Stowe had received 2 - 3 inches of fresh snow Friday night into Saturday morning,...[Read more]
Sunday, January 20, 2013
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Filed in: Cross-country skiing, Food, coffee & après ski, Stowe
It’s veggie time in the mountains of Vermont! Vermont's ski towns are among those that have weekly farmers' markets when the snow is not flying.
The Vermont Agency of Agriculture produces a handy website that has a statewide schedule of many farmers’ markets. The list includes these markets which I selected because they are located somewhere near a Vermont ski resort or ski town that you may be visiting during the summer months:
Northern Vermont Farmers’ Market Schedule In/Near Ski...[Read more]
Monday, July 16, 2012
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Filed in: Bolton Valley, Bromley, Food, coffee & après ski, Jay Peak, Mount Snow, Okemo, Ski towns in summer, Smugglers' Notch, Stowe, Sugarbush
With the 2012 Stowe Winter Carnival starting today, it got me to wondering how many other towns in Vermont are holding winter carnivals this year. With a little searching, I found quite a few! You might consider taking in some of these events when you plan your ski outings or ski vacations. None of these towns are very far from ski resorts.
Stowe Winter Carnival
January 18 - 28Zany sports events, ice carving competitions, movies, kids carnival, snow golf and snow volleyball tournaments, and...[Read more]
Wednesday, January 18, 2012
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Filed in: Food, coffee & après ski
We got out on the Stowe Recreation Path today for a short ski today in the cold. I wore a balaclava to keep my face warm and kept moving along to keep my body warm. It worked!
The good folks in Stowe have arranged to groom the recreation path a couple times a week for cross-country skiing. Today the classic tracks were excellent. Fresh new snow this week made the coverage great.
Today also featured the Stowe Tour de Snow and we saw families taking part in the...[Read more]
Sunday, January 15, 2012
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Filed in: Cross-country skiing, Food, coffee & après ski, Stowe
Today was all about fast, cruising ski runs at Sugarbush’s Mount Ellen. I headed over to spend some time on my alpine skis on a cloudy morning turned partly sunny midday.
I zipped down the stiff corduroy snow in the morning and stayed on the snowmaking trails, which had a solid base. At the top of Vermont's highest chairlift (top station is perched at over 4,000 feet), the trees were encrusted in natural snow and the views were great. I saw both of Vermont and New...[Read more]
Wednesday, January 11, 2012
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Filed in: Alpine / downhill skiing, Food, coffee & après ski, Sugarbush
After a snowy winter and wet spring, we are enjoying farmers’ market season in Vermont! At recent markets that I went to I saw lots of leafy vegetables, tomatoes, beans, peas, beets and more. Can’t wait until the sweet corn is out, too!
The Skimeister and I started our garden a bit late due to an extremely wet May and some early-June travel. But with some recent heat and sun, things are really starting to grow (eggplant, tomatoes, peppers, lettuce, for example). But I’ve been picking up...[Read more]
Friday, July 15, 2011
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Filed in: Bolton Valley, Bromley, Food, coffee & après ski, Jay Peak, Mount Snow, Okemo, Ski towns in summer, Smugglers' Notch, Stowe, Sugarbush
After a delicious lunch stop at the The Mad Taco in Waitsfield, I headed up to Sugarbush for an afternoon of sunny spring skiing. I feasted on corn snow — that super soft, granular snow that we get to enjoy in the spring.
I tackled lots of bumps on runs such as Organgrinder, Paradise and Murphy's Glades. The moguls were like heaping spoonfuls of mashed potatoes.
The only thing that threw me was some unexpected ice while descending Paradise, an expert trail off the Heaven's Gate Triple. This...[Read more]
Friday, April 22, 2011
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Filed in: Alpine / downhill skiing, Food, coffee & après ski, Spring skiing, Sugarbush
On Saturday I joined two friends for our first exploration of the Cotton Brook backcountry trail in the in Bolton / Waterbury / Stowe area of Vermont. I believe we hit a bit of all three towns during our lengthy ski tour, and it offered a little of everything.
All three of us have skied the Bolton-Trapp Trail, and I think that trail is a much better choice for earning a sustained skiing descent. But we wanted to check out what was beyond those "To Cotton Brook" signs that tempt you...[Read more]
Sunday, February 13, 2011
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Filed in: Backcountry skiing, Bolton Valley, Food, coffee & après ski, Stowe
Catamount Trail
Light snow fell most of the weekend in Vermont's Mad River Valley and on the other side of the Green Mountains, where I was skiing section 17 of the Catamount Trail. As our group skied the 10-mile section of this backcountry trail on Saturday, the fluffy snow created a featherbed effect along the trail.
This section starts on the Natural Turnpike in Ripton, Vermont, and snakes its way to Lincoln Gap in Lincoln. We skied north, following the western edge of the Green Mountains....[Read more]
Monday, January 31, 2011
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Filed in: Backcountry skiing, Blueberry Lake, Catamount Trail, Food, coffee & après ski, Mad River Glen, Ole's, Sugarbush
I feel rather guilty for having such a nice day on the slopes today, while some skiers at Sugarloaf, Maine, were part of a terrible lift accident. Our thoughts and prayers go out to those who were injured. (See this Associated Press article.)
But the sky was blue and the snow rather plentiful today at Smugglers' Notch in Vermont. They had reported up to 10 inches of new snow over the last couple of days, and it was fun to ski in, even if I wasn't getting first tracks.
My warm-up run (ha!) was...[Read more]
Tuesday, December 28, 2010
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Filed in: Alpine / downhill skiing, Food, coffee & après ski, Smugglers' Notch
What a stunning day. As my friend Julie and I drove up to Bolton Valley Resort, I noted how frosty everything was — even as low as the elevation of Timberline Lodge.
The trees were encrusted with snow and the sky was brilliant blue. It was quite a treat to be skiing today.
A $15 ticket and the sunshine brought a bunch of skiers and riders out. The lines grew quickly as the morning passed.
After a couple of warm-up runs on the more traveled trails, we picked our way through Glades and then...[Read more]
Friday, December 24, 2010
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Filed in: Alpine / downhill skiing, Bolton Valley, Food, coffee & après ski
Oh, you lucky, lucky Mount Snow skiers!
You get to fuel up on my favorite coffee any day of the week — slopeside!
Mount Snow and Vermont Coffee Company announced they have opened a café at the ski resort. Vermont Coffee is roasted in Middlebury, Vermont, and the Skimaven ski blog is basically powered by their yummy Dark Roast.
Not only does the coffee taste delicious, but it's fair trade and organic. I know — almost too good to be true!
Other tasty news this week is that Mad River Glen is...[Read more]
Tuesday, December 21, 2010
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Filed in: Bolton Valley, Food, coffee & après ski, Mad River Glen, Mount Snow, Ticket discounts
I love the long daylight hours that we enjoy at this time of year. However, because of this light, I woke up way too early on this Sunday morning. I peer out the window and what do I see? Snowflakes are blowing around in the stiff breeze.
We surely are enjoying highs and lows when it comes to spring weather lately!
Luckily, I knew the forecast for this weekend wasn't looking good so on Friday afternoon I headed out to Stowe, Vt., for a bike ride. The sun was shining and I needed to be in...[Read more]
Saturday, May 8, 2010
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Filed in: Food, coffee & après ski, Ski towns in summer, Stowe
Maple syrup: Oh, how sweet it is.
When you are out and about Vermont this weekend, stop into a sugarhouse that's participating in Vermont Maple Open House Weekend.
Sugarmakers are found all over the state -- from the Massachusetts line to the Canadian border. They will show you how they make their sticky, sweet jugs and bottles of golden maple syrup. You may also get a free sample, too.
For details, check out this Web site: www.vermontmaple.org
Also keep on the lookout for signs that point...[Read more]
Friday, March 26, 2010
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Filed in: Food, coffee & après ski
On the Sugar Road at Trapp nordic center today — the first day of spring — we heard birds chirping away, saw families out enjoying mild temperatures, and watched die-hard cross-country skiers try to make the most of a melting ski surface.
With the extraordinary stretch of warm weather we have had lately in Vermont, Sugar Road — Trapp's major thoroughfare — is melting down in a big way. In many places we had to tip-toe around muddy or rocky spots. Otherwise we were scraping along frozen...[Read more]
Saturday, March 20, 2010
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Filed in: Cross-country skiing, Food, coffee & après ski, Spring skiing, Trapp Family Lodge
Sunny spring skiing continues in Vermont today and Saturday. Wow, it's been an incredible stretch of sun and soft snow. All this corn snow can make a skier hungry!
A local weekly newspaper is talking up a small dining renaissance in Jeffersonville, Vermont, the home of Smugglers' Notch ski resort.
Seven Days recently wrote about some interesting new restaurant options and menu changes at the Mix Café and Bakery, Stella Notte, Hearth and Candle and The Brewski:...[Read more]
Friday, March 19, 2010
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Filed in: Food, coffee & après ski, Smugglers' Notch
Can it get any better than this?
The Skimeister and I hit Ole's cross-country center in Warren, Vermont, this afternoon for a ski tour. It was absolutely gorgeous out. No clouds. Warm temperatures. And the snow was still firm in many places because of our cold evenings and excellent grooming at Ole's.
I was on skating skis while the Skimeister took to the trails in a sit-ski. He rented it recently so he could get out skiing despite a major knee injury that he sustained last month. Yup, he...[Read more]
Tuesday, March 9, 2010
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Filed in: Cross-country skiing, Food, coffee & après ski, Ole's, Spring skiing
Bumps were the order of the day at Mad River Glen today. Soft bumps and smushed snow in between them. It was a fun day to play in the moguls.
There was great coverage at Mad River today after the big storm this week. But it wasn't light Utah snow — more like Sierra cement. You really had to ski where others had skied. In order to ski the crud on the sides of the trail you had to do jumping turns. So I was not skiing in the woods today, that's for sure.
The sun was out when my friends and I...[Read more]
Friday, February 26, 2010
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Filed in: Alpine / downhill skiing, Food, coffee & après ski, Mad River Glen
The kids that go to Middlebury College have it good. They can ski at the Middlebury Snow Bowl and the Rikert Ski touring Center; both are owned and operated by the college.
To get to Rikert from Middlebury, we drove Route 125 up and along the Middlebury River, through the micro-village of Ripton, and then to the college's scenic Bread Loaf Campus. Rikert nordic center is based in one of the barns on this historic summer campus known for its writers' conference. The mustard-colored historic...[Read more]
Monday, January 25, 2010
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Filed in: Cross-country skiing, Food, coffee & après ski, Rikert
If you read this ski blog enough, you might get the idea that I like pairing a skiing outing with food or drink. Yes, I'm a sucker for après ski. When you read some of these reviews you can see why; in Vermont we've got a plentiful selection of places to tempt a skier after hitting the hill.
These recent articles don't cover the entire state, so feel free to chime in with some of your favorite places to eat and drink après skiing.
1. This Seven Days article gives the skinny on some...[Read more]
Wednesday, January 20, 2010
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Filed in: Food, coffee & après ski
When it comes to skate skiing, I'm sure glad that I had years of experience as an instructor of first-time alpine skiers. Why? Because long before I tried skating, I had already mastered climbing up hills quickly — with skis on — using a herringbone.
After I did a snowplow demonstration or chased down a wayward student, I would head uphill to regroup with the class — stepping from ski to ski in a wide "V." I put these hard-earned skating skills to work today as we explored Blueberry Lake...[Read more]
Sunday, January 17, 2010
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Filed in: Blueberry Lake, Cross-country skiing, Food, coffee & après ski
I skied this afternoon at Bolton Valley in some super-light snow that had fallen in the last 24 hours -- and it was as tasty a treat as a Fluffernutter sandwich.
In fact, light, fluffy snowflakes were falling the whole time I was skiing; it seemed to make each run a little better. On the less-traveled trails and in the glades off of the Timberline Chair, I was playing in some fun powder. I noticed at times that I wasn't able to see my skis as I made a small wake through the snow. I'd guess...[Read more]
Friday, January 8, 2010
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Filed in: Alpine / downhill skiing, Bolton Valley, Food, coffee & après ski
A bluebird day. Darn cold, but blue!
The trees on the ridges around Bolton Valley looked like they were frosting decorations on a cake. We went for an end-of-the-afternoon ski on the backcountry trails at Bolton. Blue sky, squeaky snow, and white trees; it was gorgeous.
There were a few more inches of snow since this past weekend, so waterbars were better covered and more frozen, as well, with the recent cold snap. I think we only had to step over one of them this time. The base is...[Read more]
Friday, December 18, 2009
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Filed in: Backcountry skiing, Bolton Valley, Food, coffee & après ski
In the Northeast Kingdom of Vermont — the corner of the state nestled next to the New Hampshire and Canadian borders and easily accessed by Interstate 91 — one small ski town has found a winning solution for maintaining tourism throughout the year.
In East Burke, Vermont, home of Burke Mountain ski resort, landowners and business people have teamed up over the years to create an incredible network of mountain biking trails. They call them Kingdom Trails and they attract bikers from...[Read more]
Sunday, August 23, 2009
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Filed in: Alpine / downhill skiing, Burke, Cross-country skiing, Food, coffee & après ski, Ski towns in summer
I must be getting hungry. Perhaps that's why I'm dreaming about hitting some farmers' markets this weekend!Farmers' markets are a wonderful resource in Vermont ski country. And increasingly in Vermont, you can graze at one of these markets in the winter as well as the summer months.In the summer you'll find starter plants for your garden, then delicious veggies straight from the farm, fabulous baked goods, locally raised meats and handcrafted cheeses, handmade products and artwork. In the...[Read more]
Friday, June 19, 2009
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Filed in: Food, coffee & après ski, Ski towns in summer
[For Easter 2010 sunrise service information, follow this link.]
We did it. We were out the door on Easter Sunday by 5:15 a.m.
The Skimeister and I wanted to attend our first-ever Easter Sunrise Service, and it would be atop Sterling Mountain at Smugglers' Notch.
At 6-ish, we loaded the lift with about 70 other people. The light was faint, but it wasn't dark at this hour. People had skis, snowshoes and plain old boots. The lift crept along because they had to extract the non-skiers from...[Read more]
Monday, April 13, 2009
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Filed in: Alpine / downhill skiing, Food, coffee & après ski, Smugglers' Notch, Spring skiing
We had another gorgeous skiing day on Saturday. It's been an incredible stretch of sunny weather for Vermont!
I wanted to go cross-country skiing so I looked at options that were at a higher altitude, where the snow coverage was still good. In the villages the sun has melted off much of the snow.
I decided to go to Stowe Mountain Resort's cross-country center, which is situated at about 1,500 feet or so. It has remained chilly in the mountains, especially overnight, so I was not in a huge...[Read more]
Sunday, March 22, 2009
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Filed in: Cross-country skiing, Food, coffee & après ski, Spring skiing, Stowe
Must be the luck of the Irish. We had a beautiful day of spring skiing at Stowe today!
Stowe had special $35 lift tickets for St. Patrick's Day, so the Skimeister and I — and several hundred other people — made tracks for Mt. Mansfield.
Blue skies ruled the day. We loaded the gondola about 9 a.m. We didn't think the runs off the quad were soft, and we didn't see anyone skiing Liftline or National until late morning.
Gondolier and Perry Merrill were already quite soft. We took a number of...[Read more]
Tuesday, March 17, 2009
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Filed in: Alpine / downhill skiing, Food, coffee & après ski, Mt. Mansfield, Spring skiing, Stowe
On Sunday I went to see if there was any snow at the Smugglers' Notch cross-country center. Nope. None. Nada. The sun had melted many areas and what little was left was all ice.
For some reason the attendant at the nordic center didn't realize that there wasn't enough snow to cross-country ski on. They were renting snowshoes, which weren't really needed either; you could just walk the trails in some decent boots. The Smuggs Web site also made it seem like there was plenty of skiing there. I...[Read more]
Monday, March 16, 2009
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Filed in: Alpine / downhill skiing, Cross-country skiing, Food, coffee & après ski, Mad River Glen, Spring skiing, Stowe, Ticket discounts
What a day!
Saturday was a warm and sunny day to strap on some skis. Enjoy our photos from Trapp Family Lodge Nordic Center, where spring conditions prevailed and the sap buckets were collecting maple sap. The snow cover was very good, and conditions called for waxless skis or Klister wax (very, very sticky stuff!).
In the afternoon we stopped in to see what was new at the West Branch Art Gallery, next door to the Rusty Nail. We then had a maple latté at the Stowe Coffeehouse near the...[Read more]
Sunday, March 15, 2009
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Filed in: Cross-country skiing, Food, coffee & après ski, Spring skiing, Trapp Family Lodge
Today was a gorgeous day to be on the slopes in Vermont. The Skimeister and I bought the Bash Badge Plus at Smugglers' Notch this season, which gives you free early- and late-season skiing (and $25 tickets in between), so we rearranged our work to hit the mountain for part of the day—sans credit card.
There is still a lot of snow up there. The snowfall from a couple of days ago still clung to the shady side of trees, and the snow was still rather soft to ski through in glades that do not get...[Read more]
Thursday, March 5, 2009
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Filed in: Alpine / downhill skiing, Food, coffee & après ski, Mad River Glen, Smugglers' Notch, Ticket discounts
Today I had the best powder day EVER in the East.
Sugarbush is among the Vermont resorts that were hammered by snowstorms and mountain snow showers over the last several days. Yet, on the heels of the major storm on Sunday came wild winds on Monday. The wind closed the lifts at Sugarbush by 10 a.m. on Monday. Bottom line: We would have fresh tracks and nicer weather to enjoy today. The Skimeister and I could not pass it up.
We got to Sugarbush's Lincoln Peak area about 8:30 a.m. and picked up...[Read more]
Tuesday, February 24, 2009
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Filed in: Alpine / downhill skiing, Food, coffee & après ski, Sugarbush
Seems like several Vermont resorts are celebrating anniversaries this year. Killington is turning 50, Sugarbush is 50 and Trapp Family Lodge's cross-country center has turned 40. To commemorate four decades of skiing, Trapp Family Lodge cut a new trail and named it "The 40 Year Trail." I would have called it the Back 40, but hey, they didn't ask.During what must have been a 14-km loop, the Skimeister and I tried out this new trail on Saturday morning and also skied for the first time on Hare...[Read more]
Monday, February 9, 2009
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Filed in: Cross-country skiing, Food, coffee & après ski, Stowe, Trapp Family Lodge
Saturday dawned with clear, sunny skies and the Skimeister and I cemented our plans for the day over breakfast. Despite the expected drop in temperatures during the day, we would head over to Stowe, Vt., to tackle the lower Steeple trail. It would my first time on this backcountry skiing terrain to the west of the Stowe Mountain Resort nordic center, and to the south of Mt. Mansfield. It's a historic Vermont trail that I had read about in David Goodman's "Backcountry Skiing Adventures" book,...[Read more]
Sunday, January 25, 2009
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Filed in: Backcountry skiing, Cross-country skiing, Food, coffee & après ski, Mt. Mansfield, Stowe, Trapp Family Lodge
