jamesdeluxe
Administrator
When I think abstractly about past ski areas, there are those that I generally remember as places with sunny dispositions and pleasant, forgiving conditions. Whether they truly are or were that way on a given day is another question, I'm talking mainly about perceptions and memories. Pico on Sunday was one of those.
Then there are the "force-of-nature" ski areas -- the ones that test your ability to deal with challenging skiing and/or weather conditions. The ones where you like to brag about how hard the wind was blowing, how cold it was, and how brutal the snow surface was. For me, the three mountains in the East that fit in this bucket are Whiteface, Jay Peak, and Cannon. To be sure, I've had memorable, deep-powder and/or warm, sun-splashed spring days at all three, but the experiences that stick in my mind are the ones where I was being put to the test in some way; days where a non-skier would ask incredulously: "You voluntarily skied in that? And you paid for it?"
The holder of local knowledge, rivercOil, told us about last Saturday, when Cannon got six to eight inches of snow, which, in this precipitation-starved Eastern winter, was cause for celebration. He mentioned how wind was not an issue, the snow was beautiful, and he was able to charge at full speed on some of his favorite off-the-map lines. Well, today was not Saturday. Gale-force winds had blown all of the new snow into the next county, leaving cut runs with alternating soft wind sift or rock-hard boilerplate. Off-piste was better than expected, but thin cover continues to be an issue. Lift rides on the Peabody Quad were humorous, with 40 mph winds blasting in our faces and gusts well above that.
rivercOil in an unnamed tree shot along the Banshee trail.
Upper Ravine:
The highlight of any trip to Cannon is hopping over to Mittersill. More than eight years had gone by since my last visit, and a lot of back-and-forth has gone on regarding Cannon's storied neighbor, but the short version is that they've installed a brand new double in the exact same place as the old one. However, there have been no changes to Mittersill's trails, nor have they added any snowmaking. At the moment, it's still a side-country experience. I look forward to speaking with Cannon's marketing director later in the week to learn the ongoing story from the ski area's perspective and hear more about the many bureaucratic and bottom-line decisions that are involved with it.
Patrick near the top of the easy, seven-minute hike up.
Harv heading down the rabbit hole into Mittersill.
Further down, A discussion about Tuckerbrook.
Patrick ripping down rivercOil's "favorite line ever."
Harv:
For lunch, I had to get with the program and order this "soup." Looks like chili; tastes like chili, but it's called "Mitter-strone."
Anyway, a great Cannon day. It's a big, demanding mountain and easily a Top Ten northeast ski area in my book.
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