Sugarbush, VT 1/30/00 & Mad River Glen, VT 1/31/00

[Jeff]

<I>(Note from the Administrator: This report was originally posted on 2/1/00. Due to our move to new servers, the date and time attributed to this post is incorrect.)</I> <BR> <BR>For several weeks I have been planning a family ski trip to the Mad River Valley. We stayed at the Powderhound in Warren, a place that I would recommend for families who need more than one room, but do not want to spend a fortune for a condo. The Powderhound has two-room suites with kitchenettes that are adequate for a quick breakfast. <BR> <BR>Sugarbush 1/30: <BR> <BR>On Sunday we skied at Sugarbush. Although it had snowed a few days earlier, many of the trails were scraped down to hardpack. I began to question the wisdom of leaving the Berkshires where I had skied soft powder on the previous day. Nevertheless, almost every trail at Sugarbush was open. I took my first ever run down Castlerock Run, where I found nasty bumps and exposed rocks. In my opinion, our best run of the day was down Lower FIS at Mount Ellen. A bit of pucker brush and a long runout discouraged most skiers, leaving soft natural snow for the more adventurous. <BR> <BR>Mad River Glen 1/31: <BR> <BR>Wow! We lucked out on this one! On Monday morning we found 10 inches of fresh snow in Warren and they were reporting 14 inches of powder at Mad River Glen. I struggled to organize the family and hustle up to the mountain, arriving at about 9:30 AM. Although my fourteen-year-old son and I had skied MRG before, my wife and my eleven-year-old son were MRG newbies. I took them up the single chair and down Upper Antelope, while my fourteen-year-old charged down Catamount Bowl and other more challenging trails. On Antelope we found soft packed snow with tufts of loose snow -- great for cruising. Most trails, however, were unpacked, but rapidly being sliced into chowder. Bunny, Porcupine, and Quacky offered tons of loose snow. At one point, my eleven-year-old exclaimed, "Papa! I am skiing and I cannot see my skis!" By the end of the day I was a hero for "planning" this wonderful powder day at MRG.