Layers of snow on the roof of the front portico at the Birch Ridge Inn, Killington

Layers of snow on the roof of the front portico at the Birch Ridge Inn, Killington

Killington has had its fair share of "Nor'inchers" this winter. While shovelling snow around the inn, or on the roof, the layers of snow created by each storm are fairly obvious. But no where is it more obvious than on the portico covering the front entrance to the inn.

The portico is un-heated and east facing. The snow on its roof is untouched by human hands and free of any mechanical manipulation. The only force acting on the snow on the portico, other than atmospheric conditions, is gravity which causes the snow to gradually compress as air is being foreced out of each layer.

Each storm is represented by a unique layer in the snow. Just like tree rings, each layer represents a unique event. By definition, some of the layers are thicker than others, the result of more snow accumulating during an individual snow event.

Counting the snow layers, it looks like there have been on the order of 30 significant snow events this far this year. With any luck, we will have a few more before the ski season is over.

The front portico of the Birch Ridge Inn with layers of snow in it's roof.

Let it snow!