Snow covers the ground at the Birch Ridge Inn, Killington VT 

Snow!! Well a dusting anyway.

Overnight, Killington received it's first legitimate region-wide snow fall of the nascent ski season. Accumulating snow fell throughout the Killington Basin area. Accumulation was very light, on the order of 1/2 inch. However, the significance of the accumulation should not be overlooked --- the ground is now cold enough in general to hold snow.

First accumulating snow at the Birch Ridge Inn of the 2013-2014 season.

The long range weather forecast indicates that we will be experiencing a general chill down next week, after the cold front with leading r@!n transits the area. It's time to start your snow dances!

Let it snow!

Opening day at Killington has it's rewards! 

It was not the longest of ski days, but it is great to be back out on the mountain on the snow! Kudo's to the Killington Resort for getting the resort open again for skiing and riding in October! And, I, along with everyone else who participated in todays opening, scored a nice hat to celebrate opening day. Way to go Killington!

Skiing and riding today, and for this foreseeable future, is limited to Rime and Reason. A blanket of heavy wet snow has been laid down on both trails. Skier and rider traffic are compressing the snow and building small bumps in the process. While the resort is open for skiing and riding, conditions are really for intermediates and above, as there is NO BEGINNER TERRAIN available.

That being said... "it was Glorious!"

Access to the terrain, at least for this weekend, is via the "Stairway to Heaven". A combination of construction activities for the New Peak Lodge, plus snowmaking focus to lay down good snow on real ski trails, have made it necessary to walk down the stairway to access the North Ridge region, as well as walking back up the stairway to get back to the K1 Gondola to down load to the K1 Base Lodge at the end of ski time. From personal experience the walk down is very easy. It did require more than a few deep breaths for me to make the hike back up in ski boots with my ski's over the shoulder. (Mary blames it on me getting older... I blame it on the altitude.) Never matter, the walk on the stairs is quite manageable if you are in the mood to air out the ski legs and make a few turns on the early season snow.

Overall ski conditions today were highly variable on mostly packed man made snow. Rime was probably groomed top to bottom, but there were still places where water bars created deep troughs. Conditions were actually perfect to re-awaken ski legs that were reshaped by a summer of golfing. While some people were straight lining the trails, most people on the slopes were enjoying their turns. Between the hike out and the bumps, it was a nice morning work out on the mountain.

Below are some pictures from today on the mountain. Enjoy!

The "Stairway to Heaven" at North Ridge on Killington Peak

Our assistant, Shelly, buckling in for the first ride of the season.

Looking up Rime towards a cloud draped Killington Peak.

The view down Rime towards the intersection with Great Northern.

Snow guns on Grea Northern at Reason.

Looking up Rime below Great Northern.

The view towards the Killington Basin area and lower Rime.

The Hat! Thank you Killington!

Let it snow!

Ski's in the car and ready to go. 

it's still twig season. But....IT'S ALSO SKI SEASON!!!!!!

Snow makers have been busy at work making snow on the upper elevations of Killington peak. So much so, that the resort will "Officially Open" on Friday October 25th for the 2013-2014 ski season. Friday's opening, at 9:00 AM, will be for season pass holders only.

The general public is invited to enjoy skiing and riding at Killington starting on Saturday October 26th at 8:00 AM.

Skiing and riding will be limited to the upper terrain on Killington Peak in the North Ridge area. Skiers will be uploaded using the K1 Gondola. Hiking up the "Stairway to Heaven" at the top of the North Ridge chair will be required to get back to the K1 Gondola will be required to download from the top of the mountain.

The resort was going to "drop the ropes" early this afternoon in a flash opening for locals. Our assistant was heading out after completing her morning shift to take her first rides of the season. I plan on trying to be on the mountain tomorrow morning (assuming I can find all of my kit scattered around the inn).

With luck.. this will be the start of a long and "glorious" ski season.

Let it Snow!

Snow making operations have begun on Killington Peak 

Sometimes winter seasons have false starts, so maintaining a modicum of composure is always a wise move. But I am excited about the near term arrival of the ski season. If I am ready... that's another story..

Start with the obvious.... the season's pass to Killington... Been there... done that... picked it up last week. That's of the list.

Around the inn...

Winter marketing programs in good shape. Transitioned our main website birchridge.com and mobile m.birchridge.com to winter.

Loaded all the winter season data into birchridge.com's Ski Package Calculator. Birch Ridge's proprietary ski package calculator will compute the cost of any ski package at the Birch Ridge Inn, taking advantage of all of the Killington Resorts' various ski ticket discount programs. It is a great place to start to plan your Killington winter ski vacation at the Birch Ridge Inn.

Birch Ridge Inn wifi network redesign completed. Waiting for last fall foliage guests to depart the inn this weekend before implementing. Our guests wifi demands have increased every year (and since I came out of the computer networking business, it is a fun personal project to keep my skills sharp.)

Improvements finished to Audio system in restaurant and Audio/Video system in the Great Room. Another fun project completed.

Wine show season underway. Attended a distributors fall show this week. Another one planned for next week. Making selections to add to the Inn's wine list for winter. How can you not have fun sampling wine all afternoon...

Outside yardwork... let's not talk about that one... still needs work.

Ski equipment... Clothing, boots, ski's, etc to be brought out of storage imminently.

Golf clubs... still in the car...

Killington Peak with the first signs of snow making visible

With the winter season just around the corner, there is still plenty of twig season work to finish.. Now if ski season begins before the twig season work is completed... so it goes..

Let it snow!

The last leaves of fall clinging to the trees near the Carriageway at the Birch Ridge Inn 

The party's over.. Let the new party begin!

Twig season , the denouement of summer, has arrived at Killington. Like Mud Season in the spring, when thoughts in Killington turn towards summer warmth and chasing little white balls down verdant fairways, Twig Season brings with it high hopes for the quick arrival of cold weather followed by copious amounts of snow. It all serves to tweak the souls of those of us who enjoy throwing ourselves down mountainsides in the cold New England winters.

Twig season is a time of reflection and preparation. We were fortunate this year to be able to play plenty of golf. We had a summer full of nice guests staying at the inn. We have a great team of employees to help us conduct the business of the inn in a professional manner. We have continued to work to improve the inn to better serve our guests going into the winter season.

Birch Ridge Inn entering "Twig Season"

Winter will be coming to Killington very soon. Daily I am asked "when will the ski season begin?"... or "When will it snow?" The answer is always with a measured amount of a wishful thinking "Tomorrow!" And it will be here soon enough.

"Twig Season" heralds a time of change. As the leaves of Killington hit the forest floor, we all know that soon a blanket of white will follow.

....And it will be glorious!

Let it snow!

"Noah's Bark" by Barbara McKenna 

The Birch Ridge Inn is please to host, in conjunction with the Killington Arts Guild, "Meet the Artist" night with with Vermont Craftswoman Barbara McKenna this coming Thursday, October 17, 2013 from 6:00 to 8:00 PM.

Barbara's lifelong passion for creating distinctive art using a variety of materials in both 2-D and 3-D forms is evident in her work. Barbara will present examples of her unique style including crafted wool hooked rugs. Not just rugs in the traditional sense, their artistry also can be displayed as beautiful wall hangings handcrafted by this talented Vermont artist.

The public is invited to attend this demonstration/presentation in the Great Room of the Birch Ridge Inn from 6:00 to 8:00 PM. Following the demonstration, persons wishing to join the artist for dinner at 8:00 in the InnÕs restaurant can make reservations by calling the Birch Ridge Inn at 422-4293.

The Fall Foliage season at Killington is rapidly changing to "Twig Season". We hope that you have enjoyed the fall colors as thoughts in the local community start to look to the sky for falling snow instead of falling leaves.

The top of the Covered Carriage-way framed in brilliant fall color. 

Yesterday was interesting. Damp and dreary most of the day with a hellacious 15 minutes of driving rain and fierce winds. If the storm that struck yesterday were to repeat in a couple of days, the fall season at Killington would be over and we would be firmly ensconced in "Twig Season". But as it stands from our neighborhood walk about this morning, while some trees did shed their leaves, the area around Killington is still alive with fall colors.

Higher elevations on Killington Peak lost color in yesterdays storm. The top of the mountain is a muted green, accented by bright green stripes... the product of alpine pine trees combined with ski slopes. With a crystal blue ski this morning, the scene on the mountain provided a sharp contrast with the fall colors still blazing at lower elevations.

The foliage colors in the Killington Basin area, at approximately 2000 feet in elevation, are still quite brilliant. While many of the birch trees have lost their yellow leaves, the maple trees are making up for the color loss with bright reds and flaming orange hues. Poplar trees not stripped by the wind are still showing green. Oak trees are showing their traditional burnt orange.

The local weather forecast for the region is calling for nice weather over the next 5 to 7 days. With minimal wind and no rain, fall colors should be fixed in place through the upcoming Columbus Day Weekend period, assuring Vermont visitors a nice fall getaway.

Wherever you may be, we hope that you can enjoy the colors of fall.