Deck the halls with.... 

Thanksgiving's L-Trytophan haze has finally broken. The last of the turkey leftovers that were not frozen for later personal use have been consumed. On to Christmas!

The seasonal shift from Thanksgiving's turkey decorations to Christmas cheer is well underway at the inn. The Christmas tree went up on schedule on Christmas Tree Monday (the Monday after Thanksgiving). This years edition stands 14 Feet 9 inches tall in the Great Room. This year it will be decorated in traditional fashion with colored lights, ornaments, and tinsel.

The rest of the inn is also takeing shape as we head into the holiday season. Today was carpet cleaning day, so we have been moving a lot of furniture. Our restaurant re-opens tonight (Thursday-Friday_Saturday this week), so Chef Frizzie is in the kitchen preparing for dinner service. He is also working on our Christmas Holiday and New Years Eve menus, which will be posted online as soon as he is done.

Outside, the Killington region is back to white after some unseasonably warm wet weather late last weekend. The storms that we have been having have been on the nusance side, with just a little "shmutz" falling from the sky. But it has turned the whole area white with an inch thick candy coating covering everything.

Before raising the tree on Monday, we were out on the mountain taking in some early season skiing. The mountain had held up quite well during the warm period. The resort has been making snow when ever they could over the last couple of days(which basically means all the time). We plan on taking a break from decorating to go skiing tomorrow, so it will be interesting to see the progress the resort has made as they prepare for the holidays.

The next week in Killington looks relatively benign from a weather forecast standpoint. Cold with snow showers seems to be the standard for the next few days. That is a good thing, as everything in the area looks just right when there is a covering of snow.

Where ever you may be, keep warm, think thoughts of skiing/riding, and let it snow!

2 turkeys on Thanksgiving means great sandwiches all weekend! 

To all our friends, we hope you celebrated a nice Thanksgiving. We got our wish of a full table of friends to share the holiday with, combined with an early winter snow storm to lift everyones spirits. In a ski resort, thats about as good as it gets for Thanksgiving.

Speaking of snow, the storm on Wednesday covered the region in about a foot of moderately wet snow. There was some altitude variation. (We about 10 inches at the inn). But overall, the area looks fantastic in a blanket of white.

With everyone pushed back from their Thanksgiving tables, skier and riders who chose to avoid Black Friday are starting to come into the resort. They will be treated to a winter wonderland with packed powder snow surfaces and seasonably cool temperatures. The perfect start to winter.

The Birch Ridge Inn covered in the first significant snow of the 2014 season.

Skiers and riders who could not make the trek to Vermont this weekend, are also responding to the snow by booking thier winter ski trips to Killington. We are enjoying hearing from past guests as they call in, or email, to share Thanksgiving greetings and book their trips to Killington for the winter season. Thank you for your continued faith in us as innkeepers!

Where ever you may be, may the ski lifts be fast, the snow be copious, and if you are not skiing or riding but are out braving Black Friday crowds by shopping, may you find the perfect gift for the one you love.

Let it snow!

Killington Peak waiting for Thanksgiving Snow Storm 

While the last few days have not been forgiving for the natural snow that had fallen around Killington this last week, the value of snow making to the ski industry is on full display. In the aftermath of two days of abnormally high temperatures for this time of year, including a day where it r@!ned, the areas of the Killington resort where snow making operations took place these last few weeks are still bright white against the gray mountain.

Work around the inn is progressing as we get ready for the winter season. The annual fall maintenance activities are basically complete. The warm temperatures the last few days allowed the last bit of work outside to be completed in comfortable temperatures.

Now we wait.

Around town anticipation is running high. All eyes are looking at the sky, or the weather channel. All ears are hanging on every weather forecast. Will we get dumped on, or will the storm just graze the area. No matter what happens, it looks like cold weather will return to allow Killington to refire their snow making system. But, if the weather forecasters are to be believed, 6 to 12 inches of new snow provided by Mother Nature would also be a great Thanksgiving gift to ski country.

Twig season making a brief return to the Green Mountains of Vermont.

But never matter. Mary and I have a lot to be thankful for as we enter into the Thanksgiving weekend. If we get snow, that's great. If not, the Thanksgiving Turkeys are still going into the ovens on Thursday as we celebrate the holiday with family and friends.

Where ever you may be, have safe travels as you prepare to give thanks.

Let it snow!

Mary making here season debut on the snow. 

The Nile is a river in Egypt, but there is no denial possible in Killington. Winter is here!

Around the inn, the ground is now solidly covered white. While we are not talking snow that needs to be plowed quite yet, it was necessary to break out the snow shovel to clean up the walkways around the inn when we returned from skiing this morning.

On the mountain, there were other signs of winter. Mary made her first outing of the season. Chuckles, Howie, and a whole host of characters also journeyed out into the snow. Only the Bagel and Ruts were missing from the normal Friday ski group. But they will be skiing soon enough.

At the resort, conditions ranged from soft moguls to 3 inches of natural powder over a man-made base. The resort was skiing top to bottom today. From Killington Peak you could go play in the North Ridge Area, take East Falls back to the K1 Base Lodge, or play on Snowden. Elsewhere at the resort, it looks like ropes will be dropping this weekend(?) on Sky Lark and Bittersweet off Superstar, down Lower Chute to the Snowden Quad, on Rams Head from Rams Head Base and on the learning trail at Snowshed. The combination of cold weather over the last week, combined with some natural provided by Mother Nature is setting the resort up nicely for a great November ski weekend.

At the inn, we reopen our restaurant for the Winter Season this weekend with dinner on Friday and Saturday evening. We will have the same schedule next weekend over the Thanksgiving holidays, before we expand our dinner schedule as we head into December.

Where ever you may be this weekend .. dig our your ski clothes and come on up to Killington for some great early season skiing and riding.

Let it snow!

Snow guns cranking out manpow at Killington. 

Brrr.. Low 20's all day....

Yesterdays mess with snow, sleet, and r@!n was followed up by a blustery cold front. If it was not frozen before the sun went down last night, it will be rock solid as the sun goes down tonight. Winter has overtaken the Killington region. Where are my hat and gloves again???

The resort is taking advantage of the cold weather to pump out some man made powder across the resort. While yesterdays storm left them with some trail resurfacing to accomplish, by this afternoon the resort was making snow on Killington Peak, Snowdon, and Rams Head. The near term focus seems to be focused on getting some novice and intermediate terrain open as we head into the Thanksgiving period. With cold weather firmly entrenched in the area until late in the weekend, the Resort should be seeing some good snow production leading to more open terrain in the next few days.

Around the inn we have wrapped up winter preparations. The yard work is done. Anything left can be done in the spring. The ongoing task of minor building repairs continues. (The inn is a very large building after all). The first ski packages have been ordered for this coming weekend for guests from Killington. I visited with my mother down on Cape Cod last week. Mary is off doing shopping with her mom this week. And Chef Frizzie is back to work as the restaurant re-opens for the winter season this coming Friday November 21st.

Here is the latest video installment of our ongoing search for the perfect..... It is a little too early to use that word yet. Let's pay homage to the Pilgrims and celebrate Thanksgiving first.

Where ever you may be...Stay Warm. And Let it snow!

First bump run of the season! 

Well..... it has to happen some time.

With Killington being open for the season for 9 days, and a ski pass in my possession for 7, it was about time that I ventured out on the mountain... Finally

With the hordes of other's skiing and riding on Veterans Day, I dug out my equipment (a task in itself) and rode the K1 Gondola to the peak. Killington has a couple of legitimate trails open (Rime and Reason with their lower cousins).

Killington has a couple of legitimate trails open (Rime and Reason with their lower cousins). My first run, fittingly, was in the bumps on Upper East Fall. Nice soft moguls in the sun. The best that spring skiing conditions could offer for New Zealand. But this is November and Killington and skiing in such warm temperatures was a little stange at best.

2 runs, 2 25 minute lift lines, and a hike out. Done... 1st day under the belt with hopefully a lot more waiting for me this winter.

Of course, as we head into winter, we have some other things up our collective sleeves as well. Stay tuned....

Let it snow!

Getting leaves away from the Snow Stake to be prepared for snow. 

Busy...busy...busy.. This getting ready for winter stuff is a full time job!

It has been a busy week around the inn as we get everything ready for winter in Killington. Twig Season, being dull and gray, is conducive to getting work done. The warm blue sky of summer, just perfect for chasing little white balls down green fairways, has given way to a damp and dismal atmosphere just perfect for raking leaves, moving wood, hard-packing the driveway, and attending to the other items that need to be done before the first winter snows hit in earnest.

While I have picked up my ski passes (both downhill and uphill traveller), we have not yet had the urge to venture out onto the high slopes of Killington. From 18 years experience at the inn, we know spending time during twig season getting the inn in shape for winter will pay back with huge dividends in free time later in the winter when ski conditions will be prime. So we head outside, face the dull gray atmosphere, hold our faces firm into the light drizzle, and do what needs to be done to prepare for winter.

We have all been doing our share outside. Mary has brought down all of her gardens. She spends so much time on them each summer to make sure they make the grounds around the inn look beautiful. Now they are mounds of dirt, waiting to be covered by the first winter snows.

Chef "Frizzie" has been running the brush cutter. Most of his time has been spent on the Killington Road trimming the ferns which take over the hillside in summer. We try to trim them this time of year so that the area is receptive to early snow storms.

I have been out with my rake cleaning up parts of the front of the inn, and readying the Snow Stake. All of the leaves have been removed from around it. The height markers have been touched up to help make them visible for the camera. The stake has also been re-leveled and re-zero'd in the ground.

I also took apart the snowblower to get it ready for it's annual work out. In addition to changing the oil, I also stripped the gearbox; re-lubricating the works in the process to keep it running smoothly.

Mary was not around when I got everything back together. It is hard to see if it is really working right, as the works are in the front of the machine, and the operator, your's truly, is in the back. Not to be denied, however, I used my trusty Iphone to shoot a short clip reminiscent of a scene from the cult movie "Lawnmower man". Now I just need about 2 feet of snow to play with to really make sure it is working...

Winter is in the way. Let it snow!