Whiteface Conditions (2017 - 2018)

Cloudspin was open?

Only from the cut off Skyward.  Was really good.  Everything skied well today.

First time on Wilmington Trail and they covered it pretty well.  The safety nets have been replaced by a single orange rope and the first time someone goes over the edge the state is going to be dealing with a massive lawsuit paid for by us taxpayers.  Porcupine Lodge isn't even close to being finished.  Brush is really high on Hoyt's but not 7 feet like I was told.


They appear to be finished with snowmaking for the year.  Three trails thay saw snowmaking last year won't this year, those being Hoyt's, Lookout Below, and Parkway.  Very disappointing as this year has been better snowmaking wise than last.

My son and friend are up there now theru tomorrow , he texted that  Cloudspin Skyward are skiing great , Wilmington fine too, lower mtn is boilerplate from last nite's mixed precip.   Searchers still all over the mtn today

Blowing parkway the report says so they are not done.

They should go back and blow Mt run and Skyward again so that we have enough in April

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Uwr-8UVCe_k

Well, the coverage looks pretty damn good in there, and they let these guys in..........so if they don't open them this weekend I might just throw in with Sno in calling management out!

If anyone is going to be around this weekend give me a shout.

I think that was shot last year after Stella.

You know what, I think you are right....and they just posted it on Tuesday.

That video is Not this yr for sure
They might have opened Sunday if some asshat didn’t go on the lam to Cali
Now they got that crust layer from Sunday afternoon so I’m not optimistic given the forecast
Based on Cloud I don’t think there is enough snow in there yet

Johnnyonthespot wrote

I think that was shot last year after Stella.

Last year in feb!  Before the new normal feb thaw.

Smells like spring walking my beautiful handsome pitbull this morning.

Fast furious and frozen at da face today. Fog from mid up this morning then drizzle not rain then ice then snow eventually to base.  About half an inch.  

Wilmington trail of the day.  Maybe just for Sno go get it.   Excelsior second best.   Essex upper NW wilderness mt run all Zamboni ready.   Parons same.   Sky ok at best.  Niagara ok. Vic ok.  Drapers looked ok after morning NorAms.   They need help with fresh snow.  Mac is toast. Probably could see the worms in the brown.  So many people down and over their heads patrol busy.   Good luck next few days with the Holiday crowds.   No fault of WF management just the collective hand we have been dealt.  Skied for six hours and not tired. Turn and slide no resistance after edges were eaten up.   Still a good day.

Looks like Lookout is back to being closed again for whatever reason.  No Mountain Run chair.  Can't imagine the lines.

It was running this morning

I got in 15k of Vert by getting in early and staying high and got out of dodge
It was better than I expected it to be.  Great job of grooming done last night.
It’s was a zoo at the bottom and they were still showing up at 11:15 and were parking on Rt 86

I’m having trouble figuring out the plan or lack thereof in snowmaking.  Why blow lower Skyward and not blow the connection at coaches corner?  Why blow lower parkway but not the mid section of parkway?  
There is not anywhere close to enough snow on the top of Upper Sky or Mt Run to get thru the Spring.  

Z wrote

I’m having trouble figuring out the plan or lack thereof in snowmaking.  Why blow lower Skyward and not blow the connection at coaches corner?  Why blow lower parkway but not the mid section of parkway?  
There is not anywhere close to enough snow on the top of Upper Sky or Mt Run to get thru the Spring.

First question I don't have the answer to.

Second question is it's another blue trail and this year they're obsessed with being intermediate friendly.

And the third statement I pointed out earlier and is a major major disappointment.  Those are the two most important locations to get a good base on for spring.  They just threw away their whole spring skiing product.  Problem is if they lose the top of Mountain Run they can't run LWF and then you have to go to the bottom every run.  Stupid.  And of course no one wants to make a big spring trip to Whiteface without the summit open.

My guess is W Trail is closed because it's icy and someone went under the rope and off the cliff.

Little WF Essex upper NW or mt run soften up on Saturday?  

Essex was ground up but not pleasant
Upper NW looked like a skating rink
Mt Run was groomed nicely and good first thing but I’m sure didn’t fare well with the masses

The Mountain has done a good job with grooming and the little bit of snow last night helped, but the huge number of people skiing has things down to solid ice by about lunch.  There are a ton of yahoos out there, but it’s presidents weekend.

Best morning run was Skyward but it was scraped off by 10, Thruway was also really good.  Wilmington was downright awful all day.

Best afternoon runs today are Draper's and Lower Mac.  With Lower Mac it's better accessed from freeway than LWF since Lower Northway and the top of Mtn Run were hockey rinks.  Freeway lift has been a life saver today.  Avoided anything more than a short line all day.  I didn't ride the gondola, not even once as the line looked to be 30+ minutes all day.

Nice to say “Hi!” to Grillman and Sno today!

Yes, today was the most crowded I’ve ever seen Whiteface.  Ultimately that is a good thing, no?

Surprise, suprise......my opinion differs slightly from Sno’s!  At 10:00 we waited a little more than 10 minutes at the Gondola.  At 11:00 the FaceLift line snaked ALL the way back to the bottom of the terrain park......and we waited less than 20 minutes.  Upper mountain lifts were 5 minutes or less all day. Crowds were big......but manageable.

Snow surfaces?   Well, there was great snow out there amongst the ice patches if you could keep your head up and read the terrain, or keep it close to the edges.  Yes, the middle of most trails got skied off in short order, but besides that there were plenty of good turns to be found, right to the end of the day.  Even the ice wasn’t all that bad today.  You could always set an edge, not much real boilerplate.

The headeall on Skyward was a rink just before lunch, but after that first 30 feet of ice there was good snow to be found.  Cutting over to Cloudspin it was a couple three inches of fluff on crust.  Enjoyable scratchy powder turns.

Had a good day despite the crowds and snow challenges.  Last year this time it was soft powder turns on the Lookout lift line, so much less snow this year.  Hoping for some spring-y turns tomorrow!

There were some high traffic areas that weren't resurfaced that were really really bad after around 1.  The top of Mountain Run was actual boilerplate and anyone in their right mind who saw it from the lift would've avoided it at any and all costs.  Wilderness and Thruway were also so icy to the point they were totally unenjoyable by that time.

The racing closure on Draper's in the morning prevented it from getting totally skied off and I did about four laps on it maybe more.  I almost left because I couldn't find a trail in decent condition but when I found that I decided to stay to the end.  Lower Mac was thin but they did a really good job grooming it and it is not exactly obvious how to get to it so it stayed in good condition.

I was fine negotiating the Skyward headwall, but after about 10:30 it started getting crowded to the point that I was concerned about some yahoo losing it on the headwall and becoming a human missile so I gave up on it and the rest of the summit.  Still got in three good laps when it was at its best.

I have never seen the gondola line as long as it was when I was at the bottom around 11 and knowing how slowly the line moves I guessed it was 30 minutes.  I was considering taking one for the team and timing it, but I've got better things to do, so I went Bear to Freeway.

JTG4eva! wrote

Yes, today was the most crowded I’ve ever seen Whiteface.

So this proves the theory that making Whiteface into an intermediate mountain is the right move!