Whiteface Conditions (2017 - 2018)

We have warm air aloft and freezing rain.  All the forecasts I use around here are saying 1-3”.  I just don’t see a big accumulation happening

Just drove from placid to saranac.  Roads getting interesting.   Solid layer of ice had to scrape off of windshield

Started as ice here but 4 inches down and still snowing along the St Lawrence .

What time warp are you reporting four inches?  Still sleet in wilmington

Arrived and it doesn't look all that good.  Still sleet at the base and not really sure about at elevation.  They're not reporting the Little Whiteface lift open which means there will be only one lift worth skiing (Summit Quad), so it's a good thing Skyward is reported groomed and open.

Surprisingly there was no line at all for the gondola so I made it to the top of Little Whiteface.  Sleet up there too.  Snow is edgeable but definitely not a powder day.  It's much more empty than I would've expected considering snow in the forecast and that they gave out a bunch of 10 dollar tickets.

Summit Quad broke only gondola and facelift open.  Gondola is starting to get somewhat busy but not nearly as bad as it usually is.

I’m not really sure I’ve ever skied on 3” of frozen rain pellets before but I can tell you it was fun.  It skied like 6” of pow over grooming but it didn’t compress like pow once skied and stayed good run after run.

Definitely interesting conditions.  I left after it went to freezing rain at the base.

snoloco wrote

they gave out a bunch of 10 dollar tickets.

Tony Lanza-style!

Z wrote

I’m not really sure I’ve ever skied on 3” of frozen rain pellets before but I can tell you it was fun.  It skied like 6” of pow over grooming but it didn’t compress like pow once skied and stayed good run after run.

I heard someone was serverly injured today at the Whiteface Summer, a long time rider, local, and an extremely component one, I wonder if that had anything to do with summit chair closing.

Not true.  There was clearly a mechanical problem and they had 4+ snowmobiles and a full maintenance crew working on it when it was closed.  I really doubt that they would've staged a fake mechanical problem like that to cover up the fact that someone was hurt when they could've just as easily said that it was "closed due to weather" if they had to make up some kind of story.

I never said they staged a fake closing or used that as a reason, I didn't know you had a definite reason for the closure or had just assumed. Obviously they closed it then for a mechanical issue if you saw a team working on it. But now unrelated I do definitely know someone was injured badly at the summit

From weekly DEC blast:

Town of Wilmington
Essex County
Rescue: On April 14 at 6:33 p.m., DEC's Ray Brook Dispatch received a transferred call from a group of nine hikers whose friend had fallen down Slide One while preparing to snowboard at Whiteface Ski Center. The subject slid down the entire slide and into a waterfall. The friends made their way to the bottom of the slide and located their friend injured and unconscious, but still breathing. Forest Rangers responded with Whiteface Ski Patrol, evaluated the subject, and provided first aid. The subject was transported to the road via Whiteface Mountain tracked vehicle and transferred to Wilmington EMS ambulance for transport to the hospital for further medical treatment.

What a group of F-Ing morons.  I’ve said it repeatedly you don’t F with the slides.  There was no way they were going to be be skiable with 3” of sleet over waterfal ice. Stupid is as stupid does.  He is Lucky this idiot survived.

Why did they call them hikers in the report?

The Slides were open on Saturday?

No that’s the point well one of the points.  Viewed them Friday from summit chair.  Rocks and ice.  Especially 1 where this happened. Bit more snow over by 4.  

Is it even possible to “slide down the entire Slide (1)” and into the waterfalls?  I doubt it, as Slide 1 until the waterfalls isn’t very steep, nor exposed.  So who knows what the group of “hikers” told the rescuers.  Scotty, what did you tell them?

Z wrote

He is Lucky this idiot survived.

OK then who is "he?"