STOWE, Vt. (WCAX) – After Killington’s opening three weeks ago, other Vermont ski areas are struggling to come online, including Stowe, which officially opened Tuesday.
Skiers and boarders rang in the first chair of the year at Stowe Mountain Resort on Tuesday morning.
“It’s like your grandmother’s birthday — you got to be out there, see everybody, you know. Opening chair is always just such so much camaraderie,” said Matt Testa.
“It’s a good day to get the legs back under you and get going and try it again and see where you left off and where you’re starting from,” said K.C. Arnott of Stowe.
“I’ve been waiting on this since April 20th — the last year — but every single day I’ve been thinking about this day,” said Seth Gentry of Stowe. “it’s going to be a really good season. I mean, we’re excited, everybody’s excited. and yeah, good snow-making, good grooming, and everything. Looks tip top right now.”
It has been a challenging fall with warm weather and little snow, making it difficult for many ski areas in the lead-up to Thanksgiving weekend, a target date for many. But the snow gods brought the powder just in time.
“The process for the snowmakers and the groomers and the whole mountain ops team has been, it’s been hard, but they’re resilient and they kept going and they took every advantage of all the snow-making opportunities and they got us here,” said the resort’s Mike Giorgio. He says they have seven trails open out of their available 116 and are building a good base. “We’re continuing to pop natural trails as we get more snowfall and make snow, and we plan to expand pretty quickly.”
Fresh snow from the skies and snow guns blazing is making for a great start that everyone hopes will make for an even better future.
“It’s one of the best opening days in recent memory and it’s just really good to see the Stowe family and familiar faces and get back on the hill,” Testa said.
“It’s a beautiful day. We just got some good fresh snow, so it’s been really fun,” Arnott said.
If you’re not into skiing or snowboarding, there are plenty of events coming up this month at Spruce Peak including a “Charlie Brown Christmas” performance and professional skating.