I arrived at Burke with a 50% off Big Burke Day coupon in hand at 8:30 A.M. to boot up. As per my dining experience at the Tamarack Grill during my recovery period, two enthusiastic employees greeted me as I ascended the new stairs to the recently renovated Sherburne Base Lodge. Those employees were en route to the drop off area to help lug equipment for families, kids, and parents with way too much gear and too few hands. Nice touch.
Entering the lodge, I was amazed at the amount of employees working hard to ensure guest comfort and satisfaction. My initial impression with the Ginn Resort Burke Mountain is that no expense is to be spared in ensuring a first class experience of the highest quality for all skiers; with most especially the family with stressed out parents in mind. I still can’t believe the bag check is complimentary. I headed over to “The Igloo,” which is their brown bag area doubling as a kids play pen, booted up, left my bag in the corner, and headed over to the new quad.
After uploading on the new high speeder, I quickly sped down to the Willoughby Quad and ascended to the summit. Previously, I never cared about the slow speed of the Summit Quad. I enjoy a long slow ride on a fixed grip chairlift. But after getting whisked up the beginner area on a high speeder, the difference in speed is exceptionally notable. Rumors are buzzing about when the summit quad will get replaced with a high speeder. According to one local who had spoken with a “higher up” with Ginn Resorts, it is not going to happen this Summer because they do not know where the condo/housing/hotel/whatever development will be built and they will require lift access for the slope side development. Seems reasonable, but this company also enjoys moving fast and keeping people guessing. I would not be surprised to see a new lift built this Summer, but it is all rumor and conjecture at this point. In any case, since it is all relative, the ride seemed slower than normal and the occasional 4-5 minute stoppages were especially painful.
The morning featured hard pack frozen granular with a stiff breeze and cloudy skies. I should have opted for a late start but had thought the weather would break sooner than it did. I ripped the high speeders from skier’s left to right on Willoughby, Bear’s Den, Warren’s Way, and the Dippers. I made one trip up the Poma which was a real treat. I would have rode the poma more, but the ski track ascending Upper Warren’s Way was rather miserable featuring many icy sections. Additionally, the low snow pack put the poma pole near vertical along the line which made for uncomfortable riding.
Finally, the clouds broke around noon time and just in time as I wanted some natural snow action (what little Burke has available now!). East Bowl was frigging fantastic!!! The low snow levels made the rollers and knolls extremely well pronounced. I have never skied East Bowl in such a roller coaster mood. While even in big snow years, the trail has lots of rolls, the low snow levels really pronounced those features and made things much more fun and interesting than normal. I returned for another helping near the end of the day.
Wilderness had some fantastic bumps despite the thin cover sections which were easily avoided. Fantastic natural bumps basking in the sun were quickly laid to waste. I returned for seconds and burned through them as quick as I could. Yup, the elbow recovery is doing just fine one week back on my third day! No problems at all with the poles in the bumps and was even starting to be able to push a little bit, though most of the East Bowl return utilized the skate method of motion.
All and all, a fantastic day at Burke though it left me wanting more. Most especially, I had wanted to try Sasquatch which is a cool glade off Wilderness. But the sun was not penetrating the woods and things looked way too firm for my current comfort level. Despite the Big Burke Day and groups at Burke (CT Ski Council Day), crowds were minimal and never more than a minute or two wait for any lift. Doubtful that I will make it back to Burke this season while they are open since I have so many tickets to use up else where, but the skiing and riding is great and the snow cover on the main routes will last for some time yet.
Most notable at Burke today was the Rail Jam. Burke has at least four sections of the mountain the have park features and have recruited LSC students to help grow the park. The commitment to the park and the HSQ in the beginner area really round Burke out well. Fantastic beginner/learning area, fantastic customer service, a park for the kids, groomers for the parents, and when open, some of the best glades around. Burke really is set to blow apart VT as one of it’s best ski areas for all ability levels.
