Maybe I'm nuts, but if you play this clip, I swear they are blowing snow in the foreground
I agree, towards the end of the clip you can distinguish each gun making snow.
They are still going at 9:15
I wonder if they are trying snowmax or something, temps don't seem right....seems like they should be running the guns right in front of the camera though.
Construction dust..ha....just a little cool down brought down from a massive storm raging in the Great Lakes right now...
32 degrees up at the shoe right now....no more cold after this 2 day cooldown for a week or more...ill leave uall with a video song of the Edmond Fitzgerald which went down in a simular storm awhile back...enjoy!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9vST6hVRj2A
Shavers camera...looks like they have more than testing going on. Weather.com has lowered evening temps a few defers for the next week, I'll be interested to see how much snow they can get down this weekend
I just happened to peak at my camera. I do not have a night vision cam but the lights are on both ballhooter guns and they are definitely blowing snow.
My window will most likely be iced over tonight.
Good Stuff!
I just was looking at the radar. There will probally be some flurries in the high elevation tonight / tomorrow morning. It's about time!
6:45 AM
Got an early morning email from Snowshoe showing a ribbon of white covering most of Cupp Run! It will melt this week, but let's hear it for the new advanced snowmaking system installed on Cupp late summer!
The Colonel
New guns on Cupp roaring away. These are from late morning. Was just there again at 3pm and they're still going.
New guns on Cupp roaring away. These are from late morning. Was just there again at 3pm and they’re still going.
These are awesome! Nice win by WVU today!
What is the temp at your place?
Blue Don 1982 wrote:
What is the temp at your place?
59degF at 4400 ft elev. Thanks fo posting pics, still not sure what I'm doing wrong.
Bonzski wrote:
Blue Don 1982 wrote:
What is the temp at your place?
59degF at 4400 ft elev. Thanks fo posting pics, still not sure what I'm doing wrong.
I think the sensor is getting direct sun. I'd say its more like hi 40s, winds are calming down...20mph gusts.
Bonzski wrote:
Blue Don 1982 wrote:
What is the temp at your place?
59degF at 4400 ft elev. Thanks fo posting pics, still not sure what I'm doing wrong.
In the tool bar, to the right of the flag is an photo icon. Click it then paste the url of you photo there
Antoine wrote:
guns are back online.
I honestly dont know if they ever went off. I have never been able to find a place with an accurate temp reading at the top (Blue Don.. do you know of anything) but I really feel like it should have gotten above snowmaking temps at some point. Is the temp really that much below reported or as fishinski said "what kind of secret mojo juice are they running thru those blowers"?
Now... I suspect most of what they are blowing will melt this week, so I'm honestly a bit surprised at them blowing this much, I understand that they have virtually unlimited water, but what about electric? Do they have solar, or other power for this? Don't get me wrong, I'm really enjoying the eye candy... and hope they dont lose all of it this week... but seems like somewhat of a waste.
The orographic rule is 10 degrees every 2000 or so feet. So it's very likley it's been cold enough for snowmaking temps. I Remeber they made an update video a couple years back saying they outfitted their guns to be able to run snowmax. So more then likley they are using it. It's also worth noting that the summit is at least 1000 feet above the surrounding mnts and it's a northwest breeze will bring in those cool temps.
I walked out on to Cupp at 3pm with the guns running. Temps were in the 40s. The product was pretty much mist, not much snow. 32deg at 9pm so it's good now.
I wonder if these temps are accurate? They list a summit and base temp with altitudes that look about right.
http://www.onthesnow.com/west-virginia/snowshoe-mountain-resort/weather-details.html
My window was froze over at my camera until 5 AMish this morning. Either it warmed up and thawed out or I have a mystery guest. I hope they fix my cable.
645 AM
Looks to me like you could poach a few turns right now, Blue Don.
The19thHole wrote:
Looks to me like you could poach a few turns right now, Blue Don.
That would be cool. Sadly, I'm 4 hours away. I have an app on my phone for that webcam so I can be there in spirit.
Snowshoe shut them down sometime this morning or overnight. The temps I was showing this morning was 22 degrees so it may have gotten too cold.
Anyone know now a decent external wifi and/or wink compatible thermostat? Was thinking of setting one up next trip up so I could monitor true temp at elevation.
I know I may be crazy, but I suspect they will get a run up for at least a day or two over t-giving. Gets plenty cold at night and there are probably too many rooms already booked. Can't see why they would be running guns now otherwise.
Sschneid wrote:
Anyone know now a decent external wifi and/or wink compatible thermostat? Was thinking of setting one up next trip up so I could monitor true temp at elevation.
I never thought of that but I'm going to do some research. Great Idea!”‹
It it can measure humidity then we can calculate wet bulb. I found one but it is not wink compatible and not wifi.
Sschneid wrote:
It it can measure humidity then we can calculate wet bulb. I found one but it is not wink compatible and not wifi.
This is going to sound very dumb... But why don't you point a web c at a thermometer?. It'll save you a lot of monney.
i thought of that - but it would cost me 60 bucks or so for the webcam and if the window fogs up or ices over won't be able to see it. That said - may be worth a shot. Figure if I can find the thermometer at a similar price it would work better.
Can hang it under the deck right outside basement door so should be somewhat protected.
What about one of these? All the $$ is in the Internet Bridge Device
http://www.acurite.com/environment-systems/temperature-humidity-environment-systems.html
Not sure if this would do what you want, but I've used the Netatmo Weather Station for many years and have been pleased with it:
https://www.netatmo.com/en-US/product/weather-station
It's been pretty reliable and has a nice app. I have multiple stations.
Or just save urself some money.....
http://www.weatherlink.com/user/snowshoe
This station is off by no more than 1 degree at any time...there is another very accurate measurment taken from the Silvercreek lodge at 4462' and another at 4711' from Snowshoe itself.....
There are a few other stations on the mountain from folks that are doing what uall are trying and they are wayyyyyy off.....
Thanks for the tip fishnski!
Looks what I found on google:
http://www.weatehrunderground.com/personal-weather-station/dashboard?ID=KWVSNOWS10
Looks like it updates live.
Now ur talkin..been using weatherunderground stations for years....
Now.... what were you saying about it getting so cold this morn that they had to shut down the snowmaking operations?...
Now...ill believe that if you can believe this!
Thanks all for SS weather sites'
Alright fishnski... http://www.weather.com/weather/tenday/l/USWV0703:1:US what happend?
Where did the cold temps come in starting Thursday/Friday (and can we believe it)... if this forecast holds based on what we saw this weekend they might actually be able to open 11/25...
NEWS ALERT!!!....rlav is a weather channel operative touting the weather.com site on this and other sites...
Call ur sidekick Mike Siedel rlav to meet ya up at the top of SS wed/nite to report on the near hurricane winds...Ole mikey likes to ham it up and it should be fun watching him hang on and bounce off the Spruce!....I remember a scene where he is hanging on to a lampost or something for dear life when in the background I noticed an ole lady casually walking her dog down the beach...funny...
jus messin with ya rlav.....I think a better fcast would be the NWS pinpoint at 4268' for the Mtn.....
oday
Sunny, with a high near 52. Calm wind becoming south around 6 mph in the morning.
Tonight
Mostly cloudy, with a low around 39. Southeast wind around 6 mph.
Tuesday
Mostly cloudy, with a high near 48. Southeast wind 5 to 10 mph.
Tuesday Night
A chance of rain, mainly after midnight. Mostly cloudy, with a low around 44. Southeast wind 8 to 15 mph. Chance of precipitation is 30%.
Wednesday
Rain likely, mainly after 3pm. Mostly cloudy, with a high near 56. South wind 11 to 18 mph, with gusts as high as 28 mph. Chance of precipitation is 60%. New precipitation amounts between a tenth and quarter of an inch possible.
Wednesday Night
Rain before 8pm, then showers, mainly after 8pm. Low around 47. Windy. Chance of precipitation is 90%. New precipitation amounts between a half and three quarters of an inch possible.
Thursday
A chance of showers before 3pm. Mostly sunny, with a high near 50. Chance of precipitation is 40%.
Thursday Night
Partly cloudy, with a low around 34.
Friday
Mostly sunny, with a high near 43.
Friday Night
Partly cloudy, with a low around 30.
Saturday
Mostly sunny, with a high near 41.
Saturday Night
Partly cloudy, with a low around 28.
Sunday
A chance of showers. Mostly sunny, with a high near 37. Chance of precipitation is 30%.
The Weather.com posts show temps at a lower altitude which can show colder morning temps that can settle in the lower valleys..(inversion)
10 days ago I posted where the GFS model was trying to bring in some cold air around the 21st give or take...I asked then with no answer whether or not a place like SS could get up and running with just a few days of blowing....I was guessing at that point that it would take 7 days of around the clock snowmaking (heck...how long does it take TL to open a slope?!) but as I posted a couple of days ago im evolving my thinking after watching the display that the SS crew put on in very marginal to above freezing temps.
Maybe they blew early knowing the warm temps and rain to follow because the snow would insulate the ground for when the real deal would start....either way SS is a superbly aggresive snowmaking area...
Well said!
What are the latest guesses about Snowshoe getting opened? It looks like it might not get abouve freezing at all This Sunday, and there will be several days of below freezing nights. Will it be enough to get it opened Thanksgiving or the day before or the day after? Or is that still not enough time to get things white?
eggraid wrote:
What are the latest guesses about Snowshoe getting opened? It looks like it might not get abouve freezing at all This Sunday, and there will be several days of below freezing nights. Will it be enough to get it opened Thanksgiving or the day before or the day after? Or is that still not enough time to get things white?
Latest facebook post (36 minutes ago) says Nov 25 is a no-go:
"As you might have noticed, we have experienced an unusually warm November up to this point, and our snowmaking operations have been limited. Unfortunately, we do not anticipate being able to open on-slope activities by our forecasted Opening Day of November 25th. We will continue to monitor the weather and provide updates on a tentative opening day. "
wgo wrote:
eggraid wrote:
What are the latest guesses about Snowshoe getting opened? It looks like it might not get abouve freezing at all This Sunday, and there will be several days of below freezing nights. Will it be enough to get it opened Thanksgiving or the day before or the day after? Or is that still not enough time to get things white?
Latest facebook post (36 minutes ago) says Nov 25 is a no-go:
"As you might have noticed, we have experienced an unusually warm November up to this point, and our snowmaking operations have been limited. Unfortunately, we do not anticipate being able to open on-slope activities by our forecasted Opening Day of November 25th. We will continue to monitor the weather and provide updates on a tentative opening day. "
Thanks for the tip! A further clarification from the replies below that post:
"Great questions Crice, it is very doubtful that we will be able to open by next weekend (27th & 28th) but we will open as soon as possible, whether that means a Saturday or a Tuesday."
So it sounds like the whole weekend will be a dud. Not much you can do about warm temps unfortunately.
eggraid wrote:
So it sounds like the whole weekend will be a dud.
Now I have ZERO excuse to avoid dinner at my relatives.
Probably better Snowshoe is waiting a bit rather than attempting to open with a WROD.
wgo wrote:
Probably better Snowshoe is waiting a bit rather than attempting to open with a WROD.
At SS it's either one WROD on opening day or, when fully open on a holiday weekend: 30 WR'sOD ;-)
At 5:00 pm on Fri:
NWS out of Charleston, WV calling for Snowshoe to have a high on Sunday of 21, with a low of 12. Also calling for 1-3 inches of natural snow.
As of 9:16 pm they have decreased snow total to +/- 1inch.
The Colonel
Impressive effort going on at snowshoe this AM in the basin area.... looks like Silver Creek has snowguns on as well
http://www.wunderground.com/personal-weather-station/dashboard?ID=KWVSNOWS10#history
Now they just need a camera on western territory to show off their investment....
rbrtlav wrote:
Impressive effort going on at snowshoe this AM in the basin area.... looks like Silver Creek has snowguns on as well
http://www.wunderground.com/personal-weather-station/dashboard?ID=KWVSNOWS10#history
Now they just need a camera on western territory to show off their investment....
+1
All these years I've scratched my head. Cupp is their signature run yet until this year, it's late to open and gets no photo / video hype.
I'd be showing that stuff off like a peacock struts its feathers.
They must have heard us.
Nice...thanks for the update. I'm going up for Thanksgiving. I hope they change their minds and open!
Awesome pic of the western side...really like the other pic u posted BDon from the village looking west over the mountains....that view haunted me when I had to make the decision on building a place in Canaan or buying a place up at SS...
The way im starting to think about how SS decides to blow or not is a Damb us if we do ...damb us if we dont...if they listened to a bad fcast and didnt blow they get burned with a surprise snowmaking window...the flipside is they get a good fcast and blow and then get burned so they might as well Blow!...agressive and bullish....dont lose the spirit!
Couple of days ago my readings of the long range was a return of cold around the 30th of nov or the 1st of dec. after warming up by wed the 25th..
the models are split between it coming in sooner like late sat/sun morn the 29th or being hung up by a system pushing up a little warmth and moisture and then its not clear if there is anything behind that.. sooooooooo...blow blow blow till ya cant no mo !?
Speaking of SS village and SS...we should really change the top elevation of the mountain.....its now a 5000' mtn with all those buildings up there....more lift more LE snow!
The Colonel wrote:
fishnski wrote:
Or just save urself some money.....
http://www.weatherlink.com/user/snowshoeThis station is off by no more than 1 degree at any time...there is another very accurate measurment taken from the Silvercreek lodge at 4462' and another at 4711' from Snowshoe itself.....
There are a few other stations on the mountain from folks that are doing what uall are trying and they are wayyyyyy off.....
Mr Fish,
What happened to this weather station, appears to be off the air!? How do we fix?
By the way, Accuweather provides forecast for Linwood, WV very near Snowshoe!
The Colonel
Interesting that the weather underground (and other) forecasts for snowshoe today was to get up as high as 36 degrees, yet the actual temp (as told by the sensors at snowshoe & silver creek) have stayed below 25 all day. They've put quite a bit of snow down over the last 48 hrs.
The station that I've been using for a while is KWVSNOWS11 on weather underground. I've noticed that it's been pretty spot on for the weather on the mountain. That said, they've been doing a great job making snow on the mountain. I'm hoping they'll be open by Wednesday (December 2nd.)
I wouldn't be surprised if they open Sunday or monday. I suspect they have enough snow to open before then, but will leave it untouched through the warm streak this week and then will spread it out when they can return to nightly snowmaking. I'm hoping to get down for the demo day on the 5th...would be overjoyed if cupp was open by then!
Unfortunately, Thursday-Sunday aren't looking very good in terms of being able to produce any snow. Which leads me to believe, if they don't plan on opening for Thanksgiving, I highly doubt they'd wait a couple days for it to melt down and then open up. Looks like a cold snap will come on through Monday, and give them a couple days to get caught up and ready to go. I know they've been making snow every chance they can get so far this winter (whether or not it would melt away; they purchase energy blocks from the electric company so starting Novemeber 1st, they are allegedly free game.)
They are shutting down the guns around 10 AM on the Shavers Webcam.
The party may be over for the next couple days.
Blue Don 1982 wrote:
They are shutting down the guns around 10 AM on the Shavers Webcam.
The party may be over for the next couple days.
After tonight that is...looks like they are firing back up again
rbrtlav wrote:
I wouldn't be surprised if they open Sunday or monday. I suspect they have enough snow to open before then, but will leave it untouched through the warm streak this week and then will spread it out when they can return to nightly snowmaking. I'm hoping to get down for the demo day on the 5th...would be overjoyed if cupp was open by then!
We (Kicker Snowsports) will be at Snowshoe on Dec 5th and 6th for the demo. I'm hoping it will be better than last year's cold rainy demo day. Hope to see you there!
Headed out to Shoe the 11th-13th... would LOVE if Cupp were open! Early Xmas present to break in the new sticks...
I've not been there early season- how are they on opening Camp99, Sawmill, Widow?
skinavy wrote:
Headed out to Shoe the 11th-13th... would LOVE if Cupp were open! Early Xmas present to break in the new sticks...
I've not been there early season- how are they on opening Camp99, Sawmill, Widow?
Snowshoe would roll out Cupp and Shay's had your username been skiarmy...
Go Army!!
skinavy wrote:
Headed out to Shoe the 11th-13th... would LOVE if Cupp were open! Early Xmas present to break in the new sticks...
I've not been there early season- how are they on opening Camp99, Sawmill, Widow?
Camp99, Sawmill will likely be some of the last trails to open, especially if they open Cupp earlier. They focus a lot on the middle of the mountain (Ballhooter) in the early part of the season and then expand outward.
Starting to feel pretty unlikely that Snowshoe will open 5th/6th.. The weather doesn't look good for snowmaking until middle of the week and there is a ton of rain washing out the snow. We had planned on going this weekend but thinking that is unlikely now.
Was anyone there this weekend? How do the rest of the trails look? Shame we can't see Cupp on any of the webcams.
I was there this weekend and walked a few hundred ft of Cupp (just below Ridge Rd) on Sat afternoon. I was surprised how well it was holding up. Looking closely, they installed the new guns at avg 50ft spacing on both sides which makes for some quick work of laying down a good base. This week will be a challenge though.
There is a little hint of cold weather from thursday-sat, but its still not looking that great for snowmaking. All the rain and warm weather is just eating up at what they previously made. I hope to eat my words, but I don't see them being open before the 11th, unless some major changes to the weather happen.
Snowshoe posted a cryptic message on Facebook yesterday stating it was "highly unlikely" they will be spinning the lifts in the next week. They did not come out and say NO skiing this weekend.
My sources at Mtn Lodge say NO SKIING this weekend at the Shoe.
Blue Don 1982 wrote:
Snowshoe posted a cryptic message on Facebook yesterday stating it was "highly unlikely" they will be spinning the lifts in the next week. They did not come out and say NO skiing this weekend.
My sources at Mtn Lodge say NO SKIING this weekend at the Shoe.
Bummer. We were hoping to go out there on the 12-13, looks like that might be opening weekend!
The demo is definitely canceled. Bummer. I hope the season starts soon!
kickerfrank - did they give you any insight as to if they will re-schedule demo days and for when?
My wife was looking forward to trying kicker this weekend. She heard about it through a friend that went to the Warren Miller show last month.
Our GM sent me some info noting they would try to reschedule Demo Days "in the second half of the season"
Not sure exactly what that means ..... but one would assume after the holiday season.
Sschneid wrote:
kickerfrank - did they give you any insight as to if they will re-schedule demo days and for when?
My wife was looking forward to trying kicker this weekend. She heard about it through a friend that went to the Warren Miller show last month.
We have no information for rescheduling demos at Snowshoe. We have numerous other demo dates in the area this season:
We are also working out dates with Canaan and Massanutten. We will continue to build out the event calendar as the season (and snow fall) gets closer.
-Frank
Anyone have insights on the ability for snowshoe to open the full resort by Christmas. I know it is still several weeks away but I can't imagine how crowded it will be without the silver creek and the western territory open to spread out the masses.
They have new guns on the western territory (on cupp run at least). I think they are trying to have it ready for opening day also.
Flatlander wrote:
Anyone have insights on the ability for snowshoe to open the full resort by Christmas. I know it is still several weeks away but I can't imagine how crowded it will be without the silver creek and the western territory open to spread out the masses.
They are blowing snow at both Silver Creek and Western. No webcam on western but both Silvercreek and the basin show them running. They put in a bunch of new guns on western this summer so I would assume they are running too. Not sure how much washed away in the recent rain but comments from some people that were there this past weekend suggest they are holding up alright.
Christmas is still a ways away. Will be there on the 19th and haven't started panicking yet..
Flatlander wrote:
Anyone have insights on the ability for snowshoe to open the full resort by Christmas. I know it is still several weeks away but I can't imagine how crowded it will be without the silver creek and the western territory open to spread out the masses.
With Christmas being their big money maker, I would think they will do everything in their power to open Cupp and Silver Creek. They spent a shit ton on those new guns on Cupp for this season. Nothing worse than a disappointing Christmas for them.
They are blowing snow right now in Silver Creek
Snowshoe just reported that they will open this Friday. From their FB page:
"THE WAIT IS OVER SNOW LOVERS!!! We will open for the 2015.2016 Season this Friday, December 11th. The rope drops at 9AM, so come on up and help us get this season started off right!
This weekend's terrain will be limited, with Ballhooter and Skidder likely the only lifts in operation. The forecasts do look favorable to allow us to expand terrain over the next couple of weeks as we near the holidays, so stay tuned for updates!......As of right now, we are planning to have one route down the mountain consisting of Skidder, Heisler Way, Upper Whistlepunk, Powder Monkey, and Whiffletree. With two operational lifts, Ballhooter and Skidder. We will be expanding terrain as quickly as possible to open more trails."
I'm not sure I'm down with heading out there to do the same green trail over and over, but kudos to them for getting anything open. I don't know how it's possible with these temps recently.
Must be a different animal down there. Temps at 5:30 say 34.9 with some light flurries at the boathouse cam. It looks like they are cranking out snow on the guns near Shavers and Silver Creek.
Thank you Snowshoe for getting something open, despite the weather! Another feather in your cap as the Mid-Atlantic's best ski area. For those that partake this weekend, no complaining...you have been fairly warned what to expect! Just be thankful to be on snow!
And if you get a chance, take a look at Cupp and report on how it is looking!
Enjoy,
The Colonel
The Colonel wrote:
And if you get a chance, take a look at Cupp and report on how it is looking!
I was there on 5/6th. Cupp still had coverage top to bottom so expect it to open once the weather stabilizes.
Wonderful news! I didn't think they would open until the 18th the way the weather looks. We're going up for the weekend of hte 18th. Hoping Cupp may be open by then.
Snowshoe groomed near Ballhooter last night. My camera motion senser went nuts last night and recorded 953 images between 1 and 2 AM
Anybody hear any thing about the skiing at Snowshoe today?
The Colonel
I was out on a snowboard today at Snowshoe. Most of the people on the slopes were staff, but I honestly think they have around a 2' base on most of what was open (it was soft today) that held up decently well as there was not a huge amount of traffic. The snow was soft, fun and quite forgiving. I'll try to post some pictures shortly, but I suspect that CAN stay open through Wednesday with what snow they have and some grooming magic, and then they should be able to make snow for a while based on forecast.
I heard a few things on the slopes today that may or may not be true from the staff I was on lifts with
- Occupancy this weekend was in the low teens (this I believe)
- Occupancy next weekend is between 80-90 percent as schools start breaks (this will be interesting if they dont make snow until thurday next week)
-Silver creek has top to bottom coverage and should be open next weekend as scheduled (Heard this on a lift from a snow maker)
I had a great day.... and it was clear the grooming and snowmaking crew did a signifigant amount of work to make this weekend happen, my expectations going into today were LOW, and I was honestly impressed. I think they actually had more terrain and lifts open than advertised yesterday: Powder Monkey, Skinner, and Ballhooter were all spinning, two ways down to powder monkey, one way down to Ballhooter.
I'll be interested to hear what the crowds are like today (Saturday)
Look at web cam. Looked like a number of folks having fun this morning!
eggraid wrote:
I'll be interested to hear what the crowds are like today (Saturday)
It was actually a really good day out. Wonderful t-shirt weather. Crowds were light, and the trails weren't packed full of people. No lines at the bottom of the lifts (still only running Ball Hoot and Powder Monk.) People were enjoying the rail competition. All in all, great opening weekend at the Shoe.
edit: I was also rocking a brand new pair of ski's and no nicks on the bottoms of them after 15 runs, so there's definitely good snow out there :)
Agreed. I was out again today from rope drop until 4:30. I think most people came in with reasonable expectations given the situation, and I think the product the groomers and snow makers were able to deliver exceeded most people's expectations. I suspect the park will be dismantled to repair parts of Skinner tonight or tomorrow night, but other than that the snow was holding up quite well. I would consider it "Springlike" more than "early season", there really was a nice base for most of the open terrain, and the choice of trails open was really nice, it was right around 1.25 miles from the run from the top of Ballhooter back to the bottom, this weekend is probably the best Snow:Chair ratio I have ever had.
The only thing I wish they had done better (that is in their control) is Ballhooter lift to the top of Skinner was not entirely downhill which was a pain, but I dont think that is a usual route (unless you are going to the village) and I'd dont know if they really had enough snow to avoid it.
I drove out by Silver Creek and looked at Cupp on the way out: Cupp- Top half still has nice snow piles, maybe enough for edge to edge coverage. Bottom half had fewer and smaller piles, certaintly not enough to cover it without substancial snow making
Silver Creek on the other hand (from what I could tell from the parking lot) had enough snow to spread out and open at least one trail from top to bottom, and the piles looked like they could easliy last the next few days.
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