Vermont Ski + RIde 2024-25 Winter Holidays

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CONTENTS

FEATURES

26 | The Homestead

They wanted their own trails, solitude and a place to grow their food. Here’s how one couple built a homestead using wood felled on their land.

32 | 50 Ways to Win Winter

To fully embrace winter, become a wintermeister and see how many of these classic Vermont activities you can tick off.

44 | Poachers

There are several unwritten rules to backcountry skiing: don’t posthole in the skin track, don’t pee in it either and never, ever, share the whereabouts of your secret powder stash.

COLUMNS & DEPARTMENTS

7 | FIRST TRACKS | Ski Season News

A new look at Killington’s proposed base village; new lifts; the one-million-meter man; lost ski areas get their own exhibit, and more.

11 | WEEKEND AWAY | Two Ways to Love Stratton

Here’s how to spend $20,000 or just $1,000 and have a seriously good weekend at Stratton, no matter your budget.

17 | LOCAL HEROES | Funny Business

Meet our region’s most hilarious skiers and riders and see what they are posting to social media.

21 | APRES | Ski and Cheese Pairings.

The best cheese in America? According to international judges, it comes from the Green Mountains.

51 | GEAR | From Vermont. With Love.

Hats, gloves, skis ... check off your gift list with these products from Vermont brands.

55 | FLASHBACK | Carnival Time.

How winter carnivals first started and where they are going strong.

60 | GREEN MOUNTAIN CALENDAR

64 | LAST RUN | Building a BIPOC Base Camp.

A vision for a new space where diversity and inclusivity are top priority.

COVER: Brian Finch cuts up the freshly groomed corduroy at Stratton. Photo by Hubert Schriebl

THIS PAGE: Blasting through the backcountry in the Mad River Valley. Photo by Brian Mohr/EmberPhoto

GINGHAM and GABLE

INTERIOR DESIGN

VT • CT • NY • Hamptons

April Shen | April@ginghamandgable.com & Lisa Ehrlich | Lisa@ginghamandgable.com

@ginghamandgable

For the Love of Winter.

Afriend once told me: “If you are moving to Vermont you better love winter.“ That was 20 years ago and truth be told, back then I didn’t love winter, just downhill skiing.

I’d get up for first chair and ski, as often as I could, until closing. Then, exhausted, I’d make the drive from Stowe to back my home in southern Connecticut.

Since then, I’ve moved to Vermont and discovered that for every snow condition, for every type of winter weather, there is a sport. If the snow isn’t good, I go fatbiking or skating, and when it’s too good or too crowded, backountry or cross country skiing.

It was while backcountry skiing that I got to know Denny Boyle. He was a big-hearted guy who knew every nook of the woods and the story behind each skier we met there. Denny would be out exploring on tele skis or fatbike in every kind of weather. Denny was a true wintermeister.

On a beautiful day last October, Denny, age 79, skinned up Mt. Mansfiield. He called his wife Pat at the summit, and arced a few perfect turns in the early season powder. Then, he sat down by the side of the trail. His heart stopped and he passed on to his next heaven.

There are so, so many ways to learn to love winter in Vermont and as we started compiling them for our article “50 Ways to Win Winter,” I kept thinking of what activities Denny would do.

I claim no mastery at any single thing — and have done only 38 of the 50 things we recommend. But it’s still early in the season, right? Here’s to reaching “Wintermeister” status this season.

I’m doing it for Denny. — Lisa Lynn, Editor

p. 42

Andrew Ross

Ross grew up ski racing in the Berkshire hills of Massachusetts. He never made it our West and so contents himself chasing powder—and all other kinds of snow — wherever he can find it in Vermont and New Hampshire.

CONTRIBUTORS

p. 42

Emily Johnson & Brian Morh Explorers, adventurers and photographers, Brian Morh and Emily Johnson shot the backcountry images for “Poachers”. But don’t ask them to tell you where they shot.

p. 1, 11

Hubert Schriebl

An Austrian mountain guide, Schriebl came to Stratton in 1964. His iconic photos of Stratton and mountains around the world have appeared in Time, Sports Illustrated SKI and other publications.

RYAN BENT PHOTOGRAPHY

VT SKI RIDE +

EDITORIAL

Publisher Angelo Lynn angelo@vtskiandride.com

Editor/Co-Publisher Lisa Lynn editor@vtskiandride.com

Creative Director David Pollard

Contributing Writers and Photographers: Victoria Gaither, David Goodman, Brian Mohr, Doug Stewart, Jeb Wallace-Brodeur

ADVERTISING SALES & DISTRIBUTION

For general advertising and media kits: lisa.lynn@vtsports.com | 802-388-4944

Greg Meulemans greg@vtskiandride.com

Dave Honeywell dave_golfhouse@madriver.com

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FIRST TRACKS

Building a New Base Village

Killington’s new base village is one step closer to reality. This past summer the mountain access road was torn up so water lines could be laid. By 2026-27 the water should be ready to hook up. At the Killington World Cup, Great Gulf’s Michael Sneyd, who is in charge of the development, noted a change in the timeline. If permitting goes smoothly, construction on the village could start as soon as 2026 and the first buildings could open by 2028. The plans call for 720 ski-in/ski-out condominiums as well as attached and semi-attached single family lots to be built as part of Phase I. The pedestrian village will also have two town squares and lead to a huge, glassedin 85,000-square-foot base lodge near where the current Snowshed lodge is now. That will open onto what Great Gulf calls “the East’s largest snow beach.” In new renderings, Great Gulf also showed the village with images of an ice skating path around the current Snowshed pond, an outdoor spa with cold plunge pools, and an ice bar.

DECEMBER DEALS

There are so many reasons to ski in December. Skiing for free is one of them. At Bolton Valley Resort , dress as Santa on Sunday, Dec. 15 and you ski for free. At Alterra-owned resorts Sugarbush and Stratton , Dec. 7 to 13 has been dubbed “Kids Ski Free Week.” The offer (open to kids 17 and under), is also good at 13 other Alterra resorts. Middlebury Snowbowl and Rikert Outdoor Center have teamed up to offer a “Snow Sampler” package. For $129 the package includes three anytime lift tickets to the Snowbowl and two day passes to the cross country and fatbike trails at the nearby Rikert Outdoor Center. The catch? The Snow Sampler has to be purchased by Dec. 24.

The New Lifts in Town

In December, Sugarbush cut the ribbon on the only new lift in the state. The Heaven’s Gate fixed grip quad replaces an old triple that leads to Lincoln Peak. Killington will wait until spring to decommission the current Superstar chair, a high-speed quad, to make way for a new Doppelmayr UNI-G six-person chairlift. The resort plans to run it at a speed that will keep uphill capacity the same but the heavier chairs should make the lift less prone to wind holds. Magic Mountain finally opened its Black Chair quad in late February of 2024 and plans to have it run all season. Middlebury Snowbowl, which put in the new Sheehan triple and night skiing last season, will bring the Bailey Falls lift back online this winter after being down for two years.

LOST & FOUND SKI AREAS

THE MILLION-METER MAN

In September 2024, Stowe skier Noah Dines set a record, breaking friend and neighbor Aaron Rice’s 2.5-million-foot record for human-powered uphill skiing in one calendar year. But Dines didn’t stop there. On Oct. 24 at the Corralco Ski Resort in Chile, Dines hit the mark he’d set out for himself: skiing 3 million human-powered vertical feet in one calendar year. Dines kept going, returning home to Stowe in November and skiing every patch of snow he could find. “I encouraged Noah to go for a record of 1 million meters – that means something to Europeans and that’s a number that’s harder to beat,” said Greg Hill, who set the first uphill skiing record of 2 million feet in 2010. That left Dines two months to make up the last 280,840 feet and reach the 3 million meter mark (3,280,840 feet). On Dec. 1, two days before Stowe Mountain Resort opened for the season, Dines lapped the trails on Mt. Mansfield for more than 7 hours, logging 30.1 kilometers on Strava and reaching the 1 million meter mark.

For over 25 years, The Vermont Ski and Snowboard Museum has been searching for “lost” ski areas. To date, 184 have been identified, including four that were in the planning stages but never opened. Last year, the Stowe museum highlighted ski areas in the southern part of the state. On Dec. 6 the museum’s new exhibit opened: “Searching for Vermont’s Lost Ski Areas – Part 2,” dedicated to 113 areas in the northern part of Vermont.

One such area, the Underhill Ski Bowl (shown below) was built in 1937 when the Underhill Winter Sports Club set up a 1,000-foot rope tow on the Egan Farm in Underhill Center. Stowe instructor Sepp Ruschp helped lay out the lift. The ski area, with 145 feet of vertical, featured a bowlshaped open slope ideal for learning to ski. The area soon added lights for night skiing and a base lodge. Ski races for kids and high school meets were often hosted there. Notable Vermont skiers who raced at the Bowl include Billy Kidd, Chantal Knapp, and Julie Wolcott.

Among the lost areas highlighted in the exhibit include four in Waterbury, five in Stowe, and one off I89’s Route 2 east exit in South Burlington.

Towns like Newport, Middlebury, and Lyndonville had strong ski jumping traditions and added lifts for alpine skiing. Lifts appeared at Norwich University, Johnson State College, Vermont Junior College in Montpelier, Sterling School, and at Goddard College.

Farmers in central Vermont and the Champlain Valley, seeking extra income during the winter, installed rope tows and strung lights for night skiing. Town recreation programs added lifts and offered lessons right in the middle of villages. Inns and hotels rigged up lifts for their guests . Many were community-based and locally run, while others were built with a vision similar to what ski areas look like today.

Some areas lasted a season or two, while others lasted decades. Many closed due to rising insurance costs and stringent state lift safety protocols. Visit the museum in Stowe for a chance to see them in their heyday.

Backcountry Glamping

Vermont’s backcountry huts, such as Bryant Camp at Bolton Valley or the Stone Hut on Mt. Mansfield, have been simple affairs. Now, thanks to the Vermont Huts Association’s growing network, more and more backcountry huts are getting a glow-up. Take the Dark Star Cabin (pictured above). The off-grid solar-powered cabin is at the heart of the Camel’s Hump Nordic Ski Area trails, about 500 feet from another hut, the Crow’s Nest Yurt, and just off Section 20 of the Catamount Trail. Dark Star has mattresses for six, a kitchen with pots and pans and utensils, a small fridge/freezer and a propane cooktop. It’s still glamping though: expect to use an outhouse.

Welcome Home

The decision to build your new home can feel overwhelming, but with the right help it can also be deeply rewarding. At Bensonwood, we draw from more than 50 years of homebuilding experience to guide you through a smooth design build process resulting in faster time to completion, lower energy bills and a comfortable, healthy home for you and your family to enjoy for generations.

Two Ways to Love Stratton

At Stratton, whether you jet in by helicopter with a platinum credit card or take a bus from New York City and are on a tight budget, here’s how to have a great weekend. By

Lisa Lynn | Photos by Hubert Schriebl/Stratton Mountain Resort

Some of the first big snows of the season blanketed southern Vermont with nearly two feet of snow over Thanksgiving, turning Stratton and its surrounding towns into a winter wonderland.

The mountain, which already covers 95 percent of its 670 acres and 99 trails with snowmaking, put another $2 million in snowmaking this year and has added 230 HKD KLIK snowmaking hydrants over the last two years. It has also invested in grooming machines and employee housing. All told, Stratton’s parent company spent $20 million on 2024-25 season upgrades and has installed a new president and general manager, Matt Jones, formerly GM of Kirkwood Resort in California.

And while the ski area with its tony village shops (there’s everything from Burton Snowboards to Von

Bargen’s jewelers) has a reputation for drawing the well-heeled from the New York suburbs, it’s a place where you can just as easily spend $1,000 on a weekend vs. $20,000 and have just a good time.

The vibe? Stratton, at times, can feel like an extension of an Upper East Side cocktail party or a Greenwich after-school play group. But it can also carry all the energy of a homies’ snowboarding reunion. Stratton Mountain Village, with its pedestrian cobblestone street, iconic clocktower, shops and restaurants is especially magical around the holidays.

Here’s how to splurge, save and just chill over a few winter days at Stratton.

WHERE TO SPLURGE

One way you know the weekend is approaching at Stratton? The whir of helicopter blades over the village. “We have several homeowners who come in by helicopter,” says Myra Foster, Stratton’s long-time marketing director. “Some have their own, others do the charter flights.”

If you had all the money in the world to splurge on a weekend in Stratton, wouldn’t you fly in by chopper? It’s not that hard to do, actually. While companies such as Wings, Fly Blade and Heliflite offer charter flights from Manhattan to several ski resorts, and ski areas such as Killington have helicopter landing pads, only Stratton’s is within walking distance of the slopes.

For instance, you could leave Manhattan at 8 a.m. on a charter and in 90 minutes be at the base of the mountain. Cost for the round trip on a Wing’s private helicopter (it can take up to five) starts at $12,400 and there’s the option of adding a cargo basket to bring your skis and boards.

Of course, if you didn’t want to bring your own gear you called ahead to Stratton’s Premium Ski Delivery service. For $97 a day, it delivers custom-built skis from Parlor (a high-end custom ski builder out of Boston) to your accommodation. The skis’ sidecut and flex will have been tailored to you and your skiing style and a ski tech will ensure the set-up is dialed in. If you need boots as well, or prefer a snowboard set-up, Stratton’s Ski Butler will also deliver rental gear to your accommodation, and offers on-snow support, complimentary overnight

A 90-minute helicopter ride from Manhattan puts you within walking distance of Stratton’s pedestrian village.

storage, and final day pick-up, so you never have to stand in line.

And as for accommodations? Stratton Luxury Rentals manages a 6-bedroom home within walking distance of the base lodge that goes for $5,000 a night. Or, if you have a smaller party, check in at the stone-andtimber Hearthstone Lodge where a two-bedroom condo starts at $650 a night and you are just across from the base village. If you want to be in the heart of the village, Village Square’s condominiums are right there.

If you arrived Thursday, head to the Stratton Mountain Club. It’s a private club with membership dues that start at around $100,000. But on Thursday and Sunday nights non-members can have dinner at the club’s elegant post-and-beam restaurant, Elevation. The menu includes everything from sushi to Vermontraised osso bucco from Morgan Brook Farm.

You were smart, of course, and before arriving called ahead to Stratton’s White Carpet Concierge to have them stock the refrigerator so breakfast on Friday is all set. They also arranged to take the kids to ski school and booked you a babysitter for after skiing on Friday and made dinner reservations for Friday night.

After a day on the slopes, Mountain Drivers gives you a ride into Manchester for an afternoon at the spa at the Equinox Resort and a Pure Bliss Body Polish and Wrap ($285). You and your partner follow that with dinner at Manchester’s Silver Fox, which recently moved into the classic building that was formerly the Mark Skinner Library.

Co-owner Melody French (her husband Mark is the chef) describes the restaurant as “A rich layer cake of local community and literary history with a sweet midcentury modern ganache.”

There, you have the salmon strudel wrapped in phyllo and your partner orders the duck confit with duck sausage and homemade spaetzle.

Saturday morning you don’t have to worry about the lift lines because you booked a private lesson and for $1,000 you and your family go to the head of the line, as well as get expert instruction all day. All morning, you perfect arcing turns down North American and ziplining the bumps on Grizzly Bear while your kids duck into the woods off Kidderbrook or beg for you to watch their moves in the terrain park.

Legs tuckered for the day, you head for a late lunch at Snowfish Sushi, above Mulligans, where the fish is flown in fresh from Hawaii daily. Try the Spicy Crunchy Salmon Bowl ($29) made with King salmon.

Then, call an Uber and head to Taylor Farm in nearby Londonderry for a horse-drawn sleigh ride (snow willing) or wagon ride around the farm with a stop at a bonfire. Don’t linger though, because you need to be back at the base of the Stratton slopes by 5:15 p.m.

That’s when the snowcat arrives to take you (and up to 11 others) up to the Mid Mountain Lodge for a private, gourmet three-course dinner. The meal might start with smoked Vermont trout mousse on toast points, include venison loin with a Cognac demi glace and roasted acorn squash with Vermont honey chèvre mousse, and end with a blueberry crème brulée.

Ride the gondola and carve turns (top) then head to the Green Door Pub (bottom) for its Monday and Thursday night $8.99 steak dinner specials. You can also reserve a custom ski setup from Parlor (right).

Sunday morning you lap a few runs with your instructor, working your way across the mountain following the sun and scrawling S turns down the freshly-groomed corduroy. As everyone else awakens, head into Benedicts (in its new home in the Stratton Courtyard, in the former Carve location) for a Stratton Benny, made with smoked nitrate-free ham, Vermont Cabot cheddar, Vermont maple syrup. Then head back out and keep skiing until early afternoon.

Grab a charcuterie plate, a Vermont IPA and a pretzel at Grizzly’s where the band has started up and then pack up for your flight back to New York.

SAVE: STRATTON ON A BUDGET

If you are coming from New York and don’t have a car (or the trust fund to hire a private helicopter), don’t despair. The Hampton Jitney becomes the Stratton Jitney in the winter, leaving from two locations on Long Island and one in Manhattan on Friday afternoons in January and February and returns on Sunday (with some Mondays, Jan. 20-Feb. 17). Leave 44th Street at 5:30 and after a stop in Manchester you should be at the Stratton Welcome Center by 10. The cost, roundtrip starts at $69 – that’s less than you probably would have spent on gas.

One of the best ways to save on lodging and learn about other deals is to sign up for Stratton’s e-newsletter. “We blast out flash deals and honestly those, and coming mid-week and non-holiday weekends are the best ways to save,” says Foster.

The best deal we could find, booking in advance, was for a stay Sunday through Tuesday (Jan. 5- Jan. 7). The total was $316.78 for two nights at the Black Bear Lodge on the mountain, all taxes, fees and even breakfast included.

Lift ticket and lodging packages are also available but one word of warning: never, ever walk up to ticket window to buy a lift ticket same day or you can expect to pay at least 20 percent more than if you buy ahead online. Your best bet is a season pass. If you are under 29 a Strattitude Season Pass costs just $769.

One advantage of having an Ikon Pass is on one morning a month you get early lift access at Stratton (Jan. 2, Feb. 2 and March 2 in 2025) as well as at Sugarbush and a number of other Alterra-owned resorts. But if you purchase the Stratton First Tracks add-on (an additional $539) to your Ikon Pass, you can access the lifts on holidays and weekends at 7:45 a.m., about 45 minutes before everyone else. Or, as Foster notes, “You can always skin up for first tracks and Stratton is one of the few

mountains that doesn’t charge for an uphill travel ticket.” For a memorable morning, try skinning up to the summit to watch the sun rise.

Other things to do that cost practically nothing: get some free hot cocoa at the base village after skiing or riding and then glide around Stratton’s outdoor rink where with an advance reservation it’s just $15 to skate,

rental skates included. From 4 p.m. to 7 p.m. it’s also a blast to go tubing at Stratton’s Coca Cola Tubing park where you can ride down the lanes and then take the a lift up. Reserve ahead and the cost is $35 per person.

One of the benefits of staying right near the base is there are loads of places where you can get a good meal at a good price. For breakfast, there’s no going wrong with a Vermont classic: a hot waffle from the new waffle hut.

One of the best meal deals we’ve seen at any ski resort is the Green Door Pub’s Monday and Thursday nights’ special: A steak, salad, “spuds and a Bud,” for $8.99. Sundays the Pub (downstairs at Mulligans) has free wines from 5 p.m. .to 7 p.m. and $4.50 Long Trail ales. And there’s a pool table, to boot.

For lunch, try the new T Bar, a small plates and tapas bar in the old Benedict’s location in the village.

And for a night out in a classic Vermont setting, drive or take an Uber down the mountain road to the Red Fox Inn in Winhall. One of the all-time great aprèsski bars, the Red Fox Inn has live music on weekends, a roaring fire in the stone hearth and $18 flatbreads and even less expensive chilis.

If you want to finish your night outdoors, rent a pair of snowshoes and follow the snowshoe trails around the base or up the mountain.

Sometimes the best things in life are free. u

Reserve ahead for a quiet time at Stratton’s outdoor skating rink. Cost is just $15, skates included. Bottom: booking a private lesson is not only good for the kids, it gets you priority lift access too.

Funny Business

Forget stand-up comics, these New England skiers and riders are posting some of the funniest content on social media. By L. Lynn

Aformer Olympic mogul skier. A Burke Mountain Academy grad with an MBA from Harvard Business School. A middle school science teacher. A ski coach and former UVM ski racer. What all of these people have in common is that in some ways they aced their respective sports. But more importantly, they learned how to make fun of themselves and they now have us laughing with them. Check out the four New Englanders who have created some of the most entertaining content and commentary on social media and what they are up to now.

TROY MURPHY

A.k.a: Donny Pelletier, Maine’s Finest Athlete.

Instagram: @DonnyPelletier207.

Other careers: Financial analyst, sales, board member of U.S. Ski & Snowboard, pro skier.

Alma mater: University of Utah.

Lives in: San Francisco, Cal.; Bethel, Me.

Where you might find him: Ripping bumps at Sunday River, Me.

With a Maine accent as thick as the fog in Bah Hahbah, a flannel shirt, orange suspenders, jeans, and straight skis, Donny Pelletier has become a poster child for Maine’s Downeast Skier. His videos show him flailing

down bump runs, wildly out of control, legs splayed, sitting so far back he could be a dragging taillight. It’s a type of skiing that only a seasoned pro – or a guy who has his orthopedic surgeon on speed dial — could master.

Pelletier, of course, is really Troy Murphy. Murphy grew up competing in moguls and went to Gould Academy in Bethel, Me. before joining the U.S. Ski and Snowboard Team. In 2014, Murphy started competing on the World Cup in moguls. In 2015, he won the national championships and in 2018 Murphy competed in the Olympics. After retiring from competition, he’s served as an athlete ambassador for Protect Our Winters and a board member of U.S. Ski and Snowboard.

Now 33, Murphy is working in San Francisco as a financial analyst at Goldman Sachs, which is why you might see him at Palisades Tahoe “puttin’ the absolute screws ta sum guy with a midair pass like Bubba Stewart.” Translation: flailing down a mogul run and then throwing a fully extended back flip over the same kicker as another skier does a spread eagle.

But Murphy still comes home to Maine. Each spring he serves as the Bust N’ Burn Master of Ceremonies (or “Master of friggin’ point-em,”) on the slopes where he learned his craft: Sunday River’s White Heat bump run.

MATT LYONS

A.k.a.: Vertex, Macchiato, Caviar Instagram: @mattslyon

Other careers: Middle school science teacher, camp counselor and outdoor educator.

Alma mater: Roger Williams University. Lives in: Boston, “but frequently in Vermont.”

Where you might find him: Snowboarding at Okemo or hiking the Appalachian Trail.

“Hey, what’s up? Name is Rossy, nice to meet you.” Matt Lyons says with an earnest intensity in “Every Skier Showing You Their Set Up,” one of the videos he posts to multiple social media channels. “Hooked myself up with the Chinchilla 280s for the season. Feel the edge. Consummated and glossified two days ago… Read an article on Booger Sugar saying that unless your girth box is ticked up to like

Troy Murphy, sending like Donny.

LOCAL HEROES

a 47, you’re going to knuckle out way more than you want. Most recommend a Francois rating of 4 to 6, especially if you want bonus depth on the K turns.”

Rossy is just one name. There’s “Champlain,” the star of “Your New Roommate at University of Vermont” who says “My senior motto was ‘Reduce, Reuse, Recycle.’ which I think sealed the deal on my acceptance.”

Lyons delivers most of his monologues with the sincere intensity of a dude totally grounded in the outdoors and a bro who is the master of his micro-universe – be that Every Person Who Cold Plunges or Every Person Who Only Skis the East Coast.

For most of his topics, Lyons comes across as hilariously legit as he nails the foibles and passions of those who are slightly obsessive/compulsive about their outdoor sports. “I think it’s funny because everyone knows someone like that. I don’t have to reach a wide audience but if just a few people watch these and send it to someone whom they think that skit embodies, it tends to spread pretty quickly,” he says.

One of the reasons Lyons comes across as legit is that he is: “It all started when I was thru-hiking the Appalachian Trail in 2019 and I started making a compilation video,” he said. He’s since hiked the Pacific Crest Trail. Then in 2020 as Covid set in, he began posting to TikTok.

While some of his early posts were instructional and serious, he noticed that his send ups of people who live in sports towns (see “Every Person Who Moves to Burlington”) went viral.

Most of the material he knows inherently or picks up quickly. “My girlfriend went to University of Vermont so

I know Burlington. I taught at a camp in New Hampshire for a while and I spend a lot of time in Vermont,” he says. However, sometimes if a sport is new to him, he has to do research.

The one thing he vows not to do, though? “Even though I taught school for many years, I can’t do standup comedy in front of a crowd.” So for now, follow him on social media.

COLTON HARDY

A.k.a: Jerry, Chief Executive Jerry. Instagram: @JerryoftheDay.

Other careers: Account executive, ski coach. Alma mater: University of Vermont.

Lives in: Burlington.

Where you might find him: Skiing Mad River Glen.

“I never really had a plan from the beginning,” says Colton Hardy, whose LinkedIn profile proudly states he is the Chief Executive Jerry, @JerryoftheDay. The Jerry of the Day website and line of clothing started off as a joke. Hardy was ski racing for the University of Vermont’s alpine team when teammate Tim Kelley (of the CochranKelley ski racing dynasty) brought four pairs of boots to test one day but forgot his shin guards.

Hardy took a photo and uploaded it to Facebook with the caption “Jerry of the Day.” That was in 2012.

Matt Lyons, in the wild.

Colton Hardy, Jerrying up the mountain.

Since then, Hardy and his wife Lindsay have made a practice of uploading anything that strikes them as goofy (football jerseys on the slopes, fur and most anything with an animal print), reckless, inept, or simply funny to jerryoftheday.com and its social media, usually with a killer caption as a punchline.

There are photos of people in one-piece ski suits with goggles on upside down, videos of skiers crashing into lift lines at high speed, an avalanche pack exploding in a gondola car full of German skiers and plenty of big sends… that don’t quite make it as a skier planned.

One of the most popular videos was captioned “The battle of Jerrysburg #SavingPrivateJerry.”

“It’s a POV video of someone snowboarding down a crowded slope on a deep powder day and it literally looks like a battlefield. People are stuck every 10 feet, digging themselves out of powder trenches and reaching for a savior,” says Hardy. @JerryoftheDay now has 2.1 million followers on Instagram and Hardy gets nearly 300 to 420 submissions a week that he pores over, waiting for the right caption to come to mind.

Early on, Hardy started selling t-shirts with the motto “Respect the Send.” That’s morphed into a whole line of ironically goofy gear. “It’s joke gear that you would get as a gift,” says Hardy—things like a purple fanny pack with skiers all over it, a sweatshirt designed to look like an ugly Christmas sweater and Send-oVision mirror glasses. “It’s almost become this meta thing: people are ordering things like the Send-o-Vision glasses, then wearing them in photos and videos and doing something stupid just so they can be featured as Jerry of the Day,” Hardy says. He’s shipped orders as far as Azerbaijan.

Behind all of this funny business, Hardy has managed to create a full-time job for himself and Lindsay, who helped design the first t-shirts. A team of designers now churns out more than 40 items.

Jerry’s secret to success? “One of the main things that makes JOTD funny is how relatable it is since we’ve all been there – everybody messes up. And if you haven’t I highly recommend trying it out!“ says Hardy. “Skiing is very gear heavy, so there are plenty of opportunities to get something completely backwards.”

IAN MACOMBER

A.k.a: Slalom Tokyo Drifter. Instagram: @Slalom Tokyo Drift. Other careers: Data scientist, alpine ski racing coach Alma mater: Dartmouth, Harvard MBA. Lives in: Boston, Ma.

Where you might find him: At Killington World Cup.

As a ski racer at Burke Mountain Academy, Ian Macomber was taught many of the same things about skiing gates

that propelled Mikaela Shiffrin to greatness while she was there. But it was the gates he missed that have earned him his biggest following in the ski racing world.

Ian Macomber here

After posting a video of his own ski crash with a selfdeprecating commentary, Macomber began to get dozens of videos from others of their crashes. He started Slalom Tokyo Drift as a way to capture “the best and the worst of ski racing,” a nod to the 2006 film The Fast and the Furious: Tokyo Drift.

STD, as it goes by, has earned a following of 172,000 on Instagram and is a favorite among ski racers. It famously earned Macomber a gondola date with Swiss racer Lara Gut-Bahrami during an early Killington World Cup.

With an MBA from Harvard Business School and a role as head of analytics engineering at the financial platform Ramp in New York City, Macomber isn’t trying to make a career off STD.

In fact, he turned it into a non-profit and donates to the Kelly Brush Foundation, which helps provide safety netting and other gear to ski races.

While most of STD’s images are “agony of defeat” worthy and the captions often hilarious, there’s a serious side that came out after Norwegian Alexander Aamodt Kilde’s season-ending crash at a World Cup downhill in Wengen last season.

Macomber wrote: “At @slalomtokyodrift, we share videos of ski racing crashes not to make light of these incidents but to highlight an inherent aspect of the sport. The skill, the speed, the danger, and the adrenaline are what make ski racing exhilarating, yet they also bring risks that every racer bravely faces. These moments are not about failure or ridicule, they are about the shared respect for the courage and commitment of ski racers.”

Yes, but sometimes laughter is also the best medicine. Kilde would agree.u

Cheese and Ski Pairings

Since the late 1800s, Vermonters have produced award-winning cheeses. Now, new artisan cheesemakers are joining legacy creameries in the Green Mountains and turning out what experts are calling some of the best cheeses in the world. By Abagael Giles and Lisa Lynn

At the World Cheese Awards held in Portugal in November 2024, judges tasted 4,786 cheeses from 47 countries. Of the ones that were named the “top 14 cheeses in the world” only one came from the U.S.: Jasper Hill Farm’s Bayley Hazen Blue, from Greensboro, Vt.. It also won Super Gold.

Of the 7 other U.S. cheeses to earn that highest honor, “Super Gold,” three more were from Vermont: Von Trapp Farmstead’s Mt. Alice and Mad River Blue both earned Super Gold as did Jack Blue from tiny Parish Hill Creamery in Westminster West, near Putney.

Cheese has been a part of the Vermont landscape ever since farmers began making it to preserve the summer milk harvest, before adequate refrigeration. Today, some of the cheeses first made in the late 1800s, such as those by Crowley and Plymouth Artisan, are still being made using the original recipes.

With the price of milk regulated, cheesemakers are also still helping Vermont dairy farmers by purchasing

their surplus milk. At Jasper Hill Farm, for instance, the milk used in many of its cheeses is sourced from dairies within 15 miles of the Greensboro creamery and the purchase price is nearly twice the regulated rate for milk, according to the Economic Hardship Reporting Project.

Nearly every town in the Green Mountains has a cheesemaker nearby and ski towns benefit from several. Here are our picks for the best local cheesemakers close to the slopes and ski trails. While most creameries are closed to visitors, a few do offer tours and tastings. For a guide to cheesemakers around the state, turn the page.

JASPER HILL FARM, GREENSBORO

Located just outside the scenic town of Greensboro, just a few miles from the cross country ski trails at the Craftsbury Outdoor Center, is Jasper Hill Farm. Brothers Andy and Mateo Kehler had spent summers on nearby Lake Caspian. When a failing dairy farm came up for sale, they bought it and began making craft cheeses under the Jasper Hill Farm name. Their Harbison, another award-winner, is a creamy, softripened cheese made from milk from locally pastured cows and wrapped in the spruce cambium (an inner bark of the spruce) that’s harvested on the farm’s woodlands. Jasper Hill Farm now has a 22,000 sq. ft. underground aging facility where many of Vermont’s best cheeses, from Cabot on down to boutique creameries, develop their flavor.

MT. MANSFIELD CREAMERY, MORRISVILLE

It’s no coincidence if Mt. Mansfield Creamery’s cheeses sound familiar to skiers and riders. Cheesemaker and snowboarder Stan Biasini worked as a ski patroller from 1986 to 1995 at Stowe Mountain Resort. Many of the creamery’s cheeses are named for Stowe trails, such as the raw milk Chin Clip, the Austrian Tomme Hayride or a winter-only Havarti with hot chilis called Lookout. Our favorite: the creamy, Patrolman’s Blues, made from raw cow’s milk and aged for three months to give it a pungent flavor.

SAGE FARM, STOWE

There are few cheeses that match Sage Farm’s in presentation. Take the Maple banon, which won first place in its category at the American Cheese Society

Jasper Hill Farm’s Bayley Hazen Blue placed fifth on the World Cheese Awards’ 2024 list of the 14 best cheeses in the world. It was also named “Best American Cheese.”

awards for its taste as well as its looks. Sage Farm owner Molly Pindell describes it as “a semi-ripened disc of chèvre wrapped in maple and grape leaves harvested on the farm and tied with raffia,” or Sage Farm’s other Chèvre, which is garnished with edible flowers and herbs. Sage Farm’s goats produce most of the milk used in the small batch cheeses. The farm recently began offering tours by appointment.

CABOT CREAMERY, WATERBURY

Cabot was launched in 1919 when 94 local farmers formed a co-operative and produced butter. Today, it’s still a farmer-owned cooperative and the largest producer of cheese and other dairy products in the state. Cabot’s size has in no way diminished its quality. Its cheddars consistently bring home top awards. In the category of “sweet cheddars” Cabot’s White Oak and Alpine cheddars took first and second at the American Cheese Society’s 2024 contest. While you can’t visit Cabot’s cheesemaking facilities, after a day on the slopes of Stowe you can stop by their tasting room on the Stowe Waterbury Road in Waterbury Center.

VON TRAPP FARMSTEAD, WAITSFIELD

Nestled against Mt. Alice in the Mad River Valley, this diversified farm has been in the von Trapp family (relatives of the von Trapps who founded the Trapp Family Lodge in Stowe) since 1959. In 2024, Von Trapp Farmstead’s Mt. Alice cheese and its Mad River Blue both won Super Gold at the World Cheese Awards. Von Trapp Farmstead offers tours only occasionally and has a farmstore on site, but you can taste their cheeses (along with beer and cider) at the Mad River Taste Place in Waitsfield after a day on the slopes at Mad River Glen or Sugarbush.

BLUE LEDGE FARM, LEICESTER

Not far from the Middlebury Snowbowl or the glades near Brandon Gap lies Blue Ledge Farm, a 150-acre Animal Welfare-Approved goat dairy in Leicester run by husband and wife cheesemakers Greg Bernhardt and Hannah Sessions. Their 100 or so goats help produce their signature cheese, such as the ash-veined Lake’s Edge that placed second in a blind taste test at the 2024 American Cheese Society awards. The goats’ milk cheese is velvety and smooth with an edible white mold exterior and a delicate, complex tang. Keep an eye out for Greg and their two kids snowboarding at the Middlebury Snowbowl or for Hannah on her crosscountry skis at Rikert Outdoor Center.

CROWLEY CHEESE COMPANY, MOUNT HOLLY

If you’re driving between Okemo and Rutland on Route 103, take a trip to Mount Holly for a taste of the past

and a chance to visit a unique creamery. Crowley Cheese Company, founded in 1882, is the oldest continually operating cheesemaking operation in the country. Its English-style cheddar-like cheeses predate refrigeration and come from a time when every Vermont village had at least one cheesemaker. Today, you can stop by the factory and watch cheesemakers in action or taste their many varieties and see if you can taste the differences between the cheddars made with milk from Holsteins versus Jersey cows.

PLYMOUTH ARTISAN CHEESE, PLYMOUTH

Just off Route 100 between Killington and Okemo is Plymouth, the tiny town where President Calvin Coolidge was raised. It was Calvin’s father, Colonel

Blue Ledge Farm (near Middlebury Snowbowl and Brandon Gap) specializes in goat milk cheeses, such as the delicate Crottina.

Von Trapp Farmstead in Waitsfield draws milk from its 46 cows to make award-winning cheeses like the creamy Oma, below.

John Coolidge, who built the Plymouth Cheese Factory in 1890, now the second oldest cheese factory in the country (next to Crowley.) You can watch Plymouth’s award-winning cheddars being made in the same building Pres. Coolidge’s father built in 1890, using the original recipe. (Note that winter hours vary so call ahead). Newer variations include Smoked Cheddar, Sage and Herb, and Black Truffle Cheddar.

GRAFTON CHEESE COMPANY, GRAFTON & PROCTORSVILLE

In 1892, farmers gathered to create the Grafton Cooperative Cheese Company. The original cheese factory burned down in 1912 but some 50 years later the non-profit Windham Foundation resurrected Grafton as both a town and a cheesemaker. True to Vermont’s heritage in sheep farming, several of Grafton’s cheeses use a blend of sheep and cow milk. In the 2024 American Cheese Society awards, Grafton’s aged raw Shepsog (Algonquin for ‘sheep’) and Storyteller (both made with a blend of sheep and cow milk) took first and second in their category. If you can’t make it to Grafton, stop by the tasting and retail store in Proctorsville, near Okemo.

One of the smallest and most unique creameries, Parish Hill Creamery in Westminster West (just east of Jamaica, Vt.) produces “natural” cheeses made from cows raised by Putney School high school students at the school’s Elm Lea Farm. “Natural” cheeses use raw milk and minimal added ingredients. The cultures for Parish Hill’s award-winners such as Jack’s Blue (one of 8 Super Gold winners from the U.S.) come from just four cows and their cheeses are all handmade. u

In Mount Holly, Crowley has been making English cheddars and other cheeses since 1882, making it the oldest continually-operating cheesemaker in the U.S.

PARISH HILL CREAMERY

Dream Home The Home

Set high on a hill in Peacham and bordering the Groton State Forest, the home is surrounded by backcountry touring trails.

The porch ceiling has built-in electric heaters, making it a three-season space. All the home’s electrical needs are off-set by solar trackers installed on the property.

stead

HOW A COUPLE BUILT A SIMPLE HOMESTEAD, USING TREES FROM THEIR FOREST AND LOCAL STONE.

BY LISA LYNN | PHOTOS BY RYAN BENT

In winter, when the maple and birch have shed fall’s riot of color, there is a stark beauty to the woods. The landscape takes on a palette of whites and deep grays, the dark vertical lines of tree trunks casting long shadows on the snow-covered ground.

It was the undeveloped forests of Vermont and their quiet winter palette that drew a couple from Cambridge, Ma., to build a homestead on 120 acres surrounded by state forest in the Northeast Kingdom.

Adam (the couple asked that we only use first names) had been coming to Concord, Vt. since he was in college, staying at a friends’ property there and often skiing at Burke Mountain Resort. The couple had bought a camp in Concord near his friend’s place, but began looking for a year-round, longer-term place to live.

“I kept seeing this ranch house come up for sale at a very good price,” Adam recalls. “It wasn’t until I zoomed out on a Google map in satellite view that I saw the property was surrounded by the Groton State Forest and it promised the kind of isolation we had been hoping for.” The lot was 120 acres of forested hillside with a pond.

“It was Block 71, one of the original block grants from the 1700s when Governor Wentworth of New Hampshire got permission from the King of England to divide up parcels. Other than some speculators, we are only the third family to own the land,” Adam says.

Adam and his partner Kyric moved into the ranch house as they began to explore the property, on touring skis in the winter and by foot or mountain bike in the summer. “What’s great is there are all these trails, like the VAST trails, on our land and on the adjoining state forest. We can ski, bike or hike for miles and never see another person, which I really like,” Adam says. They also fell in love with the tiny town of Peacham, nearby.

As they began searching for an architect, the couple came across Bristol-based architect Elizabeth Hermann’s design, The Little Black House. “What struck me was the simplicity of it and the Vermont barn vernacular. It felt like there wasn’t a lot of artifice there,” Adam said. Kyric expands on that: “We wanted something open and beautiful and that would connect us with the land. We also wanted something relatively modest, something that disappears, as much as a house can, into the environment. So, when we saw her design online, we were like, Hey, this is right up our alley.”

Hermann started the design process by

Photo ©2016 Durston Saylor

asking the couple what they wanted. “We knew we wanted small bedrooms — because we don’t want to spend time in there — a powder room separated from the living room, a mud room, and an office (unfortunately, yes),” Adam says. It was Hermann’s idea to site the house 30 yards or so higher up and set into the hill so that a lower story could house the guest rooms but still offer views out to the east over the rolling landscape to the White Mountains.

Adam had always wanted to design and build a house on his own and had helped his father build one. But he also wanted quality. “I realized that I needed professionals but being on site while the house was being built was really fun and interesting,” he says.

Hermann put the couple in touch with Red House Builders, out of Winooski. Red House general manager Chris Quinn oversaw the project working with local builder, Tyler Smith. The owners, who lived in the ranch house while the new house was being built, were involved with the project as it was being built. “They

Architect Elizabeth Hermann’s design called for tall doors and windows. They emphasize the steep gabled roof line which provides for a large, airy feel to the main floor living areas. The carport (above) is set just slightly off the house, providing a vertical view of the trees beyond. In the bathroom, Danby Marble — cut from the world’s largest underground marble mine in Dorset, Vt. — frames the bath.

had a real desire to use local materials and were pretty engaged with the process,” Red House’s Quinn says.

“There were a number of ash trees on the property, and I knew with the advent of the ash borer beetle that they were at risk and we better log them before they were killed, ” Adam says. He bought a sawmill and milled the ash on site.

“Red House then used that ash to make all the floors

“We opted for a very simple black and white palette so we could showcase the artwork we like to collect,” says Adam, the owner. Danby marble covers the the kitchen island (above) and the ash used for the floors and cabinetry in the open-plan kitchen/ living room and in the master bedroom (at left) was milled

and used thick pieces for the treads on the stairs,” Adam says. All of the cabinetry was also made by Red House from the ash felled on site.

For the exterior, Adam and Kyric chose suyaki shou sogu ban siding from Nakamoto Forestry, which uses a charring process to preserve the wood and protect it from the elements. The outside deck uses thermally-treated ash and the soffits, thermally treated spruce.

Hermann has called the house “Gable and Plane” for its simple lines – the gable of the main structure is enhanced by the vertical siding and the straight long plane of the porch roof provides a geometric contrast. Just next to the house, visually attached by the porch but separated by a small breezeway, is a carport.

“The carport made sense for us because it gave us some storage but we didn’t have to insulate it like a garage and it was just visually more pleasing,” says Kyric.

Throughout the house, Hermann strategically framed

views. “We wanted large windows and I think Liz went even larger than we had originally wanted,” says Adam. “We wanted to feel as if we were always outdoors,” says Kyric. Her favorite room in the house? The bathroom. “I love taking baths and the huge window over the tub makes me feel like I am out in the forest.”

The tub, along with the kitchen island, is done in Montclair Danby marble, mined in Dorset, Vt. “I love stone and wanted something local” says Adam. “When I lived in Mexico, I would actually go to visit different stone quarries.” In Mexico, where he was working for a non-profit, Adam also fell in love with David Pompas’ lighting fixtures. “The lamps over the dining table are Pompas’ Origo design,” says Adam, globes of Mexican Fiorito rock stacked on opal-frosted glass shades.

The couple had looked at a lot of dining room tables before one of the Red House carpenters suggested he could make them one. He convinced them that it should be a contrasting wood to the ash. “We went with walnut and that table is a work of art that will be around for centuries,” says Adam.

Quinn also suggested that Red House build them a custom ash door to emphasize the height of the exterior porch roof. “I am so glad we did that,” says Kyric. “It’s just beautiful and everyone who comes to the house remarks on it.”

The couple got the interior they wanted: a small mudroom off the entry and a powder room, a small master bedroom on the main floor with en suite bath and two guest bedrooms on the lower level, with views out to the White Mountains.

“We often have friends up so it is nice for them to have their own space to retreat into,” says Adam.

The open floor plan and the big windows give the home a larger feel than its 2,700 square feet. “It’s a good size for us now, but we may build a smaller structure down the hill for guests at some point,” Adam says.

In the meantime, they have also built a platform on top of the hill from pines Adam felled and milled. “We can hike or ski up there and from the top of the mountain, we can see Sugarbush, the White Mountains and all of Groton State Forest.” Lower on the hill, where the old home stood is a huge garden where Adam and Kyric grow much of their own food.

Their homestead is their kingdom. u

Top: Set into the side of the hill, the home has two lower-level bedrooms with large windows that frame views to the east of the White Mountains. Red House Builders crafted the stairway that leads down to them using thick treads and Shaker dowels from the property’s ash trees.

The early bird gets the turns. After skinning up Mt. Mansfield for two hours, ski model and photographer Brooks Curran got first turns as the 6:30 a.m. rays of a winter sun rise hit the mountain.

MANY OF THESE LOCAL FAVORITES YOU CAN TICK OFF.

What does it mean to be a wintermeister? For nearly a decade, a middle-aged athlete named Scott Dorwart dominated a competition in Stowe. The Stowe Wintermeister title was awarded to the person who held the best scores in a trio of winter sports races (speed skating, alpine ski racing and Nordic ski racing).

The title had its origins in the traditional winter carnival events and there were all sorts of wintermeister competitions (literal translation: winter master) involving all sorts of sports. Traditionally, school children in Vermont were nearly as well trained in cross country skiing, ski jumping, biathlon or alpine skiing as kids today are in soccer, baseball, hockey and football. The long, cold winters didn’t keep Vermonters indoors. On the contrary: while summers were for tending the crops, logging and construction, winter was a time to relax and recreate.

That’s still the case. And while the sports and opportunities to get outdoors may have evolved, winter is the Green Mountains is as much fun as it ever was. Here is our list of 50 ways to be a Vermont wintermeister. Give yourself a point for each of these you have done and tally your result at the end.

0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0

SKIING & RIDING

1. GET FIRST TRACKS.

There is something transformational about skinning up the mountain before dawn for first tracks and watching the sun rise in silence. But if you want repeat fast laps, there are other ways to get your powder fix in. At Sugarbush, book the Lincoln Limo snowcat for a 6:30 a.m. ride up. Sugarbush’s “Sunrise First Tracks” experience, as it is called, costs $129 per person and gives you as many laps as your group can do until 8:30 a.m. The catch: you have to reserve ahead. Another option? Ikon passholders get early lift access once a month at select Alterra-owned resorts. At Sugarbush, the 2025 dates are Jan. 11-12, Feb. 8 and March 15. At Stratton, ride up early Jan. 5, Feb. 2 and March 2. Epic passholders also get early turns, courtesy of Helly Hansen this year: Okemo on Dec. 22, Jan. 19, Feb. 14 and March 14; Mount Snow on Jan. 10, Feb. 28 and Mar. 14; and at Stowe on March 7 with an 8 a.m. gondola.

2. NIGHT SKI UNDER THE LIGHTS.

There’s also a certain thrill to gliding down a lit slope under a starry sky. Add in a party atmosphere and tickets that are usually $30 or less and it’s hard not to go night skiing. Last season, Middlebury Snowbowl opened its new Sheehan chair and the trails off it for night skiing Wednesday through Friday nights from 4 p.m. to 9 p.m. At Bolton Valley, night skiing is offered Tuesday through Saturday from 4 p.m. to 10 p.m. On Friday and Saturday nights, Smugglers’ Notch Resort shines colored lights on the jibbing features at Sir Henry’s Learning Hill. Many of Vermont’s smaller hills (including Ascutney, Brattleboro Ski Hill, Cochran’s and Northeast Slopes), turn on the lights a few nights and there’s often a bonfire at the base.

3.

VISIT A COMMUNITY SKI HILL.

Vermont has 251 towns and in many of those towns the local ski hill was once just as much of a fixture as the local baseball diamond or basketball court is today. Sadly, many

of the more than 180 ski areas (as documented by the New England Lost Ski Areas Project and a current exhibit at the Vermont Ski and Snowboard Museum in Stowe) are no longer around but some of those small community ski areas still survive. At places such as the Brattleboro Ski Hill, Ascutney, Northeast Slopes in East Corinth or Hard’Ack at St. Albans, a day ticket ranges from free to $15. Jeans and Carhartts are more prevalent that Patagonia and the spirit of community is high. Anyone who calls themselves a skier or rider should visit one of these places and see how the soul of skiing is thriving.

4. RIDE A ROPE TOW.

The first ski lift in the country was a rope tow that ran up Gilbert’s Hill in Woodstock, before it was moved to what is now Saskadena Six ski area. Many small ski areas (as well as some private backyard hills) still have rope tows. Grab a pair of sturdy work gloves and find out why so many of the best skiers in the country are those who are raised riding surface lifts. A few of our favorites are: Northeast Slopes which has the oldest continually-operating rope tow in the country, Cochran’s (because so many Olympians were raised there) and Ascutney Outdoors’ tow, which helped revive the once-defunct ski area.

5. SKI 20 ALPINE SKI AREAS IN VERMONT.

Ski Vermont lists 20 alpine ski areas in Vermont as members. If you count some of the small ski areas that are not members, there are about a half dozen more. How many of these have you visited? An Epic pass will get you to Mount Snow, Okemo and Stratton. An Ikon Pass gives you access to Stratton, Killington, Pico and Sugarbush. Indy Pass holders can ski Magic, Saskadena Six, Middlebury Snowbowl, Bolton Valley and Jay Peak resorts. The others are very affordable. No reason not to ski them all!

6. TAKE A LESSON OR A CLINIC.

Want to know how those Professional Ski Instructors of American (PSIA) skiers and riders got so good? The secret

Clockwise from top: Riding the oldest and fastest rope tow in the country at Northeast Slopes. Marc Angelillo gets first tracks at Sugarbush and night skiing off the Sheehan lift at the Middlebury Snowbowl. Photos Oliver Parini, Jeb Wallace-Brodeur, courtesy Middlebury Snowbowl.

is they take clinics. No matter what level skier or rider you are, you can always improve, whether by signing up for a race or bump clinic, learning to backcountry ski, or hiring a private instructor for a day. Find your weak spots and let a pro coach help you work on them.

7. JOIN A SKI BUM RACE LEAGUE.

There’s a myth that you have to be a ski racer to join a ski racing league. Not true. In fact, part of the fun of many of Vermont’s so-called “ski bum” race leagues (Bromley calls it the Innkeepers Race Series) is the mix of people and ski levels. Sure, you might find former World Cup racers competing or even ex-Olympians (as is true at Bromley, Bolton Valley, Killington, Stowe and the Middlebury Snowbowl). But there are often grandparents who have never skied around a gate in their lives and people on snowboards or telemark skis. Most leagues use handicap systems so how fast you are matters less than how you improve. Perhaps the best part though? Joining a league means après-ski parties, often held at local bars.

8. VISIT AT LEAST FIVE CROSS COUNTRY SKI AREAS.

There are more than two dozen cross country ski areas around the state and each one — from Prospect Mountain near Bennington to Kingdom Trails in East Burke — is gorgeous. And if you have season pass at one of the Ski Vermont member cross country areas, you can get a free or discounted ticket (blackout dates apply) at any other member area. Indy Passes also include many Nordic areas.

9. MASTER SKATE SKIING.

One of the best workouts? Skate skiing. You can rent a pair of skate (freestyle) skis and try it for yourself, but learning the right technique makes this sport so much more accessible. Craftsbury Outdoor Center, Trapp Family Lodge Outdoor Center and Rikert Outdoor Center all have snowmaking for early-season skiing and top-notch instructors, including many expert racers and former collegiate coaches. At Craftsbury, a lesson for two is $60. At Rikert, near the Middlebury Snowbowl, a series of three hour-long private lessons is $195.

10. DROP A KNEE. FREE YOUR HEEL.

Remember telemarking? Before AT (all-terrain) gear became ubiquitous, the free-heel, drop-your-knee turns were the hallmarks of good backcountry skiers. At Mad River Glen, there are Free Heel Fridays with two-hour telemark clinics all season long and two-hour women’s programs on select Tuesdays. Don’t miss the 39th annual Kåre Andersen Telemark Festival at Bromley (usually in late February) , named for the charismatic Norwegian telemark evangelist.

11. TRY SKIMO.

Whether you like to skin up a mountain to get first tracks or just for a good workout, entering a skimo race or event will make you better skier. Skimo (short for ski mountaineering) involves skinning up, often hiking across rocky terrain and skiing down. Skimo debuts as an Olympic sport in 2026 and Stowe’s Milan Kubala has been at the forefront of fielding

Terrain parks such as those at Mount Snow’s Carinthia have features designed to help skiers and riders progress. Slide into the park and up your game. Courtesy photo.

At the Ethan Allen range in Jericho anyone can learn to be a biathlete thanks to their winter lesson and race series. Courtesy photo.

Ski around! A season pass at, say Craftsbury Outdoor Center (shown here) will get you a day of skiing at 23 other Nordic ski areas in the state.

HOW MUCH OF A WINTERMEISTER ARE YOU?

Give yourself 1 point for each of the 50 challenges listed here that you have completed. If anyone has done all 50, we want to hear from you!

40-50 POINTS: WINTERMEISTER!

We bow down to you oh Wintermeister, and will forever brush the icicles from your eyebrows.

30-40 POINTS: GOLD

Solid, dude. You should be able to tick off a few more this coming season, no problem.

20-30 POINTS: SILVER

So much to do, so little time. We understand the commitments of a full-time job. But really, you need to ski more.

10-20 POINTS: BRONZE

Welcome to Vermont and thank you for putting on your snow tires.

0-10 POINTS: KEEP TRYING

It’s really not that cold. Layer up and come back more often. We promise you’ll love winter here.

a U.S. Team. Kubala helped popularize skimo racing in Vermont and is now the athlete chair for USASkimo, the sport’s umbrella organization. For ardent competitors, the N.E. Rando series has Vermont events at Stratton (Dec. 14) and Bromley (Jan. 25). The Catamount Trail Association also hosts the more informal and fun Green Mountain Skimo series on Tuesday nights in January and February at Bolton Valley – beginners welcome.

12. SOAR OFF A SKI JUMP (OR JUST WATCH.)

Just across the Connecticut River, the Storrs Hill Ski Area in Lebanon, N.H. offers lessons in just about every type of skiing you can imagine (backcountry, telemark, snowboard, alpine, cross-country) and (drum roll)... ski jumping. The Thursday evening program helps prospective jumpers learn the sport and then progress from the 10-meter to the 25-meter to the 50-meter jump. Not ready to jump? Watch some of the best in the sport compete in the annual Harris Hill Ski Jump (Feb. 15) near Brattleboro or head to Lake Placid where you can climb up to the top of the 90-meter jump.

13. BECOME A BIATHLETE.

Maybe you can ski but not shoot. Maybe you can shoot but not ski. No matter: Anyone can enter the Ethan Allen Biathlon Club six-race winter training series. Held on Thursday nights under the lights at the Camp Ethan Allen Training Site in Jericho, it is open to first timers as well as experienced biathletes. Race distance is usually 5 to 6 kilometers, and the club has 18 rifles for use during practice and races. Craftsbury Outdoor Center also offers lessons.

14. LEARN TO FLIP.

When you watch some of the pros doing aerials at places like Mount Snow’s Carinthia or at Killington’s terrain parks, remember this: they probably spent some time on a trampoline launching into a foam pit. Fortunately, Vermont has several gyms that specialize in training skiers, riders and other athletes for aerial maneuvers and tricks. In Stowe, Elevate has a number of trampolines and instructors include freeski coach and former American Ninja Warrior competitor Noah Labow and Hollywood stunt man Justice Hedenberg. At the Green Mountain Training Center in Williston, you can also learn to flip into a foam pit or do parkours.

15. LEARN A NEW PARK TRICK,

Terrain parks are not just for kids. Learning to slide a rail, go off a small jump or ski switch can help anyone improve their skiing or riding. Up your skills this winter and start at one of the progression zones, such as those at Sugarbush or Killington. If you’re feeling bold, the mother of all terrain parks is Mount Snow’s Carinthia Park, which has turned out Olympic freeski champs such as Caroline Claire and Mac Forehand.

Photo J. Lazenby

16. VOLUNTEER FOR AN ADAPTIVE PROGRAM

In 1987 Laura Farrell founded Vermont Adaptive Ski & Sports at Ascutney. Farrell saw a need for programs to help people with disabilities enjoy snowsports. Vermont Adaptive has since grown into a robust organization that helps people with physical or mental challenges ski or ride, as well as do other sports. The organization has a base lodge at Sugarbush and programs that run out of Pico, Bolton Valley and Saskadena Six. In addition, BART Adaptive operates out of Bromley and has programs at Stratton, Mount Snow Adaptive is active at Mount Snow and Green Mountain Adaptive is based in Stowe. Don’t miss an opportunity to become a volunteer.

APRES

17. PARTY AT A LEGENDARY SKI BAR

Restaurants and bars come and go but in Vermont’s ski towns, there are some that have legendary status. The Matterhorn, the first watering hole on the way back down Route 108 from a day at Stowe Mountain Resort is one. Instructors’ beer mugs hang over the bar and the only rule is no ski boots inside (unless you actually skied there via the backcountry Bruce Trail, which many do.) Dancing here starts not long after the lifts close. At Killington, the vast rooms, balconies and nooks of the Wobbly Barn have that same iconic ski bar feel, and the place rocks late into the night. Near Stratton, the Red Fox Inn and Tavern has been a scene ever since Jake Carpenter met his wife

Donna there on New Year’s Eve, 1981. The thing about ski bars? The easiest conversation starter is “Where did you ski/ride today?”

18. APRÈS LIKE A KID.

No one knows how to keep kids entertained all weekend like some of Vermont’s ski resorts. Smugglers’ Notch has built its reputation around family fun and its Fun Zone 2.0 delivers with laser tag, ping pong, air hockey, arcade games and a climbing wall all designed for kids. Jay Peak upped the game even more with Vermont’s only indoor water park where you can surf the Double Barrel Flowrider wave, tube down the Big River, ride the slides or drop down the 65-foot La Chute, which shoots you into a pool.

19. HAVE A GOURMET DINNER ON THE MOUNTAIN. Have you ever had an elegant, gourmet dinner at the top of a ski mountain? At Sugarbush, you can either skin up or ride in a snowcat to Allyn’s Lodge for a candlelit dinner in front of a roaring fire. At Killington, a ride on an open sleigh up the mountain takes you to the magical Ledgewood Yurt, where multi-course dinners on weekends are served at elegant table settings. Stratton’s snowcat dinners carry up to 12 guests to the mid-mountain lodge where a threecourse chef’s dinner awaits.

20. DIP INTO FONDUE.

In the early days of skiing in Vermont, a wave of Swiss and Austrians came over to help establish ski resorts and

At Sugarbush’s Allyn’s lodge, an elegant meal awaits mid-mountain for those who skinned up or took a snowcat. There’s an option to ski down by headlamp too.

Photo Barry Fisher

ski schools. They brought with them a culture that prized Pilsners and Bavarian pretzels (still classics at the Trapp Family Lodge Bierhall), yodeling and fondue. The yodeling may not be as prevalent but fondue is seeing a resurgence at places such as Fondue by Heinz in Stowe devoted entirely to the dish in its many forms (cheese, broth, chocolate) and the Trapp Family Lodge. In the Deerfield Valley, the tony Heritage Inn serves fondue outdoors in refurbished, heated gondola cars. There is no better way to end a ski day than to dip a piece of crusty bread into warm, gooey cheese.

21.

GO BEER TOURING.

Vermont is to beer what Napa Valley is to wine: nearly every ski town has its own microbrew. Sean Lawson was a naturalist guide at Mad River Glen before he started Lawson’s Finest and opened a brewpub in Waitsfield. The von Trapp family built their Bierhall right on their Stowe cross-country trails. Snow Republic, one of 7 breweries in the Deerfield Valley, was started by a Mount Snow skier. With more than 40 microbreweries in the state, it’s hard to go wrong.

22.

VISIT A SUGAR SHACK.

Come spring, steam and smoke rise up in plumes from the valleys and the air is sweet with the scent of maple as sugarers boil sap down to syrup. Sugaring is a time-honored tradition in Vermont and many sugar houses welcome visitors, especially on Maple Open House Weekend (March 22-23, 2025). That weekend you might find them serving up sugar-on-snow (hot syrup poured over fresh snow) with pickles and cider doughnuts. At the Trapp Family Lodge, the sugarhouse sits just off the cross-country trails. Ski there for a visit and a taste of spring’s sweetest crop. At

Stowe’s annual Sugar Slalom race, there’s sugar on snow for competitors at the finish.

23. TAILGATE IN STYLE.

There are few better rituals of spring than packing the cooler, bringing out the lawn chairs and a portable grill and setting up a tailgate. That’s the basic set-up. For some, tailgating involves linen tablecloths, an impressive buffet and corn hole. Jay Peak Resort takes tailgating so seriously that it holds an annual tailgating party each April at the Stateside lot with prizes for best dish, best presentation, best dessert and best overall Tailgater. Other legendary tailgate scenes are at Killington’s Bear Mountain (especially after the Bear Mountain Mogul Challenge), Smugglers’ Notch’s Lot 1, and Magic Mountain.

24. BUY OR SELL AT A GEAR SWAP OR EXCHANGE.

Around the state, you can find great deals on lightly used skis or boards, helmets, backcountry bindings and other things at gear swaps. Most are normally held in the fall but ask your favorite shop about mid-winter opportunities to either sell your used equipment or outfit yourself or a kid with a hand-me down. Another great resource? Outdoor Gear Exchange (based in Burlington) will trade in your used gear and clothing and is a great place to find deals.

EVENTS

25. WATCH A WORLD CUP OR NCAA RACE.

If you missed a chance to see the U.S. Ski Team women race slalom and GS at Killington, consider attending some of the

Some of the legends in snowboarding will return to Stratton this March 21-23 to compete alongside amateurs at the second annual Homesick weekend.

Photo P. Cirilli/Homesick

NCAA races that take place in the region. On March 5-8, the NCAA Championships in skiing will be held at Dartmouth with the alpine events taking place at the Dartmouth Skiway and the Nordic competitions at the Dartmouth (Oak Hill) Cross Country Center in Hanover, both a hop across the Connecticut River from White River Junction. In 2027, the alpine championships will be hosted by University of Vermont at Stowe Mountain Resort, with the Nordic events at Craftsbury Outdoor Center. You can also watch the top Div. 1 collegiate racers compete at the Middlebury Carnival, Feb, 14-15 at the Snowbowl and Rikert Outdoor Center.

26. SKI THE STOWE DERBY

One of the oldest and craziest ski races in the country, since 1945 the Stowe Derby has challenged skiers to go from near the top on Mount Mansfield on a roughly 20-kilometer course that combines downhill, uphill and flats and often finishes in the town of Stowe. The freestyle (skate ski) division starts off first and those who are vying for the Derbymeister award do that, then take a bus or car back up, ride the lift and then compete in the classic division. There’s also a fat bike division and a kids’ race as well.

27.

DO A NORDIC MARATHON.

You may have run 26.1 miles but have you cross country skied a marathon or a 25- or a 50-kilometer course? The Craftsbury Marathon (Jan. 25-26) and the Lake Placid Loppet (Jan. 18) are two ski marathons in the American Ski Marathon series. While the races attract elite and Olympic-level skiers, there are also plenty of people who are just out to finish. At Craftsbury, if you’re up to it, compete on a 50K (or shorter) classic ski marathon on Saturday and then try a 30K skate ski marathon on Sunday. Earn the fastest combined time in both events and you win the Brodhead Challenge.

28. HEAD TO STRATTON FOR HOMESICK

Stratton is where snowboarding got its start. It was one of the first mountains to allow the sport and helped Jake and Donna Carpenter launch Burton Snowboards. It was also the site, for many years, of the US Open of snowboarding. In 2024, some of the sport’s early boosters brought back an event, Homesick, that captures the history of the sport. It brings both past greats like Shaun Palmer and current stars such as Zeb Powell to Stratton to compete with amateurs in halfpipe and slopestyle events, with an OG slalom thrown in as well. If you are even snowboard-curious, don’t miss this year’s event, March 21-23.

29. WATCH OR COMPETE IN KILLINGTON’S BEAR MOUNTAIN MOGUL CHALLENGE

Since 1981, Killington’s Outer Limits at Bear Mountain has been the proving ground for the best amateur mogul skiers in the region each spring. Note the word “amateur,” but don’t be surprised to see some zipline bump skiing marked by huge daffys, aerials and more. The vibe is pure ‘80s

with slushy bumps, warm sunshine, tie-dyed shirts, hoots and hollers from the chairlift and a roaring spectator scene as competitors face off in pairs, narrowing the 32 men and 16 women who make the cut down to the winners. Past contenders have included Donna Weinbrecht and Hannah Soar, both of whom went on to become Olympians.

30. POND SKIM

Pond skimming is an end-of-winter ritual at many Vermont ski areas and while most focus on the costumes and making the biggest splash, there’s some skill to making it across the water and off the ramp in style. Hint: fat skis and lots of speed will help keep you dry.

BACKCOUNTRY

31. UP YOUR BACKCOUNTRY GAME.

You can be a complete novice or have miles of uphill under your skins. Either way, checking in at the Bolton Valley Resort Adventure Center will help you be a better backcountry skier. The center offers rental gear (splitboards and skis, with skins, boots and all you will need), as well as lessons and guides who can show you why Bolton has become a Ground Zero for backcountry skiing in Vermont.

32. SKI A CATAMOUNT TRAIL SECTION.

The more than 300-mile trail runs up the spine of the Greens from Massachusetts to Canada. Some will do the whole thing – and increasingly, there are more and more attempts at a fastest-known-time. The FKT is currently 14 days, 2 hours as

Skiers on the Catamount Trail approach Bryant Camp hut near Bolton Valley Resort. Built in 1930 and renovated in 2016, the hut can be rented from the Green Mountain Club.

Photo L. Lynn

set by Aidan Powell. But most people ski just a few of the trail’s 31 sections. Ski it at an enjoyable pace, perhaps even with an overnight at one of the huts or inns along the way. The Catamount Trail Association hosts guided single and multi-day tours of the trail. Bring your own touring skis.

33. EXPLORE BACKCOUNTRY SKI ZONES.

All over the state, backcountry glades are beckoning, promising untracked powder to those who are ready to get up early and earn their turns. What started at Brandon Gap with the nation’s first sanctioned and mapped backcountry ski glades on National Forest land, has expanded and Vermont now has more than 60 miles of downhill backcountry skiing in designated backcountry zones. Check out those maintained in the Northeast Kingdom (Northeast Backcountry Alliance), the Randolph/ Rochester/Brandon area by the Ridgeline Outdoor Collective (ROC) and in southern Vermont, by the Dutch Hill Skiers and Hikers Recreation Alliance (DHASH).

34. OVERNIGHT IN A BACKCOUNTRY HUT.

Vermont Huts Association has more than 15 backcountry hut locations now, from the cabins (with wood stoves) at Merck Forest near Dorset to the Nulhegan Confluence hut in the Northeast Kingdom. The Green Mountain Club maintains popular huts such as Bolton Lodge and Bryant Camp, both just a short backcountry ski from the trails of Bolton Valley Resort. Vermont State Parks is another great resource and has the keys to two of the sweetest backcountry huts in the state: the Stone Hut on Mt. Mansfield, and the more luxurious Seyon Lodge (hardly a hut, but still lovely) in Groton State Forest. Note that the most popular huts often book out a year in advance.

35. TAKE AN AVALANCHE COURSE.

Burlington’s Petra Cliffs hosts AIARE Level 1 certification courses in Smuggler’s Notch in January and February and Level 2 courses at Mount Washington. Certified by the American Avalanche Association (A3) East Coast Avalanche Education teaches Level 1 avalanche safety courses in Smuggler’s Notch this February, as well. If those fill up, you can also take courses with them at Mount Washington in New Hampshire.

OUTDOOR SPORTS

36. SKATE OUTDOORS.

Skating a pond or a rink is all well and good. Stratton, Okemo, Stowe and Jay Peak all have rinks at their resorts. But for a chance to skate some wild ice head to Lake Morey in Fairlee. There you’ll find the longest groomed skating trail in the U.S. — 4.3 miles of wild ice.

37. ROMP OR RACE ON SNOWSHOES.

If you are new to snowshoeing, demo a pair or bring your own to the annual candle-lit Snowshoe Romp through Hubbard Park in Montpelier put on by Onion River Outdoors on Jan. 24. If you’ve been snowshoeing, try running a race—it’s not as easy as you may think. Start small with 3-mile Millstone Madness race in Websterville (usually held in February). For the super fit, the there’s the Snow Devil Ultra Snowshoe Race at Green Mountain Trails, Jan. 24-25. The shortest race is a 10K on a loop and the longest distance is 100 miles.

38. TRY EXTREME SLEDDING OR JACK JUMP.

If you’ve ever biked up Lincoln Gap near Sugarbush, you know it’s the steepest paved mile in the country. Come

Working with the Green Mountain National Forest, locals from the Rochester Outdoor Collaborative created the first sanctioned ski glades on national forest land off Brandon Gap’s Route 53. Photo Brian Mohr/EmberPhoto

winter, the gap is closed and draws sledders and jack jumpers. Weapon of choice among locals? The Mad River Rocket, a plastic sled designed by Warren-based architect David Sellers. For a seriously Vermont alternative to sledding, find or make a jack jump (a seat mounted to a single ski) and enter the Jack Jump World Championships, held annually at Mount Snow.

39. PLUNGE, SWIM OR DIP.

More and more people are doing winter dips in plunge pools or streams in pursuit of the Wim Hof method. If that leaves you feeling cold, Savu Sauna has strategically placed saunas at Mad Bush Falls in Warren and at Hula lakeside in Burlington. Foserious winter swimmers, sign up for the Lake Memphremagog Winter Swim, a challenge to race in a 25-meter pool cut into the lake ice each February, courtesy of Kingdom Games.

40. GO SNOW TUBING.

It may not be the most athletic of sports but let’s face it, it’s fun. You can take an inner tube to any hill where the snow has been packed down head but at Killington, Okemo, Stratton, Ascutney Outdoors, or Mount Snow there are dedicated snow tubing hills or “parks,” many with dedicated lifts for the ride back up.

41. LEARN TO ICE CLIMB

Vermont has some spectacular ice falls, from central Vermont to Lake Willoughby. Petra Cliff’s annual Smuggs Ice Bash (Jan. 27-29), a long-running festival devoted to the sport, is the time to demo gear, attend clinics and learn more. All winter, Petra Cliffs also offers single-day or multiweekend progression courses any time the ice is right. Based in Rutland, the Green Mountain Rock Climbing Center also offers ice climbing lessons in central Vermont.

42. FATBIKE IN THE SNOW.

Fatbiking on a groomed, snowy trail is all the fun of mountain biking but with big grippy tires that make you feel like Spider-Man. You can rent fatbikes at Kingdom Trails, Rikert Outdoor Center and many other cross country centers. Fatbike festivals are also on the rise. Rikert in Ripton hosts the Addison County Bike Club’s Fatbike Roundup on Jan. 28. MTBVT’s Uberwintern in Stowe is Jan. 11, Rutland’s Cold Roll is Feb. 9 and Winterbike, the mother of Vermont’s fatbike fests, is at Kingdom Trails on Feb. 8.

43. DASH THROUGH THE SNOW ON A HORSE-DRAWN OPEN SLEIGH. There are few things more romantic than taking a moonlight sleigh ride over snowy fields. If you want to replicate a Currier and Ives painting, you can with a horse drawn sleigh ride near several Vermont ski areas. In Stowe, Gentle Giant Sleigh Rides and the Trapp Family Lodge have sleigh rides. In Johnson,

near Smuggler’s Notch, Sterling Mountain Farm offers sleigh rides. In central Vermont, the Mountain Top Inn and Resort has rides through its extensive trail system and in Londonderry and The Woodstock Inn and Resort offers them as well. Near Stratton, try Taylor Farm.

44. GO DOGSLEDDING.

Mushing, as driving a dog sled is called, is a timehonored pastime in Vermont but one that has been threatened by climate change. However, there are a number of kennels that still offer dog sled rides. Between Smugglers’ Notch and Jay Peak, Eden Ethical Dogsledding offers tours as well as an education about mushing. Umiak Adventures books tours in Stowe and in the Mad River Valley.

45. TAKE A SNOWMOBILE TOUR.

Fact: there are more miles of snowmobile trails in Vermont than there are paved roads. The Vermont Association of Snow

At Nordic ski centers such as Kingdom Trails, rent a fatbike and explore miles of groomed trails. Below, a horse-drawn sleigh ride is another way to enjoy the winter landscape. Courtesy photos,

winter, the gap is closed and draws sledders and jack jumpers. Weapon of choice among locals? The Mad River Rocket, a plastic sled designed by Warren-based architect David Sellers. For a seriously Vermont alternative to sledding, find or make a jack jump (a seat mounted to a single ski) and enter the Jack Jump World Championships, held annually at Mount Snow.

39. PLUNGE, SWIM OR DIP.

More and more people are doing winter dips in plunge pools or streams in pursuit of the Wim Hof method. If that leaves you feeling cold, Savu Sauna has strategically placed saunas at Mad Bush Falls in Warren and at Hula lakeside in Burlington. For serious winter swimmers, sign up for the Lake Memphremagog Winter Swim, a challenge to race in a 25-meter pool that is cut into the lake ice each February, courtesy of Kingdom Games.

40. GO SNOW TUBING.

It may not be the most athletic of sports but let’s face it, it’s fun. You can take an inner tube to any hill where the snow has been packed down. But at Killington, Okemo, Stratton, Ascutney Outdoors, or Mount Snow there are dedicated snow tubing hills or “parks,” many with dedicated lifts for the ride back up.

41. LEARN TO ICE CLIMB

Vermont has some spectacular ice falls, from Mendon to Lake Willoughby. Petra Cliff’s annual Smuggs’ Ice Bash (Jan. 27-29), a long-running festival devoted to the sport, is the time to demo gear, attend clinics and learn more. All winter, Petra Cliffs also offers single-day or multi-weekend progression courses any time the ice is right. Based in Rutland, the Green Mountain Rock Climbing Center also offers ice climbing lessons in central Vermont.

42. FATBIKE IN THE SNOW.

Fatbiking on a groomed, snowy trail is all the fun of mountain biking but with big grippy tires that make you feel like Spider-Man. You can rent fatbikes at Kingdom Trails, Rikert Outdoor Center and many other cross country centers. Fatbike festivals are also on the rise. Rikert in Ripton hosts the Addison County Bike Club’s Fatbike Roundup on Jan. 28. MTBVT’s Uberwintern in Stowe is Jan. 11, Rutland’s Cold Roll is Feb. 9 and Winterbike, the mother of Vermont’s fatbike fests, is at Kingdom Trails on Feb. 8.

43. DASH THROUGH THE SNOW ON A HORSE-DRAWN OPEN SLEIGH. There are few things more romantic than taking a moonlight sleigh ride over snowy fields. If you want to replicate a Currier and Ives painting, you can with a horse drawn sleigh ride near several Vermont ski areas. In Stowe, Gentle Giant Sleigh Rides and the Trapp Family Lodge have sleigh rides. In Johnson,

near Smuggler’s Notch, Sterling Mountain Farm offers sleigh rides. In central Vermont, the Mountain Top Inn and Resort has rides through its extensive trail system and in Londonderry and The Woodstock Inn and Resort offers them as well. Near Stratton, try Taylor Farm.

44. GO DOGSLEDDING.

Mushing, as driving a dog sled is called, is a timehonored pastime in Vermont but one that has been threatened by climate change. However, there are a number of kennels that still offer dog sled rides. Between Smugglers’ Notch and Jay Peak, Eden Ethical Dogsledding offers tours as well as an education about mushing. Umiak Adventures books tours in Stowe and in the Mad River Valley.

45. TAKE A SNOWMOBILE TOUR.

Fact: there are more miles of snowmobile trails in Vermont than there are paved roads. The Vermont Association of Snow

At Nordic ski centers such as Kingdom Trails, rent a fatbike and explore miles of groomed trails. Below, a horse-drawn sleigh ride is another way to enjoy the winter landscape. Courtesy photos,

Travelers’ 127 member clubs maintain more than 4,700 miles of snowmobile trails around the state. Snowmobile Vermont (snowpack permitting) runs tours out of Woodford, near Mount Snow as well as near Okemo, Killington and Stowe.

46. TRY ICE FISHING.

Ice fishing is a time-honored tradition in Vermont and once the ice freezes shanty towns pop up on lakes around the state. In 2010, Richard Levesque struggled for 12 minutes to catch at the time, a record-setting 14.55-pound walleye out of a hole in the ice on Lake Champlain. Find a local guide and they’ll get you to the right lake.

HISTORY & CULTURE

47. RIDE MAD RIVER GLEN’S SINGLE CHAIR.

To give you a sense of how iconic Mad River Glen’s Single Chair is consider this: In the early 2000s when the original 1947 chair was showing signs of wear, there was a debate about whether to replace it with a double or a quad. Eighty-one percent of Mad River Glen shareholders voted to restore the Single, at a cost that was more than replacing it. The restoration – which was so meticulous it meant replacing the hickory slats on each chair with new hickory – was done with the Preservation Trust of Vermont and in 2013 helped earn Mad River Glen the distinction of being the only ski area on the National Historic Register.

48. CATCH UP ON SKI HISTORY.

In Stowe, the Vermont Ski and Snowboard Museum has rotating exhibits dedicated to the history of snowsports, the “Red Bench” speaker series, and an archive of ski films. In December, the Museum opened the second half of its “Lost Ski Areas” exhibit, this one dedicated to the ski areas in the northern part of the state.

49. TOUR BURTON’S R&D FACILITY.

Journey through 45 years of Burton history and get an inside look at Craig’s, the company’s Vermont R&D facility. This 10,000 square-foot facility houses the best of Burton’s custom-built machinery. Craig’s is dedicated to R&D and only produces a limited run of boards each season for the “Backyard Project.” Tours are held Mon.Fri. at 2 p.m.

50. MAKE A PILGRIMAGE.

Make a pilgrimage to Woodstock where a sign in a field just north of town commemorates Gilbert’s Hill, the site of the first lift in the U.S. A rope-tow went up there in 1934. It was later moved to what is now Saskadena Six ski area. Stay at the tony The Woodstock Inn and Resort (once owned by Laurance Rockefeller) and stop in at the Gillingham’s, a red-brick general store that has been in the same family for four generations. u

Stop in at the Vermont Ski & Snowboard Museum in Stowe to see the current exhibit, dedicated to lost ski areas. Photo L. Lynn

POAC POAC

There are ethics to backcountry skiing. Don’t post hole in the skin track, don’t

BY ANDREW ROSS |

BRIAN MOHR & EMILY JOHNSON

PHOTOS BY

HERS HERS

pee in it either, and above all, keep your powder stash a secret. At all costs.

Photographer Brian Mohr has probably skied as many “secret stashes” as any Vermont skier, yet he is careful not to divulge their whereabouts. We are not giving away his secrets.

Years ago, I came across a few photos of what appeared to be the perfect Northeast backcountry glade. Its balsams and birches were spaced so wide it looked like you could carve giant slalom turns between them. The understory was totally clear — a rare treat in the tangled second-growth forests of New England. In a word, it looked like a tree skier’s Nirvana. I had to ski it.

The person who shared the photos with me mentioned the little-known name of a normally overlooked landmark near the glade. It was just enough to give me a rough idea of which mountain the line was on, and an even rougher idea of which aspect. Other than that, I was clueless.

Three years passed before I finally found it. Three years of poring over topographic maps and satellite imagery. Three years of watching the weather for conditions to be right. Three years of trying to convince my friends that the promised land really did exist, and that they should come help me find it.

Three years, and one frigid day of bushwhacking.

My friend Geoff and I went out together on this particular hunt. The word “snow” had dominated the forecast headlines, but wind turned out to be the story of the day. An angry gale thrashed the trees above our heads as we zig-zagged our way up the side of the mountain, keeping one eye searching for our line and the other aimed upward, wary of falling limbs.

We would skin toward any promising-looking patch of white we could spy through the trees. Every time we broke through to what looked from a distance to be a skiable corridor, we’d find it choked with hobblebush and birch saplings. After a couple of hours of fruitless wandering, I could tell Geoff was losing faith that we’d ever find the place. The mischievous grin that is a fixture on his face whenever he’s out in the mountains was replaced with a hard expression of grim resignation. It looked as if he was more wary of having to ski back out through all the schwack we had just skinned up, than excited about the promise of the beautiful glade that I kept assuring him was “probably just a little bit higher…”

Truth be told, my confidence was wavering, too. Now that we were lost out here on a frozen mountainside, those photos were a much less convincing lead than they had seemed when we were planning this little misadventure back in the comfort of my living room.

Nevertheless, we carried on, picking our way through the labyrinthine forest. The trees became so dense as we gained elevation that if we didn’t find an open line of descent, we were going to have to ski down with our skins on. We finally forced our way through one last spruce thicket and emerged into a vast ballroom of open snow.

But just as we were wondering to ourselves if this really was our line, a telemark skier drifted by on bended knee, erasing all our doubts. Here it was: the glade I had been lusting after for three years.

Unfortunately, that moment was the high point of our tour. It’s a long story, but suffice to say it involved a long delay due to an iced up binding and a sudden switch from snow to rain. While we had fun schussing the slush, we left feeling as though we hadn’t quite got what we came for.

Naturally, we had to go back. Which we did after yet another year, two days after the biggest storm of the season.

The snow was so deep that it almost made up for the wait. This time, we skied the place right, harvesting all the powder our legs could handle.

As we transitioned at the bottom of our third or fourth run, we thought we heard voices off somewhere to our left, but the falling snow so muffled the sounds of the forest that we thought it might be our imagination playing tricks.

Soon after beginning the ascent, however, our skin track merged with another set of tracks, and coming up the mountain was a second party of two.

They stopped when they saw us, stunned. The lead skier looked at me like I was a Sasquatch; as if he was seeing something that he knew couldn’t possibly exist: a stranger on skis in his secret glade. Yet there we were.

“After you,” I said as friendly as I could be, and gestured for him to lead the way up the skin track.

My words seemed to startle him a second time, as if by speaking I confirmed that I really did exist, and was not, sadly, an hallucination. He blinked. Regaining his wits, he replaced the look of astonishment on his face with one of cold suspicion.

“Don’t mind if I do,” he said, making no effort to reciprocate my friendliness.

He and his partner led the ascent. Geoff and I loitered, figuring they’d appreciate some space. But it wasn’t long after we resumed climbing that we caught back up.

The first skier, the startled one, slowed down once he sensed us on his partner’s tails, as if to make a passive aggressive point. Geoff and I slowed down, too, falling back as far as we could stand to.

We caught back up again when they stopped for water. I took the opportunity to ask, “Mind if we sneak by?”

“We’ll be moving soon enough,” the skier said, nursing his water bottle as if it was a beer.

Denied.

I looked back at Geoff, who gave me an uncomfortable grin. Clearly, we were not welcome here. As he closed the cap on his water bottle, the leader opened up a bit. “Where are you two from? I don’t recognize you.”

He was visibly disappointed when we admitted we were from Massachusetts. I was a little disappointed myself. Deep down, every flatlander like me wishes they lived in the mountains.

“How’d you find this place, then? It’s a locals’ spot,” he asked, as though there was some law of physics that was supposed to prevent Massholes from venturing north of Brattleboro.

I answered his question.

“I hate social media,” he grumbled, shaking his head as he turned to continue skinning. “It’s ruining everything.”

That was oversimplifying the situation. It didn’t give

Hardwood forests cover much of the Green Mountains. Mature trees form a canopy, preventing pucker from growing. This often makes for great backcountry skiing come winter. Photo by Brian Mohr.

“When I gaze out from a mountain’s summit and wonder if that patch of hardwoods across the valley is a skiable glade, I don’t want Google or Instagram to be able to tell me the answer.’’

Geoff and me nearly enough credit for the effort we put in to find the place. These glades aren’t on any map. There’s no explicit mention of them anywhere, actually. Just a few disparate bread crumbs scattered around the internet.

In fact, I’d be shocked if anybody else ever has the good luck and patience to piece them together as I did. And even if they do, would they be bold enough —or should I say foolish enough? — to strike off into the trailless wilderness on nothing more than a hunch? But I didn’t bother to argue. It wouldn’t have changed that skier’s mind. If I were in his boots, it probably wouldn’t have changed mine, either.

Besides, he had a point. Who would want to ski in a world where there are no secrets left to discover? When I gaze out from atop a mountain’s summit and wonder if that patch of hardwoods on the slope across the valley is a skiable glade, I don’t want Google or Instagram to be able to tell me the answer. There’s something at once romantic and hopeful to the idea that New England—a region that not so long ago was clear cut from the shores of Long Island Sound all the way to the Canadian border—yet again holds mysteries that can only be solved by physically venturing into the wild.

We skinned for a few more minutes in silence. Our unwitting leader seemed to be considering what to do about the problem of Geoff and me. But the pace had picked up a bit; maybe he was warming up to us.

“I built this place,” he said at length. “It took a very long time. It’s a special spot. The thing that makes it so special is that no one knows about it. Please keep it that way.”

There are many reasons to keep an illicit glade like this one quiet, especially if you’re the guy who cleared it. For starters, cutting trees on land you don’t own can be punishable with fines and jail time. Then there’s the potential ecological damage you might wreak upon the delicate subalpine environment (though to be fair to our new friend, it looked as though he had done little more than clean out deadfall and thin some hobblebush).

But there was something in his voice that told me neither prison nor the local migratory bird populations were top of mind when he implored us to keep his secret. No; he was worried that Geoff and I might give away his precious powder stash.

“Don’t worry. We won’t tell anybody,” I said.

“Good. Thank you. By the way—where did you park?”

I told him where we left the car.

He urged us to use a more discreet lot and recommended an obfuscated route into the zone. It was clear he still wasn’t happy that we had found his lines, but he had come to accept that the best way to protect his secret was to let us in on it.

That’s not to say that Geoff and I would have desecrated his glade by posting it on Strava or Instagram. As far as we’re concerned, we discovered this place. It is just as much ours to protect as it is anybody else’s who skis there.

After agreeing to follow the sneaky approach from now on, Geoff and I peeled off the skintrack to hit a virgin line that looked too tempting to pass up, even though it would be a short run. I had wanted to get a couple of action shots of Geoff in the untouched snow – as a personal keepsake, mind you – but he set off down the mountain before I could even pull the phone out of my pocket. I smiled and shook my head. He’s always doing that. Our hosts need not have worried; as usual, my partner was too enthusiastic about simply skiing the place to afford me the opportunity to accidentally give it away.

We backcountry skiers have our own code of ethics. Some of our rules are common no matter what mountain range you call home. You know–basic courtesies, like don’t posthole the skintrack. And don’t pee in it, either. While these are all good guidelines to live by, here in New England we hold one rule sacred above all others: Show. Don’t tell. You’re already familiar with this rule if you’ve explored the Northeast on skis beyond the boundaries of its resorts. It’s in the air. You can’t stumble your way into even the most obvious side-country lines without a local admonishing you, “Don’t tell anybody.” Or “Seriously, man. Close friends and family only.”

If you have a secret powder stash, there is only one morally acceptable way to share it with others: take them there personally. Under no circumstances are you to simply tell someone how to get there without actually going along yourself. It is especially taboo to post any of the following online: detailed trip reports, GPX tracks, Strava routes, and photographs or videos containing recognizable landmarks that might allow nosy outsiders

to home in on your secret spot.

If you do blow up someone’s secret zone on social media, you might garner a few thumbs-up from the uninitiated, but the backcountry veterans who have been skiing there since you were serving up pizzas and French fries on the bunny slope will soon let you know that you’re out of line. Diplomatically, of course.

It’s best just to follow the rule: Show. Don’t tell.

Lest you think we denizens of the New England backcountry are greedy or unwelcoming, think about how small and wooded our mountains are, and consider how impoverished our typical winter snowpack is. Even if only a tiny fraction of the millions of skiers who live in the Northeast get wind of a new, easily accessible zone, it won’t be long before we love it to death. Good backcountry skiing is a scarce resource around here. It must be protected.

See? We’re not greedy. We’re conservationists.

By the same token, when you do get a morsel of intel about a new zone, you owe it to yourself to quietly check it out, even if there’s a chance you might be encroaching on someone else’s territory. u

Photographer Emily Johnson captured this shot at one of her family’s favorite places to drop in.

Your Next Adventure is Closer Than you Think.

Unplug and reconnect to winter with Fischer Offtrack skis and boots.

Lightweight constructions, full length metal edges, and our secure Offtrack Crown waxless pattern will provide the stability, control and climbing power needed to elevate your next skiing adventure.

Learn more at Fischersports.com or your local Fischer Retailer:

Basin Sports

2886 Killington Rd, Killington, VT 802-422-3234 skiessentials.com

Berkshire Outfitters

169 Grove St, Adams, MA 413-743-5900 berkshireoutfitters.com

High Peaks Cyclery

2733 Main St, Lake Placid, NY 518-523-3764 highpeakscyclery.com

Mountain Ops 4081 Mountain Rd, Stowe, VT 802-253-4531 mountainopsvt.com

Omer and Bob’s

20 Hanover St, Lebanon, NH 603-448-3522 omerandbobs.com

Onion River Outdoors

20 Langdon St, Montpelier, VT 802-225-6736 onionriver.com

Outdoor Gear Exchange

37 Church St, Burlington, VT 888-547-4327 gearx.com

Pinnacle Ski and Sports 1652 Mountain Road Stowe VT 802-422-3234 skiessentials.com

Power Play Sports

35 Portland St, Morrisville, VT 802-888-6557 powerplaysportsvt.com

Skirack

85 Main St, Burlington, VT 800-882-4530 skirack.com

The Mountain Goat

4886 Historic Main St, Manchester Ctr, VT 802-362-3277 mountaingoat.com

Umiak Outfitters 849 S Main St, Stowe, VT 802-253-2317 umiak.com

Waterbury Sports 46 South Main Street, Waterbury, VT 802-882-8595 waterburysportsvt.com

West Hill Shop

49 Brickyard Lane, Putney, VT 802-387-5718 westhillshop.com

From Vermont. With Love.

If you’re looking for a gift for the holidays, birthdays or Valentine’s Day, these great gear items come from Vermont brands.

HOOTIE HOO TORRENT FLEECE

Hootie Hoo is a Vermont-based woman-owned brand offering top-tier technical apparel for children. Hootie Hoo firmly believes that many lifelong habits and valuable lessons are cultivated through outdoor experiences and their passion lies in creating high-quality gear designed to empower children to “Outplay The Elements”.  The Hootie Hoo Torrent Fleece Set ($79) is perfect for layering on the slopes. Its unique grid-back fleece is cozy and moisture-wicking, keeping kids warm while letting excess heat escape. Available in 9 colors and sizes from 3T to 14. hootiehoo.com

VERMONT GLOVE TUTTLE

Vermont Glove’s newly updated Tuttle ($150) is a lined version of the flagship work glove with a wool cuff. Made of 100% fullgrain goat leather, the gloves will stand up to your toughest winter work, whether you’re running a logging chain or a splitboard. The genuine Vermont Glove woven cuff keeps out the cold and the crud, and tucks in under a jacket cuff. vermontglove.com

BIVO TRIO

Based in Richmond, Bivo was started by two parents who didn’t want to drink out of plastic bottles when exercising. Perfect for winter adventures, the new Bivo Trio ($49) is an insulated 21 oz. stainless steel bottle designed for cyclists and athletes. Bivo bottles have a high flow rate, are dishwasher safe, and fit in a universal bike bottle cage. drinkbivo.com GEAR (SPONSORED)

VERMONT SMOKE & CURE VARIETY PACK

Vermont Smoke & Cure goes all in to craft premium meat sticks that power adventures. A customer favorite, the 12-count 0.5-oz. Variety Pack ($11.99) is the perfect on-the-go protein boost for outdoor enthusiasts. Each mini stick delivers a delicious taste of the best-sellers, including Original Beef & Pork, Hickory Smoked Uncured Bacon Pork, and BBQ Seasoned Beef. Handcrafted, slow-cooked and naturally smoked, these protein-packed meat sticks are designed for those who live life to the fullest. Whether you’re hitting the slopes or exploring the great outdoors, the variety pack ensures you’ll have the perfect snack at hand. Use offer code GiftGuide for 20% off your order to celebrate all who chase powder days. vtsmokeandcure.com

RENOUN EARHART SKIS

She’s back! Renoun’s Earhart 88 ($899) is a women’s all-mountain ski crafted by a team of Vermont ladies and named after the legendary pilot, Amelia Earhart. The ski boasts a progressive rocker profile to help navigate bumps and powder with ease, while a maple core gives a responsive, lively feel. Confidently explore Vermont’s trails with the Earhart 88. $899 only available at renoun.com.

THUJA CUSTOM BURROW HOODIE

This is the perfect all-around mid-layer. Constructed from Polartec© Power Grid™ fleece, it is moisture wicking and warm, yet breathable and lightweight, and made from 93% recycled polyester. The Burrow Hoodie ($139) is custom made here in WIlliston, Vt. Mix and match colors for the body and choose from a variety of original patterns for the pocket. There are thousands of possible combinations, so yours can be completely unique. thujavt.com

GORDINI ARTIST SERIES MITT

Introducing the Gordini Artist Series Mitt ($89.99) with original style and fit for the playful and soulful mountain crew. With a U.S. base in Williston, Vt., Gordini partnered with environmental artist and printmaker Jordan Kendall Parks to bring the joy of snow into your hands and close to your hearts. Check out the exclusive designs that visualize this collaboration of passion, purpose, and art. gordini.com

RIPPIN’ KITTEN HATS

Rippin’ Kitten has been collecting vintage ski resort patches for decades. These are the centerpiece of their one-of-a-kind Pom creations. Made from minky-soft microfiber and topped with a detachable (repurposed) fur pom, the artisan hats are a conversation piece of ski history and fond memories. Plus, you can customize a Rippin’ Kitten Hat ($98) for your ski/ride enthusiast. Just go online to choose a patch, hat color and pom for a truly unique gift. rippinkittenhats.com

UNTAPPED’S

BOURBON BARREL-AGED SYRUP

Stock up on a new, limited release Bourbon BarrelAged maple syrup from all natural athletic fuel company UnTapped. A truly unique variety, this organic maple syrup is aged in oak bourbon barrels resulting in a classic sweet maple syrup with a smooth bourbon finish. Available in individual packets ($3.50) or in a luxury six-pack gift box ($19.99). The ultimate Vermont gift. untapped.cc

PARADIS SPORT BIKINI

Paradis Sport’s Natural Fiber Bikini ($35) is designed for any activity, from skiing to hiking to running or rock climbing. It wicks moisture, dries fast, and features 4-way stretch that moves with you. The patented Merrow Activeseam™ delivers the Paradis’ stay-in-place promise that it will not slide or ride up. Certified BPA- and PFAS-free the bikinis are manufactured in the U.S. using European fabric that is derived from sustainably harvested beech tree pulp. The underwear is sewn in small batches using the highest quality materials. Outside Magazine, Backpacker, and Treeline Review all rated it the bestin-class underwear for active women. Paradis is the only underwear brand to fit-test with athletes. Individual bikinis make great stocking stuffers, and the 4-pack gift set features one of each color and comes in a beautiful box. Give the gift of a luxurious first layer.paradissport.com

Carnival Times

With ski races, ski jumping, snowshoe events and ice carving, winter carnivals have a long history in the Northeast, a history that started at a small school in Southern Vermont. By

Lisa Lynn

You might know of James P. Taylor as the father of the first, and oldest, long-distance hiking trail in America. Taylor, as legend has it, was sitting in a tent in the rain on the side of Stratton Mountain in 1909 when he conceived of a trail that would run the length of Vermont. Between 1910 and 1930, Taylor ensured that The Long Trail was built, running along the spine of the Green Mountains from Massachusetts to Canada.

In 1908, Taylor had arrived at Vermont Academy from Colgate University to serve as the assistant principal of the college preparatory school in Saxton’s River. “Taylor used to tell people that ‘All of Vermont is our campus’” says Jennifer Zaccara, Vermont Academy’s current head of school. “He would give students all sorts of outdoor challenges, in every season,” she says.

Taylor created the school’s Mountain Club (the model for The Green Mountain Club). In the summer, the challenges involved cutting trails, hiking or canoeing. In winter, Taylor invented a series of his own winter games in what became the very first school Winter Carnival.

Clockwise from top: University of Vermont winter carnival racers in 1974 at Stowe. James P. Taylor, the father of the Long Trail and assistant dean of Vermont Academy. Spectators line the course at the Middlebury Snowbowl for its winter carnival. Courtesy photos .

Burlington had held a winter carnival in 1886 and 1887, modeled after a similar event in Montreal (an event that was canceled due to a smallpox outbreak.) The Burlington Winter Carnival featured coasting, toboggan sliding, snow shoeing, ice skating and curling, as well as ice hockey, and ice boating. Coasting, literally sledding down Burlington’s steep streets, was so popular the mayor outlawed it in 1884 but a local, Dr. William Seward Webb (one of the owners of Shelburne Farms) campaigned for it to be allowed and won. Still, the Burlington Winter Carnival was short-lived and fizzled out in 1888.

Taylor’s idea for a winter carnival was far simpler, and a tad more creative. On February 13, 1909, he organized snowshoe races, an obstacle race on skis and snowshoes, ski races based on form and style, and a ski jumping event over a man-made kicker of snow. As one account of the ski jumping states: “Some went headfirst into the air, others went feet first, others took what some call ‘The President’s Chair,” that is to take a nice sit down, and some landed all right.”

THE RISE OF COLLEGE CARNIVALS

The next year, students from Vermont Academy headed to Dartmouth to help Dartmouth Outing Club founder Fred Harris (who went on to found Brattleboro’s Harris Hill Ski Jump), organize a similar carnival in 1910. When in the 1950s a Boston Globe article claimed that Dartmouth had started the first winter carnival, Taylor wrote to the newspaper to correct the record.

Harris, an all-around athlete who liked to compete in nearly every sport that involved skis, invited nearby colleges to come to Dartmouth for a weekend of skiing, snowshoeing and ski jumping. Over the years, the Dartmouth Winter Carnival grew to include snow sculptures, figure skating and a beauty pageant in 1923 that crowned the “Queen of the Snows.”

Dartmouth’s festival was the start of intercollegiate ski racing and soon colleges around New England had their own winter carnivals, each inviting other schools in the region to come to their campus for a winter weekend of races – both serious and fun.

Middlebury College launched its carnival in the early 1920s with a variety of sports. In a 2023 article in the college paper, The Middlebury Campus, a student, Katherine Michaelsen wrote: “Ski races are what began the carnival tradition a century ago. Since 1923, the event has come to take on the hugely important, not collegesanctioned role of providing Middlebury students with an opportunity to wear heinously colorful clothing, migrate to the Snowbowl, and drink—all while celebrating the college’s athletic prowess.”

That “athletic prowess,” wasn’t always a focus of the Middlebury carnival. In 1926 a ski coach was hired who, according to a 2011 article in The Middlebury Campus,

didn’t know how to ski. But after the 1932 Winter Olympics were held in Lake Placid, interest in ski events was piqued. In 1934, Middlebury held a full-on carnival, modeled after Dartmouth’s, which would include the 27-meter ski jump on Middlebury’s Chipman Hill.

It wasn’t until the 1950s that skiing became a NCAA sport. The University of Denver dominated the championships for the first decade but Dartmouth,

Vermont Academy was always co-ed and two VA students, above, raised glasses at winter carnival. Left, Middlebury crowned a carnival king and queen. Far right: two VA students continue a tradition and compete on one pair of antique skis at a recent winter carnival.

Middlebury and the University of Vermont were usually among the top schools in the results.

Ironically, in 2023 – the year that would have been its 100th anniversary – ski racing was not on the calendar for Middlebury’s Winter Carnival as the Eastern collegiate calendar was already filled with too many other college ski races. “I knew that there would be a dance, an ice show and fireworks — but without the ski races, it felt as though this year’s carnival would be missing something irreplaceable,” Michaelsen lamented in her Middlebury Campus article.

In 2025, the Middlebury Winter Carnival is back with races on Feb. 23-25 at the Snowbowl and Rikert Outdoor Center. Dartmouth’s 114th winter carnival is Feb. 6-9 and that school will host the overall NCAA championships this year, March 5-8. The University of Vermont is not hosting a carnival this year. It will host the NCAA skiing finals in 2027 at Stowe and Craftsbury Outdoor Center.

beginnings up north in Canada around the turn of the 19th to 20th century. In Montreal and Quebec these elaborate affairs were first put on by the high-spirited Snowshoe Clubs which abound in that North Country. They set the pattern which still is followed in Winter Carnivals, including snow sculpture, beauty queens, parades and

FLASHBACK

In 1921, Craig Burt, a local lumberman and a group of residents organized a winter carnival in the village of Stowe. They built a ski jump, an ice rink, toboggan run and ice palace. More than a thousand people attended. The carnival continued on for two years before, like the Burlington event, it fizzled out. The Mt. Mansfield Ski Club revived it in 1930 and added alpine skiing events, which Fred Harris was involved in organizing. But then that carnival too went by the wayside until locals resurrected it in 1975 with the ice carving and many of the town-wide events that still happen today.

Harris also launched Brattleboro’s winter carnival in 1957, with ski races and jumping, and a coronation of a Carnival Queen. Though there are no longer carnival kings and queens, the Brattleboro carnival is still going strong. In 2024, the town held skiing and snowboarding races at the local Living Memorial Park hill, sleigh rides, cross country skiing and a snow golf competition.

And not far from Brattleboro, at Vermont Academy the tradition of winter carnival that started some 115 years ago is as alive as ever. There’s ski jumping on the Saxton River campus’s 35-meter ski jump, skiing and snowboard events at the Academy’s newly-merged outpost, Mount Snow Academy, and – just like in 1909, cross country skiing in tandem (two students on one set of skis), a torch-light parade, broom ball and a tug-of-war on snow.

James P. Taylor would be proud to see the tradition he started is flourishing. u

Today’s carnival events range from the silly to the very serious. At Vermont Academy/ Mount Snow students launch off a kicker. University of Vermont Catamounts Kate Ryley (‘14) and Karl Schulz (‘20) compete at recent carnivals.

HIT THE BOOKS,

THEN THE SLOPES.

Exclusively for Vermont students, the Vermont Student Pass offers unlimited access to Pico Mountain, so you can hit the mountain just as hard as you hit the books. Ski or ride all season long for just $134. Proof of eligibility required for pass pick up.

Purchase now by scanning the code or visiting picomountain.com/seasonpass.

THE GREEN MOUNTAIN CALENDAR

DECEMBER

Nov. 29-Dec. 1 | HERoic Stifel Killington World Cup, Killington

Watch the best female racers in the world compete on Superstar in a giant slalom on Saturday and slalom on Sunday. Watch the best women ski racers in the world. Plus, a tent village, free concerts by national artists, including Fitz and the Tantrums, Matt Quinn (lead singer from Mt. Joy), Eve 6, and DJ Ross fireworks, parties and a VIP tent. killington.com

6-8 | A Traditional Christmas, Stowe

Come to the village of Stowe for a gorgeous tree lighting, children’s lantern parade, art center full of festooned trees, wagon rides, a holiday bazaar, the arrival of Santa and Mrs. Claus, live holiday music, ornament and cookie decorating, “Welcome to Winter” holiday skating, and a Santa Stroll to support local businesses and more. gostowe.com

7 | Snowlight in Vermont, Stratton

Snowlight in Vermont reception and village tree lighting. Sponsor a lighted tree ($625$725) and dedicate a plaque in the Stratton Village or in Manchester during the winter season. “Snowlight in Vermont” supports critical programs that address hunger, health, basic necessities and education for Vermont children in need. Stratton.com

7 | Brew, Bites & Boards Weekend, Smuggler’s Notch Resort

Skiing paired with the flavors of Vermont’s top breweries and ciders. Enjoy a Saturday night prime rib dinner featuring flights from Fiddlehead Brewery and Stowe Cider, plus an on-site presentation from the makers. Packages with lodging, lift tickets, two breakfasts and the dinner start at $299 per person. smuggs.com

13 | Warren Miller’s “75” Film, Stratton

Warren Miller Entertainment’s 75th anniversary film will take fans to powder stashes and chutes around the world, from Canada, Colorado, California, and Utah to Finland, Japan, Austria, and New Jersey. (Yes, even New Jersey.) The lineup includes snowboarders Shaun White, Zeb Powell, Toby Miller, Danny Davis, and 15-year-old phenom LJ Henriquez, plus skiers Max Hitzig, Lexi duPont, Caite Zeliff, Aaron Blunck, Alex Ferreira, Cassie Sharpe, and many more. warrenmiller.com

13-15 | Woodstock Wassail Weekend, Woodstock

Ornament making, carriage rides, a Wassail parade and a lighting of 400 luminaries around the Green. Take in the magic of twinkling light displays, decorated historic homes, and the sounds of holiday music throughout the village. woodstockvt.com

14 | Wall of Fame & Sugarbash, Sugarbush

Established as part of the resort’s 60th anniversary celebration, the Wall of Fame annually recognizes those who have made a significant contribution to “cultivating a spirit of lifelong adventure and camaraderie among Sugarbush staff, guests, and the community.” Followed by the Sugarbash party with live music. sugarbush.com

15 | Santa Sunday, Bolton Valley

It’s pretty simple really: Dress from head to toe in a Santa Claus costume and you ski/ ride for free this day. Arrive at Guest Services prior to 10 a.m .to get your complimentary lift ticket for the day and qualify for this giveaway. Santa Group Photo: 11 a.m., slopeside of Main Base Lodge toward Mid Mountain Lift. Boltonvalley.com

15 | #1 ADK Tour de Ski, Lake Placid, NY

The first stop on the series of 6 ADK Tour de Ski events kicks of at Mt. Van Hoevenberg in Lake Placid with a skate-only race.. Do one or do them all. adktourdeski.com

21 | Champagne Cowbell, Sugarbush

Celebrate Mt Ellen’s opening day with a Champagne party. Test your cork-shooting prowess and hit the cowbell hanging from the rafters, enter giveaways to win sweet prizes, boogie to live music, and have a bite and a drink from the Green Mountain Lounge.

29 | #2 ADK Tour de Ski, Lake Placid, NY

The second stop on the ADK Tour de Ski nordic ski race series is at Scott’s Cobble Nordic Center in Lake Placid. Classic and skate distances. adktourdeski.com

JANUARY

4 | Bogburn Classic, Ripton

This will mark the 36th edition of the Bogburn Classic, an event steeped in celebrating the roots of cross country skiing — and the third running of the event in Ripton’s Rikert Outdoor Center. Traditionally held in Pomfret, Vt. rikertoutdoor.com

11 | #3 ADK Tour de Ski, Dewey Mountain, Saranac Lake, NY

The third stop on the ADK Tour de Ski nordic ski race series is at Dewey Mountain Recreation Center. Skate only. adktourdeski.com

12 | Mansfield Nordic Skiathlon, Sleepy Hollow Ski & Bike Center, Huntington

For those who can’t decide between classic or skate cross country skiing, MNC has answered with a simple question: Why not both? Ski 6K of classic followed by 6K of skate. Open, junior and kids categories with a lollipop race too. Nensa.net

22-26 | Stowe Winter Carnival, Stowe

The town of Stowe shines with activities for both young and old, from zany sports events, the Ice Carving Competitions, ski movies, and the infamous snowgolf and snowvolleyball tournaments. gostowe.com

22-26 | Winter Rendezvous, Stowe

LGBTQ skiers, riders and winter some to Stowe for a weekend of skiing, riding, and other outdoor activities include ice skating, horse drawn sleigh rides, snowmobiles, dog sledding, hot tubs and bonfires, a Pride run down the mountain and pool party. winterrendezvous.com

24 | 70th Anniversary Celebration, Mount Snow

Mount Snow turns 70. Come for a day of celebrating. Mountsnow.com

24 | 41st Annual Farmers’ Appreciation Day, Jay Peak

Jay Peak offers free skiing and riding to local VT farmers. Each farm is allowed four free lift tickets. jaypeak.com

25 | Onion River Outdoors Snowshoe Romp, Montpelier

Gather at the Hubbard Park Old Shelter for ORO’s annual Snowshoe Romp. Enjoy a candlelit trail through the woods, hot chocolate, ice cream and a bonfire. Bring a headlamp and demo snowshoes from MSR, Tubbs, and Atlas! 6-8 pm. onionrver.com

24-26 | The Snowdevil Ultra, Pittsfield

A return to the roots of Spartan endurance. Expect demanding trails, relentless climbs, and breathtaking views. From the thousand-foot, three-mile climb to the dense spruce forest aptly named the Labyrinth, every step of this course will test your grit and determination. race.spartan.com

24-26 | Smuggs Ice Bash, Smuggler’s Notch

Vermont’s annual ice climbing festival features talks, demos, clinics and more. Put on by Petra Cliffs with on-site demos and vendors at Smuggler’s Notch’s ice falls. smuggsicebash.com

11 | #4 ADK Tour de Ski, Tupper Lake, N.Y.

The fourth stop on the ADK Tour de Ski nordic ski race series is at the James Frenette Sr. Recreational Trails. Classic. adktourdeski.com

28-29 | Craftsbury Nordic Marathon, Craftsbury

The historic, largest popular racing event in New England. 50 k Classic on Saturday and 30 k Skate on Sunday, with half-distances and BKL quarter distance races offered as well. A competitive event for everyone. Ski the woods, fields, and forests of Craftsbury. craftsbury.com

Minutes from Middlebury and the Snow Bowl. An easy drive to Pico or Killington. This beautifully renovated perfect for family gatherings or couples’ getaways, college visits or graduation. Sleeps 6. Bright, spacious, clean and private with a large cook’s kitchen, 2 custom bathrooms, lake access and kayaks.

See more at:

THE GREEN MOUNTAIN CALENDAR

FEBRUARY

7-9 | FIS Ski Jumping World Cup, Lake Placid

Watch individual women’s ski jumping events and a mixed team competition as the best ski jumpers in the world compete at the Mt. Hoevenberg complex’s HS 128- meter jump. orda.org

8 | Split the Peak, Jay Peak

A touring-specific demo for snowboarders looking to find the goods while sampling some of the best backcountry gear in the industry. jaypeak.com

14 | Cloud 9 Nuptials, Mount Snow

Here’s your chance to have a free wedding or renew your vows at the top of the Cloud 9 lift at Mount Snow, a tradition that’s been going on for years. mountsnow.com

15 | NE Rando Skimo Race, Bromley

“The Sun” race is for recreational skiers interested in a fun Saturday challenge, as well as elite ski mountaineers. The race’s unique dual format gives everyone a chance to participate and learn from the best, including World Cup champions and U.S. National Team members. Stay for schwag, food, and beer (non-alcoholic!). nerandorace.blogspot. com

15-16 | Harris Hill Ski Jump, Brattleboro

The world’s top male and female ski jumpers compete on a 90-meter jump, and soar more than 300 feet at speeds of nearly 60 mph. The event has a festive atmosphere for the whole family with food, music, and a beer tent. harrishillskijump.com

22 | Pride Celebration, Mount Snow

Join in for a day of Pride at Mount Snow as we celebrate diversity, inclusion, and love for all! Mountsnow.com

28 – March 1 | Slash & Berm Banked Slalom, Killington Resort

Snowboarders gather at The Stash terrain park in Killington to take advantage of the natural terrain and all the creative elements the mountain has to offer for a great cause. killington.com

28-March 2 | Stratton NorAm Mogul Cup, Stratton

Sign up by February 18 if you want to a chance to compete in moguls and dual moguls at the only stop in the East for the US Ski Team and FIS sanctioned mogul competition. stratton.com

MARCH

2 | 80th Stowe Derby, Stowe

Ski from near the top of Mt. Mansfield’s Toll Road trail all the way to town or wherever the 20K course runs. Also, a 6K short course and 16K fat bike division. mmsc.org

2 | Jack Jump World Championships, Mount Snow

Watch as racers careen down the slopes on homemade jack jumps, single skis with seats mounted to them. It’s a Vermont tradition. Mountsnow.com

8 | Vertical Challenge, Bolton Valley Resort

A series of free casual ski and snowboard races held at ski resorts throughout the Northeast. The VC includes a festival element, featuring activities for all ages and prizes. boltonvalley.com

9 | Vertical Challenge, Burke

A series of free casual ski and snowboard races held at ski resorts throughout the Northeast. The VC includes a festival element, featuring activities for all ages and prizes. skiburke.com

8 | Carinthia Classic, Mount Snow

The Carinthia Classic is back and powered by Rockstar. Watch top freestyle athletes throw down on the Junkyard terrain park and compete for a piece of the $20K prize purse, plus enjoy a live DJ, giveaways, and more. mountsnow.com

15 | Castlerock Extreme, Sugarbush

Talented skiers and rider (ages 15+) are invited to tame Lift Line’s fabled terrain and compete in a highly challenging and technical run at Castle Rock in one of the oldest extreme challenges in Vermont. sugarbush.com

15 | Vertical Challenge, Pico

A series of free casual ski and snowboard races held at ski resorts throughout the Northeast. The VC includes a festival element, featuring activities for all ages and prizes. pico.com

16 | Vertical Challenge, Bromley

A series of free casual ski and snowboard races held at ski resorts throughout the Northeast. The VC includes a festival element, featuring activities for all ages and prizes. bromley.com

22 | #6 ADK Tour de Ski, Paul Smiths, N.Y.

The final stop on the ADK Tour de Ski nordic ski race series is at Paul Smith’s College. Distances are 12.5K and 25K for classic. adktourdeski.com

21-23 | Pride Weekend, Sugarbush

Celebrate our 3rd annual Pride Weekend at Sugarbush. Join us for a full weekend of skiing, dancing, drag and more! sugarbush.com

21-23 | Homeskick, Stratton

Come for a gatherlng of the snowboard clan at the place where it all started. Pros such as Shaun Palmer and Zeb Powell rub shoulders with amateurs. The weekend includes the OG Downhill, Powers Retro Pipe, Zebulon Rail Jam and an adaptive athletes’ OG Downhill. Plus music, exhibits and more. stratton.com

23 | Vertical Challenge, Smugglers’ Notch

A series of free casual ski and snowboard races held at ski resorts throughout the Northeast. The VC includes a festival element, featuring activities for all ages and prizes. smuggs.com

29 | Winter Brewfest, Smugglers’ Notch

Come sample Vermont’s best brews in a brew and ski weekend. smuggs.com

APRIL

5-6 | Bear Mountain Mogul Challenge, Killington

Watch the best amateur mogul skiers face off in dual mogul competition. killington.com

5-6 | Sugar Slalom, Stowe

One of the oldest and most loved ski races sends kids (and some adults) down the race hill at Spruce Peak with sugar on snow for finishers. mmsc.org

11-12 | 1st Annual Spring Bash, Stowe

Two days of live music and the fabled pond skim returns to Stowe. Stowe.com

Five years ago, four friends got together to start Unlikely Riders. Bettina Guevara and Amanda Moran were both snowboard coaches. Han Saydek had been a coach at Okemo Mountain School and Abby Crisostomo was an accomplished backcountry splitboarder and photographer.

The group’s mission: “create joyful and inclusive spaces for Black, Indigenous, and People of Color (BIPOC) in mountain sports by breaking down barriers and fostering a supportive community to empower BIPOC individuals to lead and thrive in skiing, snowboarding, backcountry exploration, and mountain biking.”

In 2023-24, more than 600 people attended Unlikely Riders’ 34 events, which included the monthly community days, biweekly skiing or riding under the lights, mountain biking in the off-season and professional development clinics. This past year, Unlikely Riders also received a grant to plan for what might be the first outdoor sports and winter snowsports center developed by and for BIPOC skiers and riders. We caught up with Unlikely Riders’ executive director Abby Crisostomo to hear what’s next.

You’ve come a long way in five years. What are some of the highlights from the last year?

We’ve been working on our four core program areas. The first is our winter gear closet which outfits folks with everything they need to have a warm and smooth experience on the mountain and this past year we provided 720 pieces of gear. The second is our community instruction — and the instructors who are teaching lessons are from within our own community. Then we have our leadership development. In 202324 we had 31 BIPOC Vermonters go through our certification courses in Wilderness First Aid, Avalanche Safety, and PSIA/AASI Level 1 Ski or Snowboard Instructor certifications (shown in photo at top).

By L. Lynn

Building a BIPOC Base Camp

What’s great is that those are people who then get to share their knowledge with more people through instructing at our events. Last, we have our community ski and ride days.

What happens on those community days?

Each month from January to March, we host a community ski and ride day at a different ski area. We provide the lift tickets, all the gear (clothing and equipment) and lessons. We get anywhere between 40 to 60 folks coming together for lessons and a shared meal over lunch. It’s great to see folks come together and connect over something that’s just so fun and joyous. What we try to emphasize is that no matter where you are on your skiing or snowboarding journey, there’s a place for you.

In 2024, Unlikely Riders was awarded a $226,885 grant from the Vermont Outdoor Recreation Economic Collaborative Community Grants program for planning a base lodge and securing a space for your gear closet. What’s your vision for that?

This is a BIPOC- stewarded outdoor community center that we’re in the planning stages of right now. We envision this to be a place with cross country trails, a rope tow, mountain bike trails, an event space, and room for our outdoor gear closet. It’s a place for our organization to grow from, for other aligned organizations to visit, and, for the next generation to call their home base. We really hope that this will be a space that will really anchor this transformation in the Vermont outdoor landscape. This will be a space where a whole new generation of BIPOC Vermonters and people of color who visit will grow up seeing themselves reflected from their first experiences in the mountains and in the outdoors.

Is there anything like that in snowsports in the U.S. right now? And where will it be built?

We’ve looked around and we don’t really think so. This may be the first of its kind. At present, we’re in the planning and fundraising stages but since many in our community are based in Burlington we’re looking for a place that’s not too far from that city.

To learn more and to support their work, visit unlikelyriders.com u