So, how's about a thread to brag about your first day out this season:

I'm no expert when it comes to snow conditions, and I'm really not good enough for it to matter, but... When I walked off to the side of the bunny slope to pee today I was standing in knee deep powder. Woohoo!

Going back on Wednesday (to Keystone) and hoping to spend some time going down actual runs and hopefully even doing something as adventurous as a blue.

Nice!

Two weekends ago I went touring at Alta. OK creamy powder over a very thin base. Several rocks were hit, but that is what old skis and ptex are for. My alta season pass is languishing unusable, but they say it may open on Friday so I have hope.

OK 10/29 I hiked the Whiteface road..beautiful day, good snow. I don't have skins yet so i showshoed up, which killed our eficiency. The way down was pretty sweet... 1.5 hours! Not too many turns though

The first REAL day of the season was last saturday, opening day at K-mart. conditions weren;t bad at all, there were just alot of crowds. This next week looks like it will bring some decent skiing!

aw, you could ski up the whiteface road without skins ...

hm sounds like you don't need much more than xc gear for the ride down... maybe wide track with metal edges just for that psychological security

too bad i'm not going there for xmas after all. i'm dragging my family out to a condo in North Conway, though, so I need to find some place where my dad can ski or snowshoe away from the crowds. i'm not sure if i should put him on skis, or what skis to put him on. he hasn't done any downhill skiing in ten years, and even then he was a green/blue skier.

maybe put him on overkill telemark skis on a rugged trail that only needs xc gear?

Killington reportedly made out well from the storm yesterday, and the weather.com forecast is calling for 3-5 more inches tomorrow. So it looks like I'll get my first turns on Saturday. Can't wait.

So, I got those first turns on Saturday, and it was spectacular!! Lots of snow at Killington, and the crowds were totally manageable. One or two trails were very crowded with lots of people who had no business being on them, but there were plenty of uncrowded, well covered trails. Snowed all day. Unbelievable conditions for November!! Warmer temps and rain this week might put the kibash on this coming weekend, but the cold returns on Friday, and looks to stay that way for a while, with snow in the long range forecast. Yippeee!

Alta got hammered this weekend. I came down with a pretty bad cold, but I still got some great thigh deep creamy powder Saturday afternoon before I retreated to my bed.

Not fair to get sick during the first big dump of the season!

Forecast for the Northeast bodes well for the weekend of 12/10-11. Cold temps will settle in this weekend, and there is snow in the forecast for Northern NE from Sat - Thurs. The VT hills should be pumping lots of manmade fluff to augment the natural stuff. Can't friggin' wait to get back up there next weekend.

Out on the west coast, Pac NW and Northern CA look to get blasted the next couple days, with snow measured on FEET in the mountains (according to accuweather.com).