*UPDATE : May 28, 5:30pm : Thanks to this heatwave and temperatures in the mid-80F, Sunday May 29 may be the last day of the season (lift access will be free), HOWEVER if “snow conditions permit we could turn the lift again on Wednesday for one last hurrah” June 1!!!
Only one standing, Killington is back.
Last weekend Mont St-Sauveur ended their season on Monday May 23, Victoria Day. Nothing more to expect with the last warm spell plus the Waterpark enthusiast banging at the counter. It was a beautiful way to end of the season with 3-day weekend of Spring skiing. Killington also offered the diehard another 3-day weekend.
Thanks to both snowmaking crew at K and MSS for giving us a few extra weekends. Killington and Mont St-Sauveur have been the only spinners in the East for a third weekend in a row, the closest other ski areas, Jay, Loaf, River, Bush, Comi all closed on May 1.
Killington is back and will offer the longest (1997-98) and latest (2001-02) ski season the East has seen in almost 20 years. This is incredible considering that the ski resort only received 81″ of snow this season, only one-third their yearly snow average and the resort’s lowest snowfall on record by over a 4-feet margin to 1979-80
Turning off the chairlift one last time in 2016…
Mont Comi QC – May 1
Sunday River ME – May 1
Sugarloaf ME – May 1
Jay VT – May 1
Sugarbush VT – May 1
Mont St-Sauveur QC – May 23
Killington VT – Monday May 30 June 1 (tentative)
Lift : Superstar Express Quad (walk-on/walk-off)
Trails : Superstar
Time : 8am (9am on Friday) to 4pm (5pm on Saturday), Monday? Wednesday?
Cost : $58US lift tickets – 50% with pass from another mountain.
It going to be like the 1990s late season skiing on Superstar again, thin cover, bumps, some walking required and walk-on/walk off.
If Killington make it this weekend, Memorial day or even June 1, how does it stack up with previous season. This would definitely be the latest an Eastern ski area has been open since I started keeping track of Eastern Closing in 2006.
Last chair in the East since 2006:
2006: May 5 – Bretton Woods
2007: May 6 – MSS, Killington, Sugarbush, Wildcat
2008: May 11 – MSS
2009: May 4? – Sugarloaf on Monday?*, MSS, Jay and Sugarbush
2010: May 3? – Sugarloaf on Monday?*, MSS and Jay
2011: May 22 – MSS
2012: May 6 – MSS
2013: May 26 – Killington
2014: May 19 – MSS
2015: May 25 – Killington
*2016: May 30 June 1 – Killington (tentative)
Latest per ski area since 2006:
Killington VT : May 30 June 1, 2016 (tentative)
MSS QC : May 23, 2016
Jay VT : May 15, 2011
Sugarloaf ME : May 9, 2011
Sugarbush VT : May 6, 2007
Wildcat NH : May 6, 2007
Bretton Woods NH : May 5, 2006
Mont Miller QC : May 3, 2015
Mont Comi QC : May 1, 2016
Saddleback ME : May 1, 2011
BUT the East has seen skiing later than the May days above. If we go back to the previous century, in this case the 1990s, at least 5 Eastern ski areas have offered liftserved skiing in JUNE: Sugarloaf (1997?), Sunday River (1995), Mont St-Sauveur (1997), Tremblant (1997), but only Killington has offered it numerous times: 14 times (1982-88, 1992-97, 2002). Killington is also the only ski area in the East to offer skiing in Summer, twice, JUNE 21, 1984 and JUNE 22, 1997. Only a handful of North American ski areas has offered Summer skiing without a natural glacier, all of them being in the West.
List of Killington Seasons since 1966-67
*** 2012/2013 : Appreciation Day for one October weekend, reopened on November 5. K record states season as “October 13-15, Nov 5 – May 26”
** 2005/2006 : Open for one weekend after huge October storm, reopen on November 19. K record states season as “October 29-30, Nov 19 – May 1”
* 2008/09 : Nov. 2-6, Nov. 19-May 2
Season Open – Close / Total Snowfall / Ski Days
2015/2016 October 19 – May 30 June 1 / 81” / 190 (tentative)
2014/2015 November 3 – May 24 / 197” / 192
2013/2014 October 23 – May 18 / 196” / 199
2012/2013*** October 13 – May 26 / 208” / 195
2011/2012 October 29 – April 22 / 152” / 176
2010/2011 November 2 – May 1 / 263” / 179
2009/2010 November 7 – April 25 / 230” / 153
2008/2009** November 2 – May 2 / 283” / 169
2007/2008 November 16 – April 20 / 282” / 157
2006/2007 November 23 – May 6 / 294” / 165
2005/2006* October 29 – May 1 / 191” / 166
2004/2005 November 9 – May 15 / 206” / 188
2003/2004 November 10 – May 12 / 215” / 184
2002/2003 October 25 – May 26 / 291” / 204
2001/2002 November 6 – June 1 / 192” / 202
2000/2001 October 29 – May 27 / 316” / 202
1999/2000 October 25 – May 29 / 209” / 205
1998/1999 October 22 – May 25 / 186” / 204
1997/1998 October 1 – May 25 / 242” / 205
1996/1997 October 4 – June 22 / 301” / 233
1995/1996 October 17 – June 10 / 307” / 224
1994/1995 October 3 – June 4 / 182” / 214
1993/1994 October 1 – June 9 / 279” / 243
1992/1993 October 1 – June 1 / 300” / 229
1991/1992 October 21 – June 14 / 198” / 226
1990/1991 October 27 – May 28 / 206” / 214
1989/1990 October 10 – May 28 / 249” / 208
1988/1989 October 13 – May 21 / 202” / 211
1987/1988 October 12 – June 1 / 238” / 227
1986/1987 October 10 – June 3 / 233” / 224
1985/1986 October 1- June 3 / 198” / 224
1984/1985 November 3 – June 2 / 220” / 212
1983/1984 October 20 – June 21 / 238” / 246
1982/1983 October 17 – June 16 / 197” / 240
1981/1982 October 20 – June 15 / 268” / 225
1980/1981 October 14 – May 27 / 257” / 226
1979/1980 October 10 – May 23 / 138” / 221
1978/1979 October 16 – May 22 / 292” / 219
1977/1978 October 24 – May 23 / 341” / 195
1976/1977 October 27 – May 15 / 346” / 201
1975/1976 October 30 – May 5 / 232” / 173
1974/1975 October 19 – May 12 / 307” / 190
1973/1974 November 5 – April 30 / 193” / 177
1972/1973 October 20 – April 15 / 267” / 184
1971/1972 November 9 – May 18 / 323” / 192
1970/1971 November 18 – May 21 / 334” / 184
1969/1970 October 24 – May 4 / NA” / 178
1968/1969 November 9 – May 10 / NA” / 183
1967/1968 November 5 – April 7 / NA” / 154
1966/1967 November 4 – May 2 / NA” / 180
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Ski Mad World’s weekly Eastern Closing 2016 posts:
Let’s move Past EASTer & Go Easterner – Eastern Closing Thread 2016 – Part 1
Freeze Frame – Eastern Closing Thread 2015-16 – semaine 2
Monday, Monday…Eastern Closing 2016 Update – Week 3
The best of Spring Skiing – Eastern Closing 2016 – Week 4
May continue skiing – Eastern Closing Thread 2016 – Week 5
Dual May Days for Mothers’ Day – Eastern Closing Thread 2016 – Week 6
May it last? Eastern Closing Thread 2016 – Week 7
Deep into May – Eastern Closing Thread 2016 – Week 8
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