Mnut has provided some guidance on the policies and procedures for the upcoming season:
https://www.massresort.com/about/recovery/recovery/#page-946
Of note:
My son and already have our season passes, but my wife and daughter do do since they did not think they would be going enough to break even. I'll probably go ahead and switch to a family pass given the new policy (I already checked with Mnut and they will credit the cost of the 2 individual passes we already bought towards a family pass)
Massanutten is about to end the early season discount pricing. There is a new Family Pass. The prices will go up one more time on Dec. 11
The night hours will be a bit less than usual.
Mon: 9am-9pm
Tue, Wed, Thu: 9am-5pm
Fri, Sat, Sun, holidays: 9am-9pm
I had a very pleasant conversation with Ian from the Massanutten ski office and I have some tentative information that I can share. I must emphasize that the info in this post is his best guess at this point, not a firm commitment. The final information should be available at massresort.com/ski by mid-November. Having said that, here is what I learned:
Given the first point I went ahead and turned the 2 individual passes I had previously bought into a 4 person family pass. Massanutten had previously let me know that I could apply the previous cost toward the purchase of the family pass, so that is what I did. Even if we don't quite break even on the marginal cost of the pass for my wife and daughter the convenience and flexibility will more than make up for that.
Thanks for the info. Sounds like they are working hard to come up with a system that balances access for the different types of folks. I would guess that they'll sell a fair number of Special Value Passes and Family Passes.
I went ahead and got a Full Season Pass since I plan to be at Mnut for two different weeks in January. Hoping the weather will be good for another short stay in late February as well.
That's a great question and one that I did not ask. I would suggest calling the Mnut ski office, 1-540-289-4954. I have always found them to be very responsive. Let us know what you find out!
fosphenytoin wrote:
Thanks for the info. What about IndyPass holder, does it categorize to 1st bullet point as pass holder?I have not gotten IndyPass but am considering.
I think it has been posted elsewhere, but just in case: as of now the current thinking is that Indy Pass holders will not need a reservation. Current Winter planning guide (updated as of Nov 8) here: Massanutten Winter Planning
wgo wrote:
I think it has been posted elsewhere, but just in case: as of now the current thinking is that Indy Pass holders will not need a reservation. Current Winter planning guide (updated as of Nov 8) here: Massanutten Winter Planning
I confirmed that for Indy, the thinking is that you can just go to the ticket window per usual. I stopped by Massanutten a few weeks ago when I was in the area for another reason. It was right after the winter ops plan was defined. They were busily re-working the interior of the buildings.
Mnut was very busy in Sept and Oct. So got plenty of experience with handling capacity limits for activities and how to keep people spaced out. The waterpark was open with timed sessions and other adjustments. The lifts were running for mountain biking.
The advance purchase system for the rental gear will tell people which building to go to. Skiers will get gear from the usual rental building. Snowboarders will go to the ski school building. Families with both skiers and riders will also be able to get everything they need from the ski school building.
As noted a month ago, Massanutten is using a 3-tier approach based on timing for buying advanced lift tickets online. Probably applies to tickets for other activities such as the zipline or waterpark. Property Owners get access to available tickets 30 days in advance, Resort Guests have a 20-day window, and everyone else can buy tickets starting 10 days before a date of interest.
As of Dec. 4, I can see tickets available for Sat, Dec. 19 when logged into my Mnut owner account but nothing earlier. Presumably if Mnut can open earlier then tickets will become available.
I saw a few small white patches on the Mnut webcams this week. I think that means at least some snowguns were tested and are ready to go when Mother Nature cooperates.
The morning update on the Massanutten website about snow conditions and open trails also includes a note about availability of day tickets. Best to buy in advance online, but Mnut will sell walk up tickets when there are some left. Tickets sold out for Mon, Dec. 21. Expected to sell out on Dec. 22 too.
No night skiing yet. Perhaps by this weekend after Dec. 25. Always have reduced hours on Christmas Eve and Christmas Day.
Upper Showtime opening today! Non-stop snowmaking for a couple days and nights can really make a difference.
wgo wrote:
Unfortunate news to report. Lifts 4 and 6 will be closed at 4:30 today, which means DJ will be closed. I was planning on heading up for a couple hours this afternoon but I am cancelling those plans now. I called MNut to ask about this and the issue is lack of staffing.
Oh gosh. Not good news. I've been seeing Massanutten's ads for staffing (on Facebook?) and was concerned about how things were going.
Glad they're able to keep those lifts open in the daytime.
Woody
wgo wrote:
Unfortunate news to report. Lifts 4 and 6 will be closed at 4:30 today, which means DJ will be closed. I was planning on heading up for a couple hours this afternoon but I am cancelling those plans now. I called MNut to ask about this and the issue is lack of staffing.
I'm confused. The snow conditions update for this afternoon said: "Lift 3 and Geronimo will close at 4:30pm today. " Looking at the webcam, Lift 4 for Southern Comfort is clearly running as of 5:30pm. The table shows Lifts 5 and 6 as open as well.
Mnut slope tickets were/are sold out for Dec. 28 and Dec. 29.
Looks like the Last Chair ticket for $20 applies to every day. Difference is that if there is no night skiing then it starts at 3pm. When there is night skiing, it's good for 7:00-9:00pm.
Have confirmed that buying lift tickets online as a Massanutten property owner gives me access much sooner than the general public. Will be there with friends over MLK weekend so want to make sure that they have lift tickets for Sat and Sun. I'm guessing that timeshare "guests" will be buying lift tickets that weekend once their window opens up.
That is a different message than what was shown this morning. They must have decided to allocate their staff to running 4/6 rather than 3.
marzNC wrote:
wgo wrote:
Unfortunate news to report. Lifts 4 and 6 will be closed at 4:30 today, which means DJ will be closed. I was planning on heading up for a couple hours this afternoon but I am cancelling those plans now. I called MNut to ask about this and the issue is lack of staffing.I'm confused. The snow conditions update for this afternoon said: "Lift 3 and Geronimo will close at 4:30pm today. " Looking at the webcam, Lift 4 for Southern Comfort is clearly running as of 5:30pm. The table shows Lifts 5 and 6 as open as well.
Mnut slope tickets were/are sold out for Dec. 28 and Dec. 29.
wgo wrote:
That is a different message than what was shown this morning. They must have decided to allocate their staff to running 4/6 rather than 3.
marzNC wrote:
wgo wrote:
Unfortunate news to report. Lifts 4 and 6 will be closed at 4:30 today, which means DJ will be closed. I was planning on heading up for a couple hours this afternoon but I am cancelling those plans now. I called MNut to ask about this and the issue is lack of staffing.I'm confused. The snow conditions update for this afternoon said: "Lift 3 and Geronimo will close at 4:30pm today. " Looking at the webcam, Lift 4 for Southern Comfort is clearly running as of 5:30pm. The table shows Lifts 5 and 6 as open as well.
Mnut slope tickets were/are sold out for Dec. 28 and Dec. 29.
Must have come up with a few more lifties. Or pulled people out of the office. A friend tried a few times to call the office today to ask a question and no one ever picked up. Takes more people to run Lifts 4 & 6, instead of Lift 3.
Not running Lift 3 and having Geronimo closed also helps to save the snow there. Hope there isn't too much of a washout later this week. I get to Mnut for my usual week on Jan. 3.
Mnut is going to close Geronimo and Lift 3 at 4:30 again on Dec. 29.
Looking at the webcams at lunch time, this is probably the best holiday week for a season pass holder to go skiing. I assume the lift lines at the base are usually quite long and normally filled with novices so that the lifts have to stop fairly often. From what I saw, the lines are short and the people loading know how to get on the chair without getting tangled up with the gate or people loading with them.
Tickets for lifts and snow tubing are sold out for Dec. 29 and Dec. 30.
Lines seem to get somewhat longer in the afternoon. Trying to decide if it will be less crowded heading out tomorrow afternoon, or Sunday right after lunch.
marzNC wrote:
Mnut is going to close Geronimo and Lift 3 at 4:30 again on Dec. 29.
Looking at the webcams at lunch time, this is probably the best holiday week for a season pass holder to go skiing. I assume the lift lines at the base are usually quite long and normally filled with novices so that the lifts have to stop fairly often. From what I saw, the lines are short and the people loading know how to get on the chair without getting tangled up with the gate or people loading with them.
Tickets for lifts and snow tubing are sold out for Dec. 29 and Dec. 30.
wgo wrote:
Lines seem to get somewhat longer in the afternoon. Trying to decide if it will be less crowded heading out tomorrow afternoon, or Sunday right after lunch.
I would guess Sunday afternoon would be less crowded than tomorrow. Mostly because people staying in timeshare units will mostly be checking out on Sat or Sun morning. But I've never paid attention to the week that includes New Year's Eve before.
Screenshot from the Mnut webcam at 3:12 pm. Pretty decent line for lift 4, and you can see the line for lift 4 extends up the slope.
wgo wrote:
Screenshot from the Mnut webcam at 3:12 pm. Pretty decent line for lift 4, and you can see the line for lift 4 extends up the slope.
Given the spacing between people waiting in line, those are not what I consider long waits. Have you seen how long the lines at the base can get during holiday weekends on Sat and Sun between 11:30 and 2:30? I wouldn't wait in them but timed them often enough from inside the lodge to know the wait could be 20-25 minutes.
Agree that the lines are longer after lunch. I wonder if that's because 8-hour tickets sold out so more people bought 4-hour tickets. Most people would figure then there was less reason to get up early while on vacation to ski in the morning. I could imagine that some people would decide to ski between lunch and dinner.
The Dec. 30 Snow Conditions for Mnut doesn't mention anything special about Lift 3. Can see that snowmaking is happening on lower DJ as of 10:30am. Snow guns were on by 9:30pm last night. Should be cold enough for more snowmaking tonight before the warm front moves in.
Tickets are sold out for Dec. 30, but available starting Jan. 1. Snow tubing sessions are mostly sold out for Jan. 1-3.
wgo wrote:
Sunday may be relatively uncrowded, especially if the forecasted AM showers keep people away. I am also thinking that the currently open slopes have enough base to survive the warmth/rain later this week.
The ticket cancellation policy provides for refunds if someone cancels at least 24 hours in advance. Could well be that some people have already cancelled for Fri and Sat given the weather forecast and that's why there are tickets available.
Bryce has lift tickets left for later this week. But will probably sell out of snow tubing tickets soon.
Agree that the base on the core trails is deep enough so that a normal warm up for a few days won't really matter. Hopefully Upper Showtime has enough base to stay open next week.
wgo wrote:
Screenshot from the Mnut webcam at 3:12 pm. Pretty decent line for lift 4, and you can see the line for lift 4 extends up the slope.
Whoa those people look tight together no social distancing and without much organization and look at the crowds coming down the hill right towards the lift line looking dangerous, seeing people wiped out on the ground, imagine a novice trying to ski with a pack of people at the bottom to potential run into, not well thought out at all, thanks for the picture! Worth a thousand words as they say
The only really warm day is Saturday (~60 degrees). Rest of next week has highs in the lower 50s or upper 40s with no rain forecasted. I think Upper Showtime will be fine. I guess it depends on whether they managed to build up enough base. They are reporting a base of 34 inches, but that probably applies more for the slopes they have been working on since day 1 (DJ and SC).
marzNC wrote:
wgo wrote:
Agree that the base on the core trails is deep enough so that a normal warm up for a few days won't really matter. Hopefully Upper Showtime has enough base to stay open next week.
It's tricky for MNut because they don't really have a lot of space for people to spread out at the base, at least compared to a place like timberline. I appreciate that MNut is showing the liftlines on their webcam so that we can make informed decisions, in contrast to at least one other local resort which decided to point their web cam in a way that no longer shows the liftlines.
Whoa those people look tight together no social distancing and without much organization and look at the crowds coming down the hill right towards the lift line looking dangerous, seeing people wiped out on the ground, imagine a novice trying to ski with a pack of people at the bottom to potential run into, not well thought out at all, thanks for the picture! Worth a thousand words as they say
The end of the holiday week is in sight. Even with the warm weather the last few days, Geronimo is still open. Lift 3 is closing at 4:30pm but that may well be both to decrease the need for staff as well as to preserve the base. Hopefully night time temps will allow for another round of snowmaking in the coming week.
While lift tickets were easy to get for my friend's daughter for MLK weekend, snow tubing tickets were already pretty scarce on Jan. 18-19. Although might release more once it's known how many lanes can be open that weekend.
marzNC wrote:
The end of the holiday week is in sight. Even with the warm weather the last few days, Geronimo is still open. Lift 3 is closing at 4:30pm but that may well be both to decrease the need for staff as well as to preserve the base. Hopefully night time temps will allow for another round of snowmaking in the coming week.
In the afternoon update, there was not mention about an early closing for Lift 3. Could see on the webcam that it was running at 6pm.
RodneyBD wrote:
Some good snowmaking temps are on the way - any guesses as to when they'll try to open Para Dice and Diamond Jim?
Diamond Jim is a core trail. Has been open since Day 1. Harder to guess about ParaDice. Will probably work on the other blue trails off Lift 5 first since that gets far more traffic from most of the folks who ski Mnut.
At Mnut for a week. With my friend JF who has the best luck for snow. She only comes with me once or twice a season, and often it snows.
If so, hopefully Mak Attack will get some attention but I am guessing Pacesetter and Mass Transit are next on the list.
marzNC wrote:
Diamond Jim is a core trail. Has been open since Day 1. Harder to guess about ParaDice. Will probably work on the other blue trails off Lift 5 first since that gets far more traffic from most of the folks who ski Mnut.
wgo wrote:
@marzNC, looks like snowmaking started up again but so far is focused on resurfacing existing open trails. Do you have any inside intel on what the next trails to get snowmaking will be? Thanks!
Sorry, haven't talked to anyone in the office this trip. I would guess the blues off Lift 5 would come next based on what's happened in recent years. Pacesetter has been starting as a groomer and then gets built up as a terrain park.
Conditions on DJ were very nice this morning. With the cold temps and snow guns on, there were very few other people. Even in comparison to yesterday morning. Heading back out shortly.
wgo wrote:
No snowmaking last night, it would appear. I guess the humidity was to high or there was an inversion?
Perhaps a bit of an inversion but mostly the really cold air didn't make it to this part of VA. Air temp on the mountain never got much below 30.
The snow conditions were quite nice today. The 12+ hours of snowmaking made quite a difference for DJ and Showtime. They did some nice grooming and the icy patches on Thu afternoon were gone.
I think the combination of College Days and Last Chair for $20 brought in more late afternoon folks than usual for this first week of January. Plus the cold makes locals think of snowsports a lot more than when it's in the 50s in the valley. The high was 37.
Ha, I guess that is true!
This past week was not as productive for snowmaking as I had hoped. Overnight temps stubbornly refuse to go below the lower 30's or upper 20's and humidity remains high, leading to marginal snowmaking conditions.
HVdad wrote:
Wow, massanutten gets a lot of press here.
wgo wrote:
Ha, I guess that is true!
This past week was not as productive for snowmaking as I had hoped. Overnight temps stubbornly refuse to go below the lower 30's or upper 20's and humidity remains high, leading to marginal snowmaking conditions.
The two 12+ hours of snowmaking last week really did make a difference though. DJ and Upper Showtime were much better on Sunday morning in comparison to earlier in the week. Lower Showtime and Geronimo were also staying in better shape by the late afternoons on Friday and Saturday.
There was a big fan gun starting to build a base at the bottom of Paradice where Yee Ha comes into DJ.
Pretty clear that the usual temp inversions are what happened for Mnut. A local friend who lives 15 min away was surprised there was no snowmaking Sat night because it got to 27 degrees at her house.
Since there was a race on DJ last weekend, the ski/board teams were on Lift 5 on Sunday morning. My friend who sticks to Lower Showtime said that made it feel busy. But in general, relatively few people in the morning. Very empty at noon when we left.
Saturday during the day was relatively uncrowded as well. When I left at 2:00, the wait for Southern Comfort was only 5 min. Does change the situation no having Children's Ski School at all (usually ends at 2:00). But in the late afternoon it was busier than midweek after 4pm when Spec Value Passes are good, as well as night tickets.
RodneyBD wrote:
Called to ask how Indy Pass reservations work (answer: there are none, just show up and get your ticket). I asked what's up with snow making for the weekend- plan is to get Mass Transit open. Para Dice not yet.
Thanks for the update.
Getting Mass Transit and Yee Ha open makes a big difference for folks who mainly ski Lifts 5 and 6. Especially if they are interested in staying on the mountain and having lunch at the Mid-Mountain Grill (Fri-Mon) during the holiday weekend.
Getting ParaDice open before MLK has been rare the last few years. Hopefully it will be open by late Jan if the next cold front is cold enough on the mountain.
As of Tue, Jan. 12, there are tickets for slope use at Massanutten for the MLK weekend Jan. 16-18 (Sat, Sun, Mon). Tickets are released for the general public 10 days before the date.
Snow tubing sold out for the holiday weekend a while ago. I don't think any were available for the general public. That's pretty much the same as usual since property owners have always been able to buy tickets early. Pretty sure capacity is even more limited than usual.
Not cold enough for snowmaking last night, but it did snow at Massanutten!
As expected, lift tickets are sold out for the MLK weekend.
Happy to report that snowmaking has started on Mass Transit. The guns were already on full blast at the top of the trail by 6pm on Jan. 16. The lower section guns were starting up an hour later.
Webcams are showing snowmaking on lower Southern Comfort as of 11pm.
I'm back at Mnut for a week. Not many people skiing on Sat evening. Don't know how much the relatively cold temps were a factor compared to the limited number of tickets that were sold out well in advance. A few people showed up at the window around 5:00 totally surprised that there aren't tickets available when I was picking up the tickets I bought in early Jan for a friend's tween.
wgo wrote:
Thanks for the report. Planning on bringing the family out to Mnut again on the 24th. Hopefully mass transit and yee ha will be open by then
Mnut Snow Conditions mentioned that snowmaking started on Mass Transit and Yee Ha. Only snow guns running this morning after lifts started up were on Mass Transit. Hoping that a couple more cold nights will do it. :-)
The skiing experience this MLK weekend Sunday was the best I've ever had in the past dozen years. The limits put on tickets sales clearly made a huge difference. Parking lots #4 and #5 were completely empty. The waits for the base lifts were probably under 15 min around lunch time, and for only about an hour. The wait for Lift 5 was never more than 5 min. My friends and I skied 9:00-3:00, with lunch outside at the Mid-Mountain Grill in the sunshine.
Snow conditions were very good in the morning after a night of snowmaking. With fewer people, still good at 3:00 on Showtime. DJ had slick areas per usual after mid-morning.
The number of beginners was much lower than usual. In general, a higher percentage of people had a decent idea of how to keep sliding without falling.
Snowmaking started up on Pacesetter late this afternoon. :-)
Also started working on lower Mass Transit. Guns were on all day on the upper section and Yee Ha. Sled guns in addition to the pole guns.
The upper section of Mass Transit had it's initial grooming. Yee Ha looking good too.
The surprise is that snowmaking has started on Paradice! Guns were on at the top flat section all day. By 5:00 the guns for the curve were on as well.
DJ and Upper Snowtime were wonderful in the morning. Both were slick in the afternoon as expected since it stayed pretty cold.
That's great news. Family day trip has been pushed back a week from the 24th to the 31st, maybe that gives Paradice a chance to open.
marzNC wrote:
The surprise is that snowmaking has started on Paradice! Guns were on at the top flat section all day. By 5:00 the guns for the curve were on as well.
Another great day at Mnut for January. Mass Transit and Yee Ha open with plenty of coverage. Made it that much easier to have lunch at the Mid-Mountain Grill in the sunshine. Warm but not too warm. So DJ softened and Lower Showtime didn't get slushy at all before the sun was behind the peak.
Heard that there are plans to add plumbing later in 2021 so that the Mid-Mountain building will have indoor restrooms. Although the trailer works just fine as far as I'm concerned.
Paradice might open later today! Pacesetter is opening today for sure. Plus it's still cold enough to keep snowmaking going during the day on the upper mountain. Snow guns are still on near the base as of 8am. Looks like they are starting to work on the CMB Terrain Park, at least to build up big whales on the bottom half.
wgo wrote:
With the snow later this week maybe some bumps on Paradice by next weekend?
Now that the snowstorm has shifted to ending on Thu, I'm trying to figure out how to get back to Mnut for next weekend. Together with the teen who learned to ski bumps at the top of Paradice with a ski school instructor. That was back when he was 8 and the instructor had a group of 4 tween boys who were ready. He loved the bumps and still does. :-)
Paradice is by far my favorite trail. Can't really remember the last time it was open when I was at Mnut since I've been skiing out west more in January and/or February in recent years.
marzNC wrote:
Paradice is open!
I'm still undecided if skiing makes sense for me this winter, but if I go anywhere it would be Massanutten. Now that both Lift 6 runs are open, I am thinking a little harder. It'd be midweek if I go.
wfyurasko wrote:
I'm still undecided if skiing makes sense for me this winter, but if I go anywhere it would be Massanutten. Now that both Lift 6 runs are open, I am thinking a little harder. It'd be midweek if I go.
Having spent two full weeks staying at Massanutten in January, I have to say that as a season pass holder this has been a very good season . . . and it's not even half over. In general, there are fewer people during day sessions who have no idea how to get down a slope. With limited ticket sales, even weekends are less crowded. For that matter, MLK weekend was probably the best I've ever had. I was skiing with a tween who got a chance to ski the top of Lift 5 for the first time. The snowmaking overnight meant the snow conditions were very good and having fewer people made it that much easier for her to follow me making nice medium round turns all the way down Upper and Lower Showtime non-stop. It was also easier to practice side-slipping just below mid-station even on Sat afternoon because there were fewer people around.
With the snowstorm this week, I'm working on a plan to get back to Mnut next weekend. :-)
wojo wrote:
I went on a Friday at 9am, it was EMPTY with a capital E until around 2pm. Hopefully I will get back once or twice, trying to live up to the travel restrictions on PA, so sticking to the 'Nut and I hit Bryce and plan on T'line this week.
Mnut is always empty 9:00-11:00, often still empty on Lift 5 until noon. That's the case on Saturdays. Sundays are even less busy, partially because people staying on resort are checking out and those who rent gear are unlikely to ski that day. They are more likely to go tubing before driving home.
Afternoons after 2:30 or so seem to be busier this season. Season pass holders who are students of all ages start showing up. But most of the people who find Upper Showtime or DJ too much for them only try it once. So they are not a factor for long.
marzNC wrote:
wfyurasko wrote:
I'm still undecided if skiing makes sense for me this winter, but if I go anywhere it would be Massanutten. Now that both Lift 6 runs are open, I am thinking a little harder. It'd be midweek if I go.
Having spent two full weeks staying at Massanutten in January, I have to say that as a season pass holder this has been a very good season . . . and it's not even half over. In general, there are fewer people during day sessions who have no idea how to get down a slope. With limited ticket sales, even weekends are less crowded. For that matter, MLK weekend was probably the best I've ever had. I was skiing with a tween who got a chance to ski the top of Lift 5 for the first time. The snowmaking overnight meant the snow conditions were very good and having fewer people made it that much easier for her to follow me making nice medium round turns all the way down Upper and Lower Showtime non-stop. It was also easier to practice side-slipping just below mid-station even on Sat afternoon because there were fewer people around.
With the snowstorm this week, I'm working on a plan to get back to Mnut next weekend. :-)
Are they making snow daily when conditions permit?
wfyurasko wrote:
Are they making snow daily when conditions permit?
That was certainly the case last week. Snowmaking continued on the upper mountain as late into the morning as possible when it was cold enough. Early in the week temps there was a night when didn't get low enough until around 5am, but it was clear when we got on the slopes at 9am that there had been snowmaking and grooming overnight. Snowguns on Upper Showtime and DJ were left on a little longer on cold mornings than on the easier trails. But even for those trails, snow guns were still on for the first hour or so. In that case the guns were pointed high and putting out dry snow.
The goal is to get 100% open ASAP. More terrain probably means being able to justify selling more tickets. The demand clearly exists on weekends, although Mnut didn't sell out except over MLK weekend (Sat, Sun, Mon). By building a very deep base, will be able to keep all slopes open longer after Pres. Day. That means refreshing the areas that get a lot of sun as often as possible, such as Geronimo or Lower Showtime. Snowmaking also happens as often as possible for the snow tubing lanes.
2017-18 was the first season after Massanutten built a 2-mile water pipe to supply water on the mountain for both snowmaking and the mountain golf course. They are now drawing not only from ponds but also from a creek, so no longer have a limited water supply. That makes a huge difference when it's cold enough for daytime snowmaking on trails not opened yet for 3+ days in a row.
Here's the text of the public notice from June 2017 about the Draft Water Withdrawal Permit for Massanutten.
"Great Eastern Resort Management, Inc. has applied for a permit for the Massanutten Resort Surface Water Withdrawal Project to meet the Resort’s water supply needs for snowmaking and for golf course irrigation. The permit will allow the applicant to withdraw water from Quail Run and to install associated water lines for transport to the Resort’s snowmaking facility on Massanutten Mountain and to Painters Pond, an impoundment of Stony Run. The permit will also allow the applicant to withdraw water from Painters Pond for snowmaking and golf course and ski slope irrigation, and to withdraw water for golf course irrigation and back-up supply for snowmaking from an on-site pond (Woodstone Lake) on an unnamed tributary to Quail Run. The proposed activity would affect permanently 0.05 acre (64 linear feet) of Quail Run for installation of a new intake. Installation of the water line would result in temporary impacts to 0.1 acre of palustrine emergent wetland and 68 linear feet of a stream channel. The activity proposed in the permit will affect Quail Run, Stony Run, and unnamed tributaries to Stony Run in the South Fork Shenandoah River watershed. A watershed is the land area drained by a river and its incoming streams. DEQ’s preliminary decision is to issue the permit."
Argent wrote:
I’m at Massanutten now. Lines on lift 5 are manageable and no lines on lift 6. Snow is okay, but a few icy and granular spots.
What time did you start skiing? Parts of DJ are often icy after the first hour or so on a weekend. Mass Transit tends to have the roughest surface. It gets a lot of sun.
Never a line for Lift 6. Most people who on the slopes at Mnut aren't the type to want to load that lift, much less ski an "expert" trail. At least not more than once.
Argent wrote:
Got there at 1 (late start this morning). Showtime ans Mass Transit were icier at the top than DJ. It was my first time there, but I’m used to Hunter so anything less icy than Hunter is good with me.I do like when there’s a dedicated expert lift, like Whitetail, just wish they were high speed chairs.
Yep, by the afternoon on a weekend it's more likely that some sections on the upper trails are slick in spots. My local friends ski from 9:00 to 11:30, or maybe only until 11:00, even on weekdays, and then head home. Same as the seniors at Sun Valley. ;-)
I took one run down the "expert" run at Hunter the one time I was there. Not an experience I wanted to repeat given how slick it was. And that was relatively early in the morning.
Were you using the Indy Pass?
For a high-speed lift, make the drive to Timberline. The new detachable 6-pack is a game changer. Plus there is even tree skiing after snowstorms.
MNut page calling for 5 inches of snow tonight. Is this being predicted anywhere else? I am not seeing this anywhere else, even for predictions at elevation.
wgo wrote:
MNut page calling for 5 inches of snow tonight. Is this being predicted anywhere else? I am not seeing this anywhere else, even for predictions at elevation
The weather forecasts for Mnut and northern VA in general are changing very quickly. What I'm more interested in watching are the temp predictions overnight later in the week. Right now those are in the teens. If that works out, then could be lots of snowmaking. Makes being 100% open by the weekend quite likely. Hope so because I'm driving back on Friday.
marzNC wrote:
Argent wrote:
Got there at 1 (late start this morning). Showtime ans Mass Transit were icier at the top than DJ. It was my first time there, but I’m used to Hunter so anything less icy than Hunter is good with me.I do like when there’s a dedicated expert lift, like Whitetail, just wish they were high speed chairs.Yep, by the afternoon on a weekend it's more likely that some sections on the upper trails are slick in spots. My local friends ski from 9:00 to 11:30, or maybe only until 11:00, even on weekdays, and then head home. Same as the seniors at Sun Valley. ;-)
I took one run down the "expert" run at Hunter the one time I was there. Not an experience I wanted to repeat given how slick it was. And that was relatively early in the morning.
Were you using the Indy Pass?
For a high-speed lift, make the drive to Timberline. The new detachable 6-pack is a game changer. Plus there is even tree skiing after snowstorms.
No pass this year! I've had Peak Drifter passes for the last two years. As good a value as it is, I don't always get enough days to make even that worth it. This year with Epic Pass prices there was no way I was going to get my money's worth, particularly since it's not worth dealing with Pennsylvania travel restrictions for the Snowtime mountains. So this is my season for exploring the Viriginias - which has just been Bryce and Massanutten so far.
Timberline is next on my list. Just a bit far for a day trip from Arlington, so I need to find some good weekdays to take off work and do an overnight.
Argent wrote:
No pass this year! I've had Peak Drifter passes for the last two years. As good a value as it is, I don't always get enough days to make even that worth it. This year with Epic Pass prices there was no way I was going to get my money's worth, particularly since it's not worth dealing with Pennsylvania travel restrictions for the Snowtime mountains. So this is my season for exploring the Viriginias - which has just been Bryce and Massanutten so far.
Timberline is next on my list. Just a bit far for a day trip from Arlington, so I need to find some good weekdays to take off work and do an overnight.
You might do the math on the Indy Pass before you head to WV. Canaan Valley is on Indy. Right now $249 (was $199 early on) includes 2 days at every location, no blackout dates for Mnut, Bryce, CV. Blue Knob and Winterplace are also on Indy. In late Feb 2020 there was a sale for $100 off to use during late season. Of course, impossible to predict if that will happen in 2021. Indy has a no-questions-asked credit approach for people who end up using Indy less than 4 days (0-80%, 1-60%, 2-40%, 3-20%).
Agree that staying overnight around Davis makes more sense than a day trip. I did Tline as a day trip from Mnut last week, which is 2.5 hours each way. Only had time for 4 hours, but it was still worth the effort. Now I know for sure I want to go back.
Argent wrote:
No pass this year! . . .
So this is my season for exploring the Viriginias - which has just been Bryce and Massanutten so far.
Once Highlands is 100% open, a drive to Wintergreen would be worth considering. The lift is a high-speed detachable. But normally the lines can be a pain on weekends. Sundays are better than Saturdays. I like Highlands but only midweek. Also Highlands doesn't have any lights, so need to quit by 3:45 or so.
wgo wrote:
That's great news. Family day trip has been pushed back a week from the 24th to the 31st, maybe that gives Paradice a chance to open.
You might even get to ski MakAttack on Jan. 31. Snowmaking is going to start once the cold front reaches Mnut this week. All depends on how long the initial snow whales need to drain. Overnight temp forecasts in the teens starting Jan. 28. :-)
I'm heading back to Mnut on Friday with my NC friends. Given their good luck, that means snow on Sunday is more likely. We don't have to drive home until Monday morning.
The advantage of not having night skiing Tue-Thu at Massanutten is that when it's cold enough there can be lots of snowmaking starting by 5:30pm on all trails, not just the trails used by advanced folks. Clearly working on building up the base for the core trails just as deep as possible to take full advantage of the ideal snowmaking conditions these few days.
High was 27 on Jan. 28. It's 21 degrees as of 7pm. It was in the 20s all night last night. It was 51 degrees at 6pm on Jan. 26, and 34 by 9am the next morning after the cold front moved into northern VA.
I'm bringing everything I have for frigid temps for the coming weekend, including the electric gloves. :-)
marzNC wrote:
The advantage of not having night skiing Tue-Thu at Massanutten is that when it's cold enough there can be lots of snowmaking starting by 5:30pm on all trails, not just the trails used by advanced folks. Clearly working on building up the base for the core trails just as deep as possible to take full advantage of the ideal snowmaking conditions these few days.
High was 27 on Jan. 28. It's 21 degrees as of 7pm. It was in the 20s all night last night. It was 51 degrees at 6pm on Jan. 26, and 34 by 9am the next morning after the cold front moved into northern VA.
I'm bringing everything I have for frigid temps for the coming weekend, including the electric gloves. :-)
Don’t get shocked!
According to the update this morning, MacAttack will be open on Sat, Jan. 30! Was looking pretty well covered this afternoon. Upper MacAttack looked pretty flat though.
Lots of contours from snow whales on Paradice, DJ, and Pacesetter today.
Don't remember seeing daytime snowmaking on so many trails at the same times. There were some guns operating on Paradice, DJ, Showtime, MacAttack, Pacesetter, and Geronimo. Temps never got out of the 20s.
Tickets sold out for Friday, Saturday, Sunday, and Monday I think. Snowstorm predicted for Sunday.
wgo wrote:
My son and I were there for a few hours just after lunch. Fun day! Will be back on Sunday with the whole family. I think the snow is supposed to taper off a bit after noon, so we will be driving up then.
We didn't get on snow until 1:30 after making the drive from NC. It sure was cold! I'm glad I brought all the stuff I use for single digits out west.
can you post about how the bumpy stuff develops and if they beefed up their terrain park??
Thanks, have a great weekend!!!
wojo wrote:
can you post about how the bumpy stuff develops and if they beefed up their terrain park??
Thanks, have a great weekend!!!
Nothing bumpy yet. But there are lots of snow whales providing good fun on all the newly opened trails. Since Pacesetter isn't a terrain park yet, can really fly off the whales. No idea about the features on Nuttin-to-It. We spent the day on Lifts 5 and 6. With the Mid-Mountain Grill open there was literally no reason to go back to the base lodge. We were more prepared for cold weather and it was about 5 degrees warmer than yesterday afternoon.
Clearly limiting ticket sales. Lot 4 was hardly used and there will still spaces in Lot 3.
Had a fabulous day at Massanutten! There was 4-5 inches on my car in the valley first thing in the morning. Pretty dry snow so clearing off the care was very easy. Kept snowing all morning.
Don't know when they groomed before the snowstorm started but when the lifts started up could make first tracks on all the trails, including Southern Comfort. There were plenty of powder hounds out on the harder trails. DJ and Paradice were skier-packed powder by 11am or so. Stayed quite nice all day. There were a few places on Paradice where you would hit bottom in the morning and slick patches showed up in the afternoon. But easy to stay on soft snow. Bumps are forming on Upper MacAttack. Tracks exist in the trees between Pacesetter and Lower MacAttack.
Plenty of pretty good skiers and boarders around today. More than I've seen on other powder days in the last decade.
Sunday tickets were all sold out. Have a couple retired friends who used the Indy Pass for today. They found out that for the 3rd day, still no reservation needed and 25% discount. They plan to ski a couple hours tomorrow morning before starting to drive back to TN. They also used Indy at CV this trip.
A patroller I asked at the top of Lift 6 this morning said the storm total was 6-8 inches. Seemed about right to me. Not much on Sun night, but there was a dusting on the car.
Everything was groomed before Monday morning. Except MacAttack per usual. The bumps had grown pretty big for only a couple days. Only had time for a few runs down Paradice and DJ. Plus crossing over from Lift 5 on Mass Transit and Yee Ha. Sooo nice! Still pretty empty before we left at 11:00 for the drive back to NC.
School was out. A friend stopped by Powder Shack in the morning. Said here were lots of people renting skis. Looked like the afternoon would be pretty busy with locals.
wgo wrote:
Agreed, it was good today. Was there between 1 and 4 with my son and daughter.
In some ways, some of the trails were better in the afternoon than late morning on Sunday. The chopped up fresh snow was a bit tricky. But once it because "skier packed powder" then it was less bouncy. Made it possible to take my friend up to Paradice for the first time. She had a very good time. Even better on Monday morning.
If I weren't in Colorado, I'd probably be back at Mnut to ski more fresh snow. As of yesterday there were still tickets for Sunday night. The Monday night session will be busy again.
Looking at the webcam this morning, Mnut looks like New England.
Pretty unusual to have a conditions update mid-morning. :-)
Feb. 6: 10:15 update: snowfall totals are up to 8" - 10" and starting to taper off.
Hit the NUT again today. There was a tasty layer of about 3 or 4 inches of freshies on the edges of most trails. I got most of my Pow on the left of Para dice and Showtime on the left, a cut to the lower moguls on MAK Attack was powder filled to for most of the morning. The "glades" on the bottom half of the blue runs were really nice too. I dropped into Pacesetter and Nutten to It parks for one of the Pace Setter bigger jumps and the two little ones in Nutten to it. I probably needed a bit more wax (or a bit more cajones) on the jump to make the landing on the down side! Upper parts of chair six runs were in the clouds most of the time I was there, so I spent most of the time on lift 5.
Lifts 3, 5, 6 were SHORT lines until I bailed at the end of my 4 hour ticket at 1:30. Home by 4:20. Its really weird riding every chair solo. 7 days on the hill and share the lift only two times, when someone accidentally slipped through the gates!!
4 pm update on the MNut webpage: "Upper MakAttack will be closed for the remainder of the day"
Anyone know why?
wgo wrote:
4 pm update on the MNut webpage: "Upper MakAttack will be closed for the remainder of the day"
Anyone know why?
Based on what I heard from a friend who's staying at Mnut this week and skied this morning, plus the temperature, I assumed it was because the bumps were getting pretty icy. With thick fog and no visibility, I guessed it was closed so that ski patrol didn't have to worry about folks trying to ski/board there and getting into trouble.
By lunch time, the thick fog was all the way down to the Geronimo. A friend who does day trips from DC gave up and went home.
we are going up Saturday to our timeshare and both day and night sessions are sold out for Saturday.
Georgiajames wrote:
we are going up Saturday to our timeshare and both day and night sessions are sold out for Saturday.
Saturdays have been selling out for several weeks. I'm going up for a bonus long weekend with a friend's tween. We'll start skiing on Friday afternoon. I bought her lift tickets a couple weeks ago for Friday thru Sunday. Definitely has been a good season to have a season pass.
Indy passholders don't need reservations.
Are you skiing on Sunday morning? I'll be in the Kettle Club by 8:30am (on the top floor this season). Red helmet and red boot bag.
marzNC wrote:
wgo wrote:
4 pm update on the MNut webpage: "Upper MakAttack will be closed for the remainder of the day"
Anyone know why?
Based on what I heard from a friend who's staying at Mnut this week and skied this morning, plus the temperature, I assumed it was because the bumps were getting pretty icy. With thick fog and no visibility, I guessed it was closed so that ski patrol didn't have to worry about folks trying to ski/board there and getting into trouble.
By lunch time, the thick fog was all the way down to the Geronimo. A friend who does day trips from DC gave up and went home.
Here's the note about MakAttack from this morning:
"Upper MakAttack may be delayed opening this morning until the bumps soften up."
yes we will be! all 8 of us. My wife and I (bright yellow pants for me ), my daughter and son in law and our twin granddaughters and 2 of their softball teammates. I will be the one getting yelled at for being so slow LOL. We are going to Canaan Monday , Tuesday & Wednesday to hit up both resorts and a little sledding at blackwater falls and Canaan. Thursday hitting the waterpark at nut and skiing Friday before heading home Saturday morning.
trying to get all we can out of our Indy passes on this trip. Hope to see you there.
Georgiajames wrote:
yes we will be! all 8 of us. My wife and I (bright yellow pants for me ), my daughter and son in law and our twin granddaughters and 2 of their softball teammates. I will be the one getting yelled at for being so slow LOL. We are going to Canaan Monday , Tuesday & Wednesday to hit up both resorts and a little sledding at blackwater falls and Canaan. Thursday hitting the waterpark at nut and skiing Friday before heading home Saturday morning.
trying to get all we can out of our Indy passes on this trip. Hope to see you there.
Okay, 4 adults and 4 girls, grandfather with yellow pants. Got it!
I'll be with one tween girl who is taller than I am. Daughter of a friend who is an older single mom. Special treat for both since the kid gets to ski and mom is doing a 2-day art workshop. Meeting up with a friend from DC who is also an owner. He's really tall with orange flags on his ski poles. At this point, my daughter is in college and too busy for ski weekends.
Had a blast at Massanutten this weekend! The tween was more than ready to ski off Lift 6 given the really good snow conditions. Plus she doesn't get cold. I was the one who was cold on Saturday when temps never got much over 25. We also got in some runs at night starting from the walk thru the woods to the top of Pacesetter.
The amount of ungroomed or bump terrain is far more than I've ever seen in 15 years. There are even bumps under Lift 5 between Towers 5 and 6. The trees between Pacesetter and Lower Showtime may stay skiable for a few mays days even with the warm temps forecast for the coming week.
Selected snow guns stayed on all day on Saturday on Paradice, DJ, Showtime, and Mass Transit. On Sunday the guns were mostly off on Showtime, with a few on on DJ. The features being built on lower Mass Transit are far bigger than I expected.
wgo wrote:
I was there this afternoon with my wife. Great conditions, I agree. Line of the day for me was the bumps on Mak Attack, then over to Pacesetter and then through the woods to lower Mak Attack.
I heard from one of the L3 instructors that they had an instructor bump clinic on the MakAttack bumps for 3 hours yesterday. He's having a ball skiing so much unusual terrain. I followed him on a fast run thru the trees for my last run today before heading home. Never seen it so well skier-packed.
Georgiajames wrote:
We are here at Mass. skied last night a little while. It was very cold. Got in multiple runs today. Had 2 beginners who started on the greens last night and by days end were hitting the triple chair halfway up and doing amazingly well. I hit a few tree cut through’s today and haven’t done that in years but enjoyed it. Heading to Canaan and t line for 3 days in the morning. Leaving early to hopefully beat the snow coming in. Will be back here Thursday for a couple more days.
Saturday was indeed very cold all day. The other friend (and timeshare owner) took the night runs after dinner while I just provided a ride to the quick access point near Pacesetter. Lift 5 is a really good lift for a mix-ability group. Especially when the beginners/intermediates are willing to get off at mid-station while others head up to the top.
I'll probably be skiing Mnut on Thursday.
Had a good time on the soft snow on Wed morning. Temps didn't get under 45 on Tue night. It was getting too warm by 11am but Upper Showtime and Upper MakAttack was still pretty firm since that stays in the shade. By late afternoon that was still good fun even with temps that got up into the 60s.
The snow whale contours that were on Upper Showtime and DJ last weekend were flattened out to keep the base as deep as possible side-to-side. Same for Geronimo, but that's more common.
Apparently tickets are sold out for Fri (day sessions) and Sat, Feb. 25-26. Mnut plans to stay open daily until March 21. Depending on the weather the next few weeks, I could see Closing Day being later than that.
Wow, it snowed again at Massanutten. But warmed up and turned to rain so won't be powder. Should be good spring skiing today for passholders or those who planned ahead and snagged lift tickets.
Snow Report for Feb. 27, 8am
3" new snow last night before turning to a little rain overnight. Light rain (.06) this morning before clearing out with highs in the mid 50s. Pacesetter Park will be closed Saturday - Sunday this weekend for Boardercross event. We are SOLD OUT for all sessions on Saturday.
Night sessions are not available Tuesday through Thursday or after Saturday, March 6.
Sounds like Mnut is not done with snowmaking. A few cold nights in the forecast for later in the week. :-)
Snow Conditions Feb. 28, 8am
Radar looks like the rain is moving out, highs in the mid 50s. Pacesetter Park will be closed Saturday for Boardercross event. Snowmaking temperatures return Monday night!
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