Village-to-village skiing available at Vail as mountain opens more terrain
More snow is in store for Thanksgiving week, with the first storm arriving Sunday
Chris Dillmann/Vail Daily
Vail Mountain opened village-to-village skiing on Friday with guests now being able to ski from the top of the Eagle Bahn Gondola down to Lionshead.
The open terrain now includes the Eagle’s Nest beginner’s area to Coyote Crossing to lower Lodgepole and lower middle Born Free into Lionshead. Vail opened top-to-bottom skiing into Vail Village on Tuesday after a larger-than-expected storm that brought a foot of fresh snow to the slopes.
Vail Mountain opened the bottom of its Bear Tree run on Tuesday, ending the need for downloads off Gondola One from Mid-Vail. More than 3,000 vertical feet of skiing is available from the top of Chair 4 (elevation 11,250 feet) to the bottom of Gondola One (elevation 8,200 feet.)
Vail has 41 of its 277 trails open, serviced by seven lifts.
The good news for guests traveling to the mountains for the Thanksgiving holiday is that more snow is in the forecast with two storms on the way — although traffic and winter conditions could make for slow going in the High Country.
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Meteorologist Joel Gratz with OpenSnow.com said the first storm should bring snow starting Sunday afternoon and evening and continue through Monday morning.
“A first-guess snow forecast for this time is 3-6 inches, but the favorable combination of a cold front, jet stream, and lots of moisture may push snow totals higher and there is a potential for 6-12 inches of accumulation just to the north or south of Vail,” Gratz wrote in his Vail snow update.
On the heels of the first storm, more snow is expected to arrive Tuesday and continue through Wednesday night. Gratz wrote that the second storm should deliver more snow than the first — between 8-16 inches — given the amount of moisture and the storm’s longer duration. Gratz, however, said the storm could deliver thicker snow given warmer temperatures.
Beaver Creek is also slated to open on Wednesday, Nov. 27, and passed its snow control for the men’s Birds of Prey World Cup races in Beaver Creek on Friday.
The announcement from the International Ski Federation means the course is in racing condition and will be ready to host the men’s downhill, super-G, and giant slalom racers Dec. 6-8. The official snow control date for the women’s races — scheduled for Dec. 14-15 — is Saturday, Nov. 30.
John LaConte contributed reporting
