What a ski winter! Ready for spring skiing?

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What an amazing snowy winter for skiers. Like pennies from heaven, snow storms have been very kind to New England ski resorts, and much of the west. The big winner for snow out west is Big Sky Resort -planning to keep skiing through Easter April 20! Snow season started late for Lake Tahoe, Mammoth, Colorado and Utah, but now they are catching up and catching fresh tracks. with more frequent snow

In New England, cold temps and continuous snow fall has assured skiers of a great ski season. I am at day 44, counting well over a 1,200,000 vertical feet!  And I am not done skiing... could make 50 days! Ironically I have not enjoyed some of the best skiing in New England, travelling from The Alps to Oregon's snowy volcano. And still to come  is my favorite part of ski season - Spring!

How did I miss out on much of New England's snowy winter? Let's see, we skied Big Sky Montana in January- enjoying the new Big Sky Moonlight ownership for the biggest skiing in America.

Early February we hit Western Canada to discover new ski resorts Kicking Horse and Revelstoke - both steep scenic exciting mountains in British Columbia. We also had the adrenaline fix of heli skiing inthe Purcell Mountains with Purcell Heli Skiing and the legendary heli ski terrain of the Monashees with Eagle Pass Heli Skiing.

March we made the epic trip to the Swiss Alps, our second visit there in two years! Skiing the Jungfrau Region was amazing, we'll not soon forget the White Hare off piste run at Wengen, racing down the Lauberhorn or fresh snow of the SchilthornPiz Gloria - very James Bond 007! Gstaad was a surprise - the ski region is spread out over 14 villages, and seven ski sectors - here we stayed at the best Swiss ski hotels - 5 star and fabulous. Two unexpectedly great ski resorts we enjoyed were Engelberg Titlis and Haslital - both incredibly scenic and not yet on most skiers lists...but they should be.

Last but not least, we skied a volcano! Mt Bachelor Oregon delivered fantastic skiing - you can ski all 360-degrees of this conical dormant peak. We had sunshine and superb views two days then got dumped on with 8 inches of dense powder the last two. Staying in the cool town of Bend kept us amused après ski - this great town has the most breweries per capita of any! Cheers to beers after skiing Bachelor's volcano !

So I will see you on the slopes. Sunday River still has all their trails open, 800 acres of springs skiing. Sugarloaf is the King of Spring - Reggaefest and Easter skiing are the Loaf's most loved events of the entire season. Killington has brought the Beast of the East back to life, indicating they will keep lifts spinning as long as they can to reclaim their longest ski season title.

How many days of skiing have you had this winter? Can you calculate your vertical feet accumulation? Or are you just grateful for any and every day on the snowy ski slopes? 

Where is the snow this ski season?

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This winter season started out powdery and plentiful in New England, but a post holiday thaw and several rain events have dramatically reduced trail counts in New England, Much of Maine, New Hampshire and Vermont are at 50% open as we enter MLK weekend. Snowmaking resumes when it is cold enough.... but the real snow is out west at a few select northern ski resorts.

Big Sky Resort in Montana has base depths of  up to 67'' and growing - among the best snow conditions in the country right now along with Grand Targhee and Jackson Hole in Wyoming, Alta/Snowbird in Utah, and Steamboat in Colorado. With Big Sky's recent acquisition of neighboring Moonlight Basin and Spanish Peaks ski areas, Big Sky now delivers 5,750-acres of ski terrain - the biggest skiing in America - on one ticket. You should be considering at trip to Big Sky this winter!  Or Grand Targhee...  get out and ski! 

Photos of Big Sky Montana, January 2014 courtesy of Family Ski Trips and Luxury Ski Trips

Biggest Skiing in America - Yellowstone, Big Sky, Moonlight - Boom!

I hate to say I told you so, but I did. I tweeted, on July 26, 2013 - ‏"@FamilySkiTrips26 Jul The Yellowstone Club to buy The Club at Spanish Peaks with Big Sky Resort! Good ski news! What's next? Maybe they buy @MoonlightBasin too #BiggestSkiinginAmerica #Boom http://fb.me/QLf1vITJ  "

Prediction come true: on August 15, 2013 Yellowstone Club owner CrossHarbor Capital, in partnership with Boyne Resorts, who owns and operates Big Sky Resort, announced that they are acquiring Moonlight Basin from Lehman Brothers Holdings. 

Big Sky will manage Moonlight Basin, they already share a lift  - the Iron Horse quad, share flanks of  Lone Peak's awesome terrain, and offer an interconnected lift ticket. For the past three seasons,  Big Sky & Moonlight Basin have marketed the Biggest Skiing in America.... a combined area of 5,700 ski-able acres, 4,350 vertical feet and 23 chairlifts. These stats eclipse Vail's 5,200 and rivals that of Whistler/Blackcomb.

Well, that big Montana ski experience just got bigger if you consider Moonlight Basin abuts Big Sky which neighbors Yellowstone Club and Spanish Peaks - another private ski community with lifts and lodges including the Pinnacle atop the Ram Charger lift at Big Sky. I don't see Yellowstone Club dropping their secure boundaries and letting the riff raff in anytime soon, but the  modest terrain at Spanish Peaks will likely become fair game.

I am a huge fan of Big Sky - one of my favorite ski resorts anywhere. Moonlight Basin also makes my list - it has been a sleeping giant, no big crowds and pretty amazing terrain - comparable to neighboring Big Sky.  Moonlight has its own community of stunning slope side homes and a gorgeous mid-mountain Lodge but struggled through foreclosure with Lehman Brothers. I believe the Moonlight giant is about to be awakened. Boyne (who owns Sunday River, Sugarloaf, Loon, Boyne, Boyne Highlands, and Brighton) is big on quality lifts, grooming and snowmaking, Yellowstone is all about posh lodging and exclusivity. An interesting Montana match made for skiers.

Stay tuned.. and be sure to follow family ski trips on twitter - for breaking news in the ski biz! 

Sugarloaf earns King of Spring rep...

Sugarloaf reigns supreme today, May 9, as King of Spring and the last resort ski standing in the North East on Monday May 9, outplaying and outlasting sister Sunday River, Jay Peak, and Killington. It was an impressively long season for all these top guns in New England, and for the fortunate skiers as snow continued through April, and even into Mother’s day weekend in May.

As for the longest ski season in the East, that title deservedly goes to Sunday River for opening October 22 and closing 181 days later on April 24. The ski season of 2010-11 will go down in history as “epic” for snow conditions, all across the country for that matter.  Mammoth, Snowbird and Alpine Meadows reported record snows and continue to ski - with Alpine peaking out on the snow charts at 852 inches. Moonlight Basin and Big Sky in Montana stayed open well past planned closing dates, skiing on deep snow on all their trails through Easter April 24! Western resorts still skiing include Bachelor and Timberline in Oregon, Arapahoe Basin Colorado, Squaw, Alpine and Mammoth in California, and Snowbird in Utah.

For those of you, like me, who have stored your boards, next winter promises the delivery of a new quad at Sugarloaf and at Northstar at Tahoe, and a replacement quad at Stowe. And you can start to get pumped for the Sochi Russia Winter Games, now that Freestyle halfpipe skiing and Women’s Nordic jumping have been approved for Olympic Competition in 2014.  Let’s keep our fingers, not our tips, crossed that next winter brings a similar bounty of snow too! Stay tuned for more ski news.

Big reasons to ski the Big Sky State

We admit it, our family has a love affair with the Big Sky state...the scenery, the skiing, the snow, the friendly Montanans...

Need more reasons to visit the Big Sky State?
read Heather's blog on Boston.com !http://www.boston.com/travel/explorene/specials/ski/gallery/montana/

love Montana - Big Sky, Moonlight Basin, Bridger Bowl!

This week our travels take us to beautiful Montana...the land that inspired John Steinbeck and staged movies like "A River Runs through it"...but we're not here to fish, or write, we're here to ski - three major mountain resorts: Big Sky, Moonlight Basin, Bridger Bowl!

Stay tuned for our powder reports from Big Sky, where we ski the ominous Lone Peak, to secret glade stashes and a visit with Late Night's David Letterman at Moonlight Basin. Also we catch a crazy Freeskiing event at Bridger Bowl, where Doug Coombes launched his free skiing career, as extreme skiers launch off the Ridge terrain for the title of best skier du jour.

And we check in with ski instructor Ian Burke at Big Sky, ok our son, who has acheived PSIA Level 1 certification at Big Sky Resort - one of the finest ski schools in the country with the largest percentage of Level 3 instructors.

Here is just a taste of Big Sky skiing for you..