Ski season opening day: almost normal

The resort officially called it a “light dusting” of snow for Wednesday, Nov. 25, and measured snowfall on the slopes at 4 inches. And snowmakers were able to lay down even more throughout the first few days, going from 7 trails on opening day to 17 trails over the weekend.

The resort closed down for the first day of December as the temperatures Tuesday approached 60 degrees, just the latest buzzkill to a 2020 full of them. But, for the hundreds of skiers and riders who made it up for opening day, there was something of a sense of normalcy. Especially once they got onto the quad and headed up the mountain, the light wind rustling around their face masks.

“I think this is important for everybody and their mental health,” said Kendra McKim, a skier from South Burlington who was on her way up for her first time this year. “I was excited, more than I was apprehensive.”

McKim, an educator, likened the importance of these types of normal activities to how it was when students were allowed to go back to in-school learning, rather than the fully remote experience that started the pandemic and ended the 2019-20 school year.

This is actually better, because it’s outside, she said. Sure, the line for the quad was longer than usual because COVID-19 guidelines only allow two non-family members on the lift at a time — and, when they open, any triples will become singles for solo skiers. But once she got to the top, it was easy to spread out and just concentrate on her turns.

That’s what Vishal Patel was hoping for as he stood in the line for his first run. He’s a New York City tech sector worker who moved back in with his parents in Connecticut once the pandemic hit. They were staying at Smugglers’ Notch Resort, where they have a time share, for the first week of the season. Patel said he planned on skiing every day they were in Vermont.

Patel booked the week in January, when coronavirus was still only a mystery starting to wreak havoc in the Wuhan province of China. An Epic Pass holder, Patel was skiing at Mount Snow the week before the pandemic was declared a national emergency, about 10 days before Vermont ski resorts ended their seasons in mid-March.

Patel is impressed with the way Vermont is adapting to the coronavirus, and especially impressed with the signs, starting on the interstate, informing people of rules like mask wearing and social distancing. This in a state that’s actually known more for its stances against signs cluttering the landscape.

“The signage is awesome,” he said. “I feel totally safe.”

With a name like Vishal Patel and an out-of-state license plate, he’s aware that some people might look askance at him traveling to Vermont in a pandemic. But, he said, he and his family quarantined before driving up, and didn’t venture out from their Smuggs condo other than to hit the slopes.

“Kind of for all those reasons, we’ve just stayed at the resorts and cooked in and watched TV. We’re just staying to ourselves,” he said.

He said he received an email from a third party suggesting he not come to Vermont because of quarantine rules, but when he called Stowe, the resort said it was OK, as long as he quarantined before coming and abided by the rules.

He bought an Epic Pass this year because he was working remotely and can get work done and hit a bunch of resorts in the Vail family — Stowe, Mt. Snow and Okemo in Vermont, Sunapee, Attitash, Crotched and Wildcat in New Hampshire, and Hunter Mountain in New York. After seeing how Stowe operated on opening day, he’s optimistic for the season.

“I think there’s still a chance we can make this happen,” he said.

In the parking lot on opening day, Dave Cacciamani, a Hyde Parker who lives in the Garfield area near the border with Wolcott and Craftsbury, was making a gear swap at his pickup truck, as the conditions were starting to get a little crunchy.

Cacciamani said it was pretty crowded, and was yearning for some cold spells so the mountain could make more snow and spread everyone out more. He tries to ski 100-plus days a year, splitting his time between resort skiing and backcountry. He said it was so far, so good with resort operations.

“I think they have their checks in place and monitoring it and people are being respectful,” he said.

McKim said she thinks the season will bring the flocks of tourists to ski resorts the way they always do, but said there were also plenty of tourists throughout the summer and fall. She is worried about people gathering in closed spaces, but said when it comes to skiing, she’s there for the outside.

“It’ll have to be parking lot beers this season,” she said.