Snowsure: 3.7
- Occasionally gets enough snow for skiing
- Is often closed due to a lack of snow
- Occasionally suffers from a lack of snow
- Rarely suffers from a lack of snow
- Mount Washington is snowsure even in the poorest seasons
Visitor reviews for Mount Washington Ski Resort
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(NOTE: Reviews may be edited by our content team for the purposes of ensuring accurate and relevant information)
(NOTE: Reviews may be edited by our content team for the purposes of ensuring accurate and relevant information)
Latest
March 02, 2011
deep-pow?
deep-pow?
February 27, 2011
Alex
Alex
This is a great ski area. Like most, it has extreme weather which translates into wonderful snow! It also has the Boomerang chair, with extreme terrain, which translates into more beauty and wonderful skiing. These combined always cause controversy whether it be from the inconvenience of closures or danger level. You can always sit on the couch, but trust me, it is funner on the mountain. After all, you still have the rest of the mountain on the sketchy days. See you there!
February 23, 2011
deep-pow
deep-pow
I am fully in agreement that safety must come first. In the event of high winds etc that puts skiers/boarders in danger, I support safety.
One of my main issues surrounds what appears to be poor planning/organization to deal with situations (i.e. snowfall) that are known in advance. The excuses I mentioned as to why lifts can't be opened on time have been given to me by liftees on site. I haven't made them up.
To "stop the insanity": I don't keep track of daily snow conditions compared to every single snow report. Apparently you do. The situation I referred to (reported snow but somehow missed the rain and ice) happened last season and was clearly incorrect (I do know it was a Friday). I drove home after 2 runs of sheer ice.
As far as the alpine snow reports page goes, it constantly gives a time of update. And this happens many times throughout the day. It is currently 10:09pm and the top of the page states the last update was 6:34pm. This is very misleading. If this time stamp only applies to marketing fluff then it should be clear. If the actual snowfall is only updated at 5:30 am then it should state this so the page doesn't appear so missleading. A comment stating "snowfall updates given once daily at 5:30am" would be sufficient. I have emailed the resort specifically about this and it has apparently 1) fallen on deaf ears or 2) it was felt unnecessary to change.
As to the request to contact the mountain to discuss issues: I don't lurk on these sites and only complain. I have since last summer emailed the mountain on 5 separate ocassions with questions, suggestions or comments on issues that concern me about our local mountain. They were all respectable (no profanity/name calling etc). 3 of the 5 emails didn't even garner a reply. I followed up on 1 non-reply with a phone call and was told that I wouldn't get a reply, that my comments would simply be "filed for possible review at a later date". That means shelved and ignored. If this is also happening to others out there perhaps you can understand our frustrations.
We have a jewel here but I think it could be polished to sparkle even brighter (OK, perhaps a bit sappy but you get my point).
February 22, 2011
Victoria BC
Victoria BC
Just to put a bit of perspective on this, I was at WB for 4 days before Xmas and 6 days after New Year - Harmony and Symphony chairs were only open for the 2 days, they had no snow overnight. Oh, and the Whistler gondola was broken as well for 3 or 4 days. Big White is fogged up half the time as well...
Bottom line is no place is perfect, so just deal with it.
February 22, 2011
Close it all!
Close it all!
Has anyone noticed all the closed signs around the hill these days. Why, after so many years, has the hill gone from getting thinks open and running. To just putting up a closed sign. It's not La Nina, or even the weather, it's the lack of crew and planning. It's not just about the Boom, it's about the front side runs not even getting open on time.
Something needs to be done and I think change in Patrol would be the first place to look.
As a customer, if I have to see one more closed sign up and people not working to open it, them what is the point.
[Editor's note: text edited to maintain relevance.]
February 19, 2011
Don Sharpe
Don Sharpe
Anybody writing critical assessments about the resort on this website should consider approaching any of the mountain managers to discuss the situation face to face. We are open to feedback and at the end of the day; we're a business that wants to ensure customer satisfaction. In light of recent comments, please be aware that customer satisfaction needs to be balanced with the safety for our guests and our staff.
We will try to address some of the concerns that have been written over the past few days. If you have any additional questions feel free to come talk to our Patrol Director or us “management types” so we can provide you with an answer in person. You may not always like what you hear but we are always prepared to talk. And for future reference with regard to responding to comments through this website, we won't be writing any more responses.
Very few resorts get the quantity of snow that we receive in such a short time period. On top of the intense snowfall, we often receive heavy winds during these cycles, which forces lift delays or closure, which did occur last week with the Eagle Chair.
Please be assured that we have a highly trained, very experienced and certified avalanche crew. The main focus for this crew is guest and employee safety. If one person poaches terrain during our avy control (and it has happened many times in the past), it causes huge delays in the opening. This is the main reason we do not open the front side of the Boom during avy control and also why we control access off the top of the Eagle when blasting is happening.
Despite what many think, other resorts also have closures after storm cycles. We were in touch with Whistler/Blackcomb in the middle of the latest storm cycle and they were also experiencing delays with chairs like the Harmony and Peak. It's easy to be critical and say things like “just get it done” but the reality of the situation isn't as easy as some are expressing on this site.
In bounds avalanches can and do result in injuries and fatalities.
Check out these stories;
vancouversun.com/entertainment/Seven+skiers+rescued+from+avalanche+Fernie+Alpine+Resort/4115333/story.html
cbc.ca/canada/british-columbia/story/2011/01/16/bc-kokanee-park-avalanche.html
cbc.ca/canada/british-columbia/story/2009/01/01/bc-avalanche.html
Our newer policies with respect to access gates and rope placements has significantly reduced the number of dangerous rescues that we needed to perform compared to previous seasons. Most of the criticisms of our new measures are coming from those or you who consider yourselves “core skiers” who know what they're doing. But it must be realized that not every skier on the mountain is “core” or knowledgeable so we cannot cater to just a small number of skiers and boarders. Our safety measures ensure that we can handle all of our customer traffic and unfortunately for some, this will introduce a small level of inconvenience.
The bottom line is that we are not going to jeopardize the safety of our staff or our customers so a few people can get fresh lines ahead of others. Our goal is, and always has been, to get the Boom open for 9:30 am. If conditions do not permit it to be open by that time, so be it. We are willing to take the pressure (and criticism) while we balance safety and timing while not hurting people.
I hope this helps you understand why we do what we do and how it happens. To reiterate; talk to us, we will listen and take your feedback into consideration. We can't always act on things right away but we appreciate legitimate and constructive feedback that can assist us to improve the way we do business.
The conditions have never been better so get up here and enjoy the snow!
Don Sharpe
Director, Business Operations
Mount Washington Alpine Resort
February 19, 2011
Stop the Insanity
Stop the Insanity
Is the mountain perfect? No, but most of the complainers on this site have to take a serious chill pill and start riding all of the lines on the Eagle and Sunrise Chair before whinging about the Boom. Should it open earlier sometimes? Maybe but it opened by 10am yesterday and it was the day of the year, maybe the last ten years.
Think of the snowload and wind. Even with and earlier start and more staff it won't make a big difference. When the weather hits this place, it hits hard. I've waited for half the day for the Harmony and Peak to open at WB and they have loads of staff and a chopper at their disposal...and deep - pow comparing Wash to Big White and Silver Star?? That's funny, go to Big White and Silver Star and ride their lines that don't fill in because their snowpack is small. I would rather wait for the Boom to open thank you very much.
One last thing with the snow reporting comments: if anything this place has been under-reporting for the better part of two to three years. I haven't seen too many lies to speak of, what day did they report 10cms of snow after a melt/rain/freeze?? I have the records and don't see it? I know from a source that the snow report is done by patrol (not marketing) at 5:30am and then marketing updates the current conditions (visibility and weather only) at 8:45am. The only updates after that are done to the marketing hype blurb, that's it.
Just go out and ski and enjoy the place people, the mountain is fine.
[Editor's note: text edited to try and maintain relevance]
February 18, 2011
Logic
Logic
February 17, 2011
Gnaaaaar
Gnaaaaar
Skied Heroine yesterday with the buds, then hiked Cougar and Tele. Skiing out a patroller, skied up and asked us about our gear and safety and plans, then said thanks for using the gates and not ducking ropes and skied away. I think if you have the gear, smarts and a buddy they'll leave you alone. Also, don't duck their ropes I guess.
Seems like others are pretty informed but I, for one, like the staggered openings. Locals know how to ride fresh lines from nine till noon!
February 17, 2011
deep-pow
deep-pow
Have to agree with the recent posters about the inability to manage snow fall. Boom should be open on time without excuses most days unless extreme weather. Poor handling of the mountain for whatever reason. Same for the Eagle. I am all for safety and avalanche control. True, big mountains know how to get the skiers/boarders out on the slopes on time. The big boys in BC get in, get out, get the day started. You think Whistler, Big White, Silver Star etc. screw around trying to get lifts open by noon? Here, we wait until late morning or so before we can get into the snow. We shouldn't have to travel to these other mountains when we have what we have here.
And what's up with not being able to dig out chair lifts by 9am? When heavy snowfall is expected then expect to dig out early. "We don't have enough staff today". You knew snow was coming, call in more shovellers. "But the bus can't get up in time" Then get the bus leaving town earlier. Coordinate with a plow truck so the bus can follow one up on a sanded road. It's not rocket science. I stood in line this season for 75 minutes to get the yellow chair opened and the blue never did open that day.
And what's with the website being regularly completely inaccurate? Be honest. If it snows 10cm, then rains, then freezes overnight, don't tell us 1st thing the next morning that there is 10cm of new snow. It just ticks off people like me that keep dropping over $2,000 on family passes year after year. We are you bread and butter. And the update times on the snow report? Bogus. I enquired and apparently the snow fall report is done 1x/day, at the crack of dawn. Maybe they update wind conditions or something throughout the day, I don't know. I do know that the update may say 11am, 3pm, 9pm but it's not correct. Sort of makes you feel like you're being fooled doesn't it? If only they were upfront and honest with us.
This mountain puts it forward that it is a big time mountain but everything about it seems to say small time mountain. We have such huge potential here if only it was tapped into correctly. Ownership doesn't not seem tuned in to the pulse of the mountain.
I will say that changing the night skiing last year to start at 3:30 rather than 4:30 was a top notch decision. Wish there was more of that going on. And making it a cheap add-on to a day pass was also a great idea to increase night usage (makes no $ difference to me as a season pass holder).
Seems like we need a professional management team experienced in efficient ski resort operation. How many day passes per season? Bill an extra dollar and pay to get it done.
Nearest