One Officially Season Ends, Another Begins
If you were watching what was happening out West, you might have seen Oregon’s Mt. Bachelor reopen for lift-served skiing (to passholders only) on May 16-24. And you might have thought “Hey, maybe that will happen out East. ” If so, we have some good news and bad news.
First, you would have been justified in the logic:
Mt. Bachelor has a TON of snow (95 inches of base depth, to be exact.)
Mt. Bachelor is owned by POWDR.
Mt. Bachelor is in a safe state that is reopening.
Ergo…
Killington has a TON of snow (Superstar is still covered, top to bottom, as this webcam shows)).
Killington is also owned by POWDR.
Therefore could Killington reopen for its traditional spring slush bash by June?
Well, sorry, but no. CEO Mike Solimano shared the news that the Beast of the East wasn’t going to rev up its lifts for skiing again this season but… and here’s the good news.. it will for mountain biking and golf courses will open this weekend.
A release from Killington stated the resort. “Will open the 18-hole Golf Course Saturday, May 23 to Vermont residents and those non-residents who’ve quarantined for 14 days and the Bike Park Saturday, June 6 to passholders only, pending Gov. Phil Scott’s approval of the Killington Mountain Biking operations plan, which we have updated to ensure the safety of our guests, staff and community given COVID-19.
“As we transition into summer operations, we’ve made the tough decision to not reopen for skiing and riding,” says Mike Solimano, president and general manager of Killington Resort. “Given our commitment to early and late season skiing, it was hard to close the door on the 2019-20 ski season, but we feel fortunate to have enjoyed the longest season in the East – 133 days, despite the early closure – and to be offering our guests the Passholder Promise as an assurance for the future.”
Those openings come with restrictions. For golf, there will be no walk-ins, only advance tee times and just one person will check in. No rental clubs will be available, nor balls, tees, or apparel at retail. No on-course bathrooms, facilities, or water. The Bike Park is slated to open to passholders only Saturday, June 6 and Sunday, June 7 (no rentals available that weekend) and to the general public on Friday, June 12 (pending approval). After opening weekend, the Bike Park is expected to operate Friday through Sunday for the month of June from 10:00 a.m.-5:00 p.m. with the Snowshed trails and Snowshed Express Quad available only.
Sugarbush also opens its 18-hole Robert Trent Jones golf course on May 23 and Stratton’s 27-hole championship course is also open, along with many of the shops in the base village. Lift-served mountain biking is not presently open.
Suicide Six’s mountain bike trails are open for pedal access (no lift-served access yet) and The Woodstock Country Club’s Robert Trent Jones course (named one of the top 100 courses in the country by Golf Magazine) is celebrating 125 years of golf in Woodstock with a $125 Foursome special (four players play for that total).
Hotels and other lodging are able to take reservations for stays after May 15 and many of the mountain bike trail networks, including Kingdom Trails, are now open but with specific guidelines on social distancing and reminders not to gather in parking areas.
Vermont State Parks are open for day use (though picnic tables and chairs have been removed). And campgrounds will be open for reservations after June 25. Facilities will be limited with no rentals of boats or other equipments and limits on how many can occupy a camping area. Pools, beaches and swimming facilities can open but perators must reduce high contact surfaces and common areas, limit gatherings of people to 10 or less, and regularly clean and disinfect restrooms and other common facilities per CDC guidelines.
In all instances, per the Governor’s “Play Smart and Play Safe” orders , any out of state visitors are asked to quarantine for 14 days before participating in any of these.
