Conditions Report
Report from Monday, March 4, 2024
I am just back from a whirlwind road trip with my daughters to snowboard at Saddleback Mountain in the Rangeley Maine Lake District and I am binging Kurt Russell movies. Tombstone is one of my all-time favorites. Russell, known locally as “Snake,” has a place here in the mountains. His father was born in the area, and he considers the beautiful town, a four-season adventure destination for alpine sports, snowmobiling, and fly fishing, and surrounded by lakes, wildlife, and mountains for miles, his home.
I’ve been monitoring daily weather and conditions reports at Indy Pass resorts within a five-hour driving distance from Montreal like it is my new religion. Thanks to Indy Pass I’ve had amazing days snowboarding at Bolton Valley, Titus Mountain Resort, and Jay Peak, with a close eye on Indy resorts further south in New Hampshire, and Maine, waiting for a clear weather window for driving, and good snow up top. I decided that the first week of March, school break in Quebec, was a good time to plan to go. I also figured that by driving down to Maine, we’d most likely be dodging crowds of vacationing families at ski resorts in Vermont and Quebec.
Good snow, well that’s not so predictable, especially with climate change, and you can’t control the weather. You just have to monitor it as close as you can and do some educated guesswork. I called Saddleback a week ahead to let them know that we were planning to drive down and to ask about conditions. They told me there was no snow in town but the mountain was holding up. The Rangeley Inn & Tavern, an easy fifteen-minute drive from Saddleback, was offering rooms at a discounted rate to Indy Pass holders. I called to book a two-night stay. They immediately upgraded us to a deluxe double room when I told them that I was traveling with my two teenage daughters. The stars aligned.
Saddleback captured my attention ages ago. There is something special about an inland mountain resort nestled beside an enormous body of water. Out here we have Owl’s Head, LeMassif in Quebec, and Saddleback. I’m sure there are others that I don’t know about, yet. Consistently awarded ‘Best in Maine’ in readers’ polls, coming out on top over more popular resorts, Saddleback is the largest independent ski area on the East Coast in terms of skiable acres, and one of the highest mountains in the State. We love Maine. My daughter Em has told me since she was about three years old that she wants to live here one day. We make annual trips to Well’s Beach on the coast in August but have never traveled in this part of the State before.
After closing for nearly five years in 2015, which I can only imagine was a gut punch to the local tourism economy, Saddleback reopened on December 15, 2020, under new ownership. The mountain, separated into upper, middle, and lower sections, each serviced by its own lifts, has 600 acres of skiable terrain, with a base elevation of 2,460,’ a summit elevation of 4,120,’ a vertical drop of 2,000,’ and average annual snowfall of 225.” Saddleback offers 68 trials, including 38 percent beginner, 29 percent intermediate, and 33 percent expert, and 80 acres of expertly cut glades. Most trails offer expansive views of the Rangeley Lakes in the foreground, and high peaks in the distance. There is a lot to explore here.
We left Montreal at midday on Sunday. When I travel with my girls, Em is the co-pilot and navigator and because of this, I can’t honestly tell you where we crossed the border into Maine. Canada and the State of Maine share close to 400 miles of border; there are options. I give Em three rules when mapping our route: pretty scenery, not too scary road conditions, and avoid Quebec Provincial Highway 10 and the interstates as much as possible. Once we crossed the border into the United States we drove for about an hour through state park land before arriving in the town of Rangeley. We quickly checked into our hotel room and headed to the Parkside & Main Restaurant for (local) fish and chips after a long day of driving on mountain roads.
Monday morning I gave the girls lie in, and headed to Saddleback for some early morning solo turns. After registering my pass and getting a lay of the land from client services, I headed to the chair that services the mid-mountain. I was concerned about snow coverage on the upper mountain and found plenty to be challenged by on the mid-mountain trials, mostly intermediate runs, and a few steeps. The snow was spring conditions, patchy in parts, a combination of natural and manmade snow. It was surfy, and I like surfy. One blue run, ‘The Grey Ghost,’ I had all to myself. I lapped that run several times before heading back into town midday to get the girls. We were back at the resort within an hour.
My daughter Dylan was keen to snowboard this trip. Em snowboards as well, but it’s not really her thing. She is our navigator, co-pilot, and photographer on adventures. I purchased a lower mountain lift ticket for Dee, with the plan to spend the afternoon riding with her. She’s a beginner but skateboards and this season she has progressed and gained more confidence as a snowboarder. We lapped a dozen runs off the lower mountain lift together before I was ready for hot chocolate. Dylan wanted to keep going. I walked back to the lodge to watch my little daughter head to the lift solo. She had the entire lower section, (mostly located below the base lodge, away from any skier/rider traffic), of the mountain to herself, and was on the last chairlift of the day. It is hard to find the right words for what that feels like as a parent but I am sure that there are a lot of Snowbrains readers who know exactly what I’m talking about. Witnessing my kiddo fall in love with something that I’ve loved for half my life, on her own terms, is a big part of what motivates me to keep at it.
After a day of riding we rewarded ourselves with pizza and Maine blueberry pie from The Red Onion. We watched the weather report while waiting for our order, and saw that a storm system, bringing heavy rain and wind, was moving into the region as far north as Quebec Tuesday evening into Wednesday. I made a quick decision to head back to Montreal mid-morning Tuesday. Unless you’re behind the wheel of a hefty rig, you don’t want to be driving on some of these roads in bad weather. We set out under sunny skies that lasted the day. We drove through rural parts of Maine, New Hampshire, Vermont, and Quebec, with incredible mountain views and wildlife at every turn. Not once did we get on an interstate or Quebec highway 10. I white knuckled it through the Dixville Notch in the northern White Mountains, which opens up to a cinematic view of The Balsams Grand Resort Hotel, one of a handful of surviving New Hampshire grand hotels. Situated on 11,000 acres, with its own alpine ski area, The Balsams has been closed since 2011, but there is a renovation plan here, which includes expanding the ski area by 1,000 acres to make it one of the largest in the northeast.
Our era is one of instant gratification. My daughters and I are big fans of taking time and living in the moment. For us, the journey is almost always as much of an adventure as the destination. Thanks to Indy Pass we’ve experienced places close to home that we never have before, and want to return to whenever possible. I plan to go back to Saddleback again this season, to explore the upper mountain and ridgeline which links to the Appalachian Trail. Snow fell in the region last night, and forecasts are predicting another 6 to 11 inches of snowfall from Saturday night into Sunday. Current conditions are spring snow, under bluebird skies. Saddleback is hosting a USASA Slopestyle Competition tomorrow for skiers, and snowboarders next Saturday, March 16, is their 2nd Annual Back to the Banks Banked Slalom event. They are projected to close for the season on Saturday, April 13. One thing we’re seeing in the northeast in recent winters is a February thaw, followed by heavy snow days in March and April. Hopefully, that trend continues for the duration of 2023-24.
See you on the mountain!
