Sunday River, ME, Oct. 4--The inaugural snowfall of the season brought a few New England ski areas one to 10 inches of snow early this morning.
The surprise storm brought five inches to Whiteface Mountain Ski Center, in upstate New York. Next door in Vermont, Killington/Pico Ski Area, Smuggler's Notch Resort, Stowe Mountain Resort, and Sugarbush Resort all reported anywhere from one to ten inches of snow. Jay Peak Ski Resort, VT, looks to be the winner, with about 14 inches on the summit.
Both Sugarloaf USA and Sunday River, in Maine, also got a dusting of snow. Alas, many resorts now report the white fluff has already turned into rain.
The storm will likely boost snowmaking efforts in New England. Sugarbush began making snow last week, with the hopes of a late October opening. The resort had been the first to make snow in the East for the last four years. Killington will also fire up the snow guns, if the cold weather sticks around this week.
For the most part, however, ski areas in New York and New Hampshire are still waiting for the right combination of sustained cold temperatures and precipitation for snow or even snowmaking.











