The Appalachians may never rival the Rockies, but outdoor enthusiasts say WNC offers more opportunities for winter adventures than many residents realize. This year local ski areas are celebrating a long list of improvements and forecasters are predicting a cold, snowy winter.
Beech Mountain Resort celebrated the end of its ski season last weekend with a March 12 “pond skimming” contest. The festive event drew a legion of fearless skiers and snowboarders who tried to speed down the slopes with enough momentum to skim across a small man-made pond built in to the middle of the hill.
As the snow melted in Asheville this weekend, the higher mountain ranges outside of town remained winter wonderlands. On Saturday, Jan. 15, a group of friends and I packed up our snowboards and sleds and trekked to the Roan Highlands in search of adventure. Here’s a slide show of some of our photos from the day.
Unusually cold and snowy weather dominated headlines last week. In the wake of the frozen onslaught, famed WNC forecaster Ray Russell issued a “death notice” on his long-range prediction for a mild winter.
Local ski areas are reporting great conditions and it looks like more snow is on the way, with Ray’s Weather Center predicting another 6 to12 inches for the highest peaks over the next couple of days. On January, 10, we went up to Wolf Ridge Ski Resort in Madison County and encountered powder that’s more typical of the Rockies than the Southern Appalachians. Here’s a short video of what we found.
A look at what’s been making headlines: Rep. Heath Shuler concluded his bid for speaker of the House last week, and controversial Buncombe GOP Chair Chad Nesbitt bowed out of a second term. Also, snowy weather continued to blanket WNC.
Last winter was heaven for local winter sports enthusiasts. And this season has been off to a great start, with unusually cold and snowy conditions providing ample opportunities for skiing, snowboarding, sledding, snowball fights, snowmen and assorted backcountry adventures. We’re celebrating today, Dec. 21 – the first official day of winter – by culling together some of our favorite photos and videos from the last couple years of snowy escapades.
