Does Killington have some early-season competition? On Wednesday and Thursday, Ski Ward in Shrewsbury, Massachusetts made some snow. The Latitude 90 & SMI snowmaking system helps make snow in warmer temperatures, which allowed Ski Ward to make some man-made snow in what’s been a relatively colder front in New England.
Here’s a description of the Latitude 90 & SMI L60, which is what Ski Ward has:
“A real power trip. The L60’s production capacity is pretty eye-popping: 120 cubic meters (156 cubic yards) every 24 hours. That’s 2 x 30 tons of automatic snow production with a total water consumption of 42 L/min. (11 US/gal). This unit has two outlets that can each to blow snow up to 100 m (328 ft). Fully automatic and remotely controlled.”
Unfortunately, they are only testing the system, and won’t be opening for skiing anytime soon. According to Ski Ward, their goal is to do test runs, tarp off the snow piles, and then start for real on October 1st. They want to open the first week of November for ski lessons, which is a month earlier than usual.
If you’re looking to visit Ski Ward this summer, they have summer tubing, a restaurant, and an ice cream shop open.
Mountain Stats
Trails: 9 (one of which is appropriately named Nor’Easta)
Lifts: 4
Vertical Drop: 220 feet
Location: Shrewsbury, Massachusetts (a suburb of Worcester or as it’s pronounced down there: WOSTAHH)
Image/Video Credits: Ski Ward
