Some years, ginning up inspiration to write the intro for the Winter Preview Issue is a challenge. In early November, on the heels of idyllic summers and breathtaking autumns, it’s just hard to wrap our heads around the harsh months of cold and darkness ahead.
That was not a problem this year. Vermonters awoke on Tuesday to several inches of snow clinging to tree branches, windshields and patio furniture they hadn’t gotten around to putting away. You want a winter preview? Look out your window.
The early storm was a nuisance to some — and a chilling harbinger to Burlington’s homeless population.
But it delighted skiers and snowboarders. Killington Resort became the first mountain in the East to open for the season, firing up its lifts on Wednesday. In addition to warmer winters shortening the season, climate change has posed challenges to snowmaking. So any extra days on the mountain are a boon.
That’s especially true for Vermont’s elite winter athletes. At Green Mountain Academy, the next generation of snowboarding stars are aiming for the Winter Olympics … in 2030. Meanwhile, designer and former pro snowboarder Seth Neary is going analog with a new exhibition at Safe and Sound Gallery in Burlington.
If snow sports aren’t your thing, Vermont suffers no shortage of winter events to help take the chill out of the cold season, from spectacular light displays to heartwarming holiday concerts. For even more frozen fun, head north of the border and check out what’s new in Québec this winter.
In Stowe, Burt’s Irish Pub and Edson Hill Inn’s restaurant each head into the winter season with something new — a new location for the unfussy pub and a new head chef at the ritzy inn. Beyond that, the resort town eateries couldn’t be more different.
The latter restaurant is closed for stick season as its staff preps for the tourist blitz to come. This week’s storm likely turned their thoughts to snowy days ahead, as it surely did folks in ski towns up and down the Green Mountains. And as the snow fell across the state Monday night into Tuesday, late Bolton Valley founder Ralph DesLauriers was smiling from that big old chairlift in the sky.
This article appears in The Winter Preview Issue 2025.
