Summer is finally showing its face. After a blast of heat in March that brought the ski season to its knees, we had a long stretch of chilly weather return. Now it looks like summer has arrived and it's ideal timing with Memorial Day right around the corner.

As you browse the summer version of SkiNH.com you'll find the usual selection of outdoor fun at our ski areas (skyrides, hiking, biking, golf, horseback rides, etc), but also pay attention to some of the new additions as well! You'll find zip-line rides at Wildcat, Bretton Woods and Loon. Later this summer you'll find an all-new Mountain Coaster ride at Attitash. Also the special events and concerts seem to be gaining momentum the past few years, keep an eye on the events calendar.

So say goodbye to the few patches of snow that remain and slap on some sunscreen, summer in New Hampshire is here!

(Special thanks to Helen and the staff at Rodgers' Ski & Sport in Lincoln for their contributions to this list.)

10-Watching the skiers & snowboarders brave (or foolish?!?) enough to take a try at pond skimming. (Bonus points for the outlandish costumes.)

9-The awesome aroma of burgers on the grill.

8-Skiing in a t-shirt and shorts!

7-Easy to find an outdoor sunny picnic table for lunch.

6-The only time of the year I can look halfway decent skiing the moguls.

5-Goggle tans!

4-My kids are done with ski racing so I actually get to ski WITH them.

3-The sun doesn't set until 7p: cold beverages on the deck in the SUN!

2-Classic spring trails: Lift Lion, Flume, Cannonball, Grandstand, Darby's Drop, Goosebumps, Ciao & Gema.

1-The only time of year you don't need to get to the ski area by 8am for the best snow – 10-11am is prime time! (I am so NOT a morning person.)

I'd also like to thank the Red Sox & Yankees for scheduling opening day at 8pm on Sunday, April 4 so it doesn't interfere with skiing – wow, skiing & baseball on the same day! Can't get much better than that!

Get out there one more day ... you'll be glad you did! -Alice

When you have two kids who ski race, you don't get much time to actually ski WITH them. So I just wanted to say, thanks to the teachers at Lin-Wood School for scheduling a teacher in-service day on one of the most beautiful spring days this month!

Yesterday... bright blue skies, 50 degrees, skiing in a t-shirt, veggie burgers and fries on the deck, spectacular views of the Presidential Range & Tuckerman Ravine from the summit & trails of Wildcat. Goofy conversations on the high-speed quad with two pre-teens. Bashing soft bumps down the steep front side and carving huge arcs on the groomed trails. Racing for the last chair of the day. Of course, as soon as we got back in the car, the ipods came back out and they were back in their own worlds, listening to music & gaming – but hey, I got a couple of hours with them anyway!

There are just four - maybe six if we're lucky - weekends left to ski with your family and friends. And this weekend promises to be the ultimate spring skiing weekend ... who knows if it will be sunny & warm the next five weekends? This is New England, after all.

You have seven MONTHS coming up to golf, ride your bike, play baseball or Frisbee, or do yard work – but only a few weekends left to ski, in the best conditions of the year. I know what I'm planning to do – and I hope you'll be hitting the slopes too! Enjoy! -Alice

I learned a lot about high elevation snow storms this week. Fully pre-occupied with keeping my family on its regular schedule without the help of heat or electricity due to a power outage from Thursday night's storm, I didn't pay much attention to the snow reports page on our website. I drove back home from the Mountain Dew Vertical Challenge at Crotched Mtn in a fierce localized heavy snow squall on Friday, drove my son to his seasonal program at Cannon on Saturday morning just as more flakes were starting to fall, and skied with him that afternoon in a fresh accumulation of snow. I just didn't realize how it was adding up. Sunday morning, we drove up Rte. 49 on our way to my daughter's race at Waterville Valley. For that 10 mile stretch from I-93, there was some snow, but nothing extraordinary ... until we took the left turn up the access road. All of a sudden – the snowbanks on the sides of the road were enormous! At the ski area, snow was piled up deep everywhere; at the top of High Country, it looked like they had to shovel out the summit terminal, and the ski area trail signs were buried, with just the trail names dug out of the snow. And there was a new 4" on top of all this white stuff – unexpected freshies! I saw general manager Tom Day at the lift corral, headed up the lift with a videographer. He explained that, while the precipitation down in Campton (near the interstate) had been of the clear variety, it had snowed from 7pm Thursday right through Saturday morning from the access road and higher. 30" during that 36 hour period and another 4" overnight Saturday night! As of now, Waterville Valley is reporting 46" since last Wednesday – but you'd never believe it until you're at the ski area. So, when you're driving up this weekend – don't be fooled by the brown ground near the interstates or in the valleys. There's plenty of brown ground in Campton, and here at our office in Lincoln – but not up at Waterville Valley, or Loon, or Cannon. We've heard from locals it's the best skiing of the year right now. I suspect you'll hear the same in the Mount Washington Valley, where ski areas are reporting 3-4 feet of new snow since last Wednesday (depending on elevation), and all over New Hampshire, since last Wednesday's "storm 1" moved through New England. That gave us back our moguls, our glades – and most importantly, a great, heavy, deep base that's going to ensure some great spring skiing days to come. Enjoy! -Alice

I guess the weather gods heard my plea on Facebook last week! Winter is returning to NH.

I'm giddy with excitement as I watch the weather forecasts for this week. Our friends down at NECN.com have projected up to 2-3 FEET in NH's mountains, with at least 1-2 feet across the rest of NH starting Tuesday snowing through Saturday! You can track the storm right online. NECN updates their weather forecast many times over the course of the day, you can watch at:

http://www.necn.com/weather.

With the Olympics on the brain and the kids all jazzed up to go out skiing this week over their February break, I'm excited too! It's been a few years since I've really hit the slopes for some reason or another, there are ZERO excuses this year! I might just have to sneak away from the office this week and take a few runs with the kids, and not just this week, next week too, and March, and April. I'm totally hooked again! See you out there! Kim