Gore Mountain, NY: 12/31/08

Ski Day 12

Today was a tale of technical difficulty, and intense battle with the elements ...and ...I know I've been accused of being an incurable optimist but...great skiing. It's always tough getting CB up at 6am at this time of year, especially at the beginning of a trip. It's really dark out and we haven't yet adjusted to an early-to-bed, early-to-rise ski schedule.

* * * *

It started snowing about 5:30 this morning and snowed until about 1pm. I'd say in total we got 2 inches. We weren't expecting much snow as the clipper was swinging south of us. Of course, I'll take what I can get. It was 10 degrees, when we left the cabin.

* * * *

We got to the mountain later than we have in recent memory...it was 8:30 and the Gondi was already running. Our plan was to drop Neve off at Day Care...ski for a while and then see if we could get Neve onto these: ...a semi-impulsive present I bought her yesterday on the drive up. I finally found a guy who didn't think I was TOTALLY INSANE for wanting to put a 30 month old child on alpine skis, so I went for it. $300 bucks for boots ($5, used) skis and bindings ($169) helmet and goggles ($60) a lease and an edgie wedgie for the rest.

* * * *

Technical difficulties....CB left her season pass in NJ. Argh. $25 to get a replacement and $10 for the plastic pass holder. She went into the marketing office and instead they gave her a day pass... that said "forgotten pass" on it. Pretty cool, but tomorrow the issue remains. * * * * We rode the Gondi, no line and took Pine Knot toward the summit. After watching the radar show some pretty warm rain over the weekend...conditions were pretty darn ok. Better than some other Christmas weeks we've skied.

* * * *

Highlights of the day for me were Chatiemac and Lies. Both had been pounded with snowmaking for 2 consecutive days and were covered in sweet bumps. Cold temps and 6 inches of natural snow didn't hurt. It was brutally cold with the wind. The only temp check I had at the mountain was at the base from the nice guy at the Adirondack Express (the triple). He told me it was 13 degrees. So it had to be like FIVE degrees at the summit and in the usual spots...the wind was howling. I was doing laps on Lies and Chatiemac and CB was riding Headwaters. Around 11...she said..I have got to get inside my toes are going. We went down to Tannery and up the Topridge chair...headed for the Saddle Lodge. I knew she was struggling. When the chair stopped in the coldest, windiest spot...she started to cry. It's a awful feeling being trapped like that. I didn't know if we were talking digit loss, or just discomfort. I didn't ask, because it didn't really matter ...there was nothing I could do.

* * * *

We made it to the Saddle which was packed as it always is at midday when the wind is ripping. We took off her boots and her toes looked pink and fine. She had these new knee socks that were so tight around her calves, I was sure that was the problem. I gave her a spare pair of woolies that I carry and it seemed to do the trick. She skied for 2 more hours without a problem. Truthfully I was surprised she went back out.

* * * *

We hit the new Quad from Twister. Actually you can easily cut from Twister to Echo to cut down on the skating to get over there. I think I skated 10 strokes in all to make the traverse. We skied Echo, which was a first for both of us. It's a beautiful trail and the coverage was pretty good except for the "headwall."

* * * *

CB called it a day a 1pm and I headed for the top to hit Chatiemac a couple more times. LOVE those big soft carvy bumps. I was laughing out loud (LOL) as I jumped over them. There was no way we were going to take Neve out in that weather...so her alpine debut is going to have to wait for another day. Good job by mountain management putting it back together after the ugly weather from the weekend. Tomorrow should be even better. Now I've got to put another log on the fire. It's near zero and the temps are droppin like a stone. Should be a cold one tonight.

More Photos from 12/20/08

*Full Trip Report from 12/20/08*

Gore Mountain, NY: 12/22/08

Ski Day 11

I knew when I woke up this morning, there was a pretty good chance things would be on wind hold. It was howling at our place. And with only half a day to ski...I considered draining the pipes and heading home. But the pull of the mountain got me...



It didn't look good for the Gondi. It wasn't moving at all at 8:15. One piece of true comedy...they announced that the only lift cleared for operation was Lift 3...the Sunway Chair. Everyone from the Gondi line zooped over to the Sunway Chair. The lifty over there got kinda nervous I think. He can usually sleep over there...and he was really anxious for the ok to start loading. For some reason everyone went up, one skier per chair. With all those hotshots riding solo...It was like a scene from Mad River. * * * * It was really cold and windy. The overnight wind had filled the troughs of the bumps across the mountain and most of the glades I hit were pretty good. I rode the Sunway Chair to the top, and hit the Otter Slide Glades:

My second run...as I got onto the chair the lifty told me the BRQ had opened. As I rode up to the midstation, I lengthened my poles for the skate over. I got off at the midstation and pointed em straight down. Just as I was about to make the cut towards the dreaded Cedars... I noticed the Gondi loading and changed my plan.

* * * *

They ran the Gondi slow and limited it to four or five people to minimize the risk of wind damage. The ride took a long time. Pine Brook, Twister, Straightbrook and Double Barrel Junior were all excellent... especially first (maybe fourth really) tracks below the SB chair...nice windblown in all the troughs.


I was going to take Tannery to Topridge and finish my morning with another run in Twister Glades. When I got to the Topridge Chair it was closed...so for my first time ever... I finished my day taking the cross country trail down to the base. It seemed like fitting ending to the weekend.

Gore Mtn, NY: 12/21/08

Ski Day 10

It never really totally stopped snowing last night. Ultralight flurries fell overnight adding up to maybe an inch. I was up about 5am. At 6:30 the wind picked up and it started to snow. It was about 5 degrees when I headed toward the mountain at 7:30. In the parking lot everyone was expecting snow:


In the time it took me to walk from the parking lot to the lodge...it started to dump bigtime. And it dumped pretty much all day:


I went in and got my gear on. It was about 8:10, and I was yammerin on about something to some poor soul. The Gondi light went green, I excused myself and got my self into a cabin.

Over to Foxlair hoping to "bomb the gap" to Showcase. Surprising with all the new snow, I did it with speed to spare. Nice surface on the way down....groomed with a few inches on top.

Next Gondi to the top, summit ropes were down. Pine Knot and into Pine Brook. Pine Brook was the only spotty coverage I saw all day. It had been hit hard yesterday. Scratch.

* * * *

Up the Straightbrook...workin em in order. Upper Chati to the Straightbrook Glades. Sweet...first tracks:



Then...Hawkeye to Chatiemac to the Chatiemac Glades. Not first in... but very nice:



Then Upper Chat to Lower Hawkeye to Double Barrel Junior. This is one of my favorites for pitch, bump configuration and snow quality. And it can really take a pounding and still ski well:


Back up to the top, skated over to the Dark Side and ran into Steve C and his crew. They were pondering taking the plunge down to the North Chair. Together we hit Hullabaloo. As it has been for a week...good coverage except for the headwall. Let's see...how can I put this delicately...I did a somersault over the edge and came up completely ok.

We bombed Wood Out and didn't really have to work to hard to get down to the North Chair. Back up and into the Tahawas Glades. I couldn't get a shot of Steve -he didn't have time for a photo shoot. I did get this guy meadow skipping his way down:


Steve's crew really wanted to see the new BRQ terrain...and I was content enough to do multiple laps on Tahawas. It was really perfect for tele in there. If anyone was doing telelaps in Tahawas today, I'd love to hear from you. Best conditions I've seen in there in a while.

* * * *

Took a break in the saddle to defrost and have some cocoa. I knew I hadn't done Echo yet and tomorrow is going to be a short day...so I figured, I'd better do it now...and end up back at the summit at days end.  Hopefully the ongoing snow would continue to pile up.

* * * *

My plan was to hit Echo, so I could say I did it, and to see what it was like. It certainly looks interesting from below. But as I was flying over the top of Sagamore in the BR Quad, I had to do a run on it.

It was a good decision. Conditions were great. It was dumping, there was no wind and really no people. I didn't see any thin cover.

Sagamore is really unlike any other trail at Gore. It goes on and on....reminding me more of Whiteface than Gore. I'm starting to think that the new pod is going to be a great addition to the mountain.

Me and this guy had it all to ourselves:


Next lap was going to be my Echo. I came zooming around the corner and it looked like a death march. I sidestepped back up to the top and took Hedges back into the trees and up the North Chair.

Down to the Gondi...the place was really empty now. I had a cabin all to myself:


Down Pine Knot...back to the summit for greatest hits...Straightbrook, Chatiemac, Double Barrel Junior... down Tannery ...up Topridge. I made a break for Twister hoping I could get to the Glade before Skipat shut it down. At 3:45... it was still open. Probably due more to limited patrol manpower than anything else.

* * * *

Picks of the Day had to be my first tracks in Straightbrook, Sagamore, Tahawas Glades and Twister Glades. Twister Glades were surprisingly good:


Actually it was all pretty sweet. Back to the car...here's what fell...


I'll go with the 12 inches Gore posted and add it to the MegaTotal. Anyone skiing tomorrow? I am. Better get while the gettin is good.

The Road to Shambala

Gore Mtn, NY: 12/20/08

Ski Day 9: Today was a top 10 day. Fantastic. Real powder tree skiing doesn't happen every week at Gore. No surprise to me... I couldn't sleep last night. When it's dumping, I just keep waking up to look out the window. I crashed about midnight and final got out of bed around 4:30.

Conservatively we got at least 14" overnight and another inch today. The snow that fell after midnight last night...maybe the last 5 inches was ... total blower. It snowed lightly all day, even when the sun was out. It was 10 degrees when I started the car and headed to the mountain. My new plow guy was nowhere to be found, last night or today before I left for the mountain. No problem really I put the car at the top of the hill, and blasted my way down.

The plan was to meet Adk Keith at the Gondi's opening. Plans were left loose for a possible meeting with PDQ and her friend Amy. Almost hour early, I pulled up into the parking lot and parked right up front. I see a Subie with a woman in a yellow coat herding some doggies. I introduced myself to Powderqueen. We got on the second or third Gondi and went to the top. With the summit roped off we hit Showcase:

Next time up a crowd had gathered at the summit rope...and down it went. As 50 skiers pounded Pine Knot...we hit Uncas...which was being ignored, for some unknown reason. After controlling my glee...and with a little encouragement, I did conserve some untracked for those who followed. Down to the Straightbrook Chair, Up to Chatiemac into the Glades. It was deluxe. For a skier like me...to be in the trees, driving forward...straight down the fall line, without a care in the world...it was a total blast.

We got first tracks on both the Chatiemac Glade and Mineshaft. We did (Red Dog?) and that was great — everything was basically open.

We met Amy at the saddle for a break. When we headed back out we hit Tahawas trees...and we rode the North Chair with Amy. We never got to the Dark Side. We did make our way over to Burnt Ridge. From the Saddle...Twister, Twister Glades, Echo to Gully and down (over?) to the lift. It is flat. I walked it in the summer and thought it had some pitch but I guess I really misjudged it. When conditions are normal Eastern fast....it will be fine but today it was a trudge.


Sagamore...the black trail on Burnt Ridge is epic...long...tons of pitch...in big steps. It's like Showcase on steroids...these huge steps down, maybe four of them. It was big fluffy cut up bumps. We got to the top again and ran into Jeff the Skipatrol. He's the guy who gave me a permit to hit Tahawas last weekend. He told us that the coverage in the Cirque glade was thin and there were "rivers" to cross...but we gotta go for the view.


In we went. It is beautiful. I took a few pics, but you really need a wide angle to get it. We did get our skis wet in the crossings and had to take a break to scrape the ice off everything. Down to the bottom and we called it a day around 1:30. There is more powder to slay tomorrow. One of my best days in a long time.

Garnet Hill, NY: 12/19/08

Ski Day 8: I looked at the radar this morning and decided a 9am departure would be significantly easier than my usual 2pm vanishing act. Most of our staff was either coming in late or working from home anyway, due to the weather. I had a meeting that I postponed and one that I moved up. I was out of there by 9:30.


It was sleeting LOUD in NJ, calm and dry in the Lower Hudson Valley and snowing north of Albany. As I got to Glens Falls it was borderline blizzard. By the time I got to the Hudson in North River it was still snowing hard. This was on the porch since last Sunday...some from Wednesday, some from today:



The view out the front:



I caught up on email, and headed out for a ski down Harvey Road:



I jumped on to GHLs trails...Old Faithful:



I ran into Grace and Armondo. They were probably in their late 70s and snowshoeing on the trail. They live in MIAMI...with a second home on the hill...and they FLEW from Miami when they heard snow was coming. I can't BELIEVE I didn't take their picture. They were awesome. I skied for about an hour and a half. Along Old Faithful to the Tailings view spot. Needless to say there was no view to be had. I skied home in the dark and snapped this pic on the snowboard. It is all from today:



* * * *

These are the skis I used today. They are the same skis and boots I used the first time I skied at Gore. The is now my "backcountry setup." Basically I'd use it for anything that isn't lift served in the Siamese. For me, it's a good set up for winter camping. The boots are Asolo Snowfields and the Skis are Karhu XCD GTs, the original classic version:

How Often Do You See This?

All in one forecast for Gore:


What I like is the Winter Storm Warning and the Winter Storm Watch together in the same forecast. Technically you can't have both at once...UNLESS they are for TWO DIFFERENT STORMS. Which they are. Bring it.

Burnt Ridge Mountain

(Click on map to enlarge.)

Dec 21 2008 ... I wanted to see how hard it really was to get over there. I did the now famous routine...Twister, Twister Glade, Echo, Gully and bomb it.

I counted my skating strokes...20 to get over the first rise and 20 to get over the second. I think I had 5 double polls too. (I put another 20 skates in on the way down to the chair...but it wasn't mandatory. So.... 40 skate strokes....and I'm over there.

And it turns out coming back is really a cake walk. Hedges, into the trees and up the North. No skating at all if you find the right spot.

Props to Gore Mountain

The mountain was beautifully managed this weekend. Gore made snow all weekend. And they opened up new terrain, as they could, on both manmade and natural bases. Both Sat and Sunday had 8 lifts and 40 trails. Patrol was helpful in many ways. They treated Saturday almost like it was a holiday, bringing new stuff online every hour or so. And... it felt like they were allowing us to help groom the mountain, by letting us to pack down all the untracked, before the warm up. Nice.

Gore Mtn, NY: 12/14/08

Ski Day 7

A balmy 15 degrees when I left the cabin this morning. Headed over to the mountain for a short day, before packing up and making the drive home. Gore awaits:



Today looked like it was not going to be busy, and with the amount of terrain open...I thought for sure it was going to be great morning. The moon was setting over the summit as I snagged an $8 parking spot:



My theory about strict 8:30 starts was debunked. Or it was bunk. We loaded at 8:15...I was in the third Gondi. I did three laps of the bottom before the rope dropped up top...I did em all...Sunway, QuickSilver and Showcase. As it was Friday and Saturday...Sunway had the best surface. I laughed out loud as I did huge GS turns through the curves and corduroy.



I ran into Zach at the top of Bear Mountain before my second run. We both had the same idea...take Ruby Run around and see if Twister was open. They had been blowing on it for 3 straight days. No go...Twister was still closed. When went for Showcase.. "together." I pointed em STRAIGHT DOWN...and still couldn't keep up. I was about 2 lift poles behind him at the bottom.


* * * *

Down to the Straightbrook Chair. I stayed out of Pine Brook. It was dicey yesterday midday... I couldn't imagine decent cover in there this morning. Riding the Chair...they were blowing on Chatiemac and it wasn't open. I hit the run under the SB Chair twice. It still had decent coverage:

 

The SB Glades were lookin good from the chair:



And they skied nice too:



The constant snoblo pounding of Hawkeye had added up. Big piles of nice manmade on the headwall:



On the second run I felt like I was finally remembering how to ski trees and bumps. On my third ride up I had a good view of a teleripper right below me and I snapped a few shots. Telefolk...if you see a crazy guy with a camera..ski my way...we love the teley pics:

 

I headed over towards the other side to take Cloud down, hoping to catch some Dark Side. The sign at the top of Hullabaloo told the story...you gotta ride all the way down to the North Chair to access the Dark Side. Except for the Headwall of Death...Hullabaloo was looking and skiing great:





I rode the North Chair to the Saddle. Asked Skipat if Tahawas was open...he said no. Tahawas the trail was still pretty soft. The lack of pitch keeps the powder hounds away:



I came to the entrance to the glades. It looked well used enough. And the ROPE was strung so high across the entrance you barely had to nod to get under it. I cruised the cattrack:



Skied the trees:



...and called it a day.

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Probably my best early December weekend at Gore, ever. How'd you do?