Windham, NY: 3/30/11

by Jamesdeluxe

Village of Windham

I got smoked at Windham in early February by arriving right after a Catskills-wide rain/freeze event, but today more than made up for it. Spring skiing doesn't get much better than this. 45 degrees and a blazing sun softened everything to sweet, edgeable sugar, but because it was so cold overnight, the base didn't turn to mush, even late in the day.

The Old Red Gondola

by 70s Gore Kid

It’s one of my first ski memories — the early 70s, I am 10 years old, and making my first trip to a "real" ski area. After a few fitful starts at some local t-bar/Poma-lift hills, Dad took me with him to the mountain where he skied with some of his grownup friends. The place is called "Gore," just over an hour drive from the Colonie area north of Albany, and for this wide-eyed boy, it was if he had set me down somewhere in Austria.

Whiteface, NY: 3/22/11

by Jamesdeluxe

My trip to the Adirondacks was all over the map weather-wise. Sunday at Gore was a classic spring day with cloudless skies and ripe corn.

Monday at Whiteface was a mid-winter mini storm day with up to five inches falling on the upper mountain. But today was, for me, the winner of the bunch with the new snow nicely covering up the refrozen bottom from the weekend. If long, consistently-pitched, manicured cruisers (Whiteface’s bread and butter) are your thing, you'd have been in heaven.

MegaHarv Snow Totals 10/11

Plattekill's Facebook Day

Facebook Day at Plattekill looked a lot like every other day I've been to Plattekill. Good snow, terrain, plenty of parking, and no lift lines. We booted up at 10:15 and our timing was perfect.

Bearpen: The Original Beast Of The East

Four months ago, we posted an interview with New York ski history expert Russ LaChapelle, in which he explained how his passion for lost Empire State ski areas developed over the years.

Of the many ski centers that had closed for good, none caught his imagination more than Bearpen — a mountain in the western Catskills that could have turned into the biggest resort east of the Rockies. Instead, it became a forgotten footnote. But this story must be heard.

Read this issue of NY Ski Magazine:
Bearpen Mountain, NY: The Original Beast of the East

The Mountains Less Traveled: BC's Kootenays

Powderqueen hits the destination-trip jackpot at British Columbia's Red Mountain and Whitewater. These two resorts seem to have everything you need for an off-the-charts adventure: terrain, trees, powder, cat-skiing, laid-back locals, and two great villages.

Read NY Ski Magazine:
Red Mountain and Whitewater: BC's Best-Kept Secret

Hickory Ski Center, NY: 3/5/11

by Jamesdeluxe

Skiing with the Northeast Ski Blogger Summit group at Jay Peak was a great time, but the best day of the trip for me came today, when Harv and I stopped at Hickory on our way back to the flatlands.

Jay Peak, VT: 3/2/11

Northeast Ski Blogger Summit, Day 1: I've been imagining skiing Jay Peak since 1999. I was working late one night in December and started fantasizing. I googled "best powder in the east" and I found Jay Peak's website. It sounded perfect to me. Tons of snow and trees.

Stateside Lodge

After a long drive last night, we woke up this morning at 6:30 and it started to snow at 7 am. The forecast was for 1-2 inches, but I was hoping for some of that legendary Jay magic. When we got to the mountain at 9 am, it was really coming down, and it snowed until 2:30.