Talking Pennsylvania

[highpeaksdrifter]

Oh well, I need to go back when Lookout is open, so I'll PM you before I head up.

Great, we'll hookup for some runs. Lookout is suppose to open tomorrow.

 

[tjf67]

Hmmm...I'd say there were more sh*tty skiers at WF than at Elk on a typical weekend....maybe 7000 more? Was your point to quality or quantity? I tried to answer both. Last time we raced at WF, someone stole one of the kid's skis. Locals, I guess. But that happens here, too.

7k skiers. Man management would love that. I dont know if we have ever had that many skiers in a day. I am guessing it was not a local that stole a ski. Dont have much of a problem with that until the riff raff comes to town. Which I might add I enjoy sharing the hill with them

 

[GrilledSteezeSandwich]

Blue mountain ski area....fast lifts..big crowds..big vert..interesting runs..poor grooming..good snowmaking..no amenities

Camelback..fast lifts..shorter runs than Blue..lots of people..more of a resort atmosphere..

Elk..good terrain..slow lifts..lousy snowmaking..far..for the drive to Elk, I could be halfway to Vermont..

Jack Frost/Big Boulder...nice snow..tiny vert..coldest in the Poconos..the base of Big Boulder is higher than the summit at Blue..

Spring mountain..one exit north of Philly on the Turnpike..skiing on two mountain faces

Bear Creak..nice lodge crappy mountain..jibhonk central..

Sno..flat on top steep on the bottom...slow lifts..crappy website..

 

[campgottagopee]

Only place I've ever skied in PA is Elk so I wont be much help. That being said I did enjoy Elk---reminded me of Greek with good terrain and good peeps to drink beers with.

 

[GrilledSteezeSandwich]

HighPeaksDrifter...Ski9 once skied nearly every PA ski area during the course of a month for an article he wrote..he is legit..and a wicked fast skier. I'm faster than him straightrunning but in the gates he's up there.

If you make it down to Blue mountain, I'll buy your lift ticket..

 

[GrilledSteezeSandwich]

Only place I've ever skied in PA is Elk so I wont be much help. That being said I did enjoy Elk---reminded me of Greek with good terrain and good peeps to drink beers with.

I'm thinking about doing a combined 2 day/1 night weekend trip to ski Elk and Greek later this winter. I'll see if I can get some PASRs to join..it's been a long time since I've skied Elk..do they still have the people mover in the parking lot???

 

[campgottagopee]

I'm thinking about doing a combined 2 day/1 night weekend trip to ski Elk and Greek later this winter. I'll see if I can get some PASRs to join..it's been a long time since I've skied Elk..do they still have the people mover in the parking lot???

Not sure--havent been there for years

 

[ERJ-145CA]

Out of the 3 Poconos areas I've skied in the last 3 years (Blue, Camelback and Shawnee) Blue is my favorite. I've skied other Pocono areas when I was a kid but that was over 20 years ago so I can't compare the others. Blue has the most vert and the longest runs and with the 6 pack you can ski a lot of vert in a day. I don't know about crowds because I've only been to the Poconos on non-holiday weekdays but I'm sure they all are crowded especially Shawnee and Camelback.

 

[deadheadskier]

Is the general consensus that the Poconos are better than than the western areas like Seven Springs or do people from the eastern part of the state not bother because in similar drive time they can be in the Catskills?

I've only skied Seven Springs. Though the vert is short, it's quite wide. I'd ski it over Wachusett or Crotched.

 

[GrilledSteezeSandwich]

Is the general consensus that the Poconos are better than than the western areas like Seven Springs or do people from the eastern part of the state not bother because in similar drive time they can be in the Catskills?

I've only skied Seven Springs. Though the vert is short, it's quite wide. I'd ski it over Wachusett or Crotched.

I don't think many people from Western PA have skied eastern PA or vice versa..Hunter is 3 hours from me..Seven Springs is 4 hours away. Western PA is colder and snowier than eastern PA..I've never skied Blue Knob but I have also heard people claiming it's the best in PA when everything is open. Seven Springs does the most skier visits per season in PA at almost 500k...Camelback and Blue both do about 300k annual visits..more than many larger New England and Rocky mountain resorts but there only about 100something acres of skiable terrain at Blue and Camelback and both resorts have two high speed lifts so it can get really crowded.

Blue mountain always opened at 730AM on weekends and Holidays which was great because you could ski alot of uncrowded runs before all the TDH's show up..but now they open at 8AM on weekends and Holidays which makes a big difference..now there are 100 people waiting to be scanned in at opening bell..and by 9AM there are liftlines on busy weekends..

 

[highpeaksdrifter]

HighPeaksDrifter...Ski9 once skied nearly every PA ski area during the course of a month for an article he wrote..he is legit..and a wicked fast skier. I'm faster than him straightrunning but in the gates he's up there.

If you make it down to Blue mountain, I'll buy your lift ticket..

Thanks for the offer. You never know.

 

[Old Geezer]

My take, from a long time PA skier who now skis more in VT than in PA in the last 12 years.

Elk: Great terrain for PA. Skiing there you get the distinct feeling you're in a rural mountainous area, on the drive to/from and while on the slopes. Their grooming gets good reviews, and when they have ample natural snow it's great. But their man made snow is prone to turning into long patches of solid boilerplate. Their signature bump run below the quad is very nice.

Blue: Enormous crowds on the weekends, bad snow and bad grooming. Used to be good for night skiing, very cheap for a night ticket, and no crowds at night. Good terrain, but compromised by bad snow and grooming.

Camelback: NYC and NJ one-weekend-per-year-on-the-snow crowd meets the Poconos. Short, steep headwall runs that flatten out quickly. Twenty years ago it was better, but its lost something.

Sno Mtn: Haven't been in there in a few years, but you get the distinct feeling they can do much more with what they have in terrain and location. The direct opposite of skiing at Elk, you're in an urban environment when you are there (brand new shopping center adjacent to the hill). When private ownership bought it from county government a few years ago they had a good start, but have stumbled in the last two years. It's clear skiers would have been better served had the experienced ski area organization (Liberty/Whitetail/RoundTop) purchased it rather than the group that actually did, the owners are having money problems paying bills, and don't have a coherent direction in day to day operations.

Jack Frost (not Big Boulder): Not the greatest vertical, but they have the best snow making and best grooming for all of eastern PA. They do the best with the hand they've been dealt. I get there a few times a season, it's always a pleasant experience, and you leave thinking that was not bad for a small mountain.

Denton Hill: Like Jack Frost but steeper and not as consistent snow making or grooming. They get more natural snow due to location. Never ever a crowd.

Blue Knob: Haven't been there in 15 years. I'll guess it hasn't changed much since.

 

[madskier6]

Hmmm...I'd say there were more sh*tty skiers at WF than at Elk on a typical weekend....maybe 7000 more? Was your point to quality or quantity? I tried to answer both. Last time we raced at WF, someone stole one of the kid's skis. Locals, I guess. But that happens here, too.

This is really an obnoxious response to HPD's fairly innocuous initial post. He was trying to determine if the info he'd heard about PA skiing was the consensus among folks who regularly ski in PA that post here. Your response came out with both barrels blazing against his home hill when he did not compare WF to PA areas at all or make any kind of quantitative or qualitative comparisons between PA & WF.

WTF is up your ass? Oh that's right, you're the guy who threatens to push people off the chair lift you're sharing if they happen to want to light up a cigarette. I should have expected that kind of response from you. Lighten up would ya? Life's too short dude.

 

[Greg]

This is really an obnoxious response to HPD's fairly innocuous initial post. He was trying to determine if the info he'd heard about PA skiing was the consensus among folks who regularly ski in PA that post here. Your response came out with both barrels blazing against his home hill when he did not compare WF to PA areas at all or make any kind of quantitative or qualitative comparisons between PA & WF.

WTF is up your ass? Oh that's right, you're the guy who threatens to push people off the chair lift you're sharing if they happen to want to light up a cigarette. I should have expected that kind of response from you. Lighten up would ya? Life's too short dude.

Wow. It takes a real "special" person to elicit a response like this from madskier6! Guy's about as mellow as they come.

 

[campgottagopee]

This is really an obnoxious response to HPD's fairly innocuous initial post. He was trying to determine if the info he'd heard about PA skiing was the consensus among folks who regularly ski in PA that post here. Your response came out with both barrels blazing against his home hill when he did not compare WF to PA areas at all or make any kind of quantitative or qualitative comparisons between PA & WF.

WTF is up your ass? Oh that's right, you're the guy who threatens to push people off the chair lift you're sharing if they happen to want to light up a cigarette. I should have expected that kind of response from you. Lighten up would ya? Life's too short dude.

Agree--not sure where that came from:idea:

 

[Greg]

Agree--not sure where that came from:idea:

I do. ski9 is your classic internet tough guy/know-it-all.

 

[GrilledSteezeSandwich]

I do. ski9 is your classic internet tough guy/know-it-all.

Why are you guys trying to hijack the PA thread..alot of good info in here..please Greg start a Sundown rollcall thread or something..

 

[madskier6]

Why are you guys trying to hijack the PA thread..alot of good info in here..please Greg start a Sundown rollcall thread or something..

ski9 started the hijack by gratuitously slamming Whiteface in response to HPD's interesting thread/discussion topic. Take your beef up with him GSS.

 

[GrilledSteezeSandwich]

ski9 started the hijack by gratuitously slamming Whiteface in response to HPD's interesting thread/discussion topic. Take your beef up with him GSS.

I sort of feel like HPD should just come to PA and ski with me and Ski9 at Blue or Sno or Elk or wherever..we'll all be on sharp assed waxed to the max race skis tearing it up..sounds like a blast..the ski slopes are a great equalizer..especially among fast skiers and riders..

 

[campgottagopee]

I sort of feel like HPD should just come to PA and ski with me and Ski9 at Blue or Sno or Elk or wherever..we'll all be on sharp assed waxed to the max race skis tearing it up..sounds like a blast..the ski slopes are a great equalizer..especially among fast skiers and riders..

Do you really think he would want to come down there and hang with that dude after he acted like such an ass??? Maybe, dunno, but I know I wouldn't.