Wavewheeler
New member
Plattekill Mountain
Friday, February 14, 2012
Powder..lots of it
Overcast, high 20s..snow showers all day. A bit windy in the AM.
I can see why people love this place. The atmosphere is a throwback to a different era. It is definitely an "old style" ski resort...from the lift tickets that peel off and attach to jacket to the lockers. It has a laid back, homey feel. You feel like you are skiing in someone's backyard, rather than at a large resort. I liked it. As advertised, there were hardly any crowds. It was basically ski off the mountain onto the lift and I had the chairs to myself the entire time. I really liked the crowd of people. Lots of families, locals and people who just wanted to get out and enjoy the day.
It took me a solid 4 hours to get there. I had to take it slow through much of the trip due to the plows being out throughout most of the NJ highways and some of the roads still had a coating up in New York. I got to the mountain about 10am and was on the mountain at 10:45. It was overcast and snowing when I got there and snow showered most of the day. It was REALLY windy on the drive up but by the time I got there the winds were dying down. By midday they were calm.
You really get the feeling that this is a much bigger mountain. It sits in a bowl and looking up at the trails is rather impressive. Honestly, there were times yesterday when I wondered if I should've brought my snowshoes, not my skis. I'm just not used to this much powder! I prefer groomers in general anyway. I wish I'd could've waited an extra day to ski here after the big storm but that wasn't possible so I was faced with the scenario of "too much of a good thing?" I guess it depends on what you like or want. I would've loved to have been able to have bombed down the blacks but was unable to.
I'm just not a powder skier. I found myself sticking to the barely groomed blues instead of my usual single blacks. I'd love to go back and check this place out a day or two after a storm and run the blacks. Do they even groom them or is the charm of this place that caters to the natural snow/bumper crowd?
In any case, if you love natural powder and bumps this was the day to go. Actually, there weren't that many big bumps but there was tons and tons of powder. It wasn't a light fluffy snow but not heavy either. It was that creamy snow that makes for a great base and there was a bit of fluff in it so it wasn't hard to get through it at all. I would've loved to have gone back today, assuming they would've smoothed things out. By the end of the day things were starting to get a bit chopped up and uneven. It never really got bumped up but the bumps were starting to form here and there, especially on the steeper blacks.
I started out on the triple chair with a run down Powder Puff and then Lower Face/Shredded Mozzarella/Sundown to warm up. Those were pretty much all groomed at some point. On the other side where the double chair runs, everything else, and I mean EVERYTHING was left natural except for Overlook (a green) on the other side. There, even the blues were natural. I went down Ridge/Lower Ridge and The Plunge and Freefall.
BTW, all you tree lovers would've been in Heaven. Everywhere people were skiing thru the trees and there were lots of ways thru them.
I broke for lunch around 1:30. I liked the Skier's Bistro. Got a nice chili bread bowl and enjoyed the fire on the second floor and then went up on Upper/Lower Face, Sundown and Shredded Mozzarella until the lifts closed at 4pm.
All in all, it was a good day of skiing and nice to get out and explore a new hill after a big dumping of snow. It was different and unique. It's a long drive for a day trip though so I think I will do it for an overnighter to the Catskills at some point and do a midweek at Hunter and a weekend day at Platty.
Friday, February 14, 2012
Powder..lots of it
Overcast, high 20s..snow showers all day. A bit windy in the AM.
I can see why people love this place. The atmosphere is a throwback to a different era. It is definitely an "old style" ski resort...from the lift tickets that peel off and attach to jacket to the lockers. It has a laid back, homey feel. You feel like you are skiing in someone's backyard, rather than at a large resort. I liked it. As advertised, there were hardly any crowds. It was basically ski off the mountain onto the lift and I had the chairs to myself the entire time. I really liked the crowd of people. Lots of families, locals and people who just wanted to get out and enjoy the day.
It took me a solid 4 hours to get there. I had to take it slow through much of the trip due to the plows being out throughout most of the NJ highways and some of the roads still had a coating up in New York. I got to the mountain about 10am and was on the mountain at 10:45. It was overcast and snowing when I got there and snow showered most of the day. It was REALLY windy on the drive up but by the time I got there the winds were dying down. By midday they were calm.
You really get the feeling that this is a much bigger mountain. It sits in a bowl and looking up at the trails is rather impressive. Honestly, there were times yesterday when I wondered if I should've brought my snowshoes, not my skis. I'm just not used to this much powder! I prefer groomers in general anyway. I wish I'd could've waited an extra day to ski here after the big storm but that wasn't possible so I was faced with the scenario of "too much of a good thing?" I guess it depends on what you like or want. I would've loved to have been able to have bombed down the blacks but was unable to.
I'm just not a powder skier. I found myself sticking to the barely groomed blues instead of my usual single blacks. I'd love to go back and check this place out a day or two after a storm and run the blacks. Do they even groom them or is the charm of this place that caters to the natural snow/bumper crowd?
In any case, if you love natural powder and bumps this was the day to go. Actually, there weren't that many big bumps but there was tons and tons of powder. It wasn't a light fluffy snow but not heavy either. It was that creamy snow that makes for a great base and there was a bit of fluff in it so it wasn't hard to get through it at all. I would've loved to have gone back today, assuming they would've smoothed things out. By the end of the day things were starting to get a bit chopped up and uneven. It never really got bumped up but the bumps were starting to form here and there, especially on the steeper blacks.
I started out on the triple chair with a run down Powder Puff and then Lower Face/Shredded Mozzarella/Sundown to warm up. Those were pretty much all groomed at some point. On the other side where the double chair runs, everything else, and I mean EVERYTHING was left natural except for Overlook (a green) on the other side. There, even the blues were natural. I went down Ridge/Lower Ridge and The Plunge and Freefall.
BTW, all you tree lovers would've been in Heaven. Everywhere people were skiing thru the trees and there were lots of ways thru them.
I broke for lunch around 1:30. I liked the Skier's Bistro. Got a nice chili bread bowl and enjoyed the fire on the second floor and then went up on Upper/Lower Face, Sundown and Shredded Mozzarella until the lifts closed at 4pm.
All in all, it was a good day of skiing and nice to get out and explore a new hill after a big dumping of snow. It was different and unique. It's a long drive for a day trip though so I think I will do it for an overnighter to the Catskills at some point and do a midweek at Hunter and a weekend day at Platty.
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