zinger3000
New member
Date(s) Skied: Wednesday, January 13
Resort or Ski Area: Smuggler's Notch
Conditions: Packed Powder.
Trip Report: Used the second of my 3 passes from the Price Chopper Ski Any 3 Big Mountain Passbook, and Smuggler's Notch was the only one I had never been to before, so it was a no-brainer where to go today. Left Albany, NY at 4:00 for the long drive to northern Vermont, but it was sure worth the long drive. I must have timed things pretty well, because I made it to the Village Lift at 8:31. Did about 1½ hours of warm-up runs on Morse Mountain. Had the Morse Highlands area all to myself. Around 10:00, I ventured over to the Madonna lift for a bunch of blue-trail runs there (sorry, black diamonds are above my ability level), and then over to Sterling for a few runs there before heading back to the village area for lunch. After lunch, I went back over to the Sterling Lift for some more runs over there, then a few more on Madonna Mt before heading back to Morse Mountain for about 50 minutes worth of cool-down runs. I took the last lift up and finished at 4:07.
The trails were very nicely groomed upon my arrival. Lots of corduroy. The trails were still holding up quite well by the end of the day.
Overall I had a great time. I only do green and blue trails and prefer groomed trails (I know, I'm a wuss), but Smugg's variety of trails kept me entertained all day. Most people seemed to arrive around 9:30 or 10:00, and it seemed like there was a decent-sized crowd on the trails, but I pretty much skied right onto the lifts each time.
My favorite runs:
Upper Chillicoot - Link - Lower Liftline
Upper/Lower Rumrunner
My only complaint is that the lifts were too slow. (The upside to slower lifts is that the trails are less crowded.)
I would probably go back if I received some sort of discount like I did this time. It would probably be mid-week, non-holiday, as I'm sure a big VT resort like this draws large crowds on weekends. However, a day-trip of 3:45 driving time each way can be a lot to handle.
Resort or Ski Area: Smuggler's Notch
Conditions: Packed Powder.
Trip Report: Used the second of my 3 passes from the Price Chopper Ski Any 3 Big Mountain Passbook, and Smuggler's Notch was the only one I had never been to before, so it was a no-brainer where to go today. Left Albany, NY at 4:00 for the long drive to northern Vermont, but it was sure worth the long drive. I must have timed things pretty well, because I made it to the Village Lift at 8:31. Did about 1½ hours of warm-up runs on Morse Mountain. Had the Morse Highlands area all to myself. Around 10:00, I ventured over to the Madonna lift for a bunch of blue-trail runs there (sorry, black diamonds are above my ability level), and then over to Sterling for a few runs there before heading back to the village area for lunch. After lunch, I went back over to the Sterling Lift for some more runs over there, then a few more on Madonna Mt before heading back to Morse Mountain for about 50 minutes worth of cool-down runs. I took the last lift up and finished at 4:07.
The trails were very nicely groomed upon my arrival. Lots of corduroy. The trails were still holding up quite well by the end of the day.
Overall I had a great time. I only do green and blue trails and prefer groomed trails (I know, I'm a wuss), but Smugg's variety of trails kept me entertained all day. Most people seemed to arrive around 9:30 or 10:00, and it seemed like there was a decent-sized crowd on the trails, but I pretty much skied right onto the lifts each time.
My favorite runs:
Upper Chillicoot - Link - Lower Liftline
Upper/Lower Rumrunner
My only complaint is that the lifts were too slow. (The upside to slower lifts is that the trails are less crowded.)
I would probably go back if I received some sort of discount like I did this time. It would probably be mid-week, non-holiday, as I'm sure a big VT resort like this draws large crowds on weekends. However, a day-trip of 3:45 driving time each way can be a lot to handle.
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