Jay Peak

caribchakita · Feb 9, 2018

It's been my lifelong dream to hit Jay Peak. Previous attempts have failed due to weather (lack of snow, 2016). We will go the 17th, do half day Sat. and all day Sunday.

Tips and suggestions and must do's are most welcome. We snowboard. I do blues and can do blacks on moderate mountains such as Bretton Woods and Wildcat. Cannot do most blacks at White Cap /Sunday River.

TY

Annie

BenedictGomez · Feb 9, 2018

Do you ski trees? That's why people go to Jay Peak. The actual trail system is pretty average'ish, but their glades (pretty much all of them) are glorious.

KustyTheKlown · Feb 9, 2018

I don't mean to be a jerk, I really don't, but at your described level of skill, the things that make jay great aren't available to you. jay is not about blues and black groomed cruisers. it is about tree skiing.

Dick Gazinya · Feb 9, 2018

KustyTheKlown said:
I don't mean to be a jerk, I really don't, but at your described level of skill, the things that make jay great aren't available to you. jay is not about blues and black groomed cruisers. it is about tree skiing.

Haha.

Jcb890 · Feb 9, 2018

There's probably some trees she could do at Jay Peak - she could do Kokomo and the trees around Bushwacker, those are low-angle and widely spaced. She could probably manage to do some of the wider trees off of the Northway also.

Jay is fun and has nice terrain. Hopefully it isn't too windy and they run both the Tram and Flyer... I hate when they're both closed and you're only stuck with The Jet.

VTKilarney · Feb 9, 2018

I agree with previous comments. The trails at Jay Peak just aren't what makes the resort worth driving to. Depending on the wind, I've seen them turn to boilerplate mere hours after a snowstorm. And thanks to all of the development on the mountain, it will be quite crowded on the holiday weekend.

If you are locked in, make the best of it. If you can change your plans, I would do so.

tnt1234 · Feb 9, 2018

You're gonna love it. It's a great place.

Wiedlemiester is a great blue, and JFK is a mellow black on that side. Goat > Green Mountain Boys > deer run or a glade down below...fun mellow runs....

The trees off metro quad, - bushwhacker, half moon..pretty low angle, wide spaced. Would definitely recommend those. As well as the state side glade, and the low angle one under the Bonnie - show-off I think it's called.

Also, ride the Tram! One a clear day, the view form the top is awesome and the Vermonter is mellow, and great, great views. Ullrs. is also mellow, but gets scrapped off. But you should try it and duck into Beaver Pond glades - the further you go in, the steeper it gets, so stay close to the trail first time in...

Are you staying at Jay?

Bar on the tram side is IMO better than the one on the state side. I hear the noodle place tram side is great, but never had it.

It's completely true that the winds and holiday crowds can do a number on the trails, so be prepared for that. The way to beat it is by hitting the trees. No better place to take up your skill level....just be careful not to get in over your head. Obviously, the closer to the peak, the steeper and tighter the tress. So start down low....

YMMV, but I find people that ski Jay are fiercely proud of the place and happy to help.

Enjoy!

Jcb890 · Feb 9, 2018

tnt1234 said:
You're gonna love it. It's a great place.

Wiedlemiester is a great blue, and JFK is a mellow black on that side. Goat > Green Mountain Boys > deer run or a glade down below...fun mellow runs....

The trees off metro quad, - bushwhacker, half moon..pretty low angle, wide spaced. Would definitely recommend those. As well as the state side glade, and the low angle one under the Bonnie - show-off I think it's called.

Also, ride the Tram! One a clear day, the view form the top is awesome and the Vermonter is mellow, and great, great views. Ullrs. is also mellow, but gets scrapped off. But you should try it and duck into Beaver Pond glades - the further you go in, the steeper it gets, so stay close to the trail first time in...

Are you staying at Jay?

Bar on the tram side is IMO better than the one on the state side. I hear the noodle place tram side is great, but never had it.

It's completely true that the winds and holiday crowds can do a number on the trails, so be prepared for that. The way to beat it is by hitting the trees. No better place to take up your skill level....just be careful not to get in over your head. Obviously, the closer to the peak, the steeper and tighter the tress. So start down low....

YMMV, but I find people that ski Jay are fiercely proud of the place and happy to help.

Enjoy!

Yes, definitely try the noodle place by the Tram for lunch (Miso Hungry), expensive but quite good!

caribchakita · Feb 9, 2018

Well, I have done some trees but not enough that I feel I can manage this. I guess we will need to re think this. We want to head far north so what about Burke or S'Bush? Stowe seems too big for my tastes. I prefer a purist kind of feel, small and intimate (not a fan of say, Mount Snow). Thanks

KustyTheKlown · Feb 9, 2018

burke, sugarbush, and stowe are all much better bets for skiing groomers than jay.

Jcb890 · Feb 9, 2018

Stowe is also crazy-expensive if you're not using a season pass or going on a Ski Club Appreciation Day. If you think Mt. Snow is too big, you'll hate Stowe then. Stowe is really nice though.

If you have never done Jay and always wanted to, keep the trip as planned unless it is supposed to be real windy or crappy weather. The snow should be pretty great and you have been given some really really good suggestions for easier trees/glades to check out. They won't be easy like a groomed green run, but they're manageable. You're not really going to find more widely-spaced trees in New England than some of the wider ones at Jay.

Sorry, I cannot comment on Burke or Sugarbush as I have never been.

tnt1234 · Feb 9, 2018

While stowe is huge, IMO it does have a character and great long, winding top to bottom-ish kind of runs. Not a lot of crazy intersections and pointless traverses. I think it would be a great choice if you bailed on Stowe. Better that SB IMO, but might just be because I've skied Stowe more....I don't know...

It is crazy expensive though.

But heck - I agree with Jcb - if you've always wanted to ski Jay - go ski it! It's a cool place. And certainly stands the best chance of a surprise bit of snow and avoiding the warm up next week.

VTKilarney · Feb 9, 2018

If you want to avoid crowds, Burke is the place to go. It's not a huge mountain, and the blues are definitely steeper than at Bretton Woods, but if there is snow (which at least for now there is) it's got a lot going for it.

KustyTheKlown · Feb 9, 2018

tnt1234 said:
While stowe is huge, IMO it does have a character and great long, winding top to bottom-ish kind of runs. Not a lot of crazy intersections and pointless traverses. I think it would be a great choice if you bailed on Stowe. Better that SB IMO, but might just be because I've skied Stowe more....I don't know...

It is crazy expensive though.

But heck - I agree with Jcb - if you've always wanted to ski Jay - go ski it! It's a cool place. And certainly stands the best chance of a surprise bit of snow and avoiding the warm up next week.

Mansfield Gondola and Spruce Peak terrain sound like what this guy wants.

Stowe may be expensive and bougey and vail owned, but it is the heart and soul of American skiing. it oozes with history. and its terrain passes the pepsi challenge with anything in the east. fun for the whole family. steeps and trees and sidecountry for some, chill groomers for others.

tnt1234 · Feb 9, 2018

KustyTheKlown said:
Mansfield Gondola and Spruce Peak terrain sound like what this guy wants.

Stowe may be expensive and bougey and vail owned, but it is the heart and soul of American skiing. it oozes with history. and its terrain passes the pepsi challenge with anything in the east. fun for the whole family. steeps and trees and sidecountry for some, chill groomers for others.

And the groomers are long, kind of trails unto themselves instead of intersecting messes of confusion.

VTKilarney · Feb 9, 2018

The Burke hotel still has rooms for President's Day weekend. Not good for Burke, but good for procrastinators.

I agree, though, that if you can stomach the cost Stowe is a fantastic choice.

thetrailboss · Feb 9, 2018

caribchakita said:
Well, I have done some trees but not enough that I feel I can manage this. I guess we will need to re think this. We want to head far north so what about Burke or S'Bush? Stowe seems too big for my tastes. I prefer a purist kind of feel, small and intimate (not a fan of say, Mount Snow). Thanks

Burke is WAY better for trail skiing than Jay. And less crowded!

kingslug · Feb 9, 2018

Go to Stowe..ski Spruce..

bdfreetuna · Feb 9, 2018

Hi Annie

I have some interest in this post because Jay Peak is THE BEST. I would rather go to Jay than most places out west, easily. Jay Peak defines eastern tree skiing. And if you don't like skiing trees yet, probably because you haven't much --- YOU WILL!

The snow quality there is often better than anywhere else. Yes the groomers do get wind blown. Don't worry about it, go ski some trees. Jay has BLUE trees. Jay has BLACK tress and many of them I promise you can do and will love.

Everything at Jay you will ski, you can basically see from the lift. There's no surprises. There's a lot of woods there that are relatively low angle and wide open.

Basically, go there, step up your game, enjoy the awesome conditions and epic terrain you won't find anywhere else -- even the easier stuff there is pretty awesome.

Check out my report from last year-- I went to Tahoe, Telluride, skied everywhere. Jay Peak ranked #1 day for the season.

http://forums.alpinezone.com/showthread.php/139323-Jay-Peak-4-9-17-best-day-of-the-season

If you'd like a list of trails / woods to NOT ski because they are frankly only for experts, just ask. Myself or several of us here would be happy to give you a list of things to probably avoid.

Also... Jay Peak > Stowe. Only eastern hill I rank above Jay is Sugarloaf and it's still a close call.

caribchakita · Feb 9, 2018

Tuna, thanks ever so much...I have long dreamed of hitting Jay so will give it a go next weekend. Would love a list of do able tree trails for me. So long as they aren't super narrow and steep, I am game. I have done some trees off Jordan Bowl and some at Killington. It's time for me to try something new. Burke interests me as well. Stowe, phew, can't swing their lift ticket prices and I see no deals at my usual sources.

Thanks all

Heading to Ragged or Gunstock tomorrow (have passes) so hoping for 3-4 hours of niceness...

Annie

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