Berkshire East & Catamount: 3 New Lifts, Terrain Expansions

[Newpylong]

I guess I'm just not seeing why it can't go where the Mountain Top is since that's being removed. If it goes up Comp:

-More trees need to cut up top and an entire unload area and associated connectors built along with lights and snowmaking changes.
-The snowmaking infrastructure on skiers right on Lower Comp all needs to be moved.
-Way more B-Netting will now be required along the entire length of Comp with a lift going up it now.
-There is plenty of room for a detach unload at the current top terminal of mountain top

The only plus that I can see is it's closer to the lodge.

 

[RH29]

I guess I'm just not seeing why it can't go where the Mountain Top is since that's being removed. If it goes up Comp:

-More trees need to cut up top and an entire unload area and associated connectors built along with lights and snowmaking changes.
-The snowmaking infrastructure on skiers right on Lower Comp all needs to be moved.
-Way more B-Netting will now be required along the entire length of Comp with a lift going up it now.
-There is plenty of room for a detach unload at the current top terminal of mountain top

The only plus that I can see is it's closer to the lodge.

Mountain Top would have to be removed before this can go in, which would be tough to do in a single season. The other plus is that it avoids the schlepping at the base, which is nice especially if you're skiing the west side of the mountain.

 

[ss20]

A HSQ is borderline more overkill than the Gondola at Bellayre. It's a 3200' line with 950 vert that already has a new (but POS) fast carpet loading quad. There's so many reasons why this is ridiculous...

-incredibly short length
-already well-serviced
-no idea how they make back their ROI with a Dec 15-late March season. Jiminy beats them by 2 weeks+ on both ends.
-you NEED to be a destination resort or in a super PRIME location for a HSQ to work in Southern New England. Jiminy has massive lodging operations, Crotched and Wawa are in good spots. Berkshire East is neither.

Based on the massive success that is Jiminy Peak they'd be sooooo much better spending their money at Catamount. I always believed that with a reasonably sized investment Catamount could "beat" Jiminy for the NYC crowd. With the incremental expansions made over 15 years, Catamount is already bigger than Jiminy Peak and it has room to grow still with possible expansions on the table (as of years ago, not sure what the Schaefers have in store now). They're a straight shot up Route 22 and barely north of the Mass Pike to draw from Springfield too. Trails have more character than Jiminy Peak too, and the learning area is really really nice while Jiminy's beginner terrain is some of the worst. A HS6, some condos, a hotel, and larger night skiing and they'd be pretty set.

 

[Newpylong]

Mountain Top would have to be removed before this can go in, which would be tough to do in a single season. The other plus is that it avoids the schlepping at the base, which is nice especially if you're skiing the west side of the mountain.

Their season is very short (like by months) compared to other hills that have removed and installed in one season. There's no reason Mountain Top couldn't begin to be removed after this week.

Agreed on the shlep they likely don't want their signature lift over there is my guess that's the only benefit I see.

 

[drjeff]

Likely easier to load and unload guests in the non skiing/riding seasons for mountain biking and the zipline tours with a HSQ over the conveyor loader.

Likely going to use this new HSQ during more than just skiing/riding season

 

[RH29]

Likely easier to load and unload guests in the non skiing/riding seasons for mountain biking and the zipline tours with a HSQ over the conveyor loader.

Likely going to use this new HSQ during more than just skiing/riding season

forgot about the mountain biking op. the slow loading makes loading bikes soooooo much easier. probably the main reason they did this.

 

[urungus]

Looks like the new detach is going to mess up Horace’s Grove and Upper Upper Minnie Dole ? Chairlift #4 in the diagram is way out there, beyond Thunder, but not sure how accurate the picture is ? I was under the impression that the top terminal had previously been planned for somewhere along Mohawk, I’m cautiously optimistic Mohawk seems to be intact in this new plan.

 

[WoodCore]

Hate to see major changes to a place I've known for 40+ years but it has changed over time, sometimes slow, sometimes faster. The proposed alignment of the HS is not ideal or is yet final in it's location......

IMHO, it's a win, especially for mountain bikers!! Fast laps!

 

[machski]

Their season is very short (like by months) compared to other hills that have removed and installed in one season. There's no reason Mountain Top couldn't begin to be removed after this week.

Agreed on the shlep they likely don't want their signature lift over there is my guess that's the only benefit I see.

If we are talking just ski season, sure. But they use both the Mountain Top and the Quad for biking and they generate some large crowds. Cutting down to just one lift this summer would be tough. Guessing that is why they plan to install the HSQ on a new line and move Mountain Top after.

 

[urungus]

I'll lose my shit if they cut down all the trees between liftline and comp, a la Catamount and Bousquet.

Please God no … that would destroy the Liftline trail

 

[Newpylong]

I don't see how it can be done without tree removal on Upper Comp where it tapers in. That will have to be widened to at least the width of Lower Comp.

 

[Ski2LiveLive2Ski]

I don't see how it can be done without tree removal on Upper Comp where it tapers in. That will have to be widened to at least the width of Lower Comp.

I don't even get the practice places like Hunter and Catamount have of labeling things discrete runs when they are not divided by trees or other physical barriers.

Upper Run X and Lower Run X are bad enough and this next levels it.

 

[RH29]

I don't even get the practice places like Hunter and Catamount have of labeling things discrete runs when they are not divided by trees or other physical barriers.

Upper Run X and Lower Run X are bad enough and this next levels it.

You should see some of the mountains in the Midwest. The same 500' vert open slope counts as three different trails, each with an upper/lower. So that's 6 "Trails" on a single slope.

 

[Ski2LiveLive2Ski]

You should see some of the mountains in the Midwest. The same 500' vert open slope counts as three different trails, each with an upper/lower. So that's 6 "Trails" on a single slope.

Greek Peak ups the ante with some runs being labeled and counted as Upper, Middle & Lower trails over the course of a 700' vertical

 

[ne_skier]

What even was the practical reason of taking out all those trees at Catamount? I somewhat understand that at Bousquet they didn't want to stuff the lift over in the corner like the old one, but I'm pretty sure they could have put in the quad where the old double went without uniting those trails. Maybe they wanted more surface area to spread out skiers? At the same time ironically, I find that tree clearing makes mountains seem smaller.

 

[raisingarizona]

Hate to see major changes to a place I've known for 40+ years but it has changed over time, sometimes slow, sometimes faster. The proposed alignment of the HS is not ideal or is yet final in it's location......

IMHO, it's a win, especially for mountain bikers!! Fast laps!

A successful mountain biking program that creates a stronger year round income should in theory be better for ski area improvements as well.

Summer opps are the future with climate change. Ski areas are already planning to have overlapping seasonal activities.

 

[raisingarizona]

What even was the practical reason of taking out all those trees at Catamount? I somewhat understand that at Bousquet they didn't want to stuff the lift over in the corner like the old one, but I'm pretty sure they could have put in the quad where the old double went without uniting those trails. Maybe they wanted more surface area to spread out skiers? At the same time ironically, I find that tree clearing makes mountains seem smaller.

It may seem that way to you but that's not the maths.

 

[Ski2LiveLive2Ski]

It may seem that way to you but that's not the maths.

It makes for less variety of runs and the added acreage is negligible.

 

[Newpylong]

What even was the practical reason of taking out all those trees at Catamount? I somewhat understand that at Bousquet they didn't want to stuff the lift over in the corner like the old one, but I'm pretty sure they could have put in the quad where the old double went without uniting those trails. Maybe they wanted more surface area to spread out skiers? At the same time ironically, I find that tree clearing makes mountains seem smaller.

What was done at Catamount and Bousquet was a travesty. Both lifts could have been installed on current new alignments with far less tree removal. Because the Schaefers love fan guns (and recommended Bousquet rip out their air plant) they decided to clear the trees so it all could be covered easier. In reality there are now groomed strips down the middle of fields at both ski areas with bare ground between. Looks really great.

I imagine the regulars look the other way because of the money being spent.

 

[danimals]

When montage in PA was sold and rebranded as sno mountain, they clear cut a huge area for a superpipe in the middle of the mountain which caused major snow retention issues. Thankfully sno mountain didnt last, and the current owners renamed it montage again and they have been replanting trees each summer. Hopefully catamount and bosquet do the same.