Bolton Valley - Give me the scoop!

[scootertig]

So, I think we're leaning to VT for the weekend before New Year's, thanks to the advice of people here on this board... One place that keeps coming up as a recommendation is Bolton Valley. After looking at the website, it looks like a good match for our skiing ability, and I hear that the snow is good (or, as good as anywhere around there), but I can't find any "reviews" of the place. (That's not entirely true - goski.com shows some reviews, but they're all a few years old. That site is like a ghost town, but at least there tend to be at least old reviews for just about anywhere).

I'm hoping some of you all that recommended it can provide info, or maybe others of you that didn't recommend it can provide some of your own. What's the vibe? How does it ski? Are the greens actually runs, or are they all catwalks and connectors? Is it worth a day?

It seems weird that it's sort of ignored everywhere...

Thanks!

aaron

 

[CapeSkier]

I've been promising to bring my wife there for a while now...She's a bit intimidated by Sugarbush. I haven't been there in a long time but remember it as being a great family place, hidden away a bit, very good for not-so-aggressive skiers. They are the only place in upper VT now with night skiing, so that may inform your decision a bit. I have heard nothing but good things about it lately, and saw some deals advertised locally there. You could stay a little more centrally, drive to BV, and if it is not to your taste, you can fall back to Smuggs, Stowe, or SB without cramping your style too badly.

My family used to spend a week there each winter when I was a kid. The snow quality was amazing. The only place I ever saw a snowflake on my mitten...where I could actually see the geometric snowflake pattern itself, was at BV. What this means I don't know, except that snowflakes really do look like they do in pictures. I remember saying "wow"...

Of course, when I got to college, I said "wow" a lot more. Good luck and enjoy your trip.

 

[smootharc]

I think...

....either ski or skiing latest issue on news stands has a profile of Bolton Valley....lots of good tidbits. Hope my mind isn't just dreaming that up.

 

[billski]

I think intermediates and beginners would have an outstanding time at BV. Since the Stowe prices got so out of hand, I take my family of five there annually. They really like it. The lodge is a bit funky and old-time, that makes it interesting. Ticket prices are a lot less than the biggest resorts, which was an attraction to me.

There are a lot of "intermediate" glades interspersed around the blues that my kids absolutely love. My kids have skied there from ages 8, to 18. The crowd is typically daytrippers who live in/around Burlington. It's a nice, middle-class, family profile. No fancy gear, a lot of brown baggers, and the folks are generally pretty laid back. Food service is your basic burger,dog, pizza, chicken fingers and fries.

The coolest thing is that they have night skiing and that your lift ticket is good all day AND night. (I didn't know that for the first three years, double-DUH!)

The chairs are a bit old and slow, but that never bothered me. They get a ton of snow too - they are right in the snowbelt. the drive up the access road can be "interesting" if it snows a lot.

While they have a hotel on slope, there really isn't much to do at night, you may like that, you may not.

There is stuff for advanced skiers too, but I never get much opportunity at it because I focus on my family. Lots of folks have a good time BC and in steeper glades there too, I will let others comment.

There is never any real lift line to speak of, even on weekends.

If you have a hankering for an offbeat meal, go to Vermont Flatbread, which is on the road to Sugarbush. They make pizzas during the day for wholesale, then at 5~ open the place for dinner, put out folding chairs and tables. Very funky, kinda-hippie-ish. All the pizzas they make are very very unusual combinations. You sit around near a brick oven and watch them cook, while funky music plays in the background. Lots of home brews to be had. Be careful, they only have two seatings each evening, I forget the details. A memorable affair, we brought the kids too.

 

[pepperdawg]

They put in a high speed quad a year or two (three?) ago.

As mentioned above its in the snowbelt and usually holds snow nicely. Definitly has a old school vibe to it, which is nice.

 

[loafer89]

I skied there with my son in March of 2005 and we had a great time, but then again they had a 14" dump of snow when we where there. The new HSQ is nice and gets you to the summit fairly fast, though the Shermans Pass green trail which is the main night skiing trail, is kind of flat.

The Timberline area is also nice with some good blue cruising. The road to the resort is among the steepest and twistiest I have been on, save for Saddleback.

A good place to stay is the Best Western Waterbury/Stowe hotel with good rates and a very clean facility. We paid $80.00 a night in early March.

 

[skiprob]

Unconditionally Recommend

I was there with my wife and three kids on March 31, 2007. The weather was bright and warm. It was almost impossible to have a bad time.

It was the second of a three day, three area trip that we tacked onto the end my wife's business trip to UVM.

Using a couple free passes my boys won at the Albany Snow Expo and a 5th grade ski free passport, I think we spent less than $40 on tickets. So there was more to spend on hot chocolate and on swag at the ski shop. If you have a 5th grader, get the passport. www.skivermont.com

Pretty much everthing everyone said above matches my recollection. Personally, I like the retro vibe of the throwback resorts. The lodge and hotels/condos seemed to be 1970's vintage.

I spent most of the day skiing and coloring and listening to High School Musical with my six year old daughter while my wife skied with my two boys (10 and 11). That was okay. I was at MRG the day before and we went to Stowe the day after.

For a Saturday I was amazed at the low key vibe. There was always a table open to color.

The trails had lots of snow and variety for our lot. The terrain parks had just enough challenge for my crew.

It was pretty easy to find each other after getting separated.

I did not notice that the lifts were overly slow. Probably because the lines were non-existant.

I guess I would note that the parking lots are awfully muddy but I hope you wont have that problem when you go.

 

[GrilledSteezeSandwich]

So, I think we're leaning to VT for the weekend before New Year's, thanks to the advice of people here on this board... One place that keeps coming up as a recommendation is Bolton Valley. After looking at the website, it looks like a good match for our skiing ability, and I hear that the snow is good (or, as good as anywhere around there), but I can't find any "reviews" of the place. (That's not entirely true - goski.com shows some reviews, but they're all a few years old. That site is like a ghost town, but at least there tend to be at least old reviews for just about anywhere).

I'm hoping some of you all that recommended it can provide info, or maybe others of you that didn't recommend it can provide some of your own. What's the vibe? How does it ski? Are the greens actually runs, or are they all catwalks and connectors? Is it worth a day?

It seems weird that it's sort of ignored everywhere...

Thanks!

aaron

Flat, Boring, Empty, lots of snowfall, cheap, some short tree runs.

 

[billski]

Flat, Boring, Empty, lots of snowfall, cheap, some short tree runs.

Hey Mister Upbeat and Positive :razz:,
whatever happened to the mantra "I can make my own fun no matter where I am or what the conditions" ??? Gettin a wee bit fussy now are we??8)
Sure beats the Saudi Arabia Ski Dome, no?

 

[GrilledSteezeSandwich]

Hey Mister Upbeat and Positive :razz:,
whatever happened to the mantra "I can make my own fun no matter where I am or what the conditions" ??? Gettin a wee bit fussy now are we??8)
Sure beats the Saudi Arabia Ski Dome, no?

I skied Bolton a few times and I was always unimpressed..if you're going to drive all the way to northern VT,,,why not ski a real mountain...just my opinion..For a lower intermediate Bolton is probably better than Stowe and Sugarbush combined. Tons of natural snow is worthless if there's barely any pitch..

 

[kbroderick]

I skied Bolton a few times and I was always unimpressed..if you're going to drive all the way to northern VT,,,why not ski a real mountain...just my opinion..For a lower intermediate Bolton is probably better than Stowe and Sugarbush combined. Tons of natural snow is worthless if there's barely any pitch..

Yup, it's flat and boring. Don't bother.

I'll admit to being a bit biased, but the 300"+ of snow a year and thousands of acres of backcountry in the immediate vicinity provide plenty of opportunity if you're getting bored by the stuff on the trail map. For the vast majority of skiers out there, there's more than enough challenging terrain at Bolton for an entertaining weekend, and there are plenty of local skiers who ski pretty darn well and don't mind skiing there more often than not.

 

[ski_resort_observer]

I heard on the local radio news that BV has just hired a new Mountain Manager, didn't catch the name.

 

[skiprob]

One man's feast...

I think Bolton is more than suitable terrain-wise for those with a family whose members have yet to reach five feet in height.

...of course if those little ones ski fifteen times a season, it might seem less challenging.

We did not notice a lot of non-skiing activities during our day trip. That was okay becaue Burlington was not far away.

 

[KingM]

My kids love it. No, there's not a huge amount of challenging terrain on the main trail system, but there is some and I enjoy going to BV enough that I usually go 2-3 times a year.

Two other pluses:
1. night skiing
2. inexpensive lift tickets

What I would do would be to stay somewhere like the MRV and take a break from Sugarbush and Mad River to hit Bolton. It's only about forty minutes away.

 

[riverc0il]

They put in a high speed quad a year or two (three?) ago.

Fixed Grip.

 

[billski]

I skied Bolton a few times and I was always unimpressed..if you're going to drive all the way to northern VT,,,why not ski a real mountain...just my opinion..For a lower intermediate Bolton is probably better than Stowe and Sugarbush combined. Tons of natural snow is worthless if there's barely any pitch..

To answer your question, it's because people have different agendas. Andd of course, everyone is entitled to express their opinion, and then we all make up our own minds, certainly. No offense, but you must not have a family of your own?