catskills?

[highpeaksdrifter]

There is only one marked woods run(glade) at Hunter.... And I like it that way...
Hunter has something the other areas don't have... Double fall lines.. Which can send a novice skier into the woods if they find themselves skiing over their head...
Hunter midweek is sublime... Wednesdays are bus days... A few more people on the hill...
Hunter has a good sustained vert especially on the west side...

Bellyeare is a typical ridge run area... Short headwalls at the top straight down to the lodge... Anything below the lodge is pretty much just a runout... The lodge is cool.. You'll hear people blasting Hunter and Windham there... Hunter people don't care about Belleayre.. Even all my friends that learned at Highmount and live in the valley come up to Hunter for better advanced terrain...

Windham is just not my cup of tea...

Plattekill is good when it's open... Can be brilliant! Can be sketchy.. But thats what you get for reaching into the old school..

Deja vu all over again.

 

[RootDKJ]

I like Windham. It's one of the places my dad took me and my brother when we were kids. I get back there a few times each season. The trails off the East Peak lift have better sustained pitch and I find them to be a little more fun. They also leave a good section of trails to get bumped up off the Main Quad.

SMH, since you're from Allentown do you ever ski at Blue? There's a few of us on here who are regulars there.

 

[spring_mountain_high]

I like Windham. It's one of the places my dad took me and my brother when we were kids. I get back there a few times each season. The trails off the East Peak lift have better sustained pitch and I find them to be a little more fun. They also leave a good section of trails to get bumped up off the Main Quad.

SMH, since you're from Allentown do you ever ski at Blue? There's a few of us on here who are regulars there.

yep...it is exactly 1 hour from my place...i'm not in allentown, but use it as a point of reference for people who have no idea where spring mount is...about 20 minutes southwest of allentown

honestly, i prefer elk and will usually spend the extra hour in the car

i was at blue last weds 1/13, and was disappointed...much more crowded (a relative term) than i thought it would be...i was picking my way through starter jackets all day long...razors was closed (seems like it's always closed)...they didn't run the quad all day even though lines were backed all the way out of the corral on the six pack...then i'm always worrying about my speed in the back of my mind, listening for a whistle...the snow conditions were fine, aside from the awful bumps on challenge tho...i saw a vicious collision between a boarder and a skier...the boarder was ripping down chute and the skier made an unpredictable move...the poor boarder smacked him and went flying airborne about ten feet face first into the hardpack...was down and out for a good 5 minutes

it's a shame because the combination of closeness and decent terrain would make it ideal, but the crowds and management keep me away

so based on the feedback i'm getting, i think this is the order in which i will try to get to them:
1. hunter
2. plattekill
3. bellayre
4. windham

 

[Stache]

yep...it is exactly 1 hour from my place...i'm not in allentown, but use it as a point of reference for people who have no idea where spring mount is...about 20 minutes southwest of allentown

honestly, i prefer elk and will usually spend the extra hour in the car

i was at blue last weds 1/13, and was disappointed...much more crowded (a relative term) than i thought it would be...i was picking my way through starter jackets all day long...razors was closed (seems like it's always closed)...they didn't run the quad all day even though lines were backed all the way out of the corral on the six pack...then i'm always worrying about my speed in the back of my mind, listening for a whistle...the snow conditions were fine, aside from the awful bumps on challenge tho...i saw a vicious collision between a boarder and a skier...the boarder was ripping down chute and the skier made an unpredictable move...the poor boarder smacked him and went flying airborne about ten feet face first into the hardpack...was down and out for a good 5 minutes

it's a shame because the combination of closeness and decent terrain would make it ideal, but the crowds and management keep me away

so based on the feedback i'm getting, i think this is the order in which i will try to get to them:
1. hunter
2. plattekill
3. bellayre
4. walk up Highmount

Fixed it for ya.

 

[RootDKJ]

You just gotta get a little lucky and pick the right day/time to hit Blue. MLK day was empty with great snow and Razor's & the Quad were both open. On Sat/Sun the Blue Crew is there at 8 and usually out by 11.

Oh yeah, you really only have to worry about your speed on Paradise and Burma. You can let it loose everywhere else.

 

[andyzee]

I like Windham. It's one of the places my dad took me and my brother when we were kids. I get back there a few times each season. The trails off the East Peak lift have better sustained pitch and I find them to be a little more fun. They also leave a good section of trails to get bumped up off the Main Quad.

SMH, since you're from Allentown do you ever ski at Blue? There's a few of us on here who are regulars there.

Always liked Windham, just find the lift lines a bit too long for my liking. That's the only thing that keeps me from going there more often.

 

[spring_mountain_high]

You just gotta get a little lucky and pick the right day/time to hit Blue. MLK day was empty with great snow and Razor's & the Quad were both open. On Sat/Sun the Blue Crew is there at 8 and usually out by 11.

Oh yeah, you really only have to worry about your speed on Paradise and Burma. You can let it loose everywhere else.

do you all have season passes there?

yeah, i think last weds must have been a school inservice day or something because there were a bunch of kids there...i went there last year on a weds and had the place to myself and really enjoyed it...six pack was ski-on all day

one annoying thing i find unique to blue, and some other PA hills, is lower level skiers trying their luck on the expert slopes...snowplowing across the hill in an unpredictable fashion...you can't wait for them to clear out since it takes them 30 minutes to get down, so you have to 'ski careful', which sort of kills the enjoyment for me, and also is when you tend to do things that you normally wouldn't do and possibly get yourself hurt

 

[RootDKJ]

Always liked Windham, just find the lift lines a bit too long for my liking. That's the only thing that keeps me from going there more often.

Luck of the draw, I think. A few seasons ago on Presidents weekend, we skied right on the lifts. Last year it was pretty busy (irc, they ran out of rentals) but we were able to avoid the lines by using the fixed triple lift which was empty and takes you to the same place as the quad. East Peak (G) lift hardly stays busy for long and is great now that it was replaced with a HSQ.

 

[dmc]

Tell you what - no matter where you ski today... It's pretty nice out!

Gotta finish up some "chores" and head out..