Day ski trip advice from Boston?

[Root16]

Bretton Woods is 2 hours 45 minutes from Boston, so if we wake at 5:30am, we could ostensibly be on the mountain by 9:00am. Any other ski places that are similar distance or closer we'd want to consider for a day trip? My friend is an intermediate skier who can do black diamonds from time to time without much trouble. I'm an aggressive skier with Volkl Tigershark 12ft skis which have a lot of sidecut for tearing up the corduroy and hardpack. I can tolerate blue squares, especially if they are long and rolly and speed can be built up, but I prefer blacks and double blacks. And I definitely want to hit up some tree skiing with all this natural snow we've gotten this season.

I am considering buying a more powder oriented ski and going up to Jay Peak for a weekend trip, but not sure how realistic that dream is right now given I don't have any friends in Boston who are really interested in that kind of terrain, so right now I'm looking for a day trip from Boston that has blue squares and blacks/double blacks near each other so my friend and I can at least meet up halfway down the hill if I don't want to do blue squares all day with him and so he doesn't have to always follow me down the steeps. It seems like a lot of places have their challenging runs away on a separate mountain and put their blue squares and green circles together (the trail map of Loon totally put me off for the way it seems to segregate like this). I want to go down the same trail as my friend 60% of the time; the other 40% it would be nice if he can go down the blue square and I can take the nearby expert trail and meet up shortly after!

Thanks in advance for your knowledgeable response. BTW, the only place I've skied in NH is Sunapee.

 

[deadheadskier]

Loon would have more expert options for you while still providing excellent intermediate terrain for your friend. Bretton Woods is a very nice area, but not if you're after any sort of steeps. I've enjoyed skiing there, but it's not the place to go to challenge yourself.

 

[Root16]

Are the black diamonds at Loon more challenging than the black diamonds at Bretton Woods? Looking at the map again I see it's actually better in regards to mixing than I initially thought. Thanks for the reply.

How is the tree skiing at Loon?

 

[ThinkSnow]

If you're prepared to drive as far north as Bretton Woods, check out Wildcat. Blues & blacks right next to each other. Not a huge area, but the layout makes it ski like a much bigger mountain than it is. Great vertical & challenging as well.

 

[deadheadskier]

Are the black diamonds at Loon more challenging than the black diamonds at Bretton Woods?

Yes. Trail ratings are specific to each individual resort. A black at Bretton Woods would likely be a blue at Loon.

Wildcat is also an excellent recommendation. It's my favorite ski area in NH, but it's not for everyone. The weather can get nasty there and even when it's good, there is ice to contend with.

 

[Root16]

Yes, Wildcat is high on my list. Was reading a NYTimes article on it that really piqued my interest:

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/02/06/travel/escapes/06ski.html?_r=0

"The view from the 4,062-foot summit of Wildcat Mountain, an eye-level vista of Mount Washington and Tuckerman’s Ravine, is consistently voted among the most scenic in all North American ski resorts by readers of Ski magazine. There is also no on-site lodging at either Wildcat or Cannon, which gives both places a parklike landscape." And I think my friend and I would both love this:

"Wildcat’s best trail might be Lynx, a blue square intermediate. It rolls, winds and plunges 2,100 feet from top to bottom."

 

[deadheadskier]

Lynx is great. Catapult is also great for a long cruiser. Polecat can't be beat regarding long green runs in the East. I'm an advanced skier, but still enjoy the hell out of Polecat.

It won't give you much of an idea what the trails are like, but if you want to know what the off map challenges are like at Wildcat, this is from yesterday....

http://forums.alpinezone.com/showthread.php/135740-Wildcat-2-22-2015

The Trip Reports section of Alpinezone is usually the best place to look for information on ski resorts as you'll get recent experiences shared pretty much daily from a variety of ski areas around New England.

 

[Root16]

Thanks deadhead! You've been a great help.

 

[elks]

I'll throw Cannon into the mix too. Plenty of blues and blacks funnel into the same area.

 

[Root16]

Cannon's trail map looks very interesting; it's also *right* off of I-93. How do the blacks on cannon compare to Loon or Wildcat? Any tree skiing? (I guess everywhere is going to have tree skiing with all the snow we've gotten, weather they have marked areas or not).

 

[deadheadskier]

Tons of tree skiing both on map and off. Cannon and Wildcat are probably the two most challenging mountains in NH.

Minimal to no lift lines at both areas as well. Loon is much more busy, but probably better than the other two for intermediate terrain.

 

[Root16]

Thanks, dead. How come Cannon is so under the radar? I've never heard of it until I read that NYTimes article I linked here. I've heard of Wildcat number of times riding up with random people on the chairlift. Given Cannon is almost an hour closer than Wildcat, I'm leaning towards going there, now. I guess Wildcat does have better trails overall.

Lift access is a little goofy at Cannon. If skiing the right side of the mountain (where I'd probably want to spend most of my time by the looks of the map) you need two chairlifts to reach the summit.

 

[dlague]

Thanks, dead. How come Cannon is so under the radar? I've never heard of it until I read that NYTimes article I linked here. I've heard of Wildcat number of times riding up with random people on the chairlift. Given Cannon is almost an hour closer than Wildcat, I'm leaning towards going there, now. I guess Wildcat does have better trails overall.

Lift access is a little goofy at Cannon. If skiing the right side of the mountain (where I'd probably want to spend most of my time by the looks of the map) you need two chairlifts to reach the summit.

Apparently you do not drive up the 93 often since the front 5 (7) are pretty obvious.

Actually you can take the Tram to the summit. Cannon has pods that are interesting. The Zoomer chair can keep you busy with come decent glades and steeps and there are other trails off that that are intermediates.

Peabody chair provides access to many intermediate trails which can be combined with runs leading to the Front 5. Then by taking the summit chair and lapping it you have access to a bunch of really fun runs and some tight glades. Combine summit runs with trails off Peabody then heading to the Front trails - you have the makings of true leg burning runs that you will feel the next day!

 

[dlague]

 

[Savemeasammy]

Wildcat is also great in that everything ends up at one base area. Consider this another vote.

Check out magic in a vt. I believe that might also be within your day-trip range. It's another mountain with one base area.


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[hammer]

Wildcat is also great in that everything ends up at one base area. Consider this another vote.

Check out magic in a vt. I believe that might also be within your day-trip range. It's another mountain with one base area.


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Magic also has a nice mix of trails although it is a bit smaller than the NH areas being considered.

Wildcat's a great place with a good variety of trails but IMO it pushes the day trip limit a bit.

 

[deadheadskier]

Lift access is a little goofy at Cannon. If skiing the right side of the mountain (where I'd probably want to spend most of my time by the looks of the map) you need two chairlifts to reach the summit.

Wildcat is mainly a top to bottom type skiing mountain. IMO it has the single best chairlift in the East. At 2100+ vert each run between chair rides it can get taxing for some people. (myself included).

Cannon you ski more in "pods" unless you're skiing the Tram as dlague points out. So, you take it in in shorter runs. More than likely you and your friend would be spending most of your time off the Cannonball chair. Zoomer terrain is fantastic too, but very short. While not as long as Wildcat's trails, Vista, Upper Cannon, Ravine and Skylight are all absolutely fantastic classic New England ski trails off the summit.

Cannon flies under the radar because it is perceived as being cold, icy and challenging. Same goes for Wildcat. Both reputations are warranted. That said, when you catch either when the conditions are right they can't be beat as far as NH skiing goes IMO.

Traveling from Boston, Cannon makes far more sense as a day trip destination.

 

[hammer]

One other thing about Windcat (I typed this and meant Wildcat but I thought it may be appropriate) is that the trails are west-facing, so even on a colder day later in the season the sun exposure is real nice.

I guess I'd have to question Wildcat's reputation as just being challenging. There are at least a few true greens, one from the top, and I didn't find the blues I skied on as being much more difficult. The challenge is definitely there but there are also trails where one can throttle back for a bit.

 

[deadheadskier]

I guess I should have elaborated a bit more. Wildcat's trails can be challenging mainly because of the icy conditions. In terms of actual trails, Hairball is legit, Al's and stretches of the Lift lines are challenging. The rest is indeed fairly mellow pitched.

Off map, I'd put the challenges available at Wildcat on par with any ski area in New England.

 

[JonD]

As a day trip weekend warrior living in Boston, I would second Cannon. I love Wildcat, but it's almost an hour longer drive than Cannon. The weather at Cannon can be difficult. Be ready to bail for Waterville or Bretton Woods if the forecast even mentions wind.

Also, beware of speed traps everywhere in NH.