Home Ski Mountain?

[oneotwoandcounting]

Hey FHW,

I'm just under 11 miles from Whiteface. I consider myself very lucky to be that close.

I have never skied any of the mountains you listed. Before coming to Whiteface I used to ski Mad River and VT areas. Mad River is a Mountain in a time warp but when you have a lot of natural snow it's a great place to ski. The lift lines can be a problem on weekends with the only single chair left in the country to get you to the top.

 

[andyzee]

Hey FHW,

I'm just under 11 miles from Whiteface. I consider myself very lucky to be that close.

I have never skied any of the mountains you listed. Before coming to Whiteface I used to ski Mad River and VT areas. Mad River is a Mountain in a time warp but when you have a lot of natural snow it's a great place to ski. The lift lines can be a problem on weekends with the only single chair left in the country to get you to the top.

How do you compare it to some of the VT areas? I do most of my skiing at Killington and Sugarbush, and every once in awhile Okemo and Stowe.

 

[andyzee]

Not exactly. It started with just New England, but we added New York ski areas over two years ago and expanded to cover the rest of the Northeast last season. That'll be the extent of the coverage for now...

Greg, I know that, and by the way love your site. However, you have to admit, most of the chats are about NE slopes.

 

[oneotwoandcounting]

Hi andyzee,

I would avoid the Holidays and wait until after New Years. Whiteface has two peaks and you will want the high peak to be open so you can ski Whiteface's full vertical. It usually takes until January for that to be open. January can be cold but that isn't really a problem. The wind can be because they shut the Gondola down when the wind gusts over 30 MPH. This forces you on the chairs but if you dress properly it's not a problem. You can always jump in the mid-station lodge to warm up.

If you can wait until March the days are longer, we get some of the biggest storms of the year than and the light is a lot better.
I love midweek skiing. There is never a line anywhere midweek non-holiday. On the weekends you can also beat the lift lines by staying off the Gondola, working the lifts, get there early, ski through the lunch hour and you will get in plenty of runs and vertical.

I have skied Killington. I have a friend that owns a house on the mountain and he used to let a bunch of my skiing buddies have it for a week each year. Killington sure has more trails but doesn't have Whiteface's vertical and weekend crowds can get pretty heavy at K.

Whiteface is State operated and the Adirondack Park Agency does not allow condos at the base of the mountain so the place to stay is in Lake Placid which is 9 miles away. Lake Placid is a neat little Alpine Village with plenty of good restaurants and enough stores to get whatever you may need.

However any day you can get here will probably be a good one. Have a good trip.

 

[andyzee]

Hi andyzee,

I would avoid the Holidays and wait until after New Years. Whiteface has two peaks and you will want the high peak to be open so you can ski Whiteface's full vertical. It usually takes until January for that to be open. January can be cold but that isn't really a problem. The wind can be because they shut the Gondola down when the wind gusts over 30 MPH. This forces you on the chairs but if you dress properly it's not a problem. You can always jump in the mid-station lodge to warm up.

If you can wait until March the days are longer, we get some of the biggest storms of the year than and the light is a lot better.
I love midweek skiing. There is never a line anywhere midweek non-holiday. On the weekends you can also beat the lift lines by staying off the Gondola, working the lifts, get there early, ski through the lunch hour and you will get in plenty of runs and vertical.

I have skied Killington. I have a friend that owns a house on the mountain and he used to let a bunch of my skiing buddies have it for a week each year. Killington sure has more trails but doesn't have Whiteface's vertical and weekend crowds can get pretty heavy at K.

Whiteface is State operated and the Adirondack Park Agency does not allow condos at the base of the mountain so the place to stay is in Lake Placid which is 9 miles away. Lake Placid is a neat little Alpine Village with plenty of good restaurants and enough stores to get whatever you may need.

However any day you can get here will probably be a good one. Have a good trip.

Hey, thanks for the info. Any good cheap hotels around that you can recommend?

 

[oneotwoandcounting]

Hi andyzee,

I forgot to mention I have skied Stowe and Sugarbush. They get more natural snow than Whiteface and are nice mountains but I am partial to Whiteface. Check the image below to see what can happen on Whiteface. Skyward is a trail from the summit that was the start of the Ladies Downhill race in the 80's Olympics.

This picture was taken December 27, 2002 so the summit can open early with help from Mother Nature.

Coming Soon:

"You gotta be kidding, right?"

 

[ChileMass]

Wow - great shot!

And welcome to AZ.com.........

 

[andyzee]

Wow - great shot!

And welcome to AZ.com.........

Agree, love the shot. I always hope to find myself in something like that!!!

Hey but let me repeat my question, any good cheap hotels around?

 

[sledhaulingmedic]

Have to agree, that's a ledgendary picture.

I haven't been to the high peak region in over 25 years. Maybe this will be the year.

THanks for sharing.

Sled

 

[derherren]

mine is lovland CO its not the most challenging but I have never been bored there allways good for a quic fix lovland is also where I learned how to snow board with no teachers but the mountain

 

[Vortex]

Loon for me(35 days or so a year) I do hit the other local Booth Creek resorts. Ski Sunday River and K more than Cranmore or Waterville though. 1 1/2 to loon or 20 min. (Nashua or Campton) Living in Nh makes it easy (spoiled)

 

[Greg]

Wow - great shot!

And welcome to AZ.com.........

Agreed. Awesome pic. And welcome!

 

[freeheelwilly]

that shot off the top off Whiteface is very cool and those of us who ski or ride it regularly see that quite often. it's probably a function of its sheer size. its advertised vertical is real. when fully open it skis BIG! WF is an awesome mountain. anybody who tells you different doesn't know what they are talking about. can it be icey? oh yeah! but name an eastern mountain that can't be.

that said, most of the northern vt areas get more snow on average (important qualification because whitey can and does get hammered). I really like MRG and s-bush as well as stowe and smuggs. classic new england/northeast skiing.

 

[oneotwoandcounting]

Thanks for the welcome. FHW is right, we get above the clouds a few times each winter and it is probably WF’s virticle that does it. A lot of WF’s trails, lifts, even the bar have references to clouds in their name.

Andyzee I have included a link to lodging in Lake Plaid. Click http://www.lake-placid.ny.us/accommodations.htm to see the list. I know The Redwood Motel 24 Wilmington Rd. (518) 523-2183 and Edelweiss Motel 14 Wilmington Rd. (518) 523-3821 have signs up advertising $55.00 a night for a double. That’s pretty good but better deals may be available. Places like the Holiday Inn, Mirror Lake Inn, Hilton, and The Lake Placid Lodge have great accommodations but they are definitely up scale and you pay for it. Packages are also available at some places that throw in a reduced lift ticket and a meal (usually breakfast). You will have to call or email a few and see what you can get.

Thanks for the compliments on the pic.

 

[Greg]

Here are a few more loding options for Whiteface that you can reserve right from AZ:

http://lodging.alpinezone.com/new_york/whiteface-wilmington.htm

 

[andyzee]

Andyzee I have included a like of lodging in Lake Plaid. Click http://www.lake-placid.ny.us/accommodations.htm to see the list. I know The Redwood Motel 24 Wilmington Rd. (518) 523-2183 and Edelweiss Motel 14 Wilmington Rd. (518) 523-3821 have signs up advertising $55.00 a night for a double. That’s pretty good but better deals may be available. Places like the Holiday Inn, Mirror Lake Inn, Hilton, and The Lake Placid Lodge have great accommodations but they are definitely up scale and you pay for it. Packages are also available at some places that throw in a reduced lift ticket and a meal (usually breakfast). You will have to call or email a few and see what you can get.

Thanks for the compliments on the pic.

Hey, thanks for the info, I'll have to be sure to get up there this year.

 

[andyzee]

Here are a few more loding options for Whiteface that you can reserve right from AZ:

http://lodging.alpinezone.com/new_york/whiteface-wilmington.htm

Hey Greg,
Thanks, saw some good deals in there.

 

[rjc1976]

I've skied VT more than I have at Whiteface, but I love Whiteface. For me, it's the only mountain I've been to in the east that makes you feel like you're out west (minus the consistent western snow of course). It feels that big!

As far as my "home" mountains for the past couple years, I guess I have 4 of them:
Hunter -- weekdays when I can get off work
Elk -- Weekends (when I can't get away for the weekend further up north)
Plattekill -- Weekends after a nice storm (again when I can't get further up north)
Mountain Creek -- After work fix of night skiing

This year, I'm sure most of that will change thanks to the ASC bronze pass this year.

 

[Zand]

Home mountain is Wachusett which I hit 20+ times a year, but I hit Okemo and Sunapee a lot too.

 

[eatskisleep]

Black Mountain NH; great terrain!