Hunter Mtn Expansion Details

[catskillman]

For those that are waiting, White Cloud to Huega Connection
https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=2534833036535314&set=pcb.2534833256535292&type=3&theater

Nice to have more to ski, but this is a crazy enough spot already, the steep is always icy and people stop at the hairpin and now that is where skiers will be entering from white cloud.

It can't be an expensive project - short distance to clear and grade.......

 

[So Inclined]

Nice to have more to ski, but this is a crazy enough spot already, the steep is always icy and people stop at the hairpin and now that is where skiers will be entering from white cloud.

Yeah, you're absolutely right. It looks like they're solving one really bad problem by making a merely-pretty-bad problem down at that hairpin turn.

 

[benski]

I guess its so people can ski White cloud and avoid Belt Parkway.

 

[So Inclined]

I guess its so people can ski White cloud and avoid Belt Parkway.

Likely it's so they can just open and use White Cloud in some form again. After seeing what they'd wrought by putting in the Hunter North lift, they never opened WC last season - in fact it never looked like they even thought about it. It seemed fair to say that the "old" version of that trail, which funneled down right into the hairiest, iciest part of Belt behind the 6 pack, was never getting used again. Sad in my eyes, because I really liked White Cloud. But I don't like life-threatening injuries to others much less myself, and that seemed like a real possibility there. So at least now we'll get something out of this change.

Edit: on second reading, I see what you mean by "people can ski White Cloud and avoid Belt" - right, and it's a pretty good option to have, especially when Belt is unmanageably crowded.

 

[RichT]

If they do the same thing to Drop-off, you could get to the easiest trail on North (after they fix that mess). But you would have to cross the Belt still.

 

[So Inclined]

If they do the same thing to Drop-off, you could get to the easiest trail on North (after they fix that mess). But you would have to cross the Belt still.

CROSS Belt? I have an idea of what that would look like :lol:



https://media.giphy.com/media/xqQ3r1gFJ3d72/giphy.gif

 

[danimals]

CROSS Belt? I have an idea of what that would look like :lol:

View attachment 25333

https://media.giphy.com/media/xqQ3r1gFJ3d72/giphy.gif

Killington style tunnel over belt?


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[benski]

Edit: on second reading, I see what you mean by "people can ski White Cloud and avoid Belt" - right, and it's a pretty good option to have, especially when Belt is unmanageably crowded.

Belt is the hardest trail I have ever skied. Harder than Paradise at Mad River, The upper Cirque, or Great Scott at Snowbird, or anything I found at Alta on a day with poor conditions.

 

[RichT]

Got out the binoculars over the weekend (I can see the West/North from my house) looks like they put up a fence along the Whitecloud to Jimmy connection AND they dug out some of the Belt wall right there where the Belt, Whitecloud and the exit to the North lift met, making the Belt wider there?

 

[kingslug]

Now that Vail owns the place..I can spend more time there when I don't feel like driving to Stowe...Only skied the North side a few times..rather sporty..

 

[jg17]

Trying to figure out changes to the map for this year, since the new trail map isn't live. Based on the trail status report, looks like Overlook and Twilight have been changed to full black instead of the blue/black. Also looks like Woodstock might be the only glade on the north side now? Greene Glades, Westkill Woods, and Balsam Bypass no longer showing on the daily report. I also thought they were cutting a new trail down the lift line this summer, but no sign of that.

Also seeing a trail "Way In" on the report, anyone know what that is?

I'll be out there tomorrow so I'll be interested to see the changes in person.

 

[kingslug]

Guess they figured out that blue black is a BS rating.

 

[kendo]

Guess they figured out that blue black is a BS rating.

They'll soon be updating their website (like Stowe did last year) and using the Vail conditions template which doesn't include blue/black or snowmaking icons.



Sucks you can't see what trails have active snowmaking.

 

[So Inclined]

Also looks like Woodstock might be the only glade on the north side now? Greene Glades, Westkill Woods, and Balsam Bypass no longer showing on the daily report.

Not like any of those glades ever opened last season AFAIR, so maybe they're just shunting those down the memory hole. Forget the "hey we found some more glades here" extra North side trails ever happened and none of us were ever here, this conversation never happened. Pretty sure at least one of those "glades" were only accessible by crossing some pretty stout snowmaking pipes (that's a topic earlier in this thread, I think.) We never got the snow last year to see anyone have a go at them anyway.
Last winter's short pre-Vail experiment with blue-blacks is over because Vail only has greens, blues and blacks, is what I've heard. Making Twilight and Overlook blacks is eminently sensible, especially for safety-conscious Vail, but it really torpedoes any idea that the North expansion added more much-needed intermediate terrain. How much more blue terrain did North create? One trail and a run-out?

 

[danimals]

I don’t know how white cloud will be ski-able this year. They definitely widened belt by the top of the lift, but white cloud in its current state looks like a bunch of 15-20 foot cliffs.

I agree the expansion was borderline useless (for their intended goal). If anything the north trails should be their early or late season offering since it doesn’t really get any sun exposure.

If vail wants to add more blue terrain, it looks like they are going to need to add something further up the hunter East trails..


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[Ol Dirty Noodle]

I was up there yesterday, lotta bare real estate, I didn’t even touch belt, spent the day lapping hell gate

 

[So Inclined]

I don’t know how white cloud will be ski-able this year. They definitely widened belt by the top of the lift, but white cloud in its current state looks like a bunch of 15-20 foot cliffs.

I agree the expansion was borderline useless (for their intended goal). If anything the north trails should be their early or late season offering since it doesn’t really get any sun exposure.

If vail wants to add more blue terrain, it looks like they are going to need to add something further up the hunter East trails..


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White Cloud as you knew it is no more. They cut a new swatch down so that it connects to Jimmie Huega now - in fact the former lower part of Huega (after the switchback) is now White Cloud. As for old White Cloud, they fenced off the last slope (the part that ran down to Belt) so no one gets any ideas, and cut into the slope (the cut-up cliffs you saw) to widen Belt and fill in/even out the weird slope angles of the part of Belt right above/after the lift.
I hit Belt yesterday a few times; that particular spot's a little better than it was, but it's still a janky double-fall-line drop that's going to get shaved down to the base by terrified skidders pretty quickly.

Also, the old entrance to Way Out (another "fun" drop in off belt) only looked like it was roped off, but the way I've heard it, that's closed for good - you'll get to Way Out and the West Side by taking a short run that goes under the North lift, just below the terminal, as I understand it.

Nothing's ever getting built above Hunter East is the conventional wisdom.

 

[andrec10]

I was up there yesterday, lotta bare real estate, I didn’t even touch belt, spent the day lapping hell gate

You missed a good belt!

 

[andrec10]

White Cloud as you knew it is no more. They cut a new swatch down so that it connects to Jimmie Huega now - in fact the former lower part of Huega (after the switchback) is now White Cloud. As for old White Cloud, they fenced off the last slope (the part that ran down to Belt) so no one gets any ideas, and cut into the slope (the cut-up cliffs you saw) to widen Belt and fill in/even out the weird slope angles of the part of Belt right above/after the lift.
I hit Belt yesterday a few times; that particular spot's a little better than it was, but it's still a janky double-fall-line drop that's going to get shaved down to the base by terrified skidders pretty quickly.

Also, the old entrance to Way Out (another "fun" drop in off belt) only looked like it was roped off, but the way I've heard it, that's closed for good - you'll get to Way Out and the West Side by taking a short run that goes under the North lift, just below the terminal, as I understand it.

Nothing's ever getting built above Hunter East is the conventional wisdom.

The entrance to Wayout is still open. Skinny in the beginning, but much wide below. Also, when getting off of the Northern Express, you go below the lift to get to Wayout and others so not everyone converges...

 

[So Inclined]

The entrance to Wayout is still open. Skinny in the beginning, but much wide below. Also, when getting off of the Northern Express, you go below the lift to get to Wayout and others so not everyone converges...

That entrance is till open in the sense that it hasn't been fenced off or destroyed like that last but of old White Cloud was, and seeing that surprised me a little yesterday (of course nothing West or North was 'open' as in skiable yesterday.) The info I heard from someone at Hunter recently was that the only way to Way Out/the West Side would be that new run under the Northern Express. If i heard things correctly.