Jay Peak vs. Sugarbush?

[HowieT2]

Exterminator tends to get good snow in it...thanks to drifting and its elevation and exposure. A fun run. Nice and long. It has a few steep drops, but overall good pitch. Exterminator Woods: it's OK. I never got too excited about it personally. Just don't go over the backside.

Dont know if you caught this from another thread, but I did go off the backside once.

surprised you are not a bigger fan of the exterminator woods. great snow with northern exposure. easy to do laps via the north ridge. and extra special treats for those willing to explore a little. my go to woods run 2-3 days after last snow.

but fyi-if you are exploring best if you are with someone who knows because even if you avoid going off the backside, there are some impenetrable pine trees you can find yourself stuck in. been there done that too.

 

[HowieT2]

...and I see talk about Lower FIS. A real gem for sure. As is Spinout. Au naturale experience. Nice consistent pitch, great narrow trail feel, seclusion, and a nice long run. When Win took over they used to do early season at North, and they did a good job maintaining that trail so that they could open it ASAP. That was a nice treat. Yes, the runout is a pisser, but that's what makes it special and so secluded. And it's not THAT bad. I wish that there were more trails like Lower FIS personally.

because of the runout, lower FIS gets less traffic than the rest of mt ellen, such that it is. so if you are looking for an ungroomed natural snow trail, you are likely to find good conditions after others have been skied off.

 

[thetrailboss]

Dont know if you caught this from another thread, but I did go off the backside once.

Did not know that.

surprised you are not a bigger fan of the exterminator woods. great snow with northern exposure. easy to do laps via the north ridge. and extra special treats for those willing to explore a little. my go to woods run 2-3 days after last snow.

but fyi-if you are exploring best if you are with someone who knows because even if you avoid going off the backside, there are some impenetrable pine trees you can find yourself stuck in. been there done that too.

The seasons I was there I was luke warm about Exterminator Woods because I've been stuck in those same woods. Also, they had extended the glade down below the old cross-cut trail/road and the clearing suddenly stopped leaving some nasty bushwhacking.

Elbow Woods were fun, but they get skied out pretty fast.

Overall the Sugarbush Woods get a lot of traffic. I enjoyed checking out some "off-the-map" varieties that could be good.

 

[steamboat1]

You have to ski with a local to find the good tree skiing at Sugarbush. Many of the entrances are hidden & the trees don't open up until you get a few turns in. They cleared out a lot of them two seasons ago, the mountain even advertised it at the time but you won't find them on any map. I get to ski several times a season with a friend that has worked for the mountain for over 20 years. You'd be surprised what's out there that the majority of people don't know about.

 

[steamboat1]

if you know where the runout is you can get enough speed to knock off a good portion of the traverse.

Just let-em rip when you get under the Slidebrook chair...:wink:

 

[thetrailboss]

Just let-em rip when you get under the Slidebrook chair...:wink:

Yep, something like that. I usually get in a few more turns to that little knoll and then tuck to the left and up the traverse. It's amazing how much the original trail has grown in. My understanding is that it used to go down almost to German Flats Road (or the cross-road above it).

 

[thetrailboss]

You have to ski with a local to find the good tree skiing at Sugarbush. Many of the entrances are hidden & the trees don't open up until you get a few turns in. They cleared out a lot of them two seasons ago, the mountain even advertised it at the time but you won't find them on any map. I get to ski several times a season with a friend that has worked for the mountain for over 20 years. You'd be surprised what's out there that the majority of people don't know about.

Very true. Obviously any tree clearing after 2011 is something I personally have not seen, but generally there is a lot of room once you get out beyond the usual suspects.

 

[steamboat1]

My understanding is that it used to go down almost to German Flats Road (or the cross-road above it).

It would be nice if it did. Catching the shuttle would be easier than doing the traverse.

 

[thetrailboss]

It would be nice if it did. Catching the shuttle would be easier than doing the traverse.

Good point. I think that there might be a house or two in the way now....

 

[WWF-VT]

It would be nice if it did. Catching the shuttle would be easier than doing the traverse.

If you build up speed the traverse/run out of Lower FIS is a lot more efficient then the run out to German Flats Rd and catching a shuttle. I do a lot of hiking at Mt Ellen and there is an alternate path with more pitch that roughly parallels the last strecth of Lower FIS, connects with Snowflake and gets you back to the SunnyD lift

 

[HowieT2]

You have to ski with a local to find the good tree skiing at Sugarbush. Many of the entrances are hidden & the trees don't open up until you get a few turns in. They cleared out a lot of them two seasons ago, the mountain even advertised it at the time but you won't find them on any map. I get to ski several times a season with a friend that has worked for the mountain for over 20 years. You'd be surprised what's out there that the majority of people don't know about.

True.

 

[gostan]

I would just go to Jay. IN bounds at the bush gets skied off before you can park your SUV and the sugarbush locals will never show you the real tree skiing.

 

[crank]

lol. Sugarbush for trails with some trees. Jay for trees with some trails.

 

[watts]

And I didnt even get to hit the Slide Brook woods due to time constraints, and I hear they're great.

Slide Brook, while very nice, isn't particularly difficult. The pitches aren't especially steep and the trees are generously cut. I think they designed it to accomodate as wide a range of skiers as possible. Definitely still worth trying at least once, though.

 

[watts]

And I didnt even get to hit the Slide Brook woods due to time constraints, and I hear they're great.

Slide Brook, while very nice, is not particularly difficult. The pitches aren't especially steep, and the trees are generously cut. I think it was designed to accommodate as wide a range of skiers as possible. Still definitely worth trying at least once, though.

 

[gostan]

Slide Brook, while very nice, is not particularly difficult. The pitches aren't especially steep, and the trees are generously cut. I think it was designed to accommodate as wide a range of skiers as possible. Still definitely worth trying at least once, though.

That is exactly what we want you to think.