Least Favorite Ski Area(s)

[St. Jerry]

1. Okemo. Hate it.

 

[RISkier]

WaWa - At least on weekends. I'm sure it's different on weekdays. Kind of like commuting to work on a busy freeway. Way too many p___ed off people on far too little real estate. The only saving grace is that it's a lot closer than anything else.

 

[ctenidae]

Anyplace without snow?

 

[Zand]

Well, since the favorite and least favorite topics have popped up, I'll post my least favorite to favorite in order.

9. Ski Ward (Least favorite)
8. Pine Ridge
7. Berkshire East
6. Wachusett
5. Killington
4. Sunapee
3. Jiminy
2. Sugarbush
1. Okemo (Favorite)

 

[andyzee]

Belleayre/Hunter

 

[freeheelwilly]

This is really a tough question because so much depends upon things over which the mountain has no control, such as conditions, weather, the group you're with, what you had for breakfast, etc.

Even assuming all other things are equal (and they never are) we still couldn't agree because we'll never all agree on the relative importance of the things over which the mountain does have control or which are intrinsic to the mountain, such as terrain, snowmaking/grooming, quality of ski school, slope side amenities or proximity to strip clubs.

with all of that being said, to me terrain is the most important thing when judging a mountain (well, that and the strip club thing). And of the BIG areas (I don't think it's fair or particularly useful to compare Maple Ridge to Killington) the two that are, to my mind, hands down the worst in that category are Stratton and Mt. Snow and of those Stratton takes the prize. And if anything interesting does begin to develop on the snow surface of Stratton's ridiculously unimaginative terrain, you can bet they'll have a 3 ton groomer out there in a flash to grind it back into homogenized mediocrity. Please don't go to Stratton; it's the willy vanilly of ski areas.

 

[TeleGrrrl]

Herman mtn. No interesting terraain, and the lodge is a mess.

 

[tirolerpeter]

Least Favorite Mt.

Without naming names...my least favorite(s) are those areas that make getting your gear from the car to the lifts as tough as possible. Some areas put so much "resort" and commercial development between the unloading and the lift area that getting onto the mountain becomes an ordeal. Stratton is a prime example in the east (at least the last time I skied it) and The Canyons in the west. Some other eastern areas like Jiminy are starting to go this way too. I am basically "cheap." When I go skiing I want good snow, interesting terrain, a "friendly," reasonably comfortable base lodge, and economical lodging (clean rooms, plenty hot water, TV) nearby (for me that means not more than about a 30 minute drive). I don't care for "white glove" service (usually with a hand turned palm up in them waiting for a handout) that comes with exhorbitant prices. I get especially annoyed when mountains provide "valet parking" that blocks drop off access for the peons and worse, puts the "valet lot" all around the lodge forcing the rest of us to park far away and drag our stuff. Why not put the valet lot in some remote area; since they ferry the drivers back and forth anyway? Obviously, the more inconvenient the drop area the more likely people will use their service!

 

[dmc]

Belleayre/Hunter

Excellent... Tell your friends!!!
The less "starter jackets" the better...

 

[JimG.]

Belleayre/Hunter

Excellent... Tell your friends!!!
The less "starter jackets" the better...

Ya! :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol:

I liked ctenidae's answer...you're a quick lerner!

 

[dmc]

Maybe I've become a snow snob... But I cant subscribe to the "Anyplace with snow" thing...

I've been to ski areas that just bored the crap out of me - to the point where I just went to the bar...
"diamond peak" and "Bretton woods" to name a couple...

 

[thetrailboss]

I wondered if someone was going to ask this question!

Worst Experiences thus far:

1. Tenney Mountain, Feb/Mar 2004. They may claim to have "Japanese Snow" as my friend put it, but their snowreporting is downright deceiving. Management needs to change. :angry:

2. Bretton Woods, 2000-2001. They jumped on the "Let's Save Burke Bandwagon" and then renigged on their promotion to Burke skiers. Granted they have done a lot of work, but honestly, why pay the same price as Sugarbush for this place? They had driven the poor locals out (who once were welcome) and have taken an elitest approach. Blah terrain, fake glades, and astronomical prices. Trying to be Deer Valley, but not quite there. I still don't know how they convinced people to vote them as having better snow than Jay Peak in SKIING's 2004 resort review! :evil:

3. Cannon, February 1999. I like Cannon, but we found the place a sheet of glare ice on this day. There have been some improvements since then though! Would like to go back (How 'bout some free tix? I will be at the Boston show! :wink: )

 

[St. Jerry]

Also, besides Okemo, hate Whiteface.

Okemo: Probably the most boring mountain I have ever been to. Through the years, I have skied there 3 or 4 times (never by choice, always went with a group who was going there) and after each time vow to never go again.

Whiteface: Probably gets the least amount of natural snow of any mountain anywhere. But, gets the most amount of wind of any mountain. Combine these two and you're sliding down glaring ice. I only go there once every several years as it's included with my Gore mtn. pass.

 

[Greg]

Okemo: Probably the most boring mountain I have ever been to. Through the years, I have skied there 3 or 4 times (never by choice, always went with a group who was going there) and after each time vow to never go again.

I had an interesting conversation about Okemo the other day. The guy I was talking with raved about Okemo's tree skiing. His rationale was that Okemo is looked at as a rather family-oriented groomer mountain which results in the glades being less tracked. Haven't been to Okemo in a number of years so I can't vouch for that...

 

[thetrailboss]

I had an interesting conversation about Okemo the other day. The guy I was talking with raved about Okemo's tree skiing. His rationale was that Okemo is looked at as a rather family-oriented groomer mountain which results in the glades being less tracked. Haven't been to Okemo in a number of years so I can't vouch for that...

I agree with this theory. Though Pat's Peak is significantly smaller than what I am used to and further south, it met our needs and budget and was close enough. However, I realized that their steeper terrain is usually not heavily traveled since they are a beginner mountain. Well, most of the beginners stay in the J-Bar and Valley Area, so I can get non-stop on and off chair runs :wink: I am always ready to lend a helping hand for anyone who falls or is lost. The place makes you feel wanted.

I will say that this theory does not work in reverse, with Jay in mind. Their glades have a great rep, but the other terrain is usually icy

 

[freeheelwilly]

oh nothing 8)

 

[ChileMass]

1 - Wawa - for all the reasons posted here and all the b*tching I've done in other posts.

2 - Stratton - sterile, expensive and the weather ALWAYS sucks there.

3 - Killington - too damned many people.

4 - Sunday River - too many slackers and newbies, and the runs are too short.

9. Ski Ward (Least favorite)

Oh, c'mon Zand - you gotta go easy on poor little Ward. They have so little to work with. My kids both learned to ski there, and it's great for little ones.....

 

[freeheelwilly]

Whiteface: Probably gets the least amount of natural snow of any mountain anywhere.

Not even close. Actually gets more on average than your (apparently) beloved Gore (170" vs. 150")

But, gets the most amount of wind of any mountain.

Ummm...more than Jay? More than Cannon?

I only go there once every several years as it's included with my Gore mtn. pass

That's your problem. Go more often. The place rocks. Every place can suck once in a while. I skied Snowbird a few years back for 5 days straight and it was, shall we just say, less than excellent.

PS: I've got nothing against Gore. I really like the place. And I have yet to go to Jay or Cannon but I want to, notwithstanding their windy reps. When I finally do get there, condits might really suck but I'm not gonna just write 'em off. Try...try again.

Frankly, with all the sub-par places in the East you could point to (like Stratton, Mt. Snow or Bretton Woods) I just don't see how WF could make that list. Like I said above, I'm a terrain guy: WF = Very Good; Stratton = Very Bad.

 

[Talisman]

I love skiing and have had some wonderful experiences skiing a large number of places. I think Waterville Valley is an over priced waste of my skiing time. Skied at WV a couple of times and never plan to return.

I think that Okemo's glades do track-out quickly despite the family ski area image. There is lots of up hill capacity and it doesn't take long to track-out glades when people are doing laps off of a high speed lift.

 

[dmc]

Threads dealing with negatives are kinda sucky...
Everyone skis different places for different reasons...
Some like steeps, groomers, drops, whatever...

When I first started skiing I thought Boston Mills in Ohio was the greatest place ever...