Least Favorite Trail

[Riverskier]

Salvation at Sunday River, as it destroyed some of the character of Bims Whim, one of the VERY few classic New England ski trails on the mountain. SR lacks many of these classic trails, as most of the mountain was developed in the 90's.

 

[Abubob]

Speaking of clusterf**k corners, at Ragged the intersection where Headwall finishes can be scary if people are standing in the wrong spots.

No kidding. Right at the bottom there's a SLOW sign :blink: with a bunch of people standing around after meandering their way off Blueberry Patch wondering "What do I do now?" You've either gotta crank an emergency stop or weave your way through without knocking anyone over.

Easy Winder( I think that is its name) at Ragged. I made the mistake of taking it on a warm day. Juggernaut is a black compared to this one.

After Cabin Fever or Mickey's Run (which is almost never open) or cutting through the woods off Lower Ridge you hit that looooooong run out. Not fun in fresh snow. A little like Ullr's Dream at Jay. :sad:

 

[MadMadWorld]

Love it or hate it.....Lower Antelope at MRG has to be on some peoples list. I personally love the trail because it has a ton of character and that NE feel to it. It also usually has the best snow of all the marked trails on the mountain. However, the runout is probably the worst of any marked trail in all of the northeast! For those not into earning their turns it can be a headache when you have to hike uphill, out of the woods one at a time because the trail is not wide enough to pass someone.

 

[St. Bear]

Love it or hate it.....Lower Antelope at MRG has to be on some peoples list. I personally love the trail because it has a ton of character and that NE feel to it. It also usually has the best snow of all the marked trails on the mountain. However, the runout is probably the worst of any marked trail in all of the northeast! For those not into earning their turns it can be a headache when you have to hike uphill, out of the woods one at a time because the trail is not wide enough to pass someone.

Sounds like East Bowl at Burke.

 

[ALLSKIING]

Love it or hate it.....Lower Antelope at MRG has to be on some peoples list. I personally love the trail because it has a ton of character and that NE feel to it. It also usually has the best snow of all the marked trails on the mountain. However, the runout is probably the worst of any marked trail in all of the northeast! For those not into earning their turns it can be a headache when you have to hike uphill, out of the woods one at a time because the trail is not wide enough to pass someone.

I need to hit Lower antelope earlier in the day..For some reason its usually one of my last runs and I am toast by the time I have to hike out making it seem much worse.

 

[deadheadskier]

Though not as bad as Lower Antelope, Lower FIS at SB North is a similar deal.

 

[riverc0il]

I'd rather hike out of LA than pole out of run outs like East Bowl at Burke or Lower FIS at Bush. East Bowl isn't too bad if the snow is packed. But it sucks on a power day. At least LA is a short uphill hike rather than a long slog or poling fest. It is over rather quickly and there is no run out leading into the uphill climb.

 

[ceo]

Bypass is on this map from 1992, no goat path until 1998.

Goat Path has been there at least since the late 70s, but it hasn't always been on the map. The start of it is still there, to the right as you start down Missing Link (where you can also see the upper terminal of the old Middle T-bar), but it ends at a steep embankment because of how they regraded Middle Cannon.

(And wow, I'd forgotten how incredibly inaccurate and useless Cannon's trail maps used to be. They used to be even worse than these two.)

 

[Smellytele]

My least favorite trail for skiing is the one that has no snow at all.

 

[Zand]

I definitely prefer Lower Antelope to Lower FIS or East Bowl. I'd rather take my skis off for 90 seconds and hike through the woods (not like it's a hard hike either) than pole for 5+ minutes. As for my least favorite trail, I don't think I hate any trail that has good conditions... being a raised Wachusett skier, I don't mind crowds if the conditions are good, I'm pretty used to it (although Burke has certainly spoiled me crowds-wise). But trails like Bypass at Cannon and Downspout at Sugarbush, which are almost NEVER in good shape, top my list.

 

[MadMadWorld]

I definitely prefer Lower Antelope to Lower FIS or East Bowl. I'd rather take my skis off for 90 seconds and hike through the woods (not like it's a hard hike either) than pole for 5+ minutes. As for my least favorite trail, I don't think I hate any trail that has good conditions... being a raised Wachusett skier, I don't mind crowds if the conditions are good, I'm pretty used to it (although Burke has certainly spoiled me crowds-wise). But trails like Bypass at Cannon and Downspout at Sugarbush, which are almost NEVER in good shape, top my list.

I also like the fact that at the bottom of Lower Antelope you can take your skis off and just boot the parking lot if it's an especially sloggy day.

 

[thetrailboss]

Salvation at Sunday River, as it destroyed some of the character of Bims Whim, one of the VERY few classic New England ski trails on the mountain. SR lacks many of these classic trails, as most of the mountain was developed in the 90's.

Agreed. Although a recent addition, Southpaw, looks like an attempt to try and get something that is narrower.

Though not as bad as Lower Antelope, Lower FIS at SB North is a similar deal.

Lower FIS has a pretty significant upslope to it that I always have to pole over. It also gets really narrow before dropping out into the Sunny D area and that last pitch can get very thin and rough. That said, Lower FIS is a real gem and on a good day can have great snow for a long time since folks just don't like the run out. I think they do have plans to *someday* put a lift from the bottom of Lower FIS up to Glen House. There is some neat terrain there.

I'd rather hike out of LA than pole out of run outs like East Bowl at Burke or Lower FIS at Bush. East Bowl isn't too bad if the snow is packed. But it sucks on a power day. At least LA is a short uphill hike rather than a long slog or poling fest. It is over rather quickly and there is no run out leading into the uphill climb.

I don't think that East Bowl is as bad as Lower FIS, but I have skied the former for many years and know the drill and where to get speed and where to ski it. Most of the time they groom the run out so that you can get out, but I have skied it when the lower part was not groomed and it can be interesting. Agreed that on powder or wet days it can be tougher, but I've found that there is just enough pitch for me and my hopefully freshly waxed skis to get through the flats.

Again, I loathe the trails like Deathspout at Sugarbush, Times Square at Mount Ellen, Big Emma at Snowbird, and Lower Chip's at Snowbird because all of these areas are overcrowded, overskied, and icy trails that you have a hard time avoiding and are just to get you from Point A to Point B rather than enjoying a nice ski experience.

 

[bdfreetuna]

Deathspout.. lol.. that trail does suck. Usually an icy traffic jam just to get over to Heaven's Gate.

Lower FIS and Lower Antelope are best skiied either right before lunch or last run of the day. Those trails are tiring enough as it is without the uphill.

Then again Sugarbush, Mt Ellen, and MRG are such great places to ski this is really nitpicking

 

[thetrailboss]

Then again Sugarbush, Mt Ellen, and MRG are such great places to ski this is really nitpicking

+ 1.

 

[riverc0il]

I hadn't made the connection before but it seems like Big Link at Cannon and Downspout at Bush have a lot in common. Spout is a little longer and Big Link steeper, but both are just connection trails between a high speed unload station and a fixed grip summit lift. It really shows the genius of a layout like Whiteface where the Facelift flows right into the summit lift.

 

[ALLSKIING]

Then again Sugarbush, Mt Ellen, and MRG are such great places to ski this is really nitpicking

+ 1.

+2

 

[MadPadraic]

I willfully want to ride Bypass. Middle Cannon broke one of my bones once, and I now avoid it.

My current least favorite trail is birds of prey.