Pats Peak 1/5

[xwhaler]

Headed up to Pats today on a free voucher I got through buying a 6 game pack to the NH Fisher Cats (AA Blue Jays affiliate) 2014 season.
Hadn't been to Pats skiing since probably 2007.....place has really gotten a lot more built up and crowded than I remember.
Got to lot about 845 and it was already slammed....didn't wanna deal with the lodge so just booted up at truck.
Waited in a 5 min line for tickets which I'm not used to....had worries the lifts and trails would be packed.
Pleasantly surprised it was basically ski on for 3 hours......lapped the vortex chair which I'm surprised Was not the busiest lift there. Not sure why anyone would use the other 2 lifts that appear to be slower and the run out vert doesn't give you much.
Twister and tornado were my favorites today.....bumps on hurricane were mix of chalky and icy and weren't very fun. Did try tornado glades and all the east side runs.
At 10 cascade basin opened so I ran that 4 times before it got busy and I had no use for lines being solo.
Initial impressions of cascade is that it is pretty boring intermedite/beginner terrain but it gets the sun so is worth a few runs. Katabatic glades were open so I tried them but nothing too tough.
Seems there is some potential to add a slightly steeper trail or glade just above the lift terminal looking left on the lift.
Back to the main face and banged out another 6-8 runs and called it a good morning.
Snow was a nice lsgr/pp mix for the most part......race on FIS so lotta parents which contributed to the busy parking lots.
I had a good morning.....pats skis smaller than crotched, whaleback and gunstock among hills within 70 mins from me. I bet it's fun on a powder day/night when u can take most advantage of the steeper trails.
They appear to have enough uphill capacity that lines would never be much of an issue even if the lodges/parking lots were full.

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[xwhaler]

Could a mod add the picture icon to this thread?
Posting TRs on phone doesnt seem to allow us to add the icon

 

[Abubob]

The old crowded in the lodge but not on the hill story. Awesome. I'm a wimp when it comes to putting by boots on at the car.

 

[MadMadWorld]

Skied Pat's on Friday after the storm with Savemeasammy. Hadn't been in at least 8 years but I had a couple midweek vouchers burning a hole in my pocket. We pretty much stuck to Tornado, Hurricane, Vortex/FIS. I enjoyed the bumps on Hurricane more and more as the day wore on. Definitely weird conditions though. Very chalky and sticky on top and icy/fast in the ruts. Tornado was very choppy and my Kung Fujas loved it. I think that type of snow is it's bread and butter. Funny you were thinking that they should add another trail off the top. We were discussing this as well. A glade cut from the top of Hurricane that dropped down into the bottom of Tornado would be really nice. Not to mention it would be protected from wind and hold snow well.

 

[Savemeasammy]

The terrain Xwhaler is referring to is off of the top of the cascade basin triple. It looks like a short, decent pitch, but nothing that would change the likelihood that advanced skiers would spend time over there. The cascade pod will give lower level skiers a nice option, and hopefully will help thin the lines at the bottom of the mountain (which it may have done - usually when the lot is that full, the corrals at the bottom lifts fill up).

Xwhaler - sorry to hear you didn't enjoy Hurricane as much as I did...! I thought it skied pretty well. The backsides of the bumps were scraped off by the mass of snowplowers (like my 6YO!), but it ended up in the troughs where it matters! Hopefully you weren't too disappointed by the "woods". They could really do MUCH better if they wanted to!

The lodge can be a pita. I usually park by the hurricane triple and boot up there, so it's a non-issue for me.

It's not the greatest, but it's convenient for me, so I accept it for what it is!


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[xwhaler]

Yes, I was referring to the top of Cascade....nothing steep but would add to the vertical a bit and at least could get them another glade.

 

[billski]

The old crowded in the lodge but not on the hill story. Awesome. I'm a wimp when it comes to putting by boots on at the car.

I never saw the need to boot up in the parking lot, nor need to have the first tracks. I usually have other things to prepare other than putting my boots on.