Where to go in march for 3 day ski trip: Jay Peal Vt, Mont Sainte Anne, Mont Sutton?

[kevin33]

Hey everyone,
I am a college student and trying to decide where to make plans for my spring break trip the first week of march. My friends are deciding between, jay peak, mont sutton canada, and mont sainte anne canada (which includes stoneham). If people could give me there opinions of the terrain as well as the night life in these places that would be great. Also feel free to give your opinion on someplace else that may better suite us. Keep in mind we love glades, steeps and challenging terrain in general. Not big park guys we'd rather hike a little than jib on the rails. Hopefully the snow will be here by then finally. Thanks for your help.

 

[John84]

Keep in mind we love glades, steeps and challenging terrain in general. Not big park guys we'd rather hike a little than jib on the rails. Hopefully the snow will be here by then finally. Thanks for your help.

Head to Jay

 

[andyzee]

Head to Jay

I thought it was a trick question.

 

[riverc0il]

if you love trees, you'll love jay. no night life though. the bar at jay is about the only reliable night life within almost an hour's drive.

 

[56fish]

Hey everyone,
If people could give me there opinions of the terrain as well as the night life in these places that would be great.

Jay, trees rule.

Kingdom Playground, 25 minutes southeast in Orleans will provide some local flavor. The Lodge At Jay (5 minutes east) is cool. Couple of haunts in Montgomery (fifteen minutes west) hop, too.

 

[billski]

Jay

Hey everyone,
I am a college student and trying to decide where to make plans for my spring break trip the first week of march. My friends are deciding between, jay peak, mont sutton canada, and mont sainte anne canada (which includes stoneham). If people could give me there opinions of the terrain as well as the night life in these places that would be great. Also feel free to give your opinion on someplace else that may better suite us. Keep in mind we love glades, steeps and challenging terrain in general. Not big park guys we'd rather hike a little than jib on the rails. Hopefully the snow will be here by then finally. Thanks for your help.

Don't go to Canada, especially this year. The Mts. are alot smaller and the conditions will deteriorate much quicker. Go to Canada if you are real cheap and money is tantamount: things (food, lodging and lifts) will be substantially cheaper (perhaps 50-60% of costs of a typical US resort), but expect to start seeing a lot of brown, especially this year. We were at Orford 2 years ago in mid march. It was warm, wet and muddy. It was like everyone had gone home. Nightlife, hmm, well in Orford, there was a town, I can't recall the names with lots of places that we really enjoyed.

Look at conditions right now:
sutton, 6-12", 7/53 trails open (ugh!)
st anne12-20" base, 41 of 64 trails (not bad)
jay peak 12-24", 25/76 trails open
On stats alone I would elliminate sutton
Then:
[SIZE=-1]St. Anne: Summit elevation: 2625 feet Vertical drop: 2050 feet Base elevation: 575 feet
JP: [/SIZE][SIZE=-1]Summit elevation: 3968 feet Vertical drop: 2153 feet Base elevation: 1815 feet.[/SIZE]
[SIZE=-1]Since JP is substantially higher in elevation, it wil hold onto it's snow far longer.
I wouldn't be having this type of conversation if it was a Normal/cold year....
[/SIZE]
Others are right. Jay will keep crankin thanks to the lake effect snow and its elevation. I'll let other clue you into nightlife there; I'm rather shallow in my behavior: eat, sleep, ski.... (I'm an old fart who poops out early. Have to save my energy for first tracks...)

In any event, this year it is prudent to go to a place that will have a base that sticks around. I am so fearful right now of resorts not being able to build a substantial base and having to close early.


Hope you enjoy whereever you go.