Where to ski in March?

[billski]

As a matter of fact I have been to Whiteface many times.

I take the facelift quad to the summit quad and ski from the top. When I'm warming up I get back on the summit chair; once I've got my rhythm, I go all the way to the bottom, and creep back up on the two chairs. I only ski on weekdays, lines are not a problem.

I don't care about saving hours of driving; I'm interested in going somewhere I've never been, and staying overnight before skiing. That's why I started this thread to ask for suggestions about places to go, not to discuss the conditions existing at a place I'm already familiar with.

That helps bring it back.
Stowe, Sugarbush, Sugarloaf, Jay, Mad River

 

[SKidds]

No problem. Maybe you just should have said you wanted to try someplace other than Whiteface, where you have already been, rather than indicating that weather and snow conditions were the reason you wished to avoid Whiteface, which they shouldn't be.

I certainly understand wanting to try new places. I'd suggest southern Vermont. Maybe Stratton. Nice, long cruisers....and not a lot of bumps or extremely challenging terrain, but some nice groomed blacks.

Stowe and Sugarbush are much better resorts, but they are a heck of a long drive for a day of skiing, and they up the challenge quotient quite a bit with bumps, woods, etc.

 

[kcyanks1]

That helps bring it back.
Stowe, Sugarbush, Sugarloaf, Jay, Mad River

I have to disagree on MRG for someone who wants expert trails without bumps. Sugarbush won't have a ton of such trails, but they'll have a few. Same with Stowe and Jay. Any of those would be fine based on his preferences, I think. I've never been to Sugarloaf.

 

[Phlogiston]

It doesn't matter how far I drive for one day of skiing, because I can't ski more than one day.
I'm fine for 5 or 6 hours on continuous skiing on a weekday, no lunch break, no lift lines.
The next day I have trouble climbing stairs, getting out of bed, etc.
So if I drive 8 hours to Sugarloaf, stay overnight, ski 6 hours, drive back, I'm fine.
And I don't need a lot of black diamond terrain; i spend at least 4 runs warming up on blues; then I go to blacks, but slowly, to learn the runs. Then i go a bit faster; and by the last 3 or 4 runs I expect to be really moving.

By 2 to 3 PM the old injuries will be kicking in, and I take my last run slowly, taking pics of other skiers, boarder, views from the mountain, etc.
If the light is good, I'll drive around exploring things I saw from the mountain; frozen waterfalls, XC ski areas, old churches, whatever looks interesting from 2000 feet up and miles away.

By 5 or 6 I'm on the interstate, with my dunkin donuts and coffee, listening to local radio stations. If it's a long drive, I stop and nap. I may get home to NYC at 3 in the morning, depending on the naps.

 

[kcyanks1]

If you don't care about not having much expert terrain, then I'd go back with the southern VT recommendations of Okemo or Stratton.

 

[Phlogiston]

I was looking at Okemo. I like the one hour free in the morning to check out conditions.
Not enough time to learn the trails, but plenty of time to find out what the snow is like up top. And if it sucks, there's time to drive further north and get a 1/2 day ticket somewhere else.
I like the attitude I see in the Okemo website too; the discounts, charity day on April 1, etc.

 

[SKidds]

Okemo is pretty nice. Crowds won't be an issue midweek. The resort hotel at the base of Jackson Gore is very nice and you can get an inn room or a studio, although it isn't necessarily cheap. But it is slopeside....