Windham/Hunter/Belleayre/Plattekill

[ctenidae]

what does Windham offer in the other-stuff-to-do category? my wife don't ski but will go with us if there is something fun for her to do.

Bar.

 

[ScottySkis]

Theirs great bars at all the ski mountains,when it comes to music and party at the bar Hunters got every1 in the catskills beat for sure,and that's coming from a Platty skiier

 

[abc]

But I'm not surprised that Windham doesn't get a lot of love on AZ -- for the same reason that Stratton, Okemo and Bretton Woods don't get a lot of love here. It's not as serious an area as Hunter, not as quirky as Plattekill and not as public as Belleayre. But they're putting out a good quality product, where the main problem is that it's too popular of a product. And that it's just not what most AZers are looking for in a ski experience.

Bretton Woods "too popular a product"? Have you ever skied there at all?

No, the only thing common amoungst Okemo, Stratton and Bretton Woods are they appeal to the softer vacationers. (The recent NYT article on BW pretty much nailed what BW is about) Windham is trying to appeal to that very group, and is having reasonable success in raking in their disposable dollar! Those who think they're real skiers may not find anything "special" in these glizzy "resorts". Hence the lack of love. That's got nothing to do with whether those are good mountains or not.

I've only been to Winhdam once, on a freebee. I was so under-whelmed I have yet to use the remaining freeby I still have...

I've only skied Bretton Woods twice. I must go there more often. I LOVE that place! The biggest draw for me is the lack of crowds on the "slightly advanced terrain" which they mark as black!

 

[oakapple]

Hunter has the "Learning Center" which helps keep beginners in one place...
Hunter One is a beginner area separate from the rest of the hill..

Belleayre, Windyam, and Hunter all have programs for "never evers." But once you get beyond the Bunny Hill stage, Hunter's terrain is the least satisfactory of the three.

 

[dmc]

Belleayre, Windyam, and Hunter all have programs for "never evers." But once you get beyond the Bunny Hill stage, Hunter's terrain is the least satisfactory of the three.

why?

 

[oakapple]

Belleayre, Windham, and Hunter all have programs for "never evers." But once you get beyond the Bunny Hill stage, Hunter's terrain is the least satisfactory of the three.

why?

The greens at Hunter One are basically just bunny slopes that are good for teaching, but aren't very interesting in their own right. Hunter has only one green cruiser of respectable length, Mossy Brook. And for a beginner, the step up from Mossy Brook to Hunter's easiest blues can be intimidating.

In contrast, Belleayre and Windham have multiple greens that are comparable to Mossy Brook, as well as the easier blues Hunter does not have, for those ready to make the next step up.

(I now see that my original post might have been interpreted to suggest that Hunter's terrain as a whole is unsatisfactory. I was writing only from the perspective of what a green skier would be looking for. Hunter's upper intermediate and advanced terrain is very good.)

 

[ScottySkis]

Well from main bottom of hunter just below Kennedy I believe are mostly green trails,

 

[oakapple]

Well from main bottom of hunter just below Kennedy I believe are mostly green trails,

But you can't get to them without skiing blue or black first. From the perspective of someone actually seeking out green trails, they are of no use.

 

[ScottySkis]

The slow quad on the left side only serves those beginner trails

 

[oakapple]

To call those things "trails" is awfully generous. They're run-outs.

 

[dmc]

To call those things "trails" is awfully generous. They're run-outs.

Mossy Brook is nice.. Lot lots of peeps getting their beginner on over there...

 

[catskills]

Interesting set of posts on this thread ranking the 4 ski areas in the Catskills. Very accurate information for the most part.

We just need to convince DMC that Hunter has a week spot in terrain for the lower less aggressive intermediate skiers. IMHO, Windham, Belleayre, and even Plattekill have more to offer intermediate blue square skiers.

If you can ski Hunter's groomed black diamonds like Hellgate, Hunter has the rest of the Catskill resorts beat hands down.

 

[oakapple]

Mossy Brook is nice.. Lot lots of peeps getting their beginner on over there...

Mossy Brook is nice enough that even intermediates enjoy it as a change-of-pace. But if you aren't ready for Hunter's actual intermediate terrain, there are only so many Mossy Brook runs you can do before wishing there were more.

If you can ski Hunter's groomed black diamonds like Hellgate, Hunter has the rest of the Catskill resorts beat hands down.

I haven't done Plattekill yet, but I certainly agree w.r.t. the other two.

 

[dmc]

We just need to convince DMC that Hunter has a week spot in terrain for the lower less aggressive intermediate skiers.

I totally know this - but I also know there are a certain class of skiers that even though they are beginners push for more advanced terrain. And there are those that just enjoy beginner terrain and are content.

I was a push to advanced terrain as a beginner/lower int. And that why i started skiing Hunter.. Because i could feel comfortable with mellow terrain(Mossy) and then the next trail over get more advanced(Chicken ridge). Then once I got a bit better the wide open mid station(Broadway) was a great place to learn.

but that just me...

 

[ctenidae]

If it were ust up to me, I think I'd pick Hunter for 2 days, but that's something of a selfish decision since I liked the mountain and could enjoy myself. My wife would probably be of a similar mind.

However, at Windham we'd probably be able to get my brother to ski more since, as pointed out above, they may have a better transition from easy-easy to easy-blue.

We haven't really skied Bellyare, but we have been there before, and didn't dig it, though it was hardly a representative experience.

Plattekill is, I think, pretty much out of the quesiton as far as the kids are concerned. Unfortunately.

 

[catskills]

I totally know this - but I also know there are a certain class of skiers that even though they are beginners push for more advanced terrain. And there are those that just enjoy beginner terrain and are content.

I was a push to advanced terrain as a beginner/lower int. And that why i started skiing Hunter.. Because i could feel comfortable with mellow terrain(Mossy) and then the next trail over get more advanced(Chicken ridge). Then once I got a bit better the wide open mid station(Broadway) was a great place to learn.

but that just me...

I agree. Once you master Chicken Ridge your like wow I can do this. Chicken ridge can be a real confidence booster As you said, many get stuck being content to just ski easy blues and greens for years.

 

[ScottySkis]

Plattekill has a lot of familys and kids skiing the right side of the hill eveytime I go

 

[oakapple]

I don't see any Chicken Ridge on the Hunter map. Is that a defunct trail or a slang name?

 

[oakapple]

As you said, many get stuck being content to just ski easy blues and greens for years.

I can't relate to that phenomenon, since I am always trying to do harder things than I've done before.

But one significant difference is that I learned to ski as an adult, and I have a natural caution about doing anything that is WAY above the hardest thing I've done before: I like to move forward in incremental steps. My 15-year-old son, on the other hand, is far more inclined to say, "What the heck, let's go for it." His ability and mine are roughly similar, but he is much less cautious.

Having discussed this with a number of people, I'm convinced that this is frequently true of those who learned the sport in childhood, vs. those who learned it later.

 

[dmc]

I don't see any Chicken Ridge on the Hunter map. Is that a defunct trail or a slang name?

It was a nickname for the ridge that has the terrain park and Kennedy.. Pre Terrain park days.