Ride Delaware ?

https://bangordailynews.com/2021/01/20/news/piscataquis/knox-county-developer-proposes-75m-ski-resort-by-moosehead-lake/?fbclid=IwAR0lYkuDAS2mwB6n4XrCl-SfegSKobUPu_5Ht62bRkT5x5G1PNnJ57vK6-4 This is awesome news. I haven’t been back since this TR, but the potential in the area is awesome. It’s a great little town with an amazing view. Going back to the top would give it 1,700’ vertical and make it the 4th largest in Maine. It was sad seeing the main lodge and hotel rotting away. The volunteer group deserves a lot of credit for keeping the trails cleared, reclaiming the upper trails, getting some minimal snowmaking online, fixing up and operating the lower lift, and completely renovating the lower lodge. Without that, I doubt there would have been any interest and it would have had another 7 years of rust, cobwebs, and natural reclamation. Their goal was to get the mountain up and running as an economic driver and give the kids a place to ski and a reason to come back home. There’s still a long way to go, but if it goes through, they are the biggest reason. They aren’t open right now due to the reliance on natural snow (the previous owner sold some of the snowmaking pipes and all the equipment minus a small pump), but I wish them all the best. I loved the vibe and the friendly volunteers that just wanted this mountain to succeed. Some were in their 30’s, but most were deep into their second acts, and they worked as hard as anyone else to keep it going. I’d like to get back there before they renovate it next year, and change it, but I don’t know if that’s in the cards. Regardless, I’m excited for their future.

What was the final snow tally?

I hope you are all able to take advantage of it tomorrow. Great storm, especially for early season.

I guess I could slip through since I don’t have a front plate...

Looks like the Pokes and Catskills are going to get pounded on this one. Technically I think Covid mandates dictate some type of quarantine from Delaware to PA, so I guess I could get to WV. No quarantine there and they are getting two storms this week. It’s enticing...

Egan is a Sugarbush/Warren Miller legend and not a bad narrator. Dude still rips. Unfortunately, he just got let go from the Bush, as did many others during Covid and the Alterra transition. I think this year is going to be a tightening of purse strings for most places just trying to get through this year and then back to normal next year. Jen just so happens to be the wife of a patroller. That whole family can rip and can regularly be found skinning the mountain first thing in the AM. The backcountry movement has really grown in VT, but it sounds like it’s more organized in terms of clubs and maintenance groups in NH. Take that for what it’s worth since I haven’t gotten into that yet.

I haven’t been to Okemo in years (I want to say I went 4-5 years ago, but I know the first time I went was about 15 years ago) and I stayed at Happy Trails in Ludlow both times. It was a terrible start to the year, and right before Christmas (college break), OutCold, a friend, and I got a lift/lodging package there for $60 a night for 5 nights. $300 for 5 days on the snow was a steal, even back then. The hotel was relatively new and the rooms were basic. I’d like to say it was clean, but we were college students looking for a cheap vacation. The second time the rooms were in decent shape. We drank some beers with the CVA while they tuned their skis for a competition. They have/had a hot tub in a room to itself. No real hours or supervision. It was a good place to crash. I looked at the reviews, which are now less than stellar, and the google maps street view shows that it’s getting some age. That’s the only place I know there, but I have some fond memories.

It’s grown in popularity, but the crowds are nothing like Vail. When I was there last year we opted to go to Beaver Creek on the weekends due to the fact that it is the most remote and doesn’t have nearly the same size village. The only lift line I regularly waited in (peak season) was a 2 minute lift line or two getting out of the base. Everything else was basically ride on, although there was a slight wait at the mid mountain lodge around lunch. I quite liked Beaver Creek, and while Vail does have better all around terrain, including trees, I would rather ride than spend 20 minutes in a lift line every time I took a run on a weekend day.

They look kind of funky, but they are doing everything they can to make money and allow for extra capacity. They’ve got to pay off all that money they paid Win to buy the place. They are heated via propane, but no electric. I haven’t read the article, so I don’t know the cost per day. I do know that they weren’t too expensive to build. Sugarbush mostly uses in house staff to do their lift shack builds and routine maintenance.

It happens every year, and since Blue is opening Friday, I have to ask... Is the bridge open yet?

No kids yet, but lots going on. I’ve got a full slate in December and January. I just don’t see getting out before then. I could be pleasantly surprised, but I’m also not making it as much of a priority without extended trips to VT being in play.

I think it was a year like this when I started this thread. This one may be even worse. There have been years in PA on par or worse than this one, but this is a pretty rough start for New England. Looks to turn the corner this week up there. I won’t be going to Sugarbush much this year, if at all (out of state employees not allowed, plus quarantine), but a December 10 date is incredibly late for them. In a normal year they would probably be open and downloading, but with the push to open multiple routes and lifts to spread crowds, it’s very delayed. I’ve got so much going on that I wasn’t planning on riding much this year anyway, but Covid has thrown a wrench into my most modest plans. I see a couple Blue days in my future this spring. I’ll be staying closer to home I think.

That might be the only reasonable option in a year filled with unexpected events and illogical decisions being made...

This could be the short term future for many ski areas, especially those owned by the large companies that want to mitigate bad press. I know that Sugarbush is looking strongly at cracking down on any part time employees or volunteers that are coming from red counties. Unless Covid rates slow down, I might not be able to patrol this year at all. I doubt I’ll be able to quarantine for 2 weeks and then patrol.

Water Gap is a fun little section. It’s a little freaky hiking across I-80 with tractor trailers blowing you around, but the DWG section on the Jersey side is pretty easy for the first couple miles. They’ve made it like a superhighway for all the tourists that are just out for the day. Just a little past that there’s some decent little views and a really nice view off the fire tower. I hope she got to experience that. Jersey is pretty mellow. NY is the fun one. The deli superhighway. Eat like a king every day without needing to go off the trail further than a half mile.

Still impressive, even if it doesn’t come out as clean as you hoped. I’m interested to see the finished edge.

Fall weather is the answer year round. Crisp at night, warm during the day, and much lower humidity.

It’s nearly impossible, especially with the option of “quarantine at home”. How complicated can they make it? They are lucky it can’t really be enforced, otherwise Vermont and all their ski areas would nearly be bankrupt next year.

Did she end up hiking? Unfortunately, I’ve been stalled at the PA/NJ and VT/NH line for two years, so no experience on that part. I had a hike planned in late July, but cancelled it due to Covid. I will be back out next summer. I find that the most of the official maps do pretty well at defining official campsites and water spots. If you’re looking for stealth sites and on trail water, I suggest your daughter look into the forums at WhiteBlaze or she invest in the AWOL AT NoBo or SoBo book. They have tons of great insider info and lots of hidden spots.

Went on a little 3 day getaway to Wisp/Deep Creek earlier this week. Awesome little spot if you’ve never been. Stayed at the hotel at the base of the mountain. Did some small hikes including one to the top of the mountain where they have the mile long self contained whitewater course. Really impressive setup. No summer activities with Covid however. Weather was glorious. 65-70 during the day and 45 at night. Coolest weather I’ve seen since March. Very few leaves changing though...

It changes every week, but quarantine isn’t required for all visitors to VT. It’s based on the John’s Hopkins weekly rolling data and the map is updated every week. I know most of you live south of there, but Carbon and Monroe counties are both allowed to travel to VT without quarantine. Here’s the map if you care to look further into it: https://accd.vermont.gov/covid-19/restart/cross-state-travel

Thanks for all the good work you and the crew do over there at nyskiblog Harvey. You put together a great product. I appreciate you checking in every once in awhile. If I ever need more backup on Plattekill, I’ll tag you into the ring [emoji6]

Belleayre is a fun little place. It gets more crap than it should, especially since the snow is decent and there are less crowds. However, let’s be real. Drive the extra 30 minutes to Plattekill. Better snow than the other Catskill resorts, cheaper lift tickets, and they have some $25 days if you’re one of the first 50 (?) to purchase a ticket. It’s a true gem.

Are you going to AZ as a standalone trip, or work related with a fun side trip? I would say that the Belleayre numbers over the past 3 years before Covid are pretty telling. I think a 12k increase annually is probably a good number. I bet they are happy with that. Belleayre had many factors that worked against it for many years. It wasn’t properly advertised when the DEC managed it prior to 2017. They run parks and state forests, not ski areas. They had sub par snowmaking, two outdated lodges, several old lifts, and a very odd mountain layout. The DEC had many year round employees with benefits that put a drag on the bottom line. They had trouble getting money from the state since it came out of the general budget. They had very little income because they gave out BOGO’s and $25 lift tickets like they were going out of style. Now they are managed by ODRA, who knows how to run and advertise a ski area. They have updated both lodges, added the gondola, and reworked some trails. They’ve also started slowly increasing and modernizing the snowmaking. I think they are on a good path, and with the proximity to NYC, I wouldn’t be surprised if they start getting closer in skier visits to the other two. They could even surpass it if the Belleayre Resort at Catskill Park is ever built.

I’m guessing it’s a family place near Mt. Pocono? There’s not really a reason to go southwest to the Pokes when you can get to VT, NH, ME, and parts of NY in the same amount of time...