With the cool weather today, I started exchanging texts with my son about ski trip. . . .  We talked northeast and west.  Haven't been to Jay (ever) or to Utah (in a few years).  Where are you thinking of going??

I am hoping to get to Blue Knob this year finally. Might also try and get to Gunstock in NH with some family that has a condo up there. With the ridiculous pass I have a free pass to Hidden Valley (along with a few other places I have already been), not sure I'll try it, but maybe I'll hit three new places this season.

The current chatter within my ski buddies is Big Sky MT sometime in Feb.  We hope to formalize our plans by the end of Oct.  

I'm also planning on a return trip to southern VT for a long weekend with a buddy who lives near Boston.  We did Stratton and Magic Mtn last year and are thinking about Mt Snow and Bromley this year.

I'm taking a less traditional approach this year. I'm hopeing on maybe just maybe being able to make some turns in pa (cownas gap) and some small yet steep hills near my house. Also really want to go ski tucks later on in the season , but more likley it will translate into a vt trip again.

Thinking of taking the family up to Belleayre/Plattekill this year.

My daughter lives in central Connecticut so we spent a long weekend skiing at Okemo last January.  Really enjoyed it, the grooming was great and we stayed slope side which was perfect.

If you want to go a little farther north my favorite in the east is Mt. Tremblant.  Been there 3 times and while once it was the coldest place I have ever skied -25F, the village and number and quality of the runs was great.

I also ski Blue Knob 1 - 2 times a season and you really need to go when there is lots of natural snow to ski the more difficult side of the mountain.

Trying to get a Utah in April trip together...

Lots of trips to WV, but also thinking about Steamboat if they have a good snow season and if the ridiculous pass does the cross promotion with other intrawest properties again.

eggraid wrote:

 and if the ridiculous pass does the cross promotion with other intrawest properties again.

We were told at our HOA mtg that the 250 credit like last year was not going to happen in 15 - 16.  I hope they change their mind .....

David wrote:

Trying to get a Utah in April trip together...

I might have a reason to go that way next winter.  Should know more in the next few days/weeks.

The Blue Ridge Ski Council has a trip to Whiteface. Has anyone been there recently and can offer an opininion. I was thinking about signing up for this trip.

Blue Don,

What did Snowshoe management tell you all about improvements for this coming season and next?  Specifically, what is the status of auto snowmaking on Cupp Run, and what about lift improvements in the Basin complex?  Thanks, and if necessary send me a pm.  The Colonel

snowsmith wrote:

The Blue Ridge Ski Council has a trip to Whiteface. Has anyone been there recently and can offer an opininion. I was thinking about signing up for this trip.

If you like big, brawny skiing, not necessarily manicured to perfection, then Whiteface could be your cup of tea.  It is scenically very beautiful with long runs and interesting variety for advanced skiers/boarders.  Has a more remote feel than say, southern VT resorts, yet nearby town of Lake Placid is as resortsy as they come ”“ in a good way.  Here are a couple of write-ups:

 http://www.dcski.com/articles/1446

http://www.epicski.com/a/whiteface-mountain-ny-a-pictorial

What time of the year is your group trip?  Because it’s far north, has the highest lift served terrain in the East, and is sort of a standalone mtn Whiteface can experience brutal mid-winter weather (sorry to promote the stereotype), but it’s a good place to go in March when our local season is winding down and things just begin to soften there.

Heading west a couple times.  Mid-season trip will make good use of the Mountain Collective Pass.  My ski buddies got the MCP too.  Using SLC as the meeting point.  A few with flexible schedules will probably start with Sun Valley, then a few days at Alta, followed by the first half of the EpicSki Gathering at Aspen/Snowmas/Highlands.  If the snow is great at JH, might drive there instead of SV.

Will be at Alta Lodge with friends in April per usual.  Will be hard to beat the April 15, 2015 storm that left 30 inches of powder though.

Expect to be up at Massanutten for the holiday weekends with my friend and her kids.  Plus early Jan for the demo weekend.  Might make a side trip to Wisp at some point to satisfy my curiosity.

Blue Don 1982 wrote:

eggraid wrote:

 and if the ridiculous pass does the cross promotion with other intrawest properties again.

We were told at our HOA mtg that the 250 credit like last year was not going to happen in 15 - 16.  I hope they change their mind .....

That's a bummer. If it isn't on this year, then we'll just do our best to chase the snow somewhere out west in early March.

Hello folks, I've been lurking forever; albeit with a username I could never remember when I thought about posting.

My plans this year are for some snowshoe since I  have the ridiculous pass again and more CVR and Whitegrass, I've really come to love the valley.  The corridor H connection is making the access significantly easier even for me coming up from NC.

On a long weekend this year I want to make a daytrip up to Blue Knob, with enough snow to fill up the trees it looks like one of the best in the area.....

Out west will probably take me too Oregon and Idaho this year, maybe CO too if I'm lucky and the season is long

Its looking like whistler is the big trip this winter, probably february. If i can swing a late march trip to colorado ill be at A-Basin. As for here, a weekend or two at SS, and almost every other weekend at Wisp. 

I have the same pass as last year, Kirkwood, Heavenly, Northstar.  I dont much care for the latter two, but the pass is a deal, especially if you're over 70.  What would redeem them is if we should get some big powder dumps.  H and N are groomed skier dream material, which means that their trees go unloved because the vast majority of their skiers dont ski powder in trees.  At least, thats the way I have it figured out; i have yet to prove it because the last 2 winters have been the worst Sierra snow winters in 50 years.  There hasnt been any powder in the trees.  Heavenly reported a season total of 73" in 2014/15. 

I am increasingly of the mindset that to get great powder skiing you must go to little places that nobody ever heard of where the powder lies untracked for days after a storm.  I found a bunch of them in MT 3 winters ago, but you have to be a hermit.  Squaw, Jackson, Alta/Snowbird,, Whistler?  Pffft, youre lucky if you can ski 5 linked turns in untracked powder by 11AM at any of them.  To quote  JohnL, they are full of powder locusts.  If Ullr smiles on the west this year and if I succeed in reading the tea leaves and finding unloved powder stashes within a days drive of where I now live in SF, I'll report. 

My lad mentioned Sun Valley.  Has anyone been to Sun Valley recently?? Latest stuff on this web page is from 2007.  Any comments on weather, lodging, costs etc?

Denis wrote:

 

I am increasingly of the mindset that to get great powder skiing you must go to little places that nobody ever heard of where the powder lies untracked for days after a storm.  I found a bunch of them in MT 3 winters ago, but you have to be a hermit.  Squaw, Jackson, Alta/Snowbird,, Whistler?  Pffft, youre lucky if you can ski 5 linked turns in untracked powder by 11AM at any of them.  To quote  JohnL, they are full of powder locusts.  If Ullr smiles on the west this year and if I succeed in reading the tea leaves and finding unloved powder stashes within a days drive of where I now live in SF, I'll report. 

I feel the same way about smaller places in general -- less crowds, cheaper tickets, happier faces.   Even if hill doesn't boast much above a thousand feet vert, if there's good snow and some decent trees and it's new to me it's a great adventure for a day or two.

This year I hope to check out some  places in Idaho like Brundage, Bogus, schwietzer etc.   --- hope it's a better year than last

kemperski wrote:

This year I hope to check out some  places in Idaho like Brundage, Bogus, schwietzer etc.   --- hope it's a better year than last

Places near the continental divide,near the MT/ID border, get about 400" of powder per season, average, and are virtually empty.  Lost Trail, 40 miles from Hamilton MT on one side and 40 miles from Salmon ID on the other, is my favorite so far.  Places I missed include Turner Mountain, and Lookout Pass.  All 3 are closed several days per week.  On those days it it a virtual certainty that some new powder will fall.  Chief Joseph Pass, a few miles from Lost Trail, has a small community run XC system that is the most beautiful I've ever experienced.  It straddles the continental divide.  Snowfall totals fall rapidly as you go east from the divide into Montana. 

kemperski wrote:

 

I feel the same way about smaller places in general -- less crowds, cheaper tickets, happier faces.   Even if hill doesn't boast much above a thousand feet vert, if there's good snow and some decent trees and it's new to me it's a great adventure for a day or two.

 

This year I hope to check out some  places in Idaho like Brundage, Bogus, schwietzer etc.   --- hope it's a better year than last

If you are going to be out west anyway, two areas to check are Hoodoo in Oregon and Washington's Mission Ridge. Hoodo is on the Cascade divide about halfway between Bachelor and Portland. Mission Ridge is on the eastern flanks of the Cascades (northeast of  of Seatle and southeast of Stevens Pass) which gets drier fluffier snow  than the normal Cascade concrete. Be aware that Mission Ridge in NOT open 7 days a week, and may have been affected by recent forest fires.

Maybe hit a few smaller New Hampshire resorts. We have our eye on a March Utah trip too.