Gore Mountain: 02/28/2010

Eric gets fresh tracks in the woods

Yesterday it had snowed lightly on and off for most of the day. That snow must have continued overnight, because yesterday's tracks were filled in for this morning's first runs in the trees.

Gore Mountain: 02/27/2010

This past week's weather rollercoaster deposited unbelievable amounts of snow in the Catskills, and impressive totals in the Adirondacks as well. I was excited, but anxious about the conditions we'd find at Gore this weekend. Gore had dangerously straddled the line between snow and rain for a couple days, and firsthand accounts of actual snow conditions on the mountain were few and far between.

West Mtn: 02/24/2010

“Jersey powder” conditions (slickpack and chowder) provided fun but challenging telemark skiing at West Mountain tonight. The best skiing surfaces were those areas that had (gasp) been groomed. As a fan of the ungroomed, that is not something I often say.

I don’t know if the ski center posted an “official” measurement, but my observation was that between 12 and 15 inches of moisture-laden snow had fallen.

Friends from various nearby mountainous areas (Lake Luzerne and Fort Anne) reported 2 feet, which seems consistent with the 20+ inches reported by Gore. The woods are now back in play, but conditions for this weekend will certainly be affected by what happens over the next 48 hours, so stay tuned to Jason The Weather Guy’s updates.

Gore Mountain: 02/22/10

Six of us were greeted by windless, bluebird skies and an almost empty lodge at Gore Monday morning. Beth, Daniel and me, plus my brother David, sister Allison, and niece Liz had a soft, almost springlike, day on the hill.

Gore Mountain: 02/20/2010

Spent a fairly leisurely and fun family day on the mountain today. Snow guns were still blasting the Rumor headwall all day. I'm hoping that one of these will earn me the cheeseburger Harvey's been promising. Actually, I'm more interested in the beer.

Gore Mountain: 02/19/2010

Hawkeye Headwall

Conditions at Gore have been pretty consistent over the past several weeks. With scant natural snowfall, it's mostly been a game of following the snowmaking crew around the mountain.

Gore Mountain: 02/06/2010

Marko under the Guns on Sagamore

Sagamore, on Burnt Ridge, skis like no other trail at Gore. When it opened last season, it was on all natural snow. I was concerned that the addition of snowmaking for this year might change it's character. It didn't.

Garnet Hill Lodge: 02/05/2010

One of the great things about cross country skiing is that you don't need a lot of snow to have great conditions. With the few inches of powder that has fallen over the past couple days, it seemed like a good day to take off from work and check out the trails up at Garnet Hill. Beth and I have done a lot of cross country skiing over the years, and Garnet Hill is one of our favorite places.