Ride Delaware ?

I had such a great trip to Canada last season, that I decided to try it again this season. After going last year solo, I was finally able to get Afroman to get his passport and join me. We left Sugarbush this morning at about 8 AM. We weren’t in a rush since it was going to be a mellow day with Afroman getting his legs back under him after two years off his board. We arrived at the border at about 10:30, and since Afroman had never been to Canada, we waited about 20 minutes for them to do a more in-depth check on him. After getting the go ahead, we arrived at Bromont, booted up in the parking lot, and were on the snow at 11:45. Despite it being Quebec vacation week, we found the crowds to be minimal, barely waited in a lift line, and we were able to get discounted lift tickets online. The mountain is pretty expansive and offers over 100 runs ranging from beginner to expert. It also has several t2b high speed lifts and several fixed grips. The lifts are strategically placed to disperse crowds and connect seamlessly with other trail pods. The temperature was in the mid 30’s and there was plenty of granular to go around. We mostly stuck to the green and blue stuff until the last couple of runs when Afroman was feeling adventurous enough to hit some black diamonds. We ate lunch at the lodge on the backside of the mountain. It was delicious and affordable, especially with the current exchange rate. After 15 runs, and having a 3 hour drive up north of Quebec City, we called it quits. Overall, not a bad first day to the Canadian ski trip. As an aside, I was amazed by the scope of the resort at Bromont. It was much larger than expected and had a very classy and well maintained set of lodges and base buildings, while also sporting several hotels and numerous ski houses. I highly recommend if you want a place to stop on the way to MSA or Le Massif.

I know I haven’t been particularly active lately. It’s mostly because I have been too busy at work to spend any serious time riding. There also haven’t been many worthwhile days to ride. I don’t mean to be a total doucher, because I’m super stoked some of you got up there, but I seem to be the only one who got really lucky on all accounts. I was headed to Vermont on Friday, and after looking at the forecast, and realizing I was going to be driving through the storm the whole time, I decided that I should head up Thursday night, get a room, and hit Plattekill in the morning. Truth be told, I’m not a huge fan of Hunter or Windham, and when there are goods to be had, I’m not hitting Bell, even if it is closer than Platty by a solid 45 minutes. So, after work on Thursday, about 4:15, I got in the car and headed north. It started raining almost immediately. I booked a room at the Hanah Mountain Resort, which is about 15 minutes from Platty, and pulled in about 10:30. The room cost $82, was a little dated, but it was clean. It had just started some mixed precipitation when I went to bed, but I had high hopes for the morning. I woke up early to about 8” of snow on the ground. I packed up and headed to Cassie’s Cafe in Roxbury for breakfast. I sat down at a high top table with two old timers from the area and passed the time with conversation while waiting for my food. Following an excellent breakfast burrito, I headed to the mountain. I was probably the 15th car in the lot at about 9 AM. It was snowing hard. I went inside to get my lift ticket, and surprise, they were running a special where the first 50 people received a $25 lift ticket. I booted up and was on the lift at 9:15. There was never a lift line all day. Both the double and triple were running all day. We found on later in the morning, via a mountain employee, that ALL other mountains in the Catskills were closed, EXCEPT for Plattekill. There was a huge cheer from everyone in the lodge. That’s when I knew I should never doubt my instincts. The early snow was wet, but later on in the day the temp dropped from 28 to 24, and it became less dense. The base was rough due to the fact that it was 50 degrees the day before, but it was quickly changing. Despite everything being open, there wasn’t much of a base on the natural trails or woods, so we mostly kept to the snowmaking trails. If you had a pair of beater skis, everything would have been in play. About 11:15, after 7 leg burning runs, I decided to head in to dry off and get a drink. When I went back outside an hour later, everything had changed. The wind had kicked up, the temps had dropped, and the snow was lighter. I went down the lift line of the triple, and I experienced the deepest east coast snow I have ever had. The snow was knee to thigh deep. The wind was wind loading everything skiers left. The snow was dumping, and it was free refills all afternoon. I had to hit that trail three times straight before heading back to the double. After a random run down some winding trails, I decided to hit the trail skiers right of the lift line. It was exactly like the triple lift line. Deep, wind loaded, and fresh every run. I decided to spend my last 3 runs of the day there. It was too good not to. After 14 runs, and knowing I had a 6 hour drive (with snow) to the Bush, I headed out. My back leg was completely shot. The parking lot was a complete disaster with 5 foot drifts in places. People parked too tight for the plow to get through, so I had to borrow a shovel from Laszlo, who was out shoveling the entrance doors to his lodge, to dig myself out. I have a ton of respect for that guy. He is out there doing all the hard work everyone else does. After 30 minutes of digging, spinning my tires, and being immensely thankful for backing my car in, I was finally on the road. The GPS decided to take me on Rt. 30 to I-88 to I-90 to I-87. Rt. 30 was one of the toughest drives I have ever done in the snow. The falling snow, combined with the winds, left for a surface that didn’t look like it had been plowed for hours. I was one of the very few idiots on the road, and there weren’t even tire tracks from other people to follow. Half the time I had to look at the line of telephone poles and estimate the road being 20 feet to the left of them. However, as I approached I-88 the snow began to lighten. After a couple miles on I-88 the road was clear and I was able to get to normal speeds for the rest of the trip. All in all, it’s probably a top 3 east coast ski day after Valentines Day 2014 and Le Massif 2017. If I had left before lunch, it would have been nothing to write home about. However, the wind loaded sides of the trail after lunch were some of the best powder I have ever had. All in all, it was a great day. I’m glad I did it. I was able to take some pictures, but it was all before lunch. It was too cold with the wind and snowing too hard for me to take my hand out to get my phone afterward.

Elk has lots of benefits. Better climate, less traffic, and conditions that generally hold up better to traffic... Looks good. Enjoy the early season. Everything before Christmas is normal... I mean, a bonus.

Guns were on at top and base at 12:55 AM

They are really pushing the timeline on improvements this year. They are still barely off the ground with the bridge, and they just set the last gondi tower today...

Did they have 2 trails today?

Looks good. Pretty solid base depth too. Hopefully it lasts through to the next cold stretch. Way to get after it!!!

I had no idea where the project stood. I figured it was only a minor issue or two that they would iron out and get started a year or two later...

If not by then, maybe by the opening of the new hotel?

Thanks. But the most important questions haven't been addressed. How is the foliage? Is the bridge open?

Tough to drive an extra 3 hours when something that much closer opens, even if all reports from Mount Snow have been absolutely stellar. Why am I not reading a trip report loaded with pictures? And not to disappoint GSS... Way to get after it!!!

I was prepared for that reply...

Educated guess? You up at Mount Snow?

Pics or it didn't happen...

So... Many... TREES!!!

Both, but is a better snowboarder...

Makes perfect sense. I'm sure one of you will be writing a trip report. Girlfriend is at Bretton Woods. Said it's great. 1,200' of vertical off a hsq. Who even cares that it's got next to no pitch? Not bad for $25...

I don't know much about BB, but from the webcams, it doesn't look like much else other than Freedom got the treatment?

BB "officially" opening at 3

That's like his third strike two. I think you've got to ban him. Ski season starts tomorrow in PA, and it's not ski season without a GSS ban... Speaking of bridges... Did they reopen the bridge yet?

I still think Blue Knob has Blue beat on terrain if we are considering ALL of PA, but in NEPA, I think Blue definitely has anything other than Elk beat. Haven't been to Montage in forever though. That could beat it out, but I doubt it...

I'm sure it was more fun. However, they also opened up significantly later...

I can only imagine the masses of park rats lining every inch of that trail...

They are aiming for a park tomorrow, right? They've done it before, even if it was 7 or 8 years ago. It can be done again...

NP