Alpine Ski Areas in MA for a novice

[sli74]

Hey Quietman,

I skied at Black in ME this past Saturday as well. I was there from 11 am to 6 pm, we might've run into each other and not even known it

sli74

 

[Quietman]

Damn, wish I could have said Hi!
I was on the triple all day, purple jacket, black helmet w/clear duct tape covering the vents Didn't run into anyone that I am aware of

Don't tell anyone else about Black Mtn, I want to keep it all to myself. My parents have a cabin on North Pond 20 miles away.

 

[SherpaKroto]

Quietman: Sunday River may be expensive, but I've rarely found it skied off. One of my favorite places to ski in New England.

Seema: since you are in North Conway a fair amount, try Cranmore. Night skiing is $12 anytime. I'm not 100 sure which trails are open at night though...

 

[Quietman]

Hi SherpaKroto

I've had many great days at S.R. also, just that after a collision and many near misses, I've tried to avoid the large areas on weekends. I've really enjoyed the smaller areas like Ragged, Mt Abram and Black. Much cheaper and I HATE liftlines.
I'd never hike Tuckerman's on a spring weekend(had to include a hiking reference in this thread )

 

[weatherman]

Ski Ward!

Slogan: "Where it all begins!" Really.
Maybe it's too flat, but IMHO a great place to learn, though you will outgrow it in about 2-3 days. We bought season passes this year to teach our 5 and 7 year olds. Plus it's only 1.8 miles from our house. Good snowmaking, never crowded. Half day tickets are typically $25. (I think I would die of boredom skiing there a full day). The major advantage is repetition and no anxiety whatsoever. The second smallest vertical in MA (250 ft I think). I've seen tele skiers there once or twice. If you go, I'll be the one yelling at my 5 year old to slow down. (balance and luck keep her from wiping out about 99% of the time).
Chris

 

[sli74]

Well, if you were on the expert Trails I wouldn't have seen you because I was on the novice trails all the way to the right and when I wasn't screaming and falling down getting off the ski lift, I was laying my head down and catching a nap in the lodge.

If you saw me you might remember me because I was the only Indian girl in the entire place.

I will definitely go back there . . . wish it were closer

sli74

 

[skimom]

Madriver: thanks !!

Definitely try Cranmore if you're up in North Conway. Smaller than many of the other big ski mountains, but a really great learning mountain.

Crotched in NH is supposed to be really good. My friend patrols there and says it's great .... it really hasn't been 'discovered' yet so there's no lift lines. She also mentioned something about carloads on Sundays where you pay $60 and get a lift ticket for as many people as you drive in with in the same car, or something like that. Sorry, I don't remember the specifics, but it may be on their website.

 

[Quietman]

Crotched's carload day is Monday, $60 for 5. Tues and Wed are 2 for 1($17.50 each), Thurs is student day $15. The snow has been great but no crowds at all. Hope they can stay in business! BTW; no specials next week during school break.
Cannon is doing 2 for 1 holiday rates on Tues & Thurs next week.
Ragged has carload special on Wed $50 for 5, also not next Wed.

These and other deals are included on the SkiNH web site from my previous post.

 

[Mark_151]

Was anyone at Crotched today? I'm supposed to go up there tomorrow with some people from work for the 2 for 1, but with this weather I don't know if it's worth the trip. Last Wednesday it was OK, but alternated from just slush to slush over ice. Made telemarking real interesting.

 

[Quietman]

with a low of 30 tonight and highs in the 40's tomorrow, the snow should be pretty soft maybe even slushy until the cold front comes through.

Here's a live web cam
cam

My noon "hike" in Milford NH today was pretty slushy!

 

[Gris]

since you are in North Conway a fair amount, try Cranmore.

Hmmm, gonna have ta disagree w the affable Sherp on this one (prob the first time ever!) - and SkiMom as well. I've skiied a fair amt at Cranmore and can't recommend it for beginners, esp. at night. It's been a couple of years since i skiied there but as i recall the night skiing is fairly steep and there is very ltd beginner terrain which gets as congested as Rt. 16. Nor would I really recommend Attitash. Bretton has the best beginner terrain hands down and the best snow quality too, but it ain't cheap. Although they do have midweek 2-1 deals sometimes. If you want cheap and gentle in the N. Conway area try Black Mt in Jackson (that is if you can find it...). Just my $0.02. But hey, what does a Fla boy know..?

 

[MichaelJ]

I wouldn't mind bumping into fellow VFTT'ers at Wachusett, but it would have to be a weeknight - my pass is NG on weekends (or school vacation week) and I can't keep taking days off from work.

I'll be there tomorrow (Thursday) night, weather and conditions permitting, trying out longer skis (read: instead of cruising down Conifer I'll be falling down Sundowner).

The learning terrain at Wawa is excellent, Seema. It's a slow chairlift (triple) and so the majority of people head to the detachable quads to move the line faster and hit the harder terrain. This leaves minimal, if any, line for the greens. Even when the after-school crowd is there.

Night skiing does get some ice as the season grows late, and this week's weather may mean that, but up until now I haven't seen any issues at all with night vs. day.

 

[Mark_151]

Hey MichaelJ -- I might head up there tomorrow night. I don't think I'm going to Crotched tonite, so that'll be the last time I have a chance to get out before the Feb Vacation Nightmare begins. I'll PM you tomorrow if I go. Depends on conditions.

As far as beginner terrain goes -- as soon as you're comfortable on the blues, the new Vickery Bowl area makes a great spot to get away from the crowds. The chair is almost as slow as Monadnock and the runs are short, but it's shorter and a good place to yo yo.

 

[MichaelJ]

Sounds good. Conditions will definitely be key to my getting out there, since I don't want to try out 20cm longer skis in a slushy mess. That would be ... bad.

I'll watch for your PM tomorrow, or PM you back when I know my plans. I usually get there around 5:30.

 

[Seeker]

For info on cheap tickets and lodging, check out:

www.slidingonthecheap.com


I agree with the assessment of Cranmore--I think it's a bit steep for a beginner, but it is cheap!

Sunappee is another nice place for beginners IMO. But again, not cheap.

Ya know...if you got into backcountry skiing, you wouldn't have to worry about cost!

"Free your heels and your mind will follow"

 

[Gris]

But ... , ya gotta luv Cranmore - a true picture post card American "town hill" if there ever was one, where the kids ride the school bus (w/ gear) to the ski Mt. and then home in the afternoon/eves. And where else can ya watch an outdoor hockey game from the slopes! Ya, live free or die! Once upon a time I knew a young lady who lived w/n walking distance of the hill and we would watch em coming down from the second story window at night. But that was a while ago. It's a busier place now. We hippies are out and the yuppies are in. I digress ...

 

[bobmak]

Seema, Bradford is a great beginner hill, about 10 minutes from my house. I enjoy going up there after work once in a while; for night skiing it would be a bit of a haul from your area I think. They usually close for the season around the beginning of March.

This falls out of the skiing in Ma. category, but if anyone ever wants to share a ride to ski in NH or Me. on a Sunday, let me know. I usually drive up every other weekend, often for day trips on Sundays. I have the Sunday River / Attitash / Sugarloaf seasons pass, but can be talked into skiing most other areas as well. Anyone interested, send me a PM.

Nadine, it was great running into you at Sugarloaf. Hopefully I'll get up there for a few days midweek in March... I'll keep an eye out for you!

 

[Mark_151]

Wachusett tonite, 5:30ish

Me and MichaelJ are meeting over at WA tonite about 5-5:30. PM one of us if you're heading up too!

Mark

 

[Mark_151]

Me and MichaelJ are meeting over at WA tonite about 5-5:30. PM one of us if you're heading up too!

Mark

FYI -- Conditions at Wa last night were excellent considering the weather the last 2 weeks. Much better than I thought. I highly recommend it right now, and it'll only get better with the snowmaking and possible storm Monday.

Mark

PS -- MichaelJ was making some pretty good turns!

 

[MarshallM]

I'm stoked for some free-heel skiing at Wachusett as well. The only catch is that I don't own BC skis yet. After a fair bit of research, I was finally able to find a pair of Garmont Excursion boots earlier this week.
As soon as I can find a quality waxable pair of what Pinnah call's Traditional Touring skis (hopefully at a good price), I'll be in business. Stores appear to be pretty much cleaned out at this point.
It'll probably be straight to the bunny slope for me to unlearn alpine technique and to learn to turn skinny skis.

Marshall