Waking up early on the weekends comes a lot easier when fresh snow awaits. For the second weekend in a row Tiff and I were on the road by 6:00 a.m., headed for more Erie lake effect.
A big and bright full moon lit the way. The air was crisp and cold, the car thermometer read a brisk 6 degrees, but we were fired up for the adventure.
This weekend we headed to Kissing Bridge, located in the ‘Colden Snowbelt’ south of Buffalo, with plans to meet our friend Kyle. I’d always heard Kissing Bridge was a fun spot, and was excited for our first-ever visit.
The mountain is under new ownership as of late October, and they have already made investments in snowmaking. According to a local news source: “Four new snow fans and 25 new stick guns will increase the resort’s snowmaking capabilities by more than 200%.” Lucky for them, mother nature has helped kickoff their season with lake effect snow dumps on back-to-back weekends.
As we neared Glenwood NY, the lake effect magic began — snow! The first we’d seen since leaving home, blanketing the ground. We pulled into the parking lot with grins, knowing sunshine and great conditions would make for a fun day.
It was their second weekend open, and KB already had close to 50% of their terrain open. We layered up, and headed to the Holly Triple chair.
We kicked things off on the face of Holly. Groomed areas were crisp and firm, side snow stashes were more to my liking. At the bottom of Holly there was a mini-park setup, which Kyle and I were happy to see; not many NY mountains have a park setup this early in the season.
After we made our way around all the ‘Central’ part of the mountain, lifties gave us the heads up that the South Chair had just opened up for the day and it was time to check it out.
As we navigated to the South Chair via Twinkle, I could tell we were going to enjoy this section of the mountain. This pod was quiet and mellow with primarily natural snowfall, which was great considering the recent weather.
Woods Trail and Outside Edge were my favorites of the day — rated black diamonds for their width — they offered tight wooded runs in the snow covered trees, a winter wonderland.
By 1pm, we were ready for après by the fire on the large patio area at the base. We soaked in the sunshine with a beer and had a front row seat to watch the riders rip through the terrain park.
Having only had access to half of the mountain, we were all very happy with our experience and excited to visit again when more terrain is open.
Kyle called it a day after our break, but Tiff and I decided we weren’t done quite yet and headed back out for a few more laps, savoring every second before the sun dipped behind the ridge. Content and tired, we capped off the day with burgers from ‘Buffalo Bros Burgers’ food truck in the lot before heading home.
Weekend #2 of our season was a success. Kissing Bridge delivered, and we couldn’t be more excited to return. Tis the season for Erie lake effect, and we’re ready for more! Bring it on, Mother Nature.
Always a great time riding with friends. ESPECIALLY when there Is fresh snow to be had.
Looks like you guys had nice conditions on a fun mountain. I look forward to skiing there when I head out to western NY.