Mount Peter, NY: 1/21/12

Everyone knows that being a skier based in the tri-state area is not for the weak of heart. To get to any high-profile mountain — either in New York or in New England — you’re looking at a lot of time on the interstates. But on the plus side, if you’re the parent of a young skier who doesn’t need thousands of uninterrupted vertical feet, there are quite a few ski areas that fit the bill and are only a short drive away.

Mount Peter NY

This morning, the first measurable snow to hit our region since the day before Halloween got me motivated to check out a classic downstate family ski hill: Mount Peter in Warwick, NY. Mount Peter has three chairlifts to cover its 400 vertical feet, so even though there was a good crowd today, we never waited in a lift line.

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NY Ski Magazine: Loveland and Winter Park, CO

As a skier based in the New York City region with, for better or worse, a “real” job, a mortgage, and a family, my yearly ski totals over the past decade have remained pretty consistent. I always manage to ski 25-30 days per season, with two thirds of those days in the northeast and the other third out west or, on a few lucky occasions, in the Alps.

When I head west two or three times each winter, Salt Lake City receives a fair amount of my visits because it’s just too convenient to sidestep. Nonstop flights allow you to ski at least a half day on the arrival and departure days without breaking a sweat, and there are seven very good to great lift-served mountains within a 35-minute drive of its user-friendly airport.

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The Mountains Less Traveled: Québec Ski Safari

As much as I love the mountains of New York State, getting outta Dodge is also an important part of my ski season. October is the month where I stop dreaming and start making concrete plans for destination trips.

View from Le Massif.

For me, it’s all about the process — first, committing to specific dates and deciding on the region or mountain I’d like to ski. Then comes the hard part, asking myself what I want from that fantasy week. Stay in one place or travel around? Dirtbag or detonate my savings? Visit something truly different or stick with the familiar?

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