The Adirondacks Blog

Royal Mountain: Get Up and Go

Posted on by Robert

In New York, early season conditions can be fickle, to say the least. The first year I moved to Utica, I remember a lake effect storm dumping 2’ of snow on Tug Hill a week before Thanksgiving.

Royal Mountain lift

This year I felt I would be lucky to get any turns in before Christmas. Saturday’s weather was a bust. I got my booster Friday night so I didn’t feel bad wasting Saturday, while it steadily rained. I had no expectation Sunday would be any better, but it was.

I woke up late on Sunday and saw a seemingly benign share on Facebook by ISKINY. Royal mountain was open, freshly groomed and from the picture it looked like loads of base.

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Tagged: Adirondacks, Royal Mountain6 Comments

Gore Mountain Opening Surprise

Posted on by Harvey

Gore usually targets Black Friday for opening day and I rarely make it.  This year was no different. Thursday we feasted. Friday morning we bought our Christmas tree and stood it up, ready to decorate. In the afternoon, I drove to our place in the Adirondacks, solo, to ski the weekend. The snowfall forecast was favoring northern zones, and it looked like Whiteface could be the right call for me.

Gore Mountain base lodge
Gore Mountain Nov 27 2021

When I arrived in North River, I was surprised to see 4 inches of new snow on the ground. It was still snowing lightly. Recently my tires have been the subject of scorn, and the driveway wasn’t plowed. I considered walking up to eliminate drama. Instead, I chose to run and gun, and I made it up.

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Tagged: Adirondacks, Gore Mountain12 Comments

Hickory or Not?

Posted on by Harvey

There’s a significant group of skiers out there who’ve had a great day at Hickory. Certainly enough to fill up the ski center after a storm. When you consider the total number of ski days Hickory has operated over the last 10 years, that’s really kind of amazing.

Hickory fire pit

Personally I’ve had six days at Hickory, five of them in winter, all were unforgettable. So yea, people like me, we’re out there.

Many of us wish we had another shot at it. I know I do. If I had known my last Hickory ski day was going to be my last Hickory ski day, by golly, I would have skied harder. Many also understand why Hickory has been closed the last few years.

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Tagged: Adirondacks, Hickory Ski Center21 Comments