The Adirondacks Blog

Whiteface Mountain Improvements 2014

Posted on by NYSkiBlog

Whiteface MountainAs the summer comes to a close Whiteface is wrapping up a busy off-season making a variety of improvements and changes to snowmaking, trails and lodges.

Snowmaking and Grooming

This summer Whiteface made it’s biggest investment to date in efficient fan and tower guns. Working with NYSERDA and NYSEG grants and incentives the mountain will be adding a variety of hardware to the arsenal.

Fan guns by HKD and TechnoAlpin will be placed in key locations on Summit Express, Victoria, and the top of Boreen chute. Further management is currently working out the final details on the purchase of over 100 new HKD Impulse guns to be placed around the mountain.

TechnoAlpin-TF10
TechnoAlpin TF10

In addition a new Pisten Bully PB 400 Park Pro will be added to the fleet of groomers.  The Park Pro is essentially a standard snow cat that can articulate tillers and blades more than a standard groomer.  It will be used in the park and across the mountain.

Continue reading →

Tagged: Adirondacks, Whiteface3 Comments

Hooper Garnet Mine, NY

Posted on by Harvey

Garnet mining is an important part of the history of the Gore Mountain region. And, right in our neighborhood, is an old abandoned garnet mine; the Hooper Mine on Garnet Hill.

Hooper Garnet Mine in NY

The garnet from this area was (and is) prized for the way it fractures, making it very valuable for abrasives like sandpaper. In 1878 the Barton family began mining on the backside of Gore Mountain.

Twenty years later Frank Hooper started his mining operation near Balm of Gilead Mountain. Hooper’s mine wasn’t as rich as Barton’s, but to some extent, he made up for it with ingenuity.

Continue reading →

Tagged: Adirondacks, Backcountry, Garnet Hill, Siamese Ponds Wilderness11 Comments

Vanderwhacker Mountain Fire Tower

Posted on by Harvey

The name Vanderwhacker first came onto my radar when I realized that the state land crossed by the Raymond Brook Ski Trail was part of the Vanderwhacker Wild Forest.

view from Vanderwacker Mountain fire tower

The Vanderwhacker Wild Forest is a diverse and discontinuous DEC construct, the center piece of which is Vanderwhacker Mountain and the Fire Tower.

With 1700 feet of elevation gain in two and a half miles I figured my wife, our daughter and I could handle it, even with a late start.

Continue reading →

Tagged: Adirondacks, Backcountry, Hiking4 Comments