Bearpen: The Beast Resurrected

With the future of winter in doubt, what makes someone open a ski center in a remote part of the Catskills?

“Insanity, I guess,” said Bearpen Sports Center owner Howard Rennell. “Kind of a childhood dream. I fell in love with the mountain, as well. It’s been a long, arduous process.”

Bearpen fat bikes

Growing up on the east end of Long Island, Rennell recalled, “Talk about the era of global warming, out there the chances of snow were slim and none. The sledding aspect, as a kid, you and your friends would gather together and make a kind of luge track. Pack it down and go out with watering cans and douse it with water, hoping it would freeze and last a little longer. This is a bigger scale of it.”

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Plattekill: The Life of Riley

As I’ve gotten older, I’ve improved my ability to deal with missing out. I’ve learned to smile, while sitting at my desk on a powder day, as my phone buzzes off the hook with incoming photos. At the same time, I fully appreciate those moments of logistical magic that allow me to be in the right place at the right time.

the drive to Plattekill

Early last week, a winter storm was flirting with the various weather models. Forecasts ranged from a gully-washing rainout to an epic nor’easter. One thing remained consistent across the models; if it did snow, the Catskills were in the bullseye. And as the week wore on, the chances for snow in New York were on the rise.

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Plattekill: Chasing a Moment

After my second day of the season at Plattekill, I sat down to write. For a ski blogger from the flatlands, the underlying themes don’t really change much. Life is often a balance between responsibility and the pursuit of a moment.

Plattekill Lodge

Our plan was to spend the holiday at our place near Gore. But my girls weren’t feeling it. They didn’t want to make the drive, and based on reports from the mountain my enthusiasm for an all out sales pitch was limited.

The recent weather has been hard to ignore. Last week’s rain was followed by colder temps, leaving things firm across the east. There was however one small ray of light: the National Weather Service issued a Winter Weather Advisory for the NY metro area and parts of southern NY for Saturday night.

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