The Catskills Blog

Hunter’s Pond Skimming Beach Bash

Posted on by x10003q

I like spring skiing best of all. We get to strip off the layers, the sun is high in the sky, and the hard conditions of the winter transform to soft easy skiing. After a decent season for snow and snow making, Hunter was looking really good for the weekend.

Hunter Mountain pond skimming

Saturday was Hunter’s Beach Bash and Pond Skimming Costume Contest. The sun was shining and there were blue skies, but with temps in the high teens and a 25mph wind, Hunter was in midwinter form. When I arrived, there was a thin layer of ice on top of the skimming pond.

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Tagged: Catskills, Hunter4 Comments

Gettin’ Schooled at Belleayre

Posted on by James Michaud

When Belleayre joined the Olympic Regional Development Authority several months ago, some ORDA stakeholders wondered aloud about the logic of adding a third ski area to the agency’s mission.

Belleayre-Lodge

Many of the thoughts were variations of: “Whiteface is known for the biggest lift-served vertical drop east of the Rockies and some of the most challenging in-bounds terrain in the Northeast, including The Slides. Gore is beloved for its extensive glades and cruising trails. What does Belleayre bring to the state-owned mix that those ski areas don’t already provide?”

An obvious answer is its proximity to the densely populated Tri-State Region: a huge, at best partially tapped market for Belleayre and the three privately-owned Catskills ski areas. Another is the potential for terrain expansion.

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Tagged: Belleayre, Catskills3 Comments

The Powder Hunter

Posted on by ml242

Yesterday I called in sick. I almost lost my job, but it was worth it.

It wasn’t clear to start the day that my gamble would pay off. Plattekill pulled the plug on a planned Powderdaize, when the sun rose on a disappointing three inches of frozen precipitation.

Scottski-Crossover

Fortunately NYSkiBlog HQ got me the information I needed and I traveled an exit farther north on the Thruway to Hunter Mountain where I met up with Lemmycaution and Scottski.

On my way in to grab a lift ticket, I ran into a Hunter employee and asked about the conditions. “They’re, um… interesting. Three inches of wind-effected sleet. I need to do some office stuff.”

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Tagged: Catskills, Hunter, Powder6 Comments