Peek’n Peak: Think Snow

Packing my ski gear Tuesday morning, I knew a good day was ahead. There was a beautiful sunrise to start the day that gave way to clear visibility for the drive to Clymer, NY. It was an early start to a long, but fun day. I had plans to meet my friends Kyle and Mike at Peek’n Peak later in the morning. We love PnP’s terrain park and it was the focus of our trip.

Peek’n Peak Main Lodge

My first visit to Peek’n Peak was eight years ago via I-86. This time I came on I-90 with views of Lake Erie and vines from the Wine Country Trail. I arrived 30 minutes before opening, to a near empty parking lot. I expected it to be a busy day during a holiday break, at a mountain so close to Erie PA. But the only line I saw all day was at the ticket window.

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Snow Ridge: Back at Full Strength

Snow Ridge has gotten a lot of attention from us this year, for good reason. Or maybe more accurately, for a bad reason. On August 7 of last year, the hill was ripped by an EF-3 tornado. Tornados are bad, and when they come to ski areas, late in the off-season, they are really bad. Snow Ridge scrambled to get ready for winter.

Lyons Falls cemetery
Lyons Falls cemetery

We covered the event, and the even more astounding recovery. Evidence of the storm is still obvious as many downed trees remain. But every functioning piece of the ski operation has now been restored. On Thursday, the last piece of the puzzle, the North Chair, was certified to run.

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Hickory is a Magic Machine

I first met Stuart of The Storm back in 2020 on an off-the-hook powder day at McCauley. We got to talking about all the great small ski areas in New York. He told me “NYSkiBlog has more Hickory content than anyone else on the web.” At the time, I wondered if we’d ever publish an on-snow piece about Hickory again.

An enormous amount of work has gone into getting the hill open. Led by Hickory founder Hans Winbauer’s daughter, Sue Catana, the hill has navigated operational, inspection and insurance challenges. With significant help from the Indy Pass and Unofficial Networks, Hickory announced they’d spin lifts on Saturday, for the first time since 2015.

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