The Lake Effect Blog

Holiday Valley: Social Distancing the Rain

Posted on by Robert

I’m sure most people don’t think of my home — Utica NY — as a ski town. I could go on about the city-owned ski slope and local history, but its true advantage is being located in the middle of the state. Much of the best skiing in New York is within a day trip of my apartment.

Mardi Gras lift

I’m also lucky to have a forward operating base at my parents house in the Finger Lakes. While the rest of the state was getting rain on Christmas Day, Western NY was getting lake effect snow from Lake Erie. With the Bills winning the AFC East and 8 inches of snow on the hill, Holiday Valley skiers were smiling. I left my folks place early Saturday morning with my sights set on Ellicottville.

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Tagged: Holiday Valley, Lake Effect, Western NY7 Comments

Snow Ridge: Full Send Plateau

Posted on by Robert

This past weekend may well have been the best of the season in the east. A storm that dropped 8-12 inches across most of the region, favored Stowe, Whiteface and Snow Ridge on Tug Hill with significantly more than that. Evan and I had the same thought: first chair at Snow Ridge on Saturday.

Friday, I took the afternoon off to ski McCauley, a taste of what was to come. After close that day, the lake effect band settled over Turin NY. Overnight another 6-8 inches fell, bringing the storm total for Snow Ridge to 29 inches.

One thing I was pretty sure of, it would be more work for us to grab first chair at Stowe or Whiteface on Saturday. At Snow Ridge it’s pretty easy. We arrived 45 minutes before opening, and parked next to the three other cars that were there.

Evan

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Tagged: Lake Effect, Powder, Snow Ridge, Tug Hill14 Comments

Snow Ridge: No Bad Days

Posted on by Robert

Last week seems so long ago. It was -10 degrees and across the Northeast snow was falling. In the Tug Hill region of New York, some places got more than 3 feet of lake effect.

I’ve had more powder days at Snow Ridge than any other mountain. When I saw they were running the Snow Pocket lift for the first time this year, I knew we were in for a good time. For his birthday, I bought my friend Alex a lift ticket, and a little bit of Snow Ridge magic.

Much of the drive from Utica to Turin is through the farmland and forest. It’s a sure sign you are getting close when the walls of snow along the road grows taller than your vehicle. The sun was peeking through the clouds as we parked.

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Tagged: Lake Effect, Snow Ridge, Tug Hill11 Comments