Belleayre Conditions

[Ripitz]

I have skiing kids and know all about the gondola fascination. I also know about wet gloves and cold hands from removing and holding snowy/wet skis and waiting in longer gondola lines instead of skiing. If your kids are dressed properly for the day's temps, getting overheated in a gondola is not a good plan.

Right, because a long 7/10 mile ridge having 15+ similar trails with a steep 200-300 vertical followed by a blue/green run out is so compelling. It is particularly fun dragging your little kids across the top of the ridge to get to the 3 blue trails at either end of the ridge.
Belleayre has one of the best green pods in the East - but after that Belleayre's terrain cannot hold a candle to Hunter's terrain.

We skied midweek mornings and weekends after 2pm and never waited on a gondola line. The Peanut is 3 and although we’ve taken her on lifts before it’s something I try to avoid. Haven’t experienced the wet gloves, cold hands and overheating, maybe I’m doing something wrong. Belleayre has a short head wall and a long runout, that’s true. It also has great inbounds tree skiing and sidecountry with very little traffic. I took a friend, who is a Hunter pass holder and has a place there, on a personal tour of the Belle and he was blown away. “I thought this place was for beginners”, he said, while trying to catch his breath. Some of our descents had 2,000 vert and we skied powder all day without ever crossing a track. If people choose Hunter over Belleayre that’s fine with me.

 

[Harvey]

“I thought this place was for beginners”

sidecountry with very little traffic

not completely unrelated

 

[marcski]

Other than the sidecountry, personally, I find Belle to be boring ( a bit more interesting late season when there were some bumps). While the lower mountain may be a good beginner pod, the gondola was a waste of taxpayer dollars that will never be recouped because that private resort (where tax dollars were supposed to be generated) will be on the drawing board throughout our lifetimes. That being said, I had a midweek/blackout pass and may get it again next season so I can get a few hours of skiing on Mondays-Thursdays if I am in the neighborhood.

 

[MarzNC]

I'll try to make it a point to hit the back of Hunter and also get to Catamount next year. I tried to get tickets for Catamount this last season but they were all sold out.

It's weird to me that Windham is both the most expensive and least beloved of all the Catskills resorts.

Least beloved by folks who post on online forums. That's not exactly a random sample of skiers who make the drive to the Catskills.

When I sampled Hunter, Belleayre, and Plattekill a few years ago, my least favorite was Hunter. Perhaps partially because it was a Saturday and the trails were pretty slick by 11:00. I was buying day tickets and mostly skiing early or late season while driving between NC and the northeast for other reasons. I liked the layout of Belleayre (before the gondola was open). While I ski 3D terrain (blacks and double-blacks) out west, I prefer blues and groomed in the northeast. Too spoiled to want to deal with frozen off-piste snow. Harder to be lucky in the northeast and find soft snow in trees. Plattekill is great but harder to reach and I can ski midweek.

Given how much I like Jiminy Peak and Berkshire East, I bet I'd like Catamount terrain. I liked the feel of the empty lodge when I stopped by a year or two before it was bought by the owners of BEast.

 

[Harvey]

Least beloved by folks who post on online forums. That's not exactly a random sample of skiers who make the drive to the Catskills.

That's ^^a more articulate way to say what I was getting at...

I'd think that objectively belovedness would have to be measured by total skier visits or price paid.

 

[G.ski]

My preference for better and more abundant natural snowfall is what leads me to ski Belle now after spending about 30 years at Hunter.
Plus I get Gore/Whiteface as a nice add on.

 

[MarzNC]

I wonder how much revenue the gondola generates in the "green season." Didn't know that winter pass holders could ride the gondola all summer and fall.

A gondola ride in the fall could be fun since I'll qualify for the senior rate.

 

[XTski]

the backwoods skiing at Hunter is unmatched in the Catskills along with the terrain , hike up towards the fire tower then drop in on either side, had plenty of powder days there, Belle is better for kids, older folks, some mellower women, people who don’t like a challenge , of course skiing weekends there is not a good idea because of its popularity

 

[Q*bert Jones IV]

the backwoods skiing at Hunter is unmatched in the Catskills along with the terrain , hike up towards the fire tower then drop in on either side, had plenty of powder days there, Belle is better for kids, older folks, some mellower women, people who don’t like a challenge , of course skiing weekends there is not a good idea because of its popularity

I'm starting to get the idea that you're not a reliable narrator.

 

[marcski]

the backwoods skiing at Hunter is unmatched in the Catskills along with the terrain , hike up towards the fire tower then drop in on either side, had plenty of powder days there, Belle is better for kids, older folks, some mellower women, people who don’t like a challenge , of course skiing weekends there is not a good idea because of its popularity

1st, I found this post a bit sexist... "mellower women"? While, yes, I totally agree that Belle attracts a mellower crowd, there is no need to limit your post about "mellower" skiers to women. (saying this as a father of 2 daughters).
2nd: I think I can see your Hunter backwoods and maybe even raise you some at Platty.