A New York Skier’s Season in Photos: 2023/24

As I write this in May, some of us are still skiing Killington, but for me the season ended in April. Much like last season, this season started with optimism, followed by a mid-season lull due to poor weather, and it wrapped up with an absolutely amazing season end. As a photographer always carrying a camera when skiing, here are my favorite photos from the 2023/24 season.

This December photo from Hunter looks mundane at first glance. It’s a nice clear day, not too cold — very nice early season conditions. Interesting to me is the cloud created by the snowmaking. Follow that cloud downslope, then off the ski area far into the Schoharie Valley off to the right.

Driving to the mountain that morning you could see that cloud from a few miles out, and then see it fill up the valley when approaching the mountain. That cloud signaled that the previous evening’s snowmaking would yield nice conditions for the day.

When mother nature doesn’t cooperate, we rely on the work of the mountain’s snowmaking team. The fresh man-made powder and the apparent blizzard in the sky helped make for a nice day on the mountain. I am fond of these man-made blizzard shots.

The weekend of January 20-21 were the coldest ski days of this season for me. Following my friends as they started down Minya Konka at Hunter, this scene popped into view quickly so I grabbed my camera. Fortunately, I was able to catch this shot before everyone dispersed a second later. This shot really portrays the absolute bitter cold temps of the morning – everyone has hoods up, faces covered and they’re moving kind of slow in getting started. Maybe my favorite photo of the season.

A few days later at Belleayre, we skied through very a thick morning fog covering the entire mountain. After a mid-day break, the clouds start lifting, providing this dramatic view of the gondola at the bottom of the mountain. The breaking of the clouds was the start of what became an outstanding afternoon skiing the entirety of Belleayre, enjoying their abundant snow cover.

If you drive to Belleayre from the east, the route covers much of the Esopus Valley. It’s classic Catskills scenery, with the beautiful creek surrounded by close, towering mountains on both sides. As the morning clouds lifted from the highlands, the Esopus Valley remained locked in the cloud cover as seen in this image. I love these undercast views of valleys locked in thick clouds. They help me imagine what the area may have looked like in the time of continental glaciation 10,000 years ago.

The first weekend of February, I visited Plattekill to ski and try my hand at shooting a ski area. The weather and scenery were perfect for photography — bluebird skies, rime ice covering the trees at elevation and seasonally comfortable temps. The shot above, looking east to the Catskill high peaks, perfectly captures the scenery for the day. Slide Mountain, the highest Catskill peak, is clearly visible in the distance in the center of the image. Table Mountain, the flat-topped peak to the right of Slide is also visible. I love this view looking east from the western Catskills. And I’d love to see this shot on a website or brochure for the ski area.

A weekend ski day at Hunter has its own rhythm. Start early, ski the front. When it gets busy, move to the F lift for a few runs and then head North and West when things warm up a bit over there. On this particular day, the mountain opened the West lift early, and Jimmy suggested we go hit Clair’s Way – the signature expert run at Hunter West. Ski Clair’s at 9am? Don’t know if I’ve ever done that. Well this was a great idea, and we enjoyed many morning laps on Clair’s. And this view of East Rusk mountain always captures my attention. It’s deep and steep back there and this is a pure Catskill view.

In early March my daughter and I visited Sugarbush. We were working with my daughter’s student calendar, so we visited a few days after heavy rains, and just before the March snowstorms. It was a beautiful bluebird day with soft snow and wide open views. From the top of Lincoln Peak you can see three of Vermont’s five 4000’ peaks including Mount Ellen, Camel’s Hump and Mount Mansfield. Tucked between Mt. Ellen and Camel’s Hump is Stark Mountain, the home of Mad River Glen. You can also make out a few trails at Stowe beneath Mansfield.

Looking south from Lincoln Peak, we caught this view of Killington and Pico. I’ve never seen this view on previous visits to Sugarbush, and thought it would be good to share here. For some reason, I enjoy seeing other ski areas from the summits of ski areas.

New York skiers have to love this view of the Adirondacks and the Champlain Valley from the summit of Mount Ellen. I could have lingered over this view for a long time, but we were there to ski. The slopes of Whiteface are visible in the right half of this panoramic image. We’re sitting atop the spine of Vermont’s Green Mountains here, and you can really sense the proximity to New York.

A few weeks later I was fortunate to ski Killington the day after a nice dump. The snow was deep and light, the skies were blue and the temps were comfortable. We decided to hike up the Catwalk to the true summit of Killington peak, where I shot this pano, looking west to northwest. From here we skied down the Catwalk trail, which was a first for me after years of visiting Killington. It was tight and bumpy, but went much better than we first thought.

The wintery splendor of the Killington Peak summit is obvious in this shot. In the foreground, you can see the hiking trail down to the top of the Catwalk ski trail. If you don’t want to ski down Catwalk, you can continue hiking down to the top of the K1 gondola.

After another snowstorm in early April, I made my way up to Vermont to wrap up my season. The plan was to ski Okemo on my Epic Pass and then meet Mark in Killington. When I got to the Bromley-Stratton-Magic triangle, the snow was fresh and deep. Magic Mountain’s website indicated they were 100% open, so this was an opportunity not to be missed.

I spent Saturday skiing all of Magic Mountain, enjoying the old-school vibe and old school conditions — snow, bumps, rocks, sticks and whatever else the mountain could throw at us. What a day! If you know, you know. If you don’t, you should go.

It’s difficult to capture degree of steepness with a camera, but this shot of the top of Ovation at Killington comes close. After a day of skiing at Magic, I wrapped up my season at Killington — enjoying a nice mix of super-steeps, steeps and cruisers. I was happy to last all day.

It’s been a few years since I skied Devil’s Fiddle at Killington. Off to the side of Outer Limits, this trail is a combination of steeps, rocks and drops. My run down this one was a fun challenge — taking it slow, picking my way through all the terrain and hazards seen here. This was a great way to wrap up my season and it was a lot of fun.

It’s always sad for me when the ski season ends — nothing else compares to the excitement and camaraderie of skiing with friends, pushing yourself and reveling in the joy of a great ski day. I’m currently recovering from a difficult bushwhack hike, where limits were pushed and new terrain was tackled, all while enjoying outstanding scenery. I’m sore and relaxed, but in many ways, it doesn’t compare to the thrill of skiing. It’s hard to put my finger on it — it’s just the way it is.

---

Steve Aaron is an avid skier, hiker and cyclist armed with a camera. Steve’s landscapes have appeared in Backpacker Magazine, Hudson Valley Magazine, NY Newsday and the Albany Times Union. Every August, Steve publishes a wall calendar featuring landscapes from the Catskills and Shawangunks. For more information on the calendar, join Steve’s mailing list.