Royal Mountain Opens 2025

I’ve noticed a pattern among the family-owned independent resorts here in New York. Often I find a female owner running the business behind the ticket desk, while a male owner is off dealing with operations. Royal mountain was no exception last Sunday on opening day. Brooke Tennis was all smiles as she handed me my ticket, telling me she was surprised by the turn out.

Jake Tennis manages the crowd

The parking lot was filling up fast. I strapped in and pushed down to the Hadley Chair to start the season. I thought I was running late as I saw the first wave of skiers ripping down the mountain. Royal prides itself on tight operations and if they can spin the lift a little early, why not? I rode right on to my first chairlift.

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Plattekill: Riley Season

Saturday wasn’t my first time driving south to ski Plattekill, but it was the first time “leaving home” to do it. I’m now 30 minutes closer to one of my favorite ski areas and the drive is much more relaxed than traveling north out of New Jersey.

Route 30

No matter how much Google Maps insists I take the shortest route, I’m sticking to the interstates as much as I can: 87, 90 and 88. Once you are off I-88, it’s a scenic and comfortable drive down Route 30 through Grand Gorge.

When it comes to skiing Plattekill, especially early in the season, you can’t overestimate the value of having a friend like Sean Riley.

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Black Friday at Hunter Mountain

There had been some debate about whether Black Friday would be a good day to ski. My plan was to ski Hunter the day after Thanksgiving. Somebody suggested it was a blackout day on some Epic passes so that meant it would be crowded. Harvey thought Sunday would be better.

Catskill Flyer

I’ve always had good luck skiing on those days that are famous for something else — like Super Bowl Sunday for instance. My thinking was that a big event — like football or shopping — distracts the casuals away and only hardcore skiers are on the slopes. And Sunday skiing would mean driving home with the weekend traffic.

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