The Mountains Less Traveled: Québec Ski Safari

As much as I love the mountains of New York State, getting outta Dodge is also an important part of my ski season. October is the month where I stop dreaming and start making concrete plans for destination trips.

View from Le Massif.

For me, it’s all about the process — first, committing to specific dates and deciding on the region or mountain I’d like to ski. Then comes the hard part, asking myself what I want from that fantasy week. Stay in one place or travel around? Dirtbag or detonate my savings? Visit something truly different or stick with the familiar?

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Funding New York’s State-Run Ski Areas

OpEd: Funding NY State Run Ski ResortsA recent editorial in the Glens Falls Post Star asked the question: “How much longer can New York taxpayers continue to subsidize ski centers at Whiteface and Gore Mountain?”

The next paragraph yielded a vague response: “It’s time for state officials to rethink the financial and ownership model that has sustained them for the past 30 years.”

With a sluggish economy and state and local tax revenues in decline, there’s no question that public funding for everything is becoming problematic. While the editorial poses a legitimate question, it ignores some important issues, and has logical inconsistencies that make it hard to take seriously.

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Windham Benefit Raises $171,000 for Irene Relief

Windham MountainThis morning, Windham Mountain reported that its recent Hurricane Relief Benefit Dinner and Auction netted $171,790 — 100% of which will be donated to the Windham Chapter of the Catskill Mountain Foundation to assist in the continuing recovery process.

The evening included a sold-out dinner for 160 guests (many of whom are second-home owners in Windham), followed by a raffle and auction headed by Windham Mountain managing partner and first-time auctioneer Randy MacDonald.

With so much bad news coming out of the Catskills in the aftermath of Hurricane Irene, it’s great to hear that Windham Mountain not only hosted this event, but helped make it into an overwhelming success.

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