Belleayre Mountain Ski Center, NY -- 2/23/14

Catamount has been our home mountain since I decided to make skiing a family activity in 2006.  But for the 2013/2014 season, I wanted a bigger hill and, even more, a change of scenery.  I considered Hunter and Windham, but Belleayre's trail layout seemed to make more sense.  I liked how all the beginner hills were separated on the lower mountain from the more challenging terrain.  A less-than-80-minutes drive time on Google maps sealed the deal.  (The Ski3 pass adding Gore and Whiteface also seemed too good a deal to pass up.)  So our season passes this year bear the Whiteface/Gore/Belleayre logos, rather than the Cat.

Catamount had been great to us -- it is where I and my three daughters learned how to ski.  Catamount has great narrow, windy trails through the woods; what I think of when someone says "classic New England skiing".  It turns out that Belleayre's trails -- which are both wider and longer, with a more steady pitch -- have proved significantly better in allowing the girls to concentrate on skiing with greater speed and control.  And today was really where that advantage blossomed into tangible advancement.

Packing our gear the night before and getting ready to get the four of us up and out the door by around 7:30 can be a mental hurdle -- wouldn't it be nicer to sleep in and have a lazy Sunday morning?  But we are always glad later on at the hill that we made the effort.  

We pulled into the parking lot a little before 9 and were on the double chairs at Lift 2 by 9:15.  A lot of empty chairs:



From the top of Lift 1/2, we skied down Dakota to the Super Chief.  The snow was groomed frozen granular -- very little give that early in the morning, even though the ambient temperature was already above freezing.  The crowd at the hi-speed quad was a marked contrast to the Discovery Lodge lift:



I suspect most of the crowd was people skiing down Ashokan from the Overlook Lodge:



It was encouraging to me that the girls wanted to go straight to the top to start the day.  They wanted to do some serious skiing!



From the Super Chief lift, I took note of the intermediate moguls on Belleayre Run.  They looked pretty good.  The light is not great in these pics, but you get a sense.




It was pretty overcast when we started, but the sun kept poking out as the morning progressed.  The dim view after disembarking from the Super Chief lift:



We skated across the Ridge Trail and did a nice warm-up run down Roaring Brook.  Roaring Brook is marked blue, but would be a green almost anywhere else.  I think they mark it blue to keep the real beginners off the upper mountain.  In any event, it is a nice long trail, with a great northwest view towards Plattekill Mountain and its neighbors.   I was too busy skiing after the girls to grab a pic.

Today was the day we decided to explore the west side for the first time.  So we followed Horseshoe Pass to the Overlook Lodge, took off our skis and walked up the short pitch to Lift 7.  By this time (almost 10 a.m.) the sun was out -- you can see the shadows in this shot of Overlook Lodge:



Yahoo was closed for racing, so we had a nice view of the racers on the way up.

The starting shed:



A racer in action:





Waiting at the finish line:



Unfamiliar with this side of the mountain, I ended up having us skate slightly uphill past Area 51, Algonquin, Esopus, and Big T Glades.  (Later in the day we figured out that taking Algonquin to Tomahawk Crossing is the easiest way to the west side.  Next time study the map, Dad!)  We went down Peekamoose, which was pretty scraped off and icy, and the steepest slope my youngest had ever been on.  By this point, she was in a foul mood.  We discussed splitting up, with me taking her back to the lodge, but the older two wanted us all to stick together.  Glad we did, because it turned out that the right prescription was Deer Run.

Again, no pics, because I was too busy making turns and enjoying the view.  And what a view as you begin Deer Run!  A clear view of the slopes at what I believe is Plattekill.  Belleayre's web site claims that the west side is "Home of the highest skiable peak in the Catskills - 3,429 ft!"  You do feel like you are up above all the other mountains.  Deer Run was great fun, and we ended up making a number of runs on it throughout the day.

However, I had promised the youngest we'd go back and have lunch, so when we got back down to Tomahawk chair after our first trip down Deer Run, we got off midstation and took Dot Nebel down to the Expressway, past Overlook Lodge to Wanatuska to Discovery Way and then lunch.

It was 11:15, a perfect time to beat the lunch crowds.  But even I was amazed at the number of empty places to sit (even though most tables had bags underneath.  Some had bags piled on top, with no one around -- that really burns me up.)  These kinds of things may not be as important as the skiing itself, but as a father with three kids in tow, little things like parking, lunch crowds, families vs teen mobs, all add up.



Lunch:  last night's leftover sausage and peppers (Petronio family recipe), pulled pork, ham and salami sandwiches (did I mention I like pork products?)



After a quick lunch it was back up the mountain at 11:30.  This time we skipped Roaring Brook and took Onondaga to Howe's Highway, then I convinced them to take a quick dip into the lower Belleayre Glades.  This was a ton of fun and put them in a good mood for the rest of the day -- especially the youngest, who can now officially claim to have skied a black diamond (even though the pitch was not very steep).

Another ride up Lift 7 to midstation.  Area 51 was also closed for competition -- snowboard and skiing slopestyle.




This time we took Algonquin to Tomahawk Crossing.  Way easier than skating uphill.  Duh!

On the way up Tomahawk the Lift Line Glades looked inviting.  Some parts were down to dirt and rocks, so I wouldn't recommend using your brand new $700 skis.  Got off a photo of the moguls on upper Seneca (on the left), and the upper Lift Line Glades (on the right) -- both double black diamond.



A closer view of the Seneca moguls:



We then made run after run on Deer Run.  The girls loved being able to shoot off into those little side trails that run through the trees and/or bump up on the right.  The snow was nice, too.  I'm no expert on snow quality, but I suspect this was something between "corn" and "mashed potatoes".  In any event, before we knew it, it was 2:00 and we decided to get off at mid-station and take Dot Nebel to Expressway and then home, to finish up science projects and welcome Mom home from a weekend away with her sisters and cousins.

A shot looking up Dot Nebel from the Expressway entrance -- really not many crowds on those west side blues all day:



Today was a day when the girls kept asking for "one more run".  It helped that the weather was mild, the slopes uncrowded, and their skill level improved.  But overall a big thumbs up from the Petronio's for Belleayre being a fun, family place to ski.

I like the look of those bumps on Belleayre Run. Looks like a good one all around.

Petronio wrote

Packing our gear the night before and getting ready to get the four of us up and out the door by around 7:30 can be mental hurdle -- wouldn't it be nicer to sleep in and have a lazy Sunday morning?  But we are always glad later on at the hill that we made the effort.

+100

I usually go to Hunter, and I live 1:45 away, so I need to get out the door by 6 to get to the mountain for first lift.  When I wonder why I do this, I remember why when I experience the fresh cord after taking first chair.

I forgot the picture of the croc at the base of the Super Chief chair!

Great report, it really feeds the stoke.