Mountains You'd Only Visit For Free

What are the mountains that you would not pay to visit, but would go to if you had a free ticket?  Here are mine and why.


Okemo:  Decent cruising terrain and good lift infrastructure, but the trails all ski exactly the same and the nearby options are all better.

Jay Peak:  Very far away and there are better options that are closer.  Often a crapshoot to get good conditions there.

Shawnee:  Overcrowded and smaller than Mountain Creek which is way closer.

Belleayre:  Repetitive trails, slow lifts, not as good as the other Catskill options.

Tuxedo Ridge:  Small and run down.  Mount Peter and Mountain Creek are closer and better.

Always took advantage of Belleayres - Ski for Free on your Birthday. They had that policy for a number of years. Just show your New York State Drivers licence and get a free all day lift on your Birthday. But, unfortunately they did away with it about 4 years ago.

  Sno I would not ski Mountain creek ,Shawnee and Camelback if you paid me. Skied those places before, free or not my ski time is way to precious than waste it at these places. Belleayre, skied that place free or cheap many times. You just did not get off trail enough to enjoy it.  Give it another shot In full blown winter conditions.

Mountains I would only visit for free:
There are so many spread out around the Adirondack Park, eastern Mass, New Hampshire and Vermont that it would take me a long time to list them all and they are all free.

Lift served Ski Areas I would only visit for free:
Dynamite Hill
Schroon Lake Ski Area
Indian Lake Ski Hill
Goodnow Ski area

Oh - wait - these are free to everyone.

I'm in the I will probably never ski MC, Shawnee or any other Pocono resort for free or otherwise..  I will also probably rarely, if ever, go back to Okemo.  I will never pay to ski at Windham.  I may do an early season day or two at Belle. I will not pay to ski Pico again (I've never been a fan) I'd rather deal with the larger crowds next door at K to get the benefit of far greater terrain IMHO.

I'm not made of money, but I don't pick my ski days based on lift ticket cost. Distance/available time, snow quality, and terrain are the factors that affect me the most.  If Stowe was 30 miles from my house I'd ski there a lot.

Harvey wrote

I'm not made of money, but I don't pick my ski days based on lift ticket cost.  

This ^^^^

My ski days are based on who I'm skiing with. Doesn't really matter where....we'll have fun anywhere

 

Harvey wrote

I'm not made of money, but I don't pick my ski days based on lift ticket cost. Distance/available time, snow quality, and terrain are the factors that affect me the most.  If Stowe was 30 miles from my house I'd ski there a lot.

I'm with ya. What's the point of this thread. Seems like it should have been titled tell me which Mtns suck or something

Why would you go to a place you thought sucked even if it was free

If you really love skiing, you can have fun doing it anywhere.

YUKON CORNELIUS wrote

If you really love skiing, you can have fun doing it anywhere.

I really love to ski, but I can't say I could have fun doing it any where. I mean no offense to Sno, but I don't think I could have fun skiing at a place like Mt. Creek. I just couldn't deal with the crowded lift lines and trails.

Harvey wrote

I'm not made of money, but I don't pick my ski days based on lift ticket cost. Distance/available time, snow quality, and terrain are the factors that affect me the most.  If Stowe was 30 miles from my house I'd ski there a lot.

I typically pick the mountains my family skis at.  It is generally not based on cost, but on what mountain we want to ski and when.  We had a good deal on our Stowe tickets recently, but it was so great that my dad would pay list price to ski there and feel good about it.  I started this thread basically to ask what mountains you wouldn't pay to ski at.

Highpeaksdrifter wrote

YUKON CORNELIUS wrote

If you really love skiing, you can have fun doing it anywhere.

I really love to ski, but I can't say I could have fun doing it any where. I mean no offense to Sno, but I don't think I could have fun skiing at a place like Mt. Creek. I just couldn't deal with the crowded lift lines and trails.

Long lines and aggressive crowds certainly push me to my limits. No argument there.

snoloco wrote

Harvey wrote

I'm not made of money, but I don't pick my ski days based on lift ticket cost. Distance/available time, snow quality, and terrain are the factors that affect me the most.  If Stowe was 30 miles from my house I'd ski there a lot.

I typically pick the mountains my family skis at.  It is generally not based on cost, but on what mountain we want to ski and when.  We had a good deal on our Stowe tickets recently, but it was so great that my dad would pay list price to ski there and feel good about it.  I started this thread basically to ask what mountains you wouldn't pay to ski at.

I would ski Mountain Creek if someone paid ME. Just kidding, I still wouldn't.

This is a stupid thread to bash areas that you don't like, you have created much better discussions. Also, I hate the belleayre bashing. I conder belle and plattekill the best two options in the Cats. Belleayre has cathedral brook and now dreamcatcher. Plattekill has legit glades as well, and fun regular trails.

elk and camelback peeyay - oh and I think I ski'd big boulder for a can of peas or something. nothing really against these places, just would rather ski somewhere else on my dime. Every year I usually get a few vouchers through patrol friends or warren miller flick and use 'em for a change of scenery

skunkape wrote

This is a stupid thread to bash areas that you don't like, you have created much better discussions. Also, I hate the belleayre bashing. I conder belle and plattekill the best two options in the Cats. Belleayre has cathedral brook and now dreamcatcher. Plattekill has legit glades as well, and fun regular trails.

I agree!

skunkape wrote

This is a stupid thread to bash areas that you don't like, you have created much better discussions.

This is a glass half empty thread - much like what PA would have posted but not as incendiary.
I think poor Sno is just bored. We have at least 6 months to wait this warm spell out, so he needs to find something else to do.