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This post was updated on .
Looks like I originally posted this in the wrong place!)
When I have time, I will get expanded reports for each of these;
Feb 2015
I took a little vacation and went to several XC ski centers. Everybody has the same amount of snow (2.5-3'
on the ground).
Lapland Lake, NY- Immaculate trails, new owners which seem to get the whole "XC perfection" idea.
Trails run around 10' wide. Lodge, rentals, and small restaurant.
Strafford, Central Vt.- Fairly new place, been around 4-5 years. Based on several farms, normally run by a
father and son. Some very challenging "dark blue" outer trails. Has some faults (levelness, compacting, COLD
port-a-poti). Quite small warming lodge.
Craftsbury, Northern Vt.- Probably the best the East coast has to offer. If you stay on site, meals are
included and quite good (rather on the granola-eee healthy side!). If you don't stay on site there is
nothing else for miles and miles! I was impressed by the equipment barn which has baby, momma, and daddy
PistenBullys. But 3 PistenBullys are note enough- the really big one was around the corner (too big to fit
in the barn with its 20' wide front scrubber and 4 track setters on back).Do I need to say the grooming was
excellent?
Trapp Family Lodge, Northern Vt.- Very nice family place (I didn't stay at the lodge). It is a right of
passage to climb and climb up to "The Hut" and have lunch (soup, chili), and record your name and comments
in the log book. Way fun trip down. Excellent grooming.
Viking Nordic (Central Vt)- Small area run by an extremely knowledgeable and pleasant fellow. Most trails
(that I was on) are about 6' wide, the harder sections are wider if the terrain allows. Nice lodge with some
hot foods and warming hut. Grooming is well done.
Saratoga Springs State Park, NY- I stopped here to break up my drive home. What I had read said it was
groomed. I saw no evidence of that and had a hard time telling where the official trails shown on the map
might be. Much foot and snowshoe traffic- but mostly in 3 separate places! Trails were around edge of big
open windy area. They have a very nice warming with with a nice circular fireplace in the center. Even with
nobody there, there was a nice fire going and heated restrooms/changing areas. Too bad the snow and tracks
were hard and awful.
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