Southern Vermont Ski Advice

I know that since this is the New York Ski Blog it can be considered a sin to go to So. Vermont.  My family always plans vacations early and I am now planning my family's annual President's Weekend ski trip.  I am 14 and can ski pretty much any trail on any eastern mountain, my dad is an expert as well, and my mom is an upper level intermediate.  We are thinking about going to either Killington, Stratton, or Okemo.  We have been to Killington and we like it very much, but we have not been to the other two.  We want to go to the mountain with the best and most varied intermediate terrain, best conditions, and best lift system. (it is going to be absolutely positively infinitely crazily beyond description crowded at all 3 so a high lift capacity would be very good).  Good on-hill lodging would be good but is not required and we don't mind going to a place that is very resorty.  Please do not suggest Whiteface or Gore.  What are everyone's suggestions?

Either Whiteface or Gore for sure...have fun

Highpeaksdrifter wrote

Either Whiteface or Gore for sure...have fun

+1

If you're an expert skier you will most likely be bored by Okemo and Stratton. Also, you have never SEEN crowds like those two resorts on a holiday resorts. If you want a taste, borrow some rollerblades and head to grand central terminal where you can attempt to do a lap by proxy. If it is a good snow year, I do quite like Bromley and especially Magic, which is home to legit expert terrain*.

You could also ski Pico which is empty and has everything you need sans crowds, or suck it up and make your dad drive you to northern VT where you could try out Mad River Glen, Sugarbush, Smugglers, Burke, and Jay.

But if the discussion is only Okemo** or $tratton, then definitely Whiteface or Gore every time.

*Just add snow
** I feel bad ragging on Okemo sometimes, and the truth is your mom would love it. The mountain is very well run. There's just very limited expert terrain and for the love of all that is America NEVER take a trail all the way to the bottom. Lonnnnnngg lines.

I like mt snow better than either Okemo or Stratton. The whole main mountain is intermediate for mom and some fun stuff over on the north face for the boys. We did many prez weekends there when the kids were small, crowded but manageable with some planning. Kitzhofff inn across the street is chill place to stay with awesome pancakes

Magic........absolutely

snoloco wrote

...it can be considered a sin to go to So. Vermont..

A common misconception that I don't understand. Vermont is way cool.

Based on (my own admittedly biased perception of) the importance of VT to NY skiers we've actually recently added a Vermont Section to the NY Ski Directory.  (Looking for authors for the VT mountain profiles.  Volunteers email me.)

Back on topic, I've skied Okemo and Stratton once, and have to agree that Killington seems much more interesting. Sounds like your family has the chops to handle it too.  Personally I'm not super interested in the mountains south of K, except for Magic.

ml > LOL all the way. Lines what are those?  ;)

I've skied Stratton during a holiday and the crowds were manageable. It is an intermediate mountain as others have said and they do a very nice job grooming. The high speed six packs move the bodies up the hill well. If you stay off the hill, drive to the sun bowl lodge to get better parking.

 But for presidents weekend I would really recommend gore. I could see going to so. Vt early season because of better snowmaking, but by presidents weekend everything at gore will be open.

Tom

Your Mom will be happy at either Okemo or Stratton. I happen to like Stratton more than Okemo as I think there is better tree skiing at Stratton, it has steeper trails, and it is closer to where I live(NJ). As mentioned, Stratton's lifts are pretty solid and there is the added benefit of an easy side trip to Bromley and /or Magic. There is a ton of slopeside lodging at both places but it will be very expensive. The crowds always seem worse than they actually are when you are on the mountain. It will be way more crowded than Gore or WF, but once you come to terms with that you will be fine.

You will be happy no matter what you pick. Let us know what you choose.

Thanks to anyone who has posted information so far.  We expect both mountains to be very expensive, but we have heard of some amazing ski and stay deals at Stratton (don't know of many yet at Okemo).  The part about the crowds in the original post was mainly an exaggerated joke.  I ski Hunter every weekend, so I'm used to crowds.  I will definitely post a trip report from the mountain that I go to.  We gave Gore the business for Presidents weekend for the past 2 years, it was great, but we want to try something new.  We have gone to Whiteface in the past as well.

Both Stratton and Okemo you and your dad will find flat and boring after one day.

I think Pico would be ideal for you and you could throw in a day at Killington as well.  Pico will be the least crowded of any other mid to southern vt resort.  It is suprisingly large and has excellent blue and black trails.

Based on the other things you laid out Gore would seem ideal for you too.

Has your Mom skied Killington?  If so, does she like the vibe?  You can find more upscale places there that she would like and K definitely has the best terrain and most varied of the 3 places you mentioned.  Flatton is the most "upscale" of the 3, Okemo is a haven for families; your mom would enjoy both.  Stratton has fun trees but nothing really steep. While they have lots of HS lifts, I find URSA a huge PITA, and the Snowbowl lift needs to be a HSQ.  I've never been a fan of Pico, but if K-mart is super crowded, its a good option for a day.  Stratton, with Magic and Bromley a short distance away (15-20 mins) may be the best bet for you guys.  You and your Dad would definitely love Magic's terrain and if there is decent natural snow and weather, your Mom would Love the intermediate terrain there as well and IMHO, will probably like it better because there will be so far fewer people on the trails.  

Harvey44 wrote

Vermont is way cool.

No it's not.  Not even a little bit.  It's a cliché created in a Madison Avenue marketing laboratory.

Noah John wrote

No it's not.  Not even a little bit.  It's a cliché created in a Madison Avenue marketing laboratory.

Almost as cool as your auto post generator ragging on anything that isn't Whiteface?

I was really talking about skiing. 250+ inches of snow, upslope after rain events and some nice terrain and trees at K, Mad, Sugarbush, Stowe and Jay. What's not to like? I don't actually know that much about Vermont outside of the ski areas I've been too.  I liked em all except Stratton and Okemo really.  The only towns I've spent any time in were Bethel which I really liked and Stowe which I didn't care for.

don't go.  ski NY.

1) keep parents happy, esp Mom.   She is your key to skiing and cash.

2) choose Stratton over Okemo for many reasons.

Yes most of Stratton is Blue.  But you will find Plenty of challenge, don't buy the hype.   Tough big long mogul runs, great parks, lots of trees in and out of bounds.  


All that said, I'd pick Gore, but I don't control your car keys for the next few years.

ml242 wrote

Noah John wrote

No it's not.  Not even a little bit.  It's a cliché created in a Madison Avenue marketing laboratory.

Almost as cool as your auto post generator ragging on anything that isn't Whiteface?

Hey, go to New Hampshire.  Go to Maine.  Those places rock and they're authentic.  But everything about Vermont sucks.  Besides, if you're going to go to another country - why not head to Canada?  Better food.

Chatiemac wrote

Magic........absolutely

I've always heard good things about Magic just like I've always heard good things about Plattenkill. Fans of both have always written on forums how superior they are to the other ski areas in the Catskills and S. Vermont, yet both struggle to stay open. Fans of both places have tried to explain the reason that is to me, but I gotta say their reasoning has never made sense to me.

Magic is fairly easy to explain.

In the early 1990s the owners invested heavily in real estate instead of infrastructure. No one wanted the expensive condos, or at least could afford them at the time, and the mountain went bankrupt. During some drawn out process of trying to get new owners in place, pieces of the mountain were sold off or left to rot. These pieces include a total Nelsap beginnerish area that was fully dismantled and will remain separate from Magic forever. Now the coop operates from a deep disadvantage mostly because the ownership group has not had the funds to invest in snowmaking that is the same caliber of the neighbors. However, this changes a bit every year as they add new guns and fix pipe on the various trails. Don't get me wrong - it isn't all misfortune, bad luck, and woe. Some legitimate concerns remain: the top elevation at Magic is only 2800', much shorter than Stratton's 4040', and the somewhat tempered snow it receives also falls on an exposure that does not face away from the sun quite as much as other areas.

But, it is superior in that the mountain is much steeper than anything else in the area, the locals take amazing care of the glades, lift lines are few and far between, and londonderry is a cool town away from the faux fancy tourist stuff. Of the 1800' of vertical it provides, 1500' is very interesting and I think that stacks up against most other mountains. So if it's a good snow year, Magic can make a great choice for a vacation. If it's a bad snow year, you'll still be skiing steeper slopes on the man made.

Taste the Magic: