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Whiteface, Saturday 02/04/2017

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Adk Jeff

Whiteface, Saturday 02/04/2017

This post was updated on .

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Brownski

Re: Whiteface, Saturday 02/04/2017

Thanks for the report, Jeff. Looks like a great day. Whiteface is calling to me.

"You want your skis? Go get 'em!" -W. Miller

ADmiKe

Re: Whiteface, Saturday 02/04/2017

Nice report - I'm headed home from there now(finally getting a break from driving every weekend.) Great weekend, conditions were excellent. Cloud was skiing niiice.

Also met up with Snoloco and can confirm he's a nice guy and good snowboarder. He took some runs with me and my crew.

Maybe I missed something, but were all the glades closed this weekend? I kept checking off approach but maybe you had to enter from upper norhway(never checked that.) Those glades in your photo look nice...care to share some details!?

Skiing is not a sport, it is a way of life.

snoloco

Re: Whiteface, Saturday 02/04/2017

Was great meeting both of you this weekend. Hope you come back to Whiteface soon.

My version of this weekend's TR, mostly just a photo dump. Pics are in no particular order from both days this weekend.

Wasn't sure I'd ever have the chance to ride the Lookout chair again.

Middle of Wilmington Trail

Upper Cloud

Top of Wilderness

Lower Sky

Wilmington Trail

Upper Parkway

Tower machinery, frosted trees, and the true summit taken from the Lookout chair.

Mountain Run

Final climb on the gondola. Patrol was skiing the lift line both days.

ADK Jeff skiing Wilderness

I've lived in New York my entire life.

raisingarizona

Re: Whiteface, Saturday 02/04/2017

I didn't know you were a sideways slider too Sno, that's cool.

That gondola liftline looks sweet! Any chance that could become a "glade" like some of Gore's lift line "glades"?

That's the kind of lines as well as the Slides and tree glades that probably make Whiteface shine. Those groomers do look pretty darn steep too.

Cool TR.

I never skied WF back when I was growing up out east. I wish I did now.

nepa

Re: Whiteface, Saturday 02/04/2017

In reply to this post by Adk Jeff

Awesome Jeff. Your kids look like they're progressively kicking more and more ass.

Adk Jeff wrote

Snoloco on River Run:

Sno, I couldn't agree more... they're both great. You're almost there... split it in two, and make it go uphill

snoloco

Re: Whiteface, Saturday 02/04/2017

In reply to this post by raisingarizona

raisingarizona wrote

I didn't know you were a sideways slider too Sno, that's cool.

That gondola liftline looks sweet! Any chance that could become a "glade" like some of Gore's lift line "glades"?

Yep, I've been doing both for quite a while now.

There's zero chance of any of the lift lines at Whiteface becoming glades. For whatever reason, they'd need to count it against the mileage limit if a lift line could be legally skied. True glades don't count. Goread doesn't need to count against the mileage limit if they open a lift line to be skied.

That being said, people do ski the Gondola, Summit, Lookout, and Freeway lines, but patrol pulls tickets if they catch you.

I've lived in New York my entire life.

JTG4eva!

Re: Whiteface, Saturday 02/04/2017

Nice trip report. Looks like the mountain is skiing well, and the kids are ripping it up! That top entrance to Cloud can be a challenge....

We REALLY need a proper roll eyes emoji!!

Harvey

Re: Whiteface, Saturday 02/04/2017

Administrator

In reply to this post by Adk Jeff

Adk Jeff wrote

Ignore the orange rope in the photo (I know, I'm a really bad dad).

This shot FTW. Love Empire. It's where all the bad dad's take their kids!

Nice TR Jeff.

"You just need to go at that shit wide open, hang on, and own it." —Camp

x10003q

Re: Whiteface, Saturday 02/04/2017

Welcome back ADK Jeff and a monster WF report with a load a Snoloco photos. Thanks for the report.

Adk Jeff

Re: Whiteface, Saturday 02/04/2017

In reply to this post by ADmiKe

ADmiKe wrote

Those glades in your photo look nice...care to share some details!?

PM sent.

raisingarizona

Re: Whiteface, Saturday 02/04/2017

In reply to this post by snoloco

So why can't whiteface do what was done at Gore? That just doesn't make any sense. Who is making up these rules?

You guys talk about the mileage limits like it's the word of god and written in stone but I would think it could be and probably will be adjusted at some point.

The limits seem silly to me, I mean, how big is the ADK park? Are two ski areas really affecting wildlife and people's desired user experiences? I doubt it.

Face4Me

Re: Whiteface, Saturday 02/04/2017

raisingarizona wrote

You guys talk about the mileage limits like it's the word of god and written in stone but I would think it could be and probably will be adjusted at some point.

Article XIV of the New York State Constitution ... I believe it would require an amendment to the state Constitution to change this ...

Article XIV New York State Constitution wrote

Section 1. The lands of the state, now owned or hereafter acquired, constituting the forest preserve as now fixed by law, shall be forever kept as wild forest lands. They shall not be leased, sold or exchanged, or be taken by any corporation, public or private, nor shall the timber thereon be sold, removed or destroyed. Nothing herein contained shall prevent the state from constructing, completing and maintaining any highway heretofore specifically authorized by constitutional amendment, nor from constructing and maintaining to federal standards federal aid interstate highway route five hundred two from a point in the vicinity of the city of Glens Falls, thence northerly to the vicinity of the villages of Lake George and Warrensburg, the hamlets of South Horicon and Pottersville and thence northerly in a generally straight line on the west side of Schroon Lake to the vicinity of the hamlet of Schroon, then continuing northerly to the vicinity of Schroon Falls, Schroon River and North Hudson, and to the east of Makomis Mountain, east of the hamlet of New Russia, east of the village of Elizabethtown and continuing northerly in the vicinity of the hamlet of Towers Forge, and east of Poke-O-Moonshine Mountain and continuing northerly to the vicinity of the village of Keeseville and the city of Plattsburgh, all of the aforesaid taking not to exceed a total of three hundred acres of state forest preserve land, nor from constructing and maintaining not more than twenty-five miles of ski trails thirty to two hundred feet wide, together with appurtenances thereto, provided that no more than five miles of such trails shall be in excess of one hundred twenty feet wide, on the north, east and northwest slopes of Whiteface Mountain in Essex county, ...

It's easy to be against something ... It's hard to be for something!

snoloco

Re: Whiteface, Saturday 02/04/2017

In reply to this post by raisingarizona

The mileage limits are silly, but really hard to get rid of as they're ingrained in the NYS Constitution. Whiteface and Belleayre are limited to 25 miles and Gore is 40 miles. Belleayre isn't close to building it out, Gore has 3.5 miles left, and Whiteface has approval for terrain that will allow it to be completely built out. Final trail is going to be on Lookout mtn.

Whiteface can't add anymore glades above 2800 feet due to other BS environmental restrictions. That pretty much kills the proposition of having any really good tree skiing. The same thing delayed snowmaking on Hoyt's and the entire Lookout section was built later than originally intedned. They can only do work at that elevation during certain times.

There are 6 million acres in the Adirondack Park and less than 1000 acres of lift served terrain. Skiing really doesn't have much impact with those numbers.

I've lived in New York my entire life.

Harvey

Re: Whiteface, Saturday 02/04/2017

Administrator

The mileage limits could be changed. I'm pretty sure they were changed once before.

I hope they don't raise it at Gore. (Snoloco in 3,2,1...?)

I bet the biggest enviro impact from skiing is probably the driving done by all us flatlanders.

"You just need to go at that shit wide open, hang on, and own it." —Camp

snoloco

Re: Whiteface, Saturday 02/04/2017

I don't think it should be changed at either mountain for now. Put a cap on terrain expansion without upgrading snowmaking. No more glades added at Gore until they're consistently opening all lifts by Christmas, or at minimum early Jan. All cap ex money goes to snowmaking.

I've lived in New York my entire life.

raisingarizona

Re: Whiteface, Saturday 02/04/2017

In reply to this post by snoloco

Ok but who came up with this decision and what is it based on? I mean is there any science behind these numbers or is it just something someone came up with off the top of their head? If it's the latter than it could definitely be fought to be changed.

It all sounds like BS to me but I don't know the specifics. The mileage limit just sounds silly and it's like they made it up to keep the enviro nuts happy. It also seems like it could be potentially harmful to the communities that depend on these ski areas for their winter economy.

Face4Me

Re: Whiteface, Saturday 02/04/2017

This post was updated on .

raisingarizona wrote

Ok but who came up with this decision and what is it based on? I mean is there any science behind these numbers or is it just something someone came up with off the top of their head? If it's the latter than it could definitely be fought to be changed.

It all sounds like BS to me but I don't know the specifics. The mileage limit just sounds silly and it's like they made it up to keep the enviro nuts happy. It also seems like it could be potentially harmful to the communities that depend on these ski areas for their winter economy.

Not sure ... you'd have to find someone who was alive in 1894.

Actually, it would seem that the mileage limits may have been added in the 1940's, though possibly not adopted until the 1960's.

It's easy to be against something ... It's hard to be for something!

campgottagopee

Re: Whiteface, Saturday 02/04/2017

Face4Me wrote

raisingarizona wrote

Ok but who came up with this decision and what is it based on? I mean is there any science behind these numbers or is it just something someone came up with off the top of their head? If it's the latter than it could definitely be fought to be changed.

It all sounds like BS to me but I don't know the specifics. The mileage limit just sounds silly and it's like they made it up to keep the enviro nuts happy. It also seems like it could be potentially harmful to the communities that depend on these ski areas for their winter economy.

Not sure ... you'd have to find someone who was alive in 1894.

that made me laugh!

Face4Me

Re: Whiteface, Saturday 02/04/2017

In reply to this post by raisingarizona

raisingarizona wrote

Ok but who came up with this decision and what is it based on? I mean is there any science behind these numbers or is it just something someone came up with off the top of their head? If it's the latter than it could definitely be fought to be changed.

It all sounds like BS to me but I don't know the specifics. The mileage limit just sounds silly and it's like they made it up to keep the enviro nuts happy. It also seems like it could be potentially harmful to the communities that depend on these ski areas for their winter economy.

Here's some good, and very timely information about all of this ...

http://www.nysba.org/ForeverWildClause/

It's easy to be against something ... It's hard to be for something!