Jake Posted October 27, 2004 Share Posted October 27, 2004 So I have been afflicted with moving to the east coast - Washington DC actually. Between hearing all my friends in the PNW tell me about the snow and watching ski movies, I'm gonna shoot myself any minute for moving out here to the land of ski resorts with 400' of vert. Sooo, where are the best ski areas on the East coast? Places that have snow, not ice and are tall enough to actually get a few turns in before you get to the bottom. Any good places worth visiting? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cj001f Posted October 27, 2004 Share Posted October 27, 2004 So I have been afflicted with moving to the east coast - Washington DC actually. Between hearing all my friends in the PNW tell me about the snow and watching ski movies, I'm gonna shoot myself any minute for moving out here to the land of ski resorts with 400' of vert. Sooo, where are the best ski areas on the East coast? Places that have snow, not ice and are tall enough to actually get a few turns in before you get to the bottom. Any good places worth visiting? Â And I bet you want a season longer than a month too! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jake Posted October 27, 2004 Author Share Posted October 27, 2004 Yes that would be nice. Maybe I should just shoot myself now and get all the suffering over with. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dmiller Posted October 27, 2004 Share Posted October 27, 2004 Snowshoe Ski Resort in West Virginia is probably your best bet for close proximity. Or you can venture up to Vermont, that's where supposedly the better ski areas are. Â I too am in the same boat. I could be back in the PNW but nooooooooo, will have to make due with the resorts they have in NC Â Man made snow at it's finest! 6" of loose sugary snow on top of moguly slush and ice. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jake Posted October 27, 2004 Author Share Posted October 27, 2004 Yeah I've heard that there is stuff in W. VA and PA, but I'm certainly looking into making a trip up to New England if it is gonna be worth it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cj001f Posted October 27, 2004 Share Posted October 27, 2004 Snowshoe Ski Resort in West Virginia is probably your best bet for close proximity. Snowshoe's a fortune for what it is. And it's 4-5 hrs from DC. Closer are Canaan Valley, Tiimberline & Whitegrass Touring Center(excellent food) all around Davis, WV. If your heading for a bigger mountain check out Whiteface in the Adirondaks (Lake Placid, NY). Real vertical skiiing and lots of ice climbing nearby. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dave_Schuldt Posted October 27, 2004 Share Posted October 27, 2004 Give up DH skiing and go for cross country and ice climbing. My brother used to live in Vermont. From his discription of the ares I wouldn't waste my time and $60 lift ticket. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PaulB Posted October 27, 2004 Share Posted October 27, 2004 ...I'm certainly looking into making a trip up to New England if it is gonna be worth it. If you're gonna make the long drive north, head to the Mt. Washington valley in New Hampshire. Cranmore, Attitash & Wildcat are all close to each other, and Sunday River and Sugarloaf in Maine aren't too far away either. In the spring you can also make the pilgramage to Tuckerman's Ravine on Mt. Washington itself. Â If you're an ice climber, there's lots of that do in the same area as well, which makes for a nice dual purpose road trip. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
korup Posted October 27, 2004 Share Posted October 27, 2004 Â Well friend, prepare to be disappointed. After skiing in CO, UT WA, and MT, I visited back East and all I could think was, "How the hell do these resorts stay open?" well, people are desperate. Whiteface and Mad River Glen and Attitash are all worth a drive. Otherwise, short nasty icy runs.... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jake Posted October 27, 2004 Author Share Posted October 27, 2004 $59 for a holiday weekend pass at Sunday River!? Damn. May have to trade in the planks for some ice tools as you suggest. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
b-rock Posted October 27, 2004 Share Posted October 27, 2004 Jay Peak, Mad River Glen are far but probably your best options for the most snow. There's always Tuckermans in the spring time. The good news is that you get to hone your technique on some of the finest blue ice the resorts in this country have to offer. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cman Posted October 27, 2004 Share Posted October 27, 2004 i used to ski at stowe in college. lots of groomers and bumps, if you are into that. there are some secret stashes in the woods were good powder can be found on the right day, but i was sworn to secrecy so i cannot tell you the exact location. also there is a fun run where you hike to the top of mt mansfield and ski down toward the notch. Â buy some new skis and start carving up the groomers, your technique will never be better. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cj001f Posted October 27, 2004 Share Posted October 27, 2004 $59 for a holiday weekend pass at Sunday River!? Damn. May have to trade in the planks for some ice tools as you suggest. The only thing that sucks more than being a DC skiier is being a DC ice climber. Reliable Ice is the same location as decent skiing; New England. Your 10-12hrs from New England. Take up kayaking. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JayB Posted October 28, 2004 Share Posted October 28, 2004 So I have been afflicted with moving to the east coast - Washington DC actually. Between hearing all my friends in the PNW tell me about the snow and watching ski movies, I'm gonna shoot myself any minute for moving out here to the land of ski resorts with 400' of vert. Sooo, where are the best ski areas on the East coast? Places that have snow, not ice and are tall enough to actually get a few turns in before you get to the bottom. Any good places worth visiting? Â Kill yourself. Â The dudes I know on the Least Coast seem to like Jay Peak and Stowe the best, but all agree that they are far inferior to most of the resorts out West. Â The paddling is actually pretty good in the DC area from what I hear. Take it up. Lots of kayaking gear for cheap on Craig's list. Also - the mouintain biking is supposed to be pretty decent out there as well. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cj001f Posted October 28, 2004 Share Posted October 28, 2004 The paddling is actually pretty good in the DC area from what I hear. Take it up. Â 30 minutes from Downtown(and that's with traffic). Big after work paddle scene. Many Olympic class paddlers. Â Â Re. skiing. The advantage of DC is it's a capitol city. Airflights are plentiful (and cheap!) to wherever you want to be, whenever you want to be there. Anywhere in the country, or the world. Don't bother driving 10-12 hrs, through shitty traffic (unless your skipping work) for crappy skiing in New England when in the same amount of time, for about the same $, you could be in Salt Lake, Whistler, or Chamonix. Europe's cheap from DC, the flight times are good. Take advantage. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cstemley Posted October 28, 2004 Share Posted October 28, 2004 Don't kill youself, try not to think of sking or snow, forget about freshies, sparkely snow, spindrift or chair lifts, your in DC dude. call your buds out here or in the alps and get a plane ticket, but if you have a old style fridge you could build a little ski area with the frost and ski with tooth pick men Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jake Posted October 28, 2004 Author Share Posted October 28, 2004 Tooth pick man skiing sounds like the shit. You have experience with setting up some sick runs or what? Didn't realize paddling was so big out here. Definitely have to check that out - I live off of craigs list. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dave_Schuldt Posted October 28, 2004 Share Posted October 28, 2004 Try mountain biking, almolst as fun as skiing. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
thelawgoddess Posted October 28, 2004 Share Posted October 28, 2004 Try mountain biking, almolst as fun as skiing. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ken4ord Posted November 2, 2004 Share Posted November 2, 2004 Hey Jake I went from the greatest SLC to Maine blue water ice to PNW. The first year I went ice skiing in Maine I was done with skiing. The lift tickets were outrageous, the snow sucked ass, and it was colder than hell. I gave my ski away and stuck to snowshoing and XC skiing. Eventually I got into ice climbing, that rocks in New England. I would suggest selling the ski gear and buy ice climbing gear. Â With that said there are place to go that are decent all backcountry. Mt Washington has some great stuff, there is the ever famous Tucks, on to the East the Gulf of Slides has a lot good lines in it, on the other side of the mountain there is Oakes Gulf, Double Barrell. That is your best bet for good backcountry and I know guy that hit that shit early, make sure you have your rock skis though. One favorite of mine that was an easy on was Baldface Mountain lot of moderate potential there. Then over in Franconia Notch there were several mountains in there that were fun Lafayette and Cannon. These are all in the North Conway area in New Hampshire. Â In Maine there was Mount Katahdin for some real killer backcountry, but the trouble with that mountain was that you had to plan way in advance and the weather and avalanche forecasts hardly ever that good. Â New York over in the Adirondacks supposedly has some good backcountry, but like the rest of New England, the weather is somewhat unpredictable. Â I always wanted to make it up to Labrador and Cape Breton and check out the highlands for potential backcountry, but never made. There is some great ice climbing that is going in up in Labrador. Though you really need a fair amount of time to get up there. Â Hope this help good luck. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jake Posted November 2, 2004 Author Share Posted November 2, 2004 Yeah thanks a lot. I'm gonna go scope it out, but my hopes aren't that high. Saw some pictures of Tuckerman - damn the crowd was HUGE! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
David_Parker Posted November 2, 2004 Share Posted November 2, 2004 From DC, I wouldn't even bother heading north to the New England resorts. Just take a trip out west for a week and visit a friend for cheap lodging. IF you head to NE, Sugarloaf (ME), Cannon (NH), Mad River& Stowe (VT) and Whiteface (NY) are the best. Sunday River has made a lot of improvements. Too many NY Yankee fans at Killington! There are some secret smaller resorts too. Personally, I would do the "dual" trip to North Conway for ice climbing and skiing as mentioned before. But you could also get a dual trip in near Burlington or Lake Placid as well. Â The only good thing about skiing on the east coast is you will become a better technical skiier and build a tolerance for cold weather. Â Â I wouldn't bother skiing within 3-4 hours of DC. Take up white water kayaking, sea kayaking or sailing instead. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jake Posted November 2, 2004 Author Share Posted November 2, 2004 Actually I have really wanted to check out sailing. There are tons of people out on the water at Annapolis on little boats that look pretty fun. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
David_Parker Posted November 2, 2004 Share Posted November 2, 2004 Jake, if you want to try sailing, give me a pm. I have a 33 ft. sailboat. Last Sunday was awesome! Annapolis is one of the largest sailing centers on the east coast. There are always people looking for crew! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cj001f Posted November 2, 2004 Share Posted November 2, 2004 Jake, if you want to try sailing, give me a pm. I have a 33 ft. sailboat. Last Sunday was awesome! Annapolis is one of the largest sailing centers on the east coast. There are always people looking for crew! Â Post an add online at www.spinsheet.com - you'll get a ton of responses for people looking for crew. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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