[I know the answer to this could get quite complex and subjective, but give me your general impressions. I’m talking about the experience for advanced skiers.]
Obviously, the trails out west are longer, higher, steeper, and more powdery. But in terms of the overall quality of the experience otherwise, can the skiing in New England and Upstate NY even remotely compare with what’s found in Utah, Colorado, Banff, etc?
I’ve gone skiing all over New England, in Utah, and Whistler. The answer is NO.
Sometimes out West the skiing isn’t LONGER. It’s higher, but often the lifts are that much higher.
Still, I grew up skiing a little in Maine so you’d expect that’s where my bias lies.
Out West I’ve skied at Schweitzer in Idaho, and at a couple places near Nelson, BC.
There’s no comparison. The West is the best.
For starters, and this is a big starter, I’ve never been in any Freshy Pow Pow in the East. I don’t remember seeing as much ice in the west.
I don’t remember whole trails of moguls in the east.
That said, we used to do night skiing in Maine. 10 of us would get drunk and stoned and make really bad decisions on the slopes. That’s still the most fun I’ve ever had skiing.
I don’t ski at all here in the mid-atlantic. I was never that into it.
Having lived (and skied) in Utah for several years, and having started in the East (and now here again), my take is that the Skiiing in Utah is much better overall – higher, steeper, more challenging, more dramatic-looking, and closer by. Givenm the choice, I’d take Utah anyday.
But I’m not given the choice, and, since I’m near Boston, I’ll ski here, because it’s still nothing to sneeze at. There is some very god skiing t be had here. Two hours from Boston will get you Loon or Waterville Valley. A little more will get you tio Killingtonor Sunday River. If you really want to go for it you can hike Tuckerman’s ravine into the summer.
Cannon Mountain may be Ice City, but even out West not all the snow is champagne powder, no matter what the advocates say. The ski area that used to be Park West (I forget what it is now) used to have more than its share of ice runs.
I have a humor book called Ski Party. One two-page spread compares skiing in the east and the west. My favorite lines i the comparison were at the end – “Apres-ski activity”. In the West it was “Sitting in the Hot Tub”. In the East it was “Driving Home”. Pretty much sums it up.
Bucking the trend here, I have to say it is a different experence, both with their pluses and minuses. To ski NE, I mean to really experence what it has to offer you MUST be a expert, and by expert I mean you can comfortably handle any slope under all but the worst conditions.
Classic NE skiing is all about steep narrow chutes and glades. These ‘narrow’ trails evolved because they hold the snow on slopes. Unfortunatly these trails are not condusive to other (non-expert) skiers, so the trees came down and the slopes widened. They lost their natural ability to hold snow, and surface conditions deteriorated. But if you are able to venture off trail, to some of the ‘local hole shots’ and the like you will find what NE skiing really was.
So IMHO ‘typical’ eastern skiing is not as good as western skiing only when it is pretending to be something it’s not.
Eastern skiing isn’t even as good as California skiing.
Hey! That’s just mean, man.
It’s true, probably. But, still.
I’ve snowboarded in NE most of my life. I’ve been out west (Lake Tahoe area) and it is a completely different experience.
The only positive I can say about NE is that it’s good training. If you can ski or ride here than you can ski or ride anywhere. Once you know how to survive powderless, icy slopes than hitting the powdery iceless peaks out west is childs play.
A bit off topic, but East Coast skiers have told me that if you’re good enough to handle New England’s icy trails, you’ll rule the mountains out west. But others have laughed at that, telling me the “advanced” trails in NE can’t compare to their counterparts in Utah, Colorado, Canada, etc.–and that an over-confident “advanced” Right Coaster may find himself wrapped up in the trees out west.
True?
I don’t buy it. a really good skier will be good anywhere. What you find surprising, coming from New Enngland to Utah, is that it really hits you that the “grading” of the trail difficulty is relative. The “intermediate” trails at Snowbird in Utah would definitely qualify as “Advanced” on most New England runs. Maybe even double diamonds at places like Wachusett. so someone who’s relatively new, or with limited experience might go out West and come back daunted.
But someone whose experience includes stints at Mad River and Tuckerman’s isn’t going to suddenly find himself out of his depth in Utah.
One big surprise that NE skiiers might find out west is that the mountains are less managed. At Kirkwood, there are cliffs that have no sign or warning.
In NE most mountains have very specific areas where skiiers and riders are allowed to go. Even a small patch of rocks is usually marked. Out west often times the whole side of a mountain is open to wherever you feel like going. There’s nothing stopping you from riding over a cliff or into a huge hole in the ground.
But handling yourself on powder is just so easy compared with the granuals of man made ice back east. Even falling down hurts less.
In general, you will find better conditions and more interesting terrain out west. There is more natural snow, above treeline terrain, steeper runs, and more off-piste adventure.
Having said that, I’ve had some killer powder days here on the east coast and some incredible spring skiing in Tuckerman and Gulf of Slides on Mount Washington. The best days I’ve had in the east compare favorably the best days I’ve had out west, but I’ve had more of those days out west.
While this is true, the “narrow chutes and glades” in Colorado are an order of magnitude better than New England’s. To answer the OP, simply put, no.
It also matters where you ski back east. Most areas are groomed to within an inch of their lives, so you need to get to Mad River Glen VT (no snowmaking, no grooming, no snowboards) or the Jay Peak VT glades or the Sugarloaf snowfields or out-of-bounds at any number of places to find the best snow. Out west, terrain and snow like that is easier to find.
Okay, let’s see…
The best day of skiing I ever had was two years ago at Lake Placid, but I hit the absolute jackpot. It was a weekday (the place was practically deserted) and the weather was spectacular (CAVU, in pilot’s terms, and just a degree or two below freezing which kept the snow in good shape. One of the locals told me it was the best weather he’d seen there in ten years). And it was my first time skiing in about eight years, so I didn’t need the insanely steep and difficult stuff. I"m going to try and do a long weekend at Stowe this winter.
I grew up in Washington and learned to ski at Crystal Mountain, near Mt. Rainier, where the snow is known as “cascade concrete”. And I managed to get to Park City for a day a couple years ago, but it was the first hot day of the year (about 70 degrees) so the snow was getting thick and heavy. If you stood still, you could almost feel it melt beneath your feet. It was probably the last day they were open that year.
So I’ve had better experiences in the east, although I know it’s completely the luck of the draw.
Why is it mean? I’m not a skiier, but I’ve looked at maps and California’s mountains are higher than any in the east.
Higher (ASL) doesn’t mean more vertical drop of trails.
When I’ve been to Utah with the parents, and to Tahoe with Debaser, one of the things that struck me is that though you start at 7500ft ASL, you’re only riding the lift to 10,500 ASL. 3000 Vert ft. Similar to mountains like Sugarloaf here in the east.
I agree with Debaser though, if you’re able to ski White Heat at Sunday River, you can pretty much ski anywhere in the West. (DEEP, silly deep powder, and big air cliffs are different beasts)
The biggest issue I had as an “Easterner” when I went out west is getting used to the base altitudes. 7500Ft ASL at the Mountain base has a whole lot less air than at a 1500Ft ASL mountain base.
Speaking as a New Englander, i’d have to say that the best examples of NE skiing would have to be Sunday River in Maine, (White Heat, Outer Limits and the like), Jay Peak in Northern Vermont, Mad River Glen in Central Vermont, and Wildcat Mountain in Central/North New Hampshire
personally, i rank them as such, best to worst, snow quality and trails…
Mad River Glen
Jay Peak
Sunday River
Wildcat
bear in mind, even the “worst” one on the list here is pretty frakkin good…
And there’s lots more great terrain and snow if you’re willing to hike for it, especially in VT. But except for some area around Mt Washington in NH, there’s nothing like the vast above treeline skiing you can find in CO, WY, CA, UT, MT, and ID.
New England skiing is much better than many people think, but you have to pick your days and be prepared for some ice and the crowds.