MA / NH skiing 2019-20

[knolan12]

The long green from the top of Wildcat is not that steep, however it's relatively narrow. So a pure beginner who is used to traversing across a wide, straight trail for a while before making a turn might be intimidated. In general, groomers at Wildcat get skied off fairly quickly. So after 10:30 or 11:00, all the trails can be pretty slick. That's why I spent a morning at Wildcat and then went over to Attitash on the same lift ticket in the afternoon during a ski safari last March. Nice to have Attitash as a backup if turns out to be too windy or foggy at Wildcat. Buying a ticket in advance is cheaper but you have to commit to a given date.

This is super helpful, thank you! Narrow isn't a problem so that's good. I ski with my husband and he lets me set the pace (until I need a break and he can go do a few of the more advanced runs haha).

 

[liquidfeet]

Polecat (rider's left) is a LONG green. Enjoy it many times. Avoid taking that right fork down at the bottom; you'll have to skate to get back to the lift. The Bobcat lift will get you to the other green, Wild Kitten. Take the summit lift first, ski Polecat to the bottom, and head over to the Bobcat lift before you get too low on the mountain. You will NOT want to climb up to that Bobcat lift; its loading platform is high on the mountain.

Wild Kitten is more tame than Polecat. Keep up your speed at the bottom, or you'll have to skate to get back to the lifts.

Your next thing to do is ride the summit lift to the top, go rider's right. It's flat at first. Take a right onto Upper Catapult which is a blue; it winds around. Stop often, catch your breath, enjoy the views, watch the skiers go by. Head down when you feel good about doing so. When you get to Middle Wildcat, take it to get over to Wild Kitten for an easy way down after negotiating those upper mountain blues.

MarzNC is right; everything gets skied off quick so do those two blues early in the day to see how well you enjoy them.

Bobcat and Cheetah are the other two blues; both are wide. Cheetah gets less traffic than Bobcat. Find a way to get to them as you get your ski legs beneath you, and you'll be able to enjoy the rest of the day on blues.

If you are a true beginner or novice, the beginner lift at the bottom accesses some short easy greens. Start there.

Wildcat is unique and somewhat old school with its narrow trails and old lodge. Enjoy its atmosphere.

*Note: if something is labelled black at Wildcat, it really is a black. Blues can feel like blacks when they are skied off, which happens fast on a weekend day. Avoid upper, middle, and lower Lynx altogether. All of those are blues, but they get icy fast because they are very popular. And narrow. And winding.

The bar at the end of the day, on weekends, has music and is lively.

 

[knolan12]

This is awesome @liquidfeet, thank you!!

 

[marzNC]

The long time Gunstock GM is retiring after the 2019-20 season. There is a long announcement by Greg Goddard on the Gunstock blog. I didn't realize Gunstock was owned by the county. They made the transition to a 4-season area in 2011.

Aug 2019, SAM Info
GUNSTOCK GM GREG GODDARD TO RETIRE
"SAM Magazine—Gilford, N.H., Aug. 21, 2019—After a 39-year career at Gunstock Mountain Resort, including the last 21 years serving as general manager, Greg Goddard will retire from the resort in August 2020. He is the longest tenured GM in Gunstock’s history.

Goddard began his career at Gunstock in the winter of 1981-82 as a bartender at the Powder Keg Pub and became a year-round employee in November 1982. He became the director of finance and administration in 1988, and took the helm as general manager in 1998.

Gunstock is county owned, . . ."

 

[liquidfeet]

I was reading the commentary about Wildcat and I'm curious about the greens. Someone made a comment about the summit trail not being a pure beginner trail and I'm curious about that assessment. Is it narrow, steep, etc.? We stayed at the Glen House last year and fell in love. We were skiing at Bretton Woods and didn't realize that Wildcat was literally 2 minutes down the road when I booked. We want to go back to the Glen House and it would be nice to literally roll out of bed to go skiing, but I'm afraid Wildcat might be too advanced? I'm easily entertained and can ski the same few trails over and over again, but I like knowing what I'm getting myself into haha

I should also say that Bretton Woods is much more friendly to green-trail skiers than is Wildcat. You can get down on greens from every chair lift (not the T-bar, though) at Bretton Woods. Just being honest. So after skiing Wildcat, be sure to go to Bretton Woods to get more varied user-friendly runs in. There will be a new Gondola there this upcoming season which will load right outside the base lodge. Hopefully this will relieve some of the lift lines when it's crowded on weekends and during holidays.

Also note that Wildcat tends to be less crowded than Bretton Woods on holidays and weekends.

 

[liquidfeet]

I'm enjoying the pleasure of remembering about the places I ski and writing about them. It's not as good as actually skiing, but it's as close as I can get in September. Let's talk more about the mountains we ski regularly!

 

[marzNC]

@liquidfeet : have you ever skied at Tenney? It's well worth checking out some weekend when you don't want to deal with a crowd. At least after there is enough natural snow to open both lifts. Although there are plenty of ways down off the main lift to be entertained for a day trip.

If I were to go back to NH to ski, Tenney and Waterville Valley would be on the list of places to go after they are 100% open. I would return to Loon too. Note that I'm too spoiled by trips out west to be interested in trees or bumps in New England. Too much work unless very, very lucky.

 

[liquidfeet]

MarzNC, I am usually teaching on weekends. If it's open midweek when I have a free-skiing day and there's tons of snow (haha), I will try it.

 

[heatherrrrz]

Now that I know how to ski I'm hoping to either get a visit to Cranmore or Bretton Woods. Looks like Cranmore is closer to Glen House which is fairly cheap for the dates I'm looking at in December.

 

[marzNC]

Now that I know how to ski I'm hoping to either get a visit to Cranmore or Bretton Woods. Looks like Cranmore is closer to Glen House which is fairly cheap for the dates I'm looking at in December.

How late in Dec? While I've no doubt that Cranmore is well run because it's operated by the same group that does Jiminy Peak, for early season I think Bretton Woods might be able to get more green terrain open. Of course, if it's cold enough by late Nov then either one would be fun. Can tell Cranmore has a strong focus on beginners based on their flyer.

If it's a blue sky day, it's worth the drive to Bretton Woods. Then plan to drive over to the Mt. Washington Hotel after done with skiing. The view of the hotel and Mt. Washington from the overlook on the highway is great. Much better in person than my late afternoon photo. Walking around the inside of the hotel is fun too if you like historical buildings and photographs.

 

[heatherrrrz]

Looking at going for my boyfriend's birthday weekend which is December 13th. Last year we went the same weekend, stayed five minutes from Loon where I had my first lesson then added an extra day and stayed at North Conway Grand. I didn't end up skiing anymore that weekend, but he snowboarded at Cranmore on that monday and ended up being 1 of like 5 people on the trail which was great.

My problem is my boyfriend is hard to get up early to go skiing, I feel like it's a snowboarder thing lol. I used to vacation in that area of NH when I was a kid, but somehow we never ended up at the Mt. Washington Hotel. I remember doing the auto road and the cog railway but never going to the hotel and that's on my list of places to get to now.

Your picture is great!

 

[marzNC]

MarzNC, I am usually teaching on weekends. If it's open midweek when I have a free-skiing day and there's tons of snow (haha), I will try it.

Tenney was open Wed-Sun last season. $40 midweek for seniors. I expect they have the same hours for 2019-20 once there is enough snow to open. Can reach most of the terrain only riding the main lift to the summit. What's unusual is that there is pretty good protection from wind at the very top. They do have snowmaking on the core "easiest way down" trails. But better to wait until the natural trails are open. After a big snow, they groom as little as practical.

 

[liquidfeet]

@heatherrrrz, you HAVE to go to the Mt. Washington Hotel for apres. The lobby will be filled with skiers in ski pants and jackets. It looks like this. Try to get a seat under the moose head. You can get a checkers board or chess board from the concierge. Irish coffee is great. Not cheap, but worth doing just because. Walk all around while you're there. Unique experience, and so much fun.

 

[marzNC]

One of the biggest advantages of a ski area being able to bring in people during the green season is that there are more full time jobs. The man in charge of lifts at Wachusett clearly has a good time during the summer as well as in the winter.

Sep 2019, Boston Globe
This job comes with a breeze and view
" . . .
“There’s nothing like being on top of that tower on a decent, warm winter morning,” says Baker, the lift department manager at Wachusett Mountain, the largest ski resort in Massachusetts. “You can’t see that from an office space.”
. . ."

 

[SallyCat]

One of the biggest advantages of a ski area being able to bring in people during the green season is that there are more full time jobs. The man in charge of lifts at Wachusett clearly has a good time during the summer as well as in the winter.

Sep 2019, Boston Globe
This job comes with a breeze and view
" . . .
“There’s nothing like being on top of that tower on a decent, warm winter morning,” says Baker, the lift department manager at Wachusett Mountain, the largest ski resort in Massachusetts. “You can’t see that from an office space.”
. . ."

A few management positions may go to full-time, but the vast majority of ski resort workers are and will remain seasonal, even at resorts with robust green-season offerings. Ski areas start shedding workers in March and bike parks and other green-season operations don't generally begin until Memorial Day. The most bustling resort in Vermont still has around a thousand fewer employees in the summer compared to winter.

 

[marzNC]

A few management positions may go to full-time, but the vast majority of ski resort workers are and will remain seasonal, even at resorts with robust green-season offerings. Ski areas start shedding workers in March and bike parks and other green-season operations don't generally begin until Memorial Day. The most bustling resort in Vermont still has around a thousand fewer employees in the summer compared to winter.

Agreed. Companies will generally avoid full-time positions when paying seasonal workers is an option.

Jiminy Peak lodging is full all summer and mostly empty midweek during the winter. Like Washusett, investing in a high-speed 6-seater detachable lift was as much for the green season as for the ski season. Berkshire East has spent quite a bit of effort to add green season revenue and jobs.

 

[marzNC]

Sounds like the new gondola at Bretton Woods will definitely be ready before the ski season starts. Targeting late October for everything to be working. Although I would guess the ideal would be a bit sooner to get in as many fall color weekends as possible. The "event facility" at the top of the gondola won't be finished until next summer.

Sep 2019
https://www.unionleader.com/news/lo...cle_ecb01ffd-1c62-5930-a1bc-59c1c9eb5e9e.html

 

[liquidfeet]

I will be working at Bretton Woods this upcoming season. The letter that I got as a returning employee indicated that the gondola definitely will be running when ski season starts. It said little about when the lodge/restaurant/event facility would be ready.

That gondola hopefully will relieve some of the long lines at the other lifts in front of the main lodge.

 

[Bonnie2617]

Bretton Woods currently has “pre-season” tickets on sale for specific dates. $79 weekends and $59 weekday. Is that the best deal for their tickets? My family is planning a trip there this year and I am wondering if should pull the trigger now or if any better deals will come along.

 

[liquidfeet]

I don't know about deals the Bretton Woods offers through the season, as I get a pass with my job. I don't pay attention to those prices. Sorry.