I got a very good day of skiing at Gore Mountain; I have not skied Gore before so it is always nice…read moreto explore a new mountain. Getting from my hotel in Lake George to Gore was easy enough. At Gore I ended up parking in one of the more distant parking lots, but a shuttle was right there to deliver me to the base area. A short walk to the lodge where you can settle in and get geared up. There are baskets to store your bag and the lifts are nearby. A bit of a delay at the start of the day as they were still getting the trails and lifts ready. Then there was a single lift running for about 1 hour so the lines were fairly long; when they finally got the gondola and the upper lifts running the lines disappeared and the day became much more enjoyable. Gore has a bunch of different areas, I got through most of them, although I did not get to try the Burnt Ridge and North Creek areas, but did find plenty of nice runs. I spent the day on Blue and groomed Black runs and had a great time. Overall I enjoyed my day skiing at Gore Mountain, if you are in the area it is a good place to ski, probably not worth a long trip to ski, but certainly worth a visit. Gore and Whiteface use the same RIF card so if you have one it is well worth getting a day at each of them.

I unfortunately didn't have the greatest experience Gore could offer due to external factors none…read moreto Gore's fault. I definitely want to come back again and redeem my time here because I'm not a quitter. My boyfriend and I had come up to Gore on Friday the 13th in December 2024 no less. So maybe that's where all my bad luck came from ? PARKING There's a ton of parking, but coming later in the day results in parking far. It's quite a walk to the main lodge and kiosk when you do. Parking is free! PRICE I can't talk about price because my boyfriend works in the industry and got our tickets through his line of work. SNOW CONDITIONS Packed base, icy, mind your tailbone. I would highly recommend starting on some easy greens just to get the feel of the conditions. I've only been snowboarding for 2 years, but have had over 150 hours on snow already and 45ish days. But at the start of the season, everything is new ish again. My boyfriend is an experienced rider. Riding for over 10 years, way more days and hours than I have, and had his start in Colorado. I asked for greens just to warm up, while I do ride on blues, I was riding on a new board and it didn't end well for me. Failing to plan is planning to fail after all. I wish I got a trail map at the beginning, and they should be widely more available to find. Not everyone has great cell service in the mountains. While at the top, near Saddle Lodge, it starts off green, at the beginning of the season there's not many runs open and soon I found myself on a blue on a very playful and new board. It threw me in for a loop since my last board was VERY stiff. The complete opposite! During my second lap of the day I fell wrong and whatever was in my kangaroo pocket jabbed my rib. I couldn't get down on my own due to the pain and nausea and ski patrol had to bring the toboggan. I hated it. I hated having to cut it so short! Gore was a dream mountain of mine and I didn't get to experience it fully. My expectations for myself became defeated. Swallowing that pill was hard. I will be back towards the end of the season to reclaim my experience. After I have more practice on my new board. I just bought another one, which is in between both the stiff and very playful board. SKI PATROL I want to thank Zac for staying by me and my boyfriend while I tried to get myself down. I really didn't want to quit. I'm not a quitter but my boyfriend did say, "it's better to quit now and ride another day than make it worse and be out all season." After thinking about it and how dizzy and nauseous I was I gave in. Just knowing I had the support was reassuring. Zac was also very calm and reassuring. Once I made up my mind to that I couldn't go further on my own, he brought me down with the toboggan. I never rode on a sled before in my life, and it was fun, but let's definitely not make it a habit! It's been almost a month now and my ribs are 99% better. It was an intercostal muscle strain. It hurt like hell for a week and a half, but I rode again at a smaller mountain the next day because we didn't want to end the trip early. I had better runs, no falls, despite the insane amount of pain. GIFT SHOP I had a very lovely chat with the lady who works in the gift shop. I bought many Gore Stickers for my scrapbook! She and I bonded over our love of scrapbooks, and I know that's not something snowboarders regularly do. Mainly stickers go on helmets and boards, but I love them on & in my scrapbook. Pricing is definitely a little more than average. But the stickers are amazing quality so worth it! They also sell just about anything you would need in the shop at the base area lodge. We bought one of those screwdriver sets. OVERALL I highly recommend saving the PDF version of the trail map to your phone for easy access ahead of time before you go anywhere near the mountain. The views are out of this world!! Gore is definitely a place to ride and check out and I will be back with a better updated review!

My daughter's wedding was at Oak yesterday. Laura & Matt were so accommodating and helpful - in…read morecommunication with us the entire time. The staff was professional and fun. They made the entire day feel effortless and wonderful! I would recommend Oak as a wedding or party venue to anyone.

Loved this ski center- low key- perfect for children Priced…read moreright Food was great Pizza and chicken fingers were great!

What a beautiful mountain!…read more As an adult first learning to ski, I found Whiteface fairly intimidating. Just the drive in with its sweeping views of the east slope landscape is awe-inspiring. As an Olympic mountain with the greatest continuous vertical drop in the eastern US, this ski mountain has so much to offer for all levels of outdoor enthusiast. The Bear's Den area is the perfect launching point for little ones, new skiers, or those who prefer to warm up with an easy slope. If you're ready to jump in, there's a series of greens, blues, blacks, and more that can be accessed from their main lodge area by a gondola and several chairlifts to the mid and upper mountain. Even on busy days there's so many miles of trails that it keeps the crowds spread out to a degree. Can the lift lines get excessive? Sure. But if you're not picky, you can ski around (or stick to the upper mountain) and you can get a decent amount of runs in. Great mountain to level up on. In the past year I've graduated to some of their blues and finally made it to their highest lift (at 4,386 feet!) to soak in the amazing views of the surrounding Adirondacks. I've hiked many a mountain in summer this height but it was rewarding to catch a ride to the top and make my way down on skis. I appreciated the trail matrix available this year to gain a better understanding of which blues are easier and which start to verge on black so that I don't find myself in an overly uncomfortable situation before I'm mentally ready to do so. While all skiing is generally expensive, I feel you get a pretty good bang for your buck. Great facilities with a mid-mountain lodge. Fun events to watch if you catch them on a day you're already on-mountain. I caught both giant slalom and slalom this last trip. I'm clearly no expert but, I'm a fan of this location and am grateful to have the opportunity to ski here a couple times a year when in the area. I will have to hike it sometime to appreciate all that the non-winter season has to offer.

I have been trying to ski Whiteface for a while, usually one thing or another prevented me…read more Luckily this time I got a full day of skiing. Getting to Whiteface from my hotel in Lake George was easy; parking ended up being easy since I choose to park at the Bear Den Lodge area so I ended up almost to the lodge. I picked up my lift ticket RFID ticket from the electronic dispenser with no problem; by buying online in advance I got a discount price. The lodge was nice and even had racks available for free bag storage. I do appreciate that getting to the lodge and from the lodge to the lifts without having to climb steps. Overall the logistics were great for getting onto the mountain at the Bear Den area. The biggest downside I encountered was that the lifts were delayed almost 1 hour so that the groomers could redo the mountain since there was an ice storm overnight. I do have to call out the lift operator who kept us informed and entertained during the wait; it was much appreciated. Once the lifts were running there is one lift that gets you from the Bear Den area which is the beginner's area to mid-mountain and access to the rest of the mountain. Once I got skiing, Whiteface lived up to its Iceface nickname both early in the morning and then later in the afternoon. I was glad that they had regroomed the slopes so the skiing was good for most of the day. 3mmit and Lookout Mountain. I got to ski all 3 areas and really enjoyed myself. Little Whiteface was a bit limited since they had closed a whole face and one lift for race training. The Summit of course puts you up high and provides the choice to ski quite a few different trails and you can go to mid-mountain or the full 3000+ vertical to the base area. Lookout Mountain was opened later than the other areas and then was closed again for a while for regrooming; I was a bit disappointed by this since I found the Willmington Trail to be some of the best skiing on the mountain. A great long intermediate trail with fun twists and turns and variations in the slope, I would have taken a couple more runs on this trail if I had the chance. I really enjoyed skiing Whiteface, it is the largest vertical for any Eastern ski area. The lift system works well and navigating the mountain is not too hard. Having hosted the winter Olympics there is plenty of challenge and variety. Prices are reasonable, especially if you buy your tickets online and in advance. Because Lake Placid is a bit remote the lift lines were short. As long as the weather cooperates Whiteface is a great place to ski or ride.

Royal Mountain is a small mom & pop mountain nestled in upstate New York. It's only open on…read moreweekends, holidays, and school breaks from 9am to 4pm, but it was perfect to try out after Friday the 13th on Gore and my intercostal muscle strain. PARKING Plenty of free parking, lots of off-roading. TICKETS & PASSES I had my reservations about the quality of Royal due to the prices of tickets and passes. Super affordable! Adult all day was $60. THE MOUNTAIN & SLOPES I first learned about Royal Mountain after meeting Billy, a ski patroller there, while my boyfriend and I were at Gore. He invited us to check out Royal so we wouldn't leave empty-handed after a rough time at Gore. He knew I had been struggling there, psyching myself out, and assured me I would have a much better time at Royal. He was right--I'm not going to lie, I reclaimed my confidence at Royal and was able to take it easy without further injuring myself. Billy's enthusiasm for the mountain was undeniable. He showed us around, and it quickly became clear just how much love the community has for Royal. Everyone helps run it together, and it was so well-kept. Every inch of the mountain was covered in snow--so much snow! But I wasn't surprised since this was Upstate New York. I had my reservations at first, based on previous experiences with smaller, family-owned mountains, but Royal exceeded my expectations. Billy had us start on the bunny slope, assuring us not to judge it by its name. He spends a lot of time on it himself because, unlike most bunny slopes, this one is different--way more fun. He wasn't wrong! Once I felt confident enough to ride without straining myself too much, we explored more of the mountain, riding ski lifts and different trails. For a Saturday, it wasn't too crowded, which was perfect. I'm not a fan of crowds--not just as a snowboarder but in general. Crowds make me feel claustrophobic, like I can't even hear myself think. Watching Billy interact with the kids on the mountain was heartwarming. They trusted him completely--he was their guide into the world of snowboarding. You could tell he knew exactly what he was doing. At some point, he left us to explore on our own while he accompanied the groms down some much more difficult terrain. I wasn't about to follow, not with my intercostal muscle strain. I could still ride, but strapping in took nerves of steel. I've had this same strain before, but never from something as cool as a snowboarding mishap. This was also my first time riding back-to-back multiple days in a week, but I love snowboarding too much to give up! Needless to say, I had the best time thanks to Billy and his recommendations. I hope to come back one day and really enjoy the mountain--especially without any injuries! FOOD & BATHROOMS The bathrooms were awesome. They had character. Everything was so well-kept and had slice of history shown with the decor. I also noticed that each bathroom stall was equipped with a toilet seat for the little ones, if it was needed! That's so amazing and thoughtful! The food & refreshments were affordable and tasted amazing. Everyone was so kind! GIFT SHOP Although there isn't much of a gift shop, Royal still had vinyl stickers to choose from FOR FREE! I loved it! Very much so appreciated! OVERALL I had a really pleasant experience at Royal Mountain and cannot wait to do it again. I definitely want to explore the mountain some more, when I come back. I will be 100% healed and ready to take on any of the trails. I hope to run into Billy again because he's definitely an amazing guy and clearly, you can tell, the community thinks so too! I was going to give this mountain a four out of five star because I fully believe everything can be bettered upon BUT I can't really think of anything quite wrong with the mountain. It's well-kept, well-loved, and a great hidden gem! The website is gorgeous too! Easy to maneuver. I can find everything I was looking for. Not just anyone can attain this high level of professionalism!

Small yet fun and challenging mountain. Friendly staff comfortable lodge, nicely groomed trails …read more.. all around a great ski stop.

Sprawling. Crowded. Pricey. As a longtime skier in the northeast, I lose a little bit of ski soul…read moreevery time I encounter the reality of $249/day window rate lift ticket pricing, like what Sugarbush and its corporate overlord Alterra have unleashed on former independent gems like Sugarbush. Yes, most people will never pay $249/day because they're buying $200 online tickets, but sit with that for a second... $200/day x 2 days for a weekend + food/gas/etc means at least $500 for an average weekend of skiing before you even get to lodging. And that's absurd. Its no exaggeration to say that setting day-of pricing to over $200/day is a marketing (read: extortion) ploy to advance sales of even more expensive multi-mountain passes like Ikon, intended to lock customers into a collection of other overpriced mega-mountains, ensuring customers never know what alternatives there are out there to the over-priced, over-skied, nickel-and-dime experience that modern corporate skiing with has become. And while most customers will mindlessly one-click renew their Epic (Vail) and Ikon (Alterra) passes each year, economically the only reason these passes makes sense is when you have plans for a week away at a different exotic ski resort under the same corporate ownership that epouses equivalently over-priced day rates. In case you missed it, that's an increasingly large array of Vail and Alterra's mega resorts, as consolidation within the ski industry continues its supernova trajectory, targeting any mountain nearing triple-digit trail counts as the next pin in their corporate hats. If that sounds extreme, it's not. It's the reality many of us who've been around a while have seen play out. And it's important to understand because of the very real, far superior options available to the mainstream corporate pass skiing experience. Let me illustrate by a simple comparison: one day at a local independent mountain (Bolton Valley) vs one day at a corporate machine (Sugarbush). SUNDAY AT SUGARBUSH: riding up high-speed 5m lifts with few lines, but dumped into crowded trails laden with bumpy pockets of snow atop an icy, unpredictable base - a natural consequence of pushing hordes of skiers faster and faster up a mountain without any ticket limits that might ensure a better skiing experience. I consider myself an expert skier, who's skied some of the steepest terrain in the world, but skiing icy, unpredictable slopes like Sunday at Sugarbush force-limits anyone's ability to improve, by defaulting to minimum viable slopes stripped of any natural snowfall. It's the equivalent of the mafia offering to fix your garbage problem that it, itself, created. It's the false claim of fixing over-crowded, over-skied trails with more snow-making and faster lifts... which just put more bodies, scraping more snow, creating more of a problem than existed before. However, more bodies on mountain = more food/bev sales for corporate coffers, which ever-present signage reminding you of $1/paper cup charges won't let you forget. Heaven help anyone who just paid $249/day at the window is not also paying for double-digit drinks and $38 pizzas - the horror! SATURDAY AT BOLTON VALLEY: riding up 10m lifts with zero lift lines, skiing uncrowded glades/trails laden with soft, natural powder atop zero ice - a natural consequence of force-limiting ticket sales with smaller parking lots, less traffic, and a family-friendly, independent focus. Window pricing $49 - $109/day, but equally skiable for an entire weekend on a modest $300 season pass (Indy). TL;DR: a split-view compare of independently-owned resorts who prioritize experience over exploitation, independence over incorporation, and presence over pace. Most folks reading this review will assume it's an advert for competitors. It's not. It's a rare insight into two mountains 45m from each other who've taken entirely different paths to profitability and achieved radically different outcomes: one driven to maximize pricing and bodies on the hill, another by nearly six decades of family ownership that's driven by affordability and great experience. As with all things consumer, we all have a choice of where to spend our dollars. Having spent decades skiing the mega-mountains, traveling across the world to ski other Alterra/Ikon resorts like A-Basin, Mammoth, Stratton, and Palisades I can legitimately say the experience is the same: over-crowded, icy weekend skiing in the corporate Frankenstiens trying to solve an unsolvable problem of over-sold slopes with fake snow and higher pricing vs the still-here, uncrowded Indies indexing for reliability, affordability, and uniqueness. There's value in slowing things down, taking in stunning vistas, and paying a lot less to experience a lot more. See beyond trail counts and lift speed and you'll find an entire world of better skiing by generations of family-owned resorts beholden to a different master: your enjoyment, not corporate's bottom line.

The farmhouse rental and ski repair shop which is the sugarbush ski service shop did a great job…read morewax and tuning the edges on my skis. I felt as though I had a new pair of skis after they worked their magic (took about a half hour in the morning). The grooming of the slopes and the friendly lift operators and mountain representatives were also great when I visited the mountain yesterday. The Ted's beef chilli stew topped with cheese and Jalapenos was a great lunch.

Been going every year since 2005. Staff and facilities are great. You'll never be hungry.read more

We just went again last weekend. The rest of the extended family went four years ago and I didn't…read moremake it, but I did go to the ranch eight years ago for the reunion. It was great. The new lodge that was built after the fire several years ago is gorgeous. I highly recommend this place for a nice experience in a beautiful setting in the Adirondacks.

A great place to ride if you enjoy some tight turns and a good atmosphere. Best time to come is on…read morea powder day when everyone else is flooding the high traffic resorts. Very cost friendly too.

what can I say - yes its a throwback to the 60's, two double chairs but 0 zero min. lift lines,…read moreit's like skiing on a private slope & yes, Magic has some SERIOUS terrain. Kind of equivalent to Mad River Glen. Wish they had some serious snow making. Take the red or the black chair and scoot over west (to your right) that's where you will find the diamonds and double diamonds & they are true diamonds. They need a decent deli/restaurant, either at the base lodge or somewhere near by. It's great for the kids - small, no crowds, cheap tix's

I have never been to McCauley to ski, so I really can't comment on what it's like for that. I did…read morecome for mountain biking. I found the maps that were posted to be very confusing and frankly the trails I rode were not particularly well marked. I feel like it's got a ton of potential, but it was a pain to try to navigate without trails being clearly marked. The interesting thing was that I saw an experienced rider heading in to the trails, I picked her brain a little and even though she had been there a number of times - she said that the trails are difficult to navigate. I was disappointed In that, but the terrain was pretty awesome. I just get a little frustrated when I can't find my way around. If you are going to ride here - I would strongly recommend downloading the app Trailforks, which I did after getting VERY irritated by not being able to find trailheads. I hope you're time riding here is better than and easier to navigate than mine.

Drop my kids off at the nearby waterpark and decided to go up the mountain for a ski lift chair a…read moreride up the mountain for some spectacular views. Too bad it was overcast and very hazy on this particular day I went but the views would be outstanding in the fall colors of got to be beautiful. I will be back with the family next time I know they will enjoy it.

This special place has created lasting friendships and memories. I am grateful to have this club in…read moreour valley.

Was a member for over a 1 year....constantly let down by service and staff…read more The place looks good but that's about it. You can't get answers on anything..."which trail has bumps and jumps" staff " I don't know the mountain well". Bartenders are super slow....for paying over 100K you should get great service....I could get a drink at any public mountain faster and better service. The spa is nice, but they use temps for massage. The locker rooms in the gym are way too hot...near 75-80 degrees constantly....try cooling down after a suana or a workout and expect not to sweat after a shower..nope. Don't even bother with this place...you end up waiting in lines just like any other ski mountain. It is basically a place for affluent people that want their kids to be occupied all day by staff while they sit and read by a fire.