POWDER NIGHT IN THE ADIRONDACKS
Buttermilk.
It’s snowed a lot in northern New York this week, so when I saw that Mount Pisgah in Saranac Lake was opening for the season tonight, I knew I wanted to go there. Not only do I love skiing small T-Bar hills like this, but with all the snow this week, I figured there was bound to be some powder somewhere on the hill. That logic proved accurate and I was rewarded handsomely.
Map of the ski area.
The base lodge.
Looking up at the ski area from the base.
For those unfamiliar with Mount Pisgah, this ski area is owned and operated by the community. They’ve got a T-Bar servicing 329 ft. of vertical, with about 15 acres of terrain. It’s a small hill, no doubt, but there are some trees to ski and the main slopes even have a few steep spots. The ski area has a lot of charm, as practically all of the small hills like this do. For that reason, it’s on my list of places I regularly visit each season, alongside Beartown Ski Area near Plattsburgh, NY, and Cochran’s Ski Area near Burlington, VT. I recommend you check them all out, especially Beartown Ski Area. I love that place.
Looking down White Stag from the top of the T-Bar.
Riding the T-Bar.
Another view of White Stag.
The hill opened at 3 PM and I was there shortly after. From the parking lot, I could see that one side of the hill had been groomed and the other was loaded with powder. Because they also had snow guns running on the powder side, I wasn’t sure if that was open or not, so I double checked and, sure enough, it was. With the sun setting around 4:15 PM, the lights were on from the get-go and the daylight quickly gave way to a cold winter’s night in the Adirondacks.
Corduroy on White Stag.
Buttermilk.
Buttermilk seen from the T-Bar.
My first run of the day was down the groomed run named White Stag. Conditions were fantastic with fresh corduroy and packed powder. You could really rip down this one all evening! After I skied White Stag, I decided I’d see what the powder side had to offer and this is where things became really fun. The trail on the powder side is named Buttermilk. Tonight, Buttermilk was deep. It was the kind of powder you just float through all the way back to the lift. When I first got there, only a few people had skied through it, so you could get first tracks basically anywhere you wanted. It was a real treat.
Fast Fomp.
Another powder-filled run I skied was Fast Fomp. This run is off White Stag, and I didn’t even notice this trail was there until I saw someone dip into it. Thank goodness I did. The snow was just like Buttermilk. Perfect.
Never Quit Skiing,
Lincoln