Ski Day #27: Wrigley Field, Fenway Park, Mad River Glen (Mad River Glen, VT)

For years I have heard fellow shredders talk about the legendary Mad River Glen. They talked about its all-natural snow, its single-chair, and its famous runs through the woods. And for years I have seen the iconic bumper sticker that rippers display as a badge of honor. So I headed up to this funky little place a few weeks ago to see what all the buzz is about and got treated to one of the finest ski days of my life.

The famous bumper sticker.

The view from the parking lot.

When I got out to my car that Friday morning, I saw that we had gotten about 3 inches of snow overnight and it was still snowing. I headed up Rt 17 to the ski area and discovered they had gotten the snow too. One recommendation, listen to Dupree's Diamond Blues from the Grateful Dead's Dozin' at the Knick when driving up, it fits perfectly into the vibe of the place (go to 6:58 of this video to hear it https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BFhPxDgBHdw).

As I walked up to the base lodge I started to get a little choked up. It is akin to taking your first trip to Wrigley Field or Fenway Park, this is what ski areas should be like. Rising out of the base area are two main lifts, a double chair and a famous single-chair. I skied the single-chair all morning. According to SKI Magazine, anything off of the single-chair gives you bragging rights as most trails are all steep, tight, and filled with moguls. My favorite was Chute which comes down from the summit right under the chair. Its a good place to showboat your skills to chair riders.

I spent most of the afternoon on the double chair. This side of the area is a little more mellow, but doesn't get as many skiers, so the snow was fresher and deeper. 

After killing my quads, I headed back over to the single-chair for one more run, this time in the woods. Mad River is famous for its off-trail skiing, encouraging you to pick your own line through the woods. I was a little hesitant as I was skiing alone, but I jumped into an area just off the summit and caught up to a group of three to follow them through. This unique line was tight but had great snow and it really made you feel like you are a part of the mountain.

At the end of the day, I headed into the bar for a Single Chair Ale made by Magic Hat Brewing Company and a Mad River Glen Lager made by Fiddlehead Brewing Company. I preferred the lager, its not often you see craft lagers, most craft beers are ales.

 The bar post pictures of its faithful holding up the bumper sticker in different spots around the world.

 The fireplace in the bar.

As a New Yorker and Whiteface faithful, I thought it was great that they have a poster from the 1980 Lake Placid Games up.

-Steve

"Born On Ice, Perfect In Powder"

P.S. This wouldn't be a complete post without a comment on the snowboard ban. Unlike Alta which doesn't allow boarders to ride their lifts but does allow them to shred down, Mad River Glen completely outlaws snowboarders. But just as the "rules" differ between the two, so does the attitude. Alta's ban on snowboarders come with a snooty attitude. Mad River Glen, on the other hand, does not have this. I asked a lady in the gift shop why the ban exists and she told me that they used to let snowboarders ride the double chairs, but the lady that owned the area (before it became a cooperative) eventually completely banned it because she just did not like snowboarders, and the rule still exists. This lady also told me that on some nights, snowboarders will hike up and camp out in a cabin at the top and then rip down while skiers are waiting for the lifts to open and that those skiers usually greet the snowboarders with applause. And, just like the bumper sticker that skiers display as a badge of honor, there is one for snowboarders too (I saw it up in the bar). It says "Mad River Glen, Poach It If You Can". 

Zoey's Double Hex in Vermont

As I've been skiing all around Vermont this winter, my father kept telling me I had to hit up the Double Hex restaurant for a burger. He had once eaten there years ago after skiing Killington with the frat brothers for the weekend. So we headed up to Pico, Killington's little bro, a few weeks ago to ski and grab dinner on the way home.

The restaurant is right off of Exit 4 on Route 7. The name comes from the shape of the two old buildings that the restaurant used to be in. It is an inviting place for skiers to grab a bite on their way home from places like Killington, Pico, Bromley, Stratton, Magic, and Okemo.

We started off with some wings with maple flavored BBQ sauce in honor of Vermont. Next were the burgers, a Philly Cheese Burger for my father and The "Holy Moly" Burger for myself. Mine was great, a little messy, but perfectly cooked and full of flavor. Also, its so big, it comes out with a knife through it to hold it together. The report from my father is that his was great too with the peppers and onions adding a great complexity of taste. This was all washed down with a birch beer made by the restaurant. This soda was actually my grandfather's favorite, but you can never find it anywhere, so I had to get it. It is like a very crisp root beer for those of you that have never had one, and this one may be my favorite. Lastly, I finished off the meal with "New Skete" Chocolate Cheesecake made by nuns in New Skete. The cheesecake was rich and creamy and the raspberry melba gave it a nice contrasting tart flavor to counteract the sweetness. See below for some pictures.

For all you Vermont weekend warriors, hit up Zoey's Double Hex one night on the way home, you will not be disappointed.

-Steve
"Born On Ice, Perfected In Powder"

Ski Day #22 & #23: Oh, Oh, Oh, Oh-kem-oh (Okemo, VT)

For Martin Luther King Day weekend I headed up to Okemo with my father and sister, two of my favorite ski buddies. The first day was a typical #skitheeast moment with man-made snow, rain at the base, and some wet snow up at the summit. Still, conditions were awesome and we were able to stay partially dry riding Okemo's Sunburst Six, a six passenger detachable lift with a bubble and heated seats (only 20% of the chairs are heated right now due to some parts on back-order).

The second day however needs no explanation with words, it can simply be described by the two videos below:

-Steve

"Born On Ice, Perfected In Powder"

 

Skiing with my father means boot buckling duty.

 My favorite trails are the ones with warning signs.

 The Loft Tavern at the base is one of the coolest ski bars in the country.

 The inside of The Loft.

 We started off the weekend with American Beauty, a beer I bought at J.J. Hapgood's in Peru a few weeks earlier. It is in honor of the Grateful Dead on their 50th anniversary.

 The view of the mountain from our motel.

 Nothing says Vermont skiing like après with a cow print cap or a Vineyard Vines fleece.

 K-dawg with the great Vermont views behind her.

K-dawg sending it on Nor-easter.

Ski Day #25- Dope Status in the Daks (Gore Mountain, NY)

Last Saturday I headed back up to Gore Mountain with my LAX Bro Phil. It was a pretty enjoyable day with some sun and great temperatures. Lots of the glades were open, our favorites were the Darby Woods Glades and Chatiemac Glades. The Rumor was open too, no head wall though, you had to take the cut-over from Hawkeye.

This trip brought on a new adventure, it was our first time riding the Hudson Chair at the North Creek Ski Bowl. This was an old ski area a long time ago. I skied over there once on some back woods traverses many years ago. It was no longer in operation at that time, there were not even any lifts. But some years ago, Gore connected its main mountain to this area and put in a few new lifts. The lifts are fixed-grip lifts, so they are not that fast. However, the runs a pretty tight and offer some nice terrain. It is definitely worth checking out on your next trip to Gore.

-Steve
"Born On Ice, Perfected In Powder"

View of the Hudson River from Moxham at the North Creek Ski Bowl.

The kid at the start of Hawkeye.

Nice frozen waterfall in Chatiemac Glades.

Findin' fresh.

The kid with the High Peaks in the background.

Check out the kid's gloves.

Ski Day #26- Gettin' Phat at Pico (Pico, Vermont)

Last Sunday my father and I headed up to Pico for the first time ever. We had driven by Pico many times before on the way to its big brother Killington...and what a mistake that was.

Pico is only about 15 minutes closer to the Capital District than Killington, but when you factor in the fact that its just a small parking lot and you can park right next to the lodge, it seems like an hour closer.

The lodge is an old-fashioned wooden structure with a great fireplace on both the 2nd and 3rd floors.

While on the Summit Express Quad Chair we got some great tips from a local. He told us about the Birch Glades which were a nice blue gladed area. However, my favorites were the Summit Glades, a lot steeper and with nice moguls and Upper Giant Killer, a long, steep mogul run with a nasty double fall-line. In fact, most of the mountain is a double fall-line, making the whole place tricky.

One interesting aspect of Pico is its Natural Woods. Just like Killington, Pico has opened up its woods for "pick-your-own-line" skiing. I jumped in a few times to get some freshies. Its pretty tight and you have to be Johnny-On-The-Spot with your turns, but its true test of your skiing abilities and is lots of fun.

Overall, Pico satisfies great. I would even venture to say, I enjoy it more than Killington.

-Steve
"Born On Ice, Perfected In Powder"

 Pico Peak; Killington in the background.

 The Phat Italian, the signature sandwich of the deli on the access road.

 The sign at the deli in the Pico lodge.

 The bar in the Pico lodge.

 Some live music in the bar. My favorite song was Bob Seger's Turn the Page.

 The fireplace in the bar.

The cover of SKI Magazine with Billy Kidd on it is up in the Vermont Ski & Snowboard Museum in the lodge. I got to ski with Billy Kidd out in Steamboat, his new home.

Ski Day #24- They're In The Bear Cage! (Mount Snow, VT)

Last Friday I headed up to Mount Snow. The day had four main highlights:

1. Dot's Restaurant: This is a classic east coast ski diner that SKI Magazine recommended. Its located Wilmington along the Deerfield River, you pass by it when driving from New York's Capital District. The apple pancakes were phenomenal. And of course they came with real Vermont maple syrup.

 Dot's Restaurant, a New England classic.

Some great apple pancakes.

2. the not-just-in-november: This is a sandwich at 1900' Burger recommended as a healthier option for lunch by SKI Magazine. The sandwich has great turkey, but the star tangy and delicious cranberry-apple compote that comes on it. I recommend pairing it with a Yorkshire Porter, a great dark beer from the Queen City Brewery in Burlington. Green State Lager is another great beer served on tap here, also from Burlington.

#greatsandwich

#greatbeer

3. Beartrap: This is my favorite lift/trail in the world. It is a short run with a double chair on it, usually with bumps, although this day there were none. What sets this spot apart though is the speakers on each lift tower playing music for the skiers and riders to rip to. Its a great a spot to not only shred but watch other people send sick lines too. Definitely a must-hit with on any trip to Mount Snow.

As Dusty said in Twister, "They're in the bear cage!"

4. Carinthia: This is Mount Snow's terrain park area. This park rivals the one's out west like Area 51 at Keystone and the Freeride Terrain Park at Breck. I hit a few few jumps and got pretty steezy, but I'm not that skilled in the park. Still, it's a great spot to watch others throw back flips with ease.

Riders getting ready to crush Carinthia.

-Steve

"Born On Ice, Perfected In Powder"

 View of the Deerfield River from the north face.

 It's not east coast skiing without some blue ice. Skate the east.

This may be the best advertisement I have ever seen.

Mojo Cafe- Mexican and Skiing, The Things That Go Together

One of my favorite lines from a song is "Cigarettes and coffee, broken hearts and being lonely, little girls and ponies, the things that go together." (Shake Me Like a Monkey- Dave Matthews Band https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jRZsDxrRUng). Well two other things that I think go together are skiing and Mexican food. It was in this spirit that my father, sister, and I headed to Mojo Cafe in Ludlow, VT to kick-off our Okemo weekend.

My sister wrote this with the magnetic Scrabble pieces to foreshadow the imminent, imminent shredage.

Mojo Cafe sits in a small building on Main Street. It is a counter service restaurant with a great vibe established by the band and concert posters on the wall and the Johnny Cash tunes playing on the speakers. The joint describes their food as Tex-Mex, but its more Mex than Tex.

Two great rippers fueling up for the next day's ripping.

We started off splitting some poblano rings, poblano peppers fried in tempura batter served with a ranch dipping sauce, and the gumbo of the day which had tasso ham, sausage, and lots of rice. Both were great appetizers to start off the meal.

Gumbo and poblano rings.

Each of us got something different for our main dish. My sister got a chicken burrito, my father a chicken quesadilla, and myself the VT Steak enchilada. I tasted the burrito. This thing was great, it stands up to any burrito I ate while in Colorado, where you will find the best ski-town Mexican food in the world. But the star of the show at this place is the enchilada made with local Vermont steak. You can choose either red or green sauce. I went with the green in the tradition of Colorado green chili. The portion was big, but the flavor was bigger.

VT Steak Enchilada

Chicken Quesadilla

Kendra krushin' the chicken burrito.

For dessert we tried the pasilla-infused flourless chocolate cake. This was rich with a little bit of kick from the pasilla peppers and the jalapeño-raspberry sauce on top.

We forgot to take the picture until halfway through eating this great piece of cake.

Of course, any Vermont meal is not complete without some Vermont brews. Valor Ale from 14thStar Brewing Company is a mellow ale that quenches your thirst without overpowering the foods' flavor. But being Vermont, you can't just drink beer, you have to get some cider. This place serves Woodchuck Cider on tap, a must have if you ever get the privilege. But the star of the bar is the Hermit Thursh Brattlebeer, a sour ale with cider that nicely finishes off any meal with a tart, yet sweet flavor.

Head to this quaint little spot for tons of character, flavor, and fun.

-Steve
"Born On Ice, Perfected In Powder"