Dr. Weiss's Favorite Ski Areas

As many of you may know, Dr. Weiss is an avid skier. When the opportunity arises from November to April, he heads for the slopes. Dr. Weiss started skiing in New England in 1977 at Waterville Valley in New Hampshire with his family. After 12 years of skiing almost exclusively there, he branched out to northern New England and then out west.

In New England his favorite ski mountains are Mt. Mansfield and Spruce peak at Stowe, Vermont, with nearby Sugarbush a close second. Stowe has three great peaks, well constructed trails, and an experienced snowmaking and grooming team. The high speed gondola is a pleasure to ride to the top with a nice combination of blue and black trails from the top. Mount Mansfield, the main mountain, has high speed lifts, and a great balance of beginner, intermediate and expert trails. The double black diamond front four are legendary. Spruce peak is a wonderful mountain with less snowmaking on the upper mountain little spruce lift. When there is snow, make sure to ski it. The town, the mountain road, and its accommodations and restaurants make it a true New England ski destination.

While Waterville Valley was his favorite for many years, over fifteen years of status quo has reduced the resort to a smaller family area. You can still learn how to ski well, and challenge yourself as an advanced or expert skier on True Grit, Gemma, and Chau, but the terrain is limited. Snowmaking is done exceptionally well there and they have an excellent ski school. In New Hampshire, Attitash/Bear Peak has taken over as a leading ski area with mountain expansion and excellent grooming, snowmaking, and accommodations. Loon is a close second.

Approximately 2-3 times a year Dr. Weiss ventures "Out West." Utah is his favorite destination. A 45 minute ride from the Salt lake City Airport takes you to 7 world class ski areas in Park City, the Little Cottonwood, and Big Cottonwood Canyons. Utah has the lightest and driest snow in the country. Real Powdah! Utah hosted the 2002 Winter Olympic Games and has a ski resort and snow conditions for anyone. The Park City Ski Areas, Deer Valley, Park City, and the Canyons receive almost 300 inches of snow annually and have excellent conditions. If there is less snow, one can venture to the Little Cottonwood Canyon at Alta or Snowbird or the Big Cottonwood Canyon areas at Solitude, Brighton where they receive over 450 inches of snow per year. Alta is a beautiful area, state owned, inexpensive tickets, with great views and flowing runs. Its drawback. No high speed lifts. Alta is still Dr. Weiss's #1 resort in Utah. Snowbird is a large challenging mountain with many high speed lifts and an 80 passenger gondola having some of the best and steepest terrain in Utah. Snowbird is an excellent expert and intermediate mountain with groomed runs, and lots of bumps for everyone. Not for beginners. Deer Valley is a posh resort with fine dining, a lot of grooming, and above average snowmaking for out west. It has some great wide, scenic, and long runs for beginners and intermediates. Park City is a large mountain good runs and night skiing if you have any energy left.

In Colorado, Vail is his favorite resort with a massive number of trails of all types. Great snow, well maintained trails, and the legendary bowls and the Blue Sky Basin make it an area you can ski daily for a week with little overlapping. Vail has an abundance of lifts, a gondola, top accommodations, a sprawling village with restaurants and shops.

Winter Park, off the beaten path but near Denver, is an underrated area, with top trails many condos, and a nice ski school. The trip through Berthed Pass discourages some, but it is worth the trip. The Summit County areas of Breckenridge, Copper Mountain and Keystone, as well as the north facing Arapahoe Basin (well known for late season skiing into May and June) are well known areas which have good skiing. It’s an area you can ski a few resorts over a trip if you want diversity.

For great skiing in a beautiful setting, Lake Tahoe is the one to beat. North Lake Tahoe, a half hour from Reno, has two great areas, Heavenly Valley and Alpine Meadows. Heavenly hosted the 1960 Winter Olympics and is a great mountain. Many lifts, peaks, good snow, and great views of the lake from the top of the Gondola make it a fun destination. They can get dumped on a few feet a week any time during the season. The snow is heavier than Utah but with an ample quantity is great. Mount Rose is a small area a stone’s throw from Reno. Two great things about the North Tahoe areas are the distance from the airport, and the reasonable Casino hotel ski packages which include room, transportation to the areas, as well as lift tickets. Try Fitzgerald’s, Eldorado, and the Silver Legacy. Plus there are shows, very reasonable restaurants, and buffets at all the hotels. South Lake Tahoe has Heavenly Valley, Kirkwood, and Sierra at Tahoe. Heavenly is the largest, with many trails, good snow (the last time Dr. Weiss was there they had over 10 feet of snow the week before he arrived, good timing), and you can stand on the mountain with one foot in California and one in Nevada. The village in South Tahoe is nowhere the quality of Utah or Colorado, but still has an abundance of shops, restaurants, and supermarkets. The accommodations range from older motels to fancy hotels, one to three bedroom condos and private homes. Kirkwood is a drive out of town, a great area, but for the first hour or so of the day, icy. After the sun hits the mountain, the snow softens and it’s great. Don’t miss it. Sleep in a little later and then head out.

Ski Areas Dr. Weiss Has Visited

Utah
Alta
Snowbird
Deer Valley
Park City
Solitude
Brighton
The Canyons

Colorado
Winter Park
Breckenridge
Keystone
Copper Mountain
Vail
Beaver Creek
Steamboat Springs

California/Nevada
Lake Tahoe-North:
Squaw Valley
Mount Rose
Alpine Meadows
Lake Tahoe-South:
Heavenly Valley
Sierra at Tahoe
Kirkwood

New Hampshire
Waterville Valley
Loon
Attitash
Mount Cranmore
Cannon Mountain

Vermont
Stowe
Sugarbush
Jay Peak
Killington

Maine
Sunday River

Massachusetts
Wachusett

New York
Hunter Mountain
Whiteface/Lake Placid

Canada
Mont Avila
Mont Gabriel
Mont Tremblant

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