Jump To:

Follow DCSki on Twitter!

Snow News is Bad News: Lost Opportunities during a Poconos Trip
By Matthew Graham, DCSki Columnist

March 2, 2005 — Here’s an idea for a new realty televisions series: Zap the Weatherman! My wife and I and our friends Jan and Ben came home early from an intended four day skiing trip in the Poconos because of a predicted blizzard on Monday with 8-12 inches of snow in the Washington, DC area and even more snow predicted for the Poconos. Usually snow is a good thing for skiers. But there were dire warnings of hazardous road conditions, death and doom, fire and brimstone, etc. for Monday and Tuesday. We would have had to drive about an hour from the spectacular Elk Mountain to our inn in Hawley on Monday evening after skiing. And then drive through the treacherous blizzard on Tuesday to go to Camelback Resort for a half day of skiing before completing the journey back to Tacky Park, Maryland.

So instead of going skiing at Elk, we came home so we wouldn’t be stranded on back roads in Pennsylvania on Monday night. But guess what? We didn’t encounter snow until we were South of Baltimore on the drive home. We arrive to find snow showers and an updated forecast of 3-6 inches of accumulation, closer to the three. I could just SCREAM! But instead I’m going to pitch my idea of Zap the Weatherman to Mark Burnett. After each forecast for snow that the weather forecasters hype to DEATH, we strap them down in a chair and zap them with a Tazer. For each inch under or over the actual accumulation they get one zap. Sure, we’ll give them a few inches leeway. So they can still call for 4-6 inches of snow. But if it’s only an inch, then 4 minus 1 equals 3 zaps. There won’t be any prizes - just viewer satisfaction.

We did get in two days of skiing fortunately before the world was predicted to come to an end. We all met up at Blue Mountain on Saturday for the twilight session. Additional friends, Mike and Julia (who had just moved to Allentown) also joined us … as did everyone from Allentown and Philadelphia and all of Eastern Pennsylvania. The place was packed to the gills.

A recent cold snap had brought in 5 inches of snow the previous Sunday night, 3 more inches on Monday and another 3 inches on Thursday evening. Blue Mountain has about a thousand foot vertical drop and 30 trails. The trails are spread out across the mountain. Thus, you have to do a few runs and a couple of lifts to get from one side to the other. But despite the number of runs, the mountain feels rather small.

The trails were well groomed and they even did some intercession grooming while we were there. However, the lift lines were a nightmare. We stood in line for over a half an hour several times (45 minutes once) and only got in 8 runs in six hours of skiing. That’s including the initial run from the mountain top lodge to the first lift and the traversing run back to the lodge at the end of the day. Thus it was really just six runs in six hours - an hour per run. Ugh! Getting on the two-person chairs was also quite the challenge. The entrance chutes are narrow, the chairs whiz around really fast and the lift operators weren’t always paying attention. I lost count of how many people I saw knocked off the narrow chute by the chair. My friend Ben, an expert skier, was hit in the head by the chair!

But other than the lift problems and the horrendous crowd, it’s an okay mountain and probably a lot nicer on weekdays.

After skiing, we all went over to see Mike and Julia’s new home and dine on the standard post skiing meal: pizza. Jan and Ben and Karen and I continued on up to Hawley, PA to the Country Inn at the Old Mill Stream. We had reserved a two-bedroom unit with two double beds. It’s one of those timeshare swaps. Of course they didn’t have the right room even though I had made the reservation a year ago. The second bedroom only had a twin bed and the place was booked up. I suppressed my urge to scream and used creativity. We pulled the mattress out of the sleeper sofa and then rearranged the twin bed and box spring side by side to form, in essence, one large box spring. We placed the sleeper sofa mattress onto this configuration to make a double bed, more or less. Jan and Ben said it worked well enough. The inn is overall rather charming. But all of the floors tilt, it’s drafty and the walls are paper thin. Some teenage girls in the suite next to ours were partying late into the night and would not shut up, even at 1 a.m. I lost my patience at this point and started pounding on the wall and yelling. I had some pent up frustration from the day. It shut them up.

We woke up early the next morning, despite the lack of sleep, as the sun streamed into the large windows. After breakfast and several cups of coffee, we loaded up my truck and drove 40 minutes to Montage Mountain, named least crowded resort on weekends by Washingtonian Magazine. Okay, I was one of the people who named it least crowded based on previous experience and numerous recommendations. But the accolade is well deserved. The place was almost empty. There are 20 trails, a thousand foot vertical drop, a few triple chairlifts, a quad and a double on the bunny hill. We spent the entire day just zooming down the runs and hopping right back on the lift. The lodge is mid-mountain and the top half has blue and green runs. The bottom half is advanced and expert trails. Thus you cruise down one of the nice long blue runs and then make the jump to light speed on a black trail. What fun!

The snow was perfect. The sun was shining and the temperature a steady 30 degrees. Who could ask for anything more? And even though none of us are that good at moguls, we gave it a shot on a couple of the double diamond runs. The soft (real snow) moguls were fairly easy to navigate. Usually double-diamond mogul runs are like a series of frozen Volkswagen Beetles glued to a shear cliff face. For the first time on the east coast, I was having fun on moguls. At about 5 p.m., Karen and Jan succumbed to the cold as the sun faded into shadows. They headed for a glass of wine at the bar and a rest in front of the fireplace at the lodge. Ben and I picked up the pace and cranked out 6 more runs in under an hour, cruising from the blue trail Switch to the black run Lower Runway. We were going so fast and having so much fun that we’d arrive at the lift laughing like little kids. It was a perfect day of skiing.

The next day we planned to go to Elk. Elk has won a zillion awards for grooming and is like a little bit of Vermont in Pennsylvania. Karen and I had gone there last year and fell in love with the place. We knew Jan and Ben would love it too. It has a thousand foot vertical and 27 trails, nearly every one of them going from top to bottom. A few trails are ungroomed for mogul lovers. But the rest are wide, long cruisers weaving through a forest of Norwegian Pines. But alas, we foolishly believed the weather forecast and came home. Damn!

If you want to try some new resorts at about a 3.5 to 4 hours drive from DC, head up to the Poconos. They’ve got a ton of snow and over a dozen ski resorts: Montage, Shawnee, Blue Marsh, Blue Mountain, Bear Creek, Big Bear, Big Boulder, Jack Frost, Alpine Mountain, Camelback, Tanglewood, Tussey, Denton, Sawmill, Eagle Rock and more. I highly recommend Montage and Elk Mountain and I’ve heard good things about Camelback. There are a ton of inexpensive chain hotels and lots of B&Bs in the area. I can’t really recommend the Country Inn at the Old Mill Stream. Last year Karen and I stayed at Caesars Pocono Resorts, the honeymoon capital of the world. It’s kind of kitshy and the dining isn’t anything to write home about. But each room has private pool, hot tub, steam shower and sauna. It’s perfect after a long day of skiing.

For more information on Caesars, visit www.caesarspoconoresorts.com.

For accommodations and other information, see www.800poconos.com.

Related Links:

• Montage Mountain
• Elk Mountain
• Camelback
• Blue Mountain

Related DCSki Stories:

What’s New for 2009: Blue Mountain (November 11, 2009)
Visitors to Pennsylvania’s Blue Mountain Ski Area this winter will be greeted by a new double-black diamond slope and new “streets” terrain park. Two new outdoor dining areas will be available, and Blue Mountain will become one of the few U.S. resorts to have a “BigAirBag,” a fall cushion placed behind ski jumps.

What’s New for 2009: Elk Mountain (November 8, 2009)
Pennsylvania’s Elk Mountain Ski Resort has continued a long-standing tradition by planting nearly 1,300 new spruce trees on the mountain. The ski area has also made snowmaking improvements and widened the Susquehanna trail.

Firsthand Report: Blue Mountain, February 1, 2009 (February 7, 2009)
DCSki Columnist Lou Botta recently traveled to the Poconos to try out Blue Mountain Ski Area, which offers the highest vertical in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. He discovered a lot to like and a lot of potential in the resort.
(5 reader comments)

What’s New for 2008: Elk Mountain (November 16, 2008)
Elk Mountain has increased snowmaking by adding an additional water pump, 66 new tower guns, and 10 new Areco fan guns. A couple trails were also re-graded.

What’s New for 2008: Blue Mountain Ski Area (November 15, 2008)
Pennsylvania’s Blue Mountain Ski Area has invested over $3.1 million in capital improvements over the summer, adding a new trail, new base facilities, and beefing up snowmaking.

What’s New for 2008: Camelback (November 15, 2008)
Camelback will eliminate the use of 50,000 gallon of diesel fuel annually through its purchase of 110 new low-energy snow guns. Improved lighting and a new park groomer round out improvements at the Pennsylvania ski area.

Guess What? It’s Not Too Late to Ski (April 3, 2008)
The vast majority of Mid-Atlantic resorts have ended their ski and snowboarding season. However, if you’re itching to get in a few last turns, it’s not too late. Several resorts plan to offer skiing and boarding for one last weekend, on April 5 and 6.
(4 reader comments)

Who’s Open? A Detailed Look at Mid-Atlantic Ski Areas (March 17, 2008)
Spring is a mixed blessing: Mid-Atlantic resorts begin to close one by one, but the weather is nice and the rates can’t be beat. DCSki provides a detailed look at the current operating status of Mid-Atlantic ski areas.

Firsthand Report: Elk Mountain (March 15, 2008)
He may have a season pass at Blue Mountain, but Brenton Archut finds himself visiting Pennsylvania’s Elk Mountain at least once a season, and always yearns to return. In this Firsthand Report, Brenton describes a memorable trip he made to Elk on March 11, 2008.
(4 reader comments)

March Signals Arrival of Mid-Atlantic Resort Festivals (March 5, 2008)
It’s March, and that means it’s time for spring festivals at Mid-Atlantic resorts. A number of resorts will hold carnivals and festivals in the coming weeks, bringing fun activities to the slopes such as pond-skimming contests, games, live music, and prizes.

About the Author

Matthew Graham is a skier as well as a hang glider and paraglider pilot, SCUBA diver, cavern diver, equestrian, polo player, sailor, hiker, biker, rock climber, paddler, skater and sailor. He’s also dabbled in just about every other sport, even bull riding! He writes for the Washington Post, Washingtonian Magazine, USA Weekend Magazine, Hooked on the Outdoors, Richmond Magazine, Chesapeake Life Magazine, Metro Sports, Blue Ridge Outdoors, Recreation News and numerous other outdoor and travel publications. His wife, Karen Carra, is a freelance photographer, dancer, skier and extreme sports athlete. To read other articles by Matthew, click here.

Track new stories on DCSki by following DCSki through Twitter, Facebook, or RSS:

There are 8 reader comments about this article. To read them, or add your own, scroll below or click here.

Copyright © 1997-2010 DCSki, LLC. All rights reserved. You may not reproduce any portion of DCSki, in whole or in part, without the prior written permission of DCSki's Editor. Comments posted on these pages do not necessarily represent the viewpoints of DCSki, LLC or its Editor. Although DCSki, LLC attempts to verify the accuracy of the information it publishes, DCSki, LLC cannot be held responsible for errors or omissions. Verify current conditions, operating schedule, and events directly with a resort prior to making a visit. You may view DCSki's Privacy Policy here.