"New York State is criminally lacking in this sort of arrangement. This is somewhat the product of laws that curtail mountainside development at the state’s largest ski areas – Gore and Whiteface – but it also reflects the reality that most New York ski areas are small, family-owned, and unable to lay out the huge capital necessary for such projects. As a result, slopeside lodging, where it exists – Windham, Hunter, a few other places – is tight and expensive. For West, which is positioning itself as a racing hub, this sort of on-mountain housing inventory is necessary. For the rest of us, it may correct an imbalance that has persisted in the state’s ski network for far too long."
Gore and Whiteface are in the Adirondack park, so, of course, there are some who want to protect what's left of the serenity and beauty of that place from condo sprawl, the same sprawl that has scarred much of the Vermont hills. I like that, also I like the fact that Gore can be much less crowded and frantic than a lot of Vermont hills on a Saturday. Think of it as taxpayers supporting a better ski experience.
As for West, that makes no sense at all to me, and may be a sign that we are back to the preliminary stages of condo developments eventually taking down ski hills into bankruptcy, as we witnessed in the last boom in the 80s to 90s and the aftermath. The marriage of real estate sales and the ski biz ended in tears many times. I used to live in Saratoga Springs, and drove by West many a time to get to Gore and Vermont, because, of course, Gore and Killington were much better mountains and not that much further. But, why would the West customer base buy a condo there? It's too close to it's market of Albany and the Albany burbs north to justify a purchase, since the drive is pretty reasonable, even on weeknights (the Northway, even in Albany, is hardly ever clogged with traffic), and the summer market is pretty much non existent. Do the buyers actually think they'll cover expenses with rental income? I may not be typical, but, I stay in Saratoga Springs when I ski Gore, because it has a bar and restaurant scene. West is much closer to Saratiga, and the beds that are there for the summertime race season are much cheaper there in the winter. Lake George also has some beds available at reasonable rates in the winter. I really hope they let a developer come in and do this and aren't financially tied to it, because, in a few years, no more West, maybe. History repeats.
So that awful day I spent at Camelback is now all explained. I was at Camelback's evil twin. The real one has reasonably priced gourmet food, natural snow, the most vertical in the east, no freezing rain, no slush and no ice. I gotta try out that other Camelback, the one that rates #8, cause the Camelback I skied at obviously is NOT in the a top 10!
I know that CN isn't a ski mag -- they are a resort mag geared towards non skiers. But this is insane. I looked at the full list. Taos is #33, while Camelback's two resorts are #s 8 and 17.... If Camelback is #7 and Taos is 33, this list is upside down. Where's Snow Ridge? Greek Peak? Snowshoe WV? Any of these places is a better ski experience than CB. (well maybe) ... Conde Nast needs to be ridiculed. Mercilessly.
"New York State is criminally lacking in this sort of arrangement. This is somewhat the product of laws that curtail mountainside development at the state’s largest ski areas – Gore and Whiteface – but it also reflects the reality that most New York ski areas are small, family-owned, and unable to lay out the huge capital necessary for such projects. As a result, slopeside lodging, where it exists – Windham, Hunter, a few other places – is tight and expensive. For West, which is positioning itself as a racing hub, this sort of on-mountain housing inventory is necessary. For the rest of us, it may correct an imbalance that has persisted in the state’s ski network for far too long."
Gore and Whiteface are in the Adirondack park, so, of course, there are some who want to protect what's left of the serenity and beauty of that place from condo sprawl, the same sprawl that has scarred much of the Vermont hills. I like that, also I like the fact that Gore can be much less crowded and frantic than a lot of Vermont hills on a Saturday. Think of it as taxpayers supporting a better ski experience.
As for West, that makes no sense at all to me, and may be a sign that we are back to the preliminary stages of condo developments eventually taking down ski hills into bankruptcy, as we witnessed in the last boom in the 80s to 90s and the aftermath. The marriage of real estate sales and the ski biz ended in tears many times. I used to live in Saratoga Springs, and drove by West many a time to get to Gore and Vermont, because, of course, Gore and Killington were much better mountains and not that much further. But, why would the West customer base buy a condo there? It's too close to it's market of Albany and the Albany burbs north to justify a purchase, since the drive is pretty reasonable, even on weeknights (the Northway, even in Albany, is hardly ever clogged with traffic), and the summer market is pretty much non existent. Do the buyers actually think they'll cover expenses with rental income? I may not be typical, but, I stay in Saratoga Springs when I ski Gore, because it has a bar and restaurant scene. West is much closer to Saratiga, and the beds that are there for the summertime race season are much cheaper there in the winter. Lake George also has some beds available at reasonable rates in the winter. I really hope they let a developer come in and do this and aren't financially tied to it, because, in a few years, no more West, maybe. History repeats.
So that awful day I spent at Camelback is now all explained. I was at Camelback's evil twin. The real one has reasonably priced gourmet food, natural snow, the most vertical in the east, no freezing rain, no slush and no ice. I gotta try out that other Camelback, the one that rates #8, cause the Camelback I skied at obviously is NOT in the a top 10!
I know that CN isn't a ski mag -- they are a resort mag geared towards non skiers. But this is insane. I looked at the full list. Taos is #33, while Camelback's two resorts are #s 8 and 17.... If Camelback is #7 and Taos is 33, this list is upside down. Where's Snow Ridge? Greek Peak? Snowshoe WV? Any of these places is a better ski experience than CB. (well maybe) ... Conde Nast needs to be ridiculed. Mercilessly.