Hunter Dec 26

Hi All,

Hope you are enjoying the holidays. I have not been to the mtn so cannot comment on conditions or crowds. It is snowing on and off all day with 1 -2" expected by the time it ends. Visibility is poor. Guns have been on around the clock recovering nicely from the warm weather and rains.

The main lodge bar has increased prices per attached. The Horton Smith House is going to public auction I believe on Feb 13. The Brewery & BBQ at the old Fireside will take at least 3 months to open so it basically misses the ski season. The new and totally remodeled Bakery & Bagel shop opposite the mtn is open so stop in and say welcome to Frank. It is a full line bakery, bagel and sandwich shop open 7 days a week 6 to 6 (6-8 Fri-Sat). The specialty is Italian, they have gluten free items and they will custom make anything with an advance order. There is plenty of nice clean friendly space to sit down.

I had dinner last week at the Dublin Bear (Slopes / Yacht Club) and must say the food was very good, portions large, service excellent and prices quite reasonable.

Weekend movies:  http://www.catskillmtn.org/retail/movie-theater/index.html

NWS 7 day forecast:  http://forecast.weather.gov/MapClick.php?CityName=Hunter&state=NY&site=ALY&lat=42.2112&lon=-74.2157#.UryI9vuvkrc

Come on up for the new year celebration and enjoy some excellent skiing, riding and eating.

Party on.....

Jon

Hunter Dec 19

Hello Everyone,

Just another day in paradise - 2 in a row! Cobalt blue cloudless sky, temps from 24 early to 41 now and lots of nicely groomed powder with a very minimal lift line. The only downside this morning was a very strong wind on the west side that affected skiing from top to bottom and caused the quad lift to operate at a snails pace. Wayout was nice and Claire's was groomed flat from top to bottom but the wind was blowing the snow around. I would think it is much better this afternoon. Best consistent run for surface conditions: Eside/Milky. Minya & Lowercross were not groomed and were a bit rough. Everything else on the front was in great shape including HBK & Cliff/Racers/Ike/Gunhill.  LowerK27 closed. Unfortunately today may be the last really nice day for a while with warm & wet weather coming in and snow making has ceased:  http://forecast.weather.gov/MapClick.php?CityName=Hunter&state=NY&site=ALY&lat=42.2112&lon=-74.2157#.UrM4ZCevkrc

The Bakery / Bagel shop in Hunter is not open - maybe another week at most.

The old Fireside Restaurant  AKA  Casarellas on 23A (opposite the entrance to the dump) with views to die for may be opening soon as a brewery / restaurant. Trying to get more details.

The Copper Tree Restaurant and Bar in the base lodge will not be opening this weekend as previously thought.

Tis the season to party on.....

Jon

Hunter Dec 18

Hello Hunter Fans,

Mother nature deposited another 3 - 4" yesterday (not worth skiing) in a blinding cold wind and a dusting last night that made for some excellent surface conditions today. It was a tale of two days today. The morning was cold, teens & windy with only a few spots of sun (usually while I was on the lift) and occasional fog at the summit. There were also guns going all over the mountain adding to some visibility issues especially on Huega. The entire front side of the mountain was open except for LowerK27 and it was all groomed out except for the Cliff making for some very sweet dry powder runs. Wayout was very nicely groomed with a dry powder surface but the Belt to Wayout was an ungroomed mix of frozen whales and losse powder - not exactly the easy run it is supposed to be. Claire's and the Alternate were not opened until 11 am but Claire's was nothing but a slope full of big whales and what looked like some wet powder. There was a line starting to form at the Flyer around 10:30. No F or D nor were they needed. The sun popped out strong around 11 and the temp rose to 31 making for a totally different day. They were checking tickets today for the first time that I have seen. Kudos to the snowmakers and groomers!

Weekend movies:  http://www.catskillmtn.org/retail/movie-theater/index.html

The weather should turn much warmer and messier over the weekend with highs on Sunday in the low 50's:  http://forecast.weather.gov/MapClick.php?CityName=Hunter&state=NY&site=ALY&lat=42.2112&lon=-74.2157#.UrHZxSevkrc

It looks like the new Bakery / Bagel shop in Hunter has opened and I will check it out later today to confirm.

Van Winkles will not have happy hour pricing during the holiday period next week.

Ski on....

Jon

Hunter Dec 16 - new powder alert

Hello All,

Nothing like a cold sunny day after a storm! We had a good foot of snow. Every trail on the front side of the mountain except Racer's was groomed to consistent perfection. Sweet dry natural powder with excellent visibility made for some really enjoyable ego snow and no lift lines. Temps stayed in the mid teens to now lower 20's with 6 at the summit and a strong wind out of the west. Wayout was closed due to a snow cat issue details of which I will not disclose so I never got to ski the west side - I do not ski Claire's unless I can eyeball it first. Guns are still blowing snow in key areas keeping freshies available in some locations. No one run was  better than another today except Racer's which remained cut up, bumpy and uninviting. We are expecting 2 - 4" more snow tomorrow (see below chart) and bitter cold temps should keep it all in place until the end of the week when it warms up a bit. NWS forecast:  http://forecast.weather.gov/MapClick.php?CityName=Hunter&state=NY&site=ALY&lat=42.2112&lon=-74.2157#.Uq86tSevkrc

 

 

 

 

Ski ya,

Jon

Hunter Dec 13 - weekend powder alert

Hi all,

Friday the 13th proved to be excellent for surface conditions, decent visibility with high clouds & occasional spots of sun, temps holding in the mid 20's but very high winds especially at the summit. Snow making continues around the clock with guns now on Upper Cross, 42nd St, Racers and mid-station. Wayout was scheduled to open today but the high winds and rumored lift problems prevented it. Claire's is slated to open tomorrow provided the lift can run. Cliff and Ike were nicely groomed out but the best today was Racer's with creamy powder although still under the guns. HBK - excellent! Eside was open but did not look groomed - whale humps. Minya / Lower Cross were sweet right on down through the Terrain Park - still cannot cut through to Kennedy behind top of "B". The crowds were light with no lines at the Flyer.

Snow is due to begin early to mid-day Sat right on through Sunday - see below accumulatrion chart showing Hunter in the 6 - 12 " range.

NWS forecast:  http://forecast.weather.gov/MapClick.php?CityName=Hunter&state=NY&site=ALY&lat=42.2112&lon=-74.2157#.UqtRiievkrc

Consumer Demo days Sat & Sun.

Have a great weekend!

Jon

 

 

Hunter Dec 12

Hello Hunter fans,

The weather is finally cooperating! What a great day to ski. It was very cold with 20 @ base / 10 @ summit but no wind and plenty of sun. HBK and Belt best runs with consistent dry groomed powder. Minya was nice but had a few spots of marbles from the groomers breaking apart the whales & swales. Eside was under full guns as was Racers (closed), Dropoff (open) and the approach to Ike (open). Huega was all powdery whales of snow as was the Terrain Park. Wayout as eyeballed from the Belt was covered with whale humps but closed - most likely will get groomed out tonight for opening tomorrow. Claire's and the Alternate were under the guns and may open for the weekend. Cliff and Ike were open but hard, scraped off and bumpy so not really worth it considering how nice the alternatives were. There were not many people so every run was right onto the Flyer. No F or D open or necessary. Tomorrow, Friday the 13th,  is looking real good.

This weekend is Consumer Demo weekend for those of you who wish to try out the latest equipment.

Weekend weather should be cold with snow & flurries: http://forecast.weather.gov/MapClick.php?CityName=Hunter&state=NY&site=ALY&lat=42.2112&lon=-74.2157#.Uqn7mSevkrc  I have not seen any accumulation forecasts yet.

Hunter Dec 10

Hi All,

Hunter is in recovery mode after several days of messy warm and rainy weather. With temps hovering around 30 now, occasional light flurries, flat light and no wind the guns have been turned on in numerous locations. I would expect more terrain to open later this week including more of the East Side, Huega and possibly Wayout as temps plunge overnight and the air remains bitter cold with snow flurries over the next few days. No sun is forecast until Friday. Check it out:  http://forecast.weather.gov/MapClick.php?CityName=Hunter&state=NY&site=ALY&lat=42.2112&lon=-74.2157#.Uqc4yyfO2Ts

 

The only other news of note is for those of you with Hunter PO Boxes - the boxes and lobby are now accesible 24/7 although no such notice has been posted on the door. This major convenience will be permanent and not just for the holidays. The assistance window however will be open for normal business hours as usual.

 

Movies:  http://www.catskillmtn.org/retail/movie-theater/index.html

 

Will try to give you an "on hill" report Thursday.

Ski ya,

Jon

Hunter Dec 3

Hi All,

I finally ventured out on the slopes today for the first time and it was very enjoyable for what was open. The temp was 40 (now 45) and very sunny with excellent visibility except for the first section of the Belt which was typically dark. The surface conditons were very consistently well groomed soft and easy - great for a first day! The snow did get a bit heavy however by noon time but not grabby / sticky. HBK was smooth from top to bottom as was the Belt - no ice, bare spots or cookies. Hunter was like a ghost town with very few skiers / riders. The base was very good on HBK but I could see that without snow making on certain sections of the belt it could narrow with the warmer temps and rain predicted for later in the week.

Here is the NWS 7 day forecast which doesn't show colder weather until Saturday at the earliest:  http://forecast.weather.gov/MapClick.php?CityName=Hunter&state=NY&site=ALY&lat=42.2112&lon=-74.2157#.Up4Ylyf287o

 

In restaurant news - American Glory BBQ based out of Hudson wuill be running the Village Bistro in Tannersville. The bakery / bagel shop in Hunter is still a few weeks away from opening due to a full makeover of electrical and plumbing etc. The old Yacht Club / Slopes will be open weekends under new ownership as the "Dublin Bear"  www.dublinslopes.com  with a full new menu.  Van Winkles has their new winter menu out as of yesterday but I do not yet have a link to it - stay tuned. 

 

Weekend movies: http://www.catskillmtn.org/retail/movie-theater/index.html  note they will also be utilizing the Orpheum Theater in T'ville for some movies.

Good to back on sticks!

Jon