Hardest Trail at Gore?

[mattchuck2]

What's the Hardest (on the map) trail at Gore?

[mattchuck2]

I vote Rumor . . . Which, by the way, was S-I-C-K on Wednesday.

[Harvey44]

I almost went with Rumor. Based on the fact that it hardly ever gets groomed.

But I went with Double Barrel. Seems like I'm much more likely to get upsidedown on DB than Rumor.

[Spongeworthy]

For trying to pick your way around ice and rocks, it's gotta be Double Barrel. That used to be the case with Lower Steilhang, but they don't open it now until there's enough snow. I've never had a problem with Rumor. Ski Patrol won't open it unless they know they won't have a mini-avalanche on the headwall. Dark Side Glades are fine if you don't ski too fast and too close around the boulders and find a nasty surprise. I've only done Cirque Glades once, but I didn't see any problems that more snow wouldn't cure.

[St. Jerry]

Gore-e-Gully Cornice.

[SIAWOL]

What's the Hardest (on the map) trail at Gore?

Cedars from the base lodge.

[MidnightCarving]

haha yeah, cedars from the base in terms of most physically demanding....

[mattchuck2]

Interesting, Interesting . . .

[Harvey44]

If doing a little work is the criteria for judging...they directed me to Lower Tannery once. And that was just to get back to the base. I never expected that when I went down tannery the Topridge chair wouldn't be running.

There's also Cloud, the Summit schlep, Cedars, Hedges. What else?

Anyone want to meet me at Hedges this summer for some selective pruning?

With Wood In...if you've eaten at the Saddle and your goal is the dark side...you are saving so much time taking it...it's totally worth the effort. Probably less skating then going over the summit. Plus I like to avoid the Gondi at all costs.

[MidnightCarving]

definitely agree harv, wood in really doesnt even bother me, it's the least skating of all the skating trails..... my order would probably be as follows, from biggest pain, to least pain.

Old Tannery
Cedars from the base
Hedges to twister
Summit Haul
Cloud Flats
Wood in
Wood Out

is it sad that we have enough flats to grade them based on severity?

[Harvey44]

Nature made the mountain. No fault there.

If there is fault...it was whomever chose Gore for skiing in the first place

But skiing was free heeled with cable bindings at the beginning. And the first lift service was the east side where the ADK Express is now. No skating there. Its getting between areas - so does that mean we are against all the expansion?

I believe that in the beginning they were looking at Hoffman and Gore as possibilities. The took a full season and made snow measurements comparing the totals from specific storms and Gore won out.

I don't mind the skating, but then my heels are free. I admit the summit haul is a bit of a trudge. As Matt has said before, it would help if the summit chair dropped you at the top of rumor or cloud.

[ka2kci]

If you are interested in reading some of the history of Gore Mountain, go out and get the book "Winter Sports" by Norman Dibelius. This book was published on behalf of the Schenectady Winter Sports Club who started the original Ski Trains in 1934 first from Schenectady to North Creek and then expaned to NYC to North Creek in 1936. When scouting out their choices of where to develop a ski area, they narrowed it down to two....Gore or Mt. Snow. They chose Gore since it already had railroad access and they would take a bus up the back road from North Creek (I believe through the former Highwinds X country ski center) to Gore.

It is a very interesting read. It also talks about the early ski History of the Schenectady Winter Sports Club and some of the stories about what they did in the lift lines at Sugarbush, Stowe which are hilarious. Tales of skiing Tuckerman's ravine are also funny as well. Matt

[SKIdds]

Harvey, we want to have our cake and eat it, too!

I agree with you. Gore does have it's flat areas, but if that is what it takes to be able to access the varied terrain on a mountain with Gore's topography, so be it. Perhaps a trail here or there could have been cut better, but on the whole the traverses and flat areas are just a necessary inconvenience.

[Harvey44]

Matt...sounds like a great book. I tried to find it on Amazon but no go. If you have a link, would be great if you'd post it.

I heard the thing about Hoffman Mtn from a Skipatrol. Never heard about Mt Snow. Is that the Mtn in So VT?

The ski and ride did go up Bartons Road:

http://directory.nyskiblog.com/Gore-Mountain-Trail-Map-Circa-1940s-td4993700.html

Talk about skating...some of those trails required herringbone.

[ka2kci]

Harvey...I'll get back to you. The book was published by the Schenectady Wintersports Club and I will find out this week how to order it if you (or anyone else) is interested. It is a very enjoyable and entertaining read. Matt

[Snowballs]

[quote="Harvey44"]Never heard about Mt Snow. Is that the Mtn in So VT?[/quote

Well, probably Snow Mountain is the one in question. it's in the Gore area (N/NW?) and i believe i read somewhere that Snow Mountain is the tallest mountain in the southern ADK's.

Too bad, Snow Mountain would have been a mythical name for a ski area.

Wonder if it's name denotes any snow anomoly.

[Harvey44]

Sounds like we may be talking about Snowy on the western shore of Indian Lake.

Snowy would have been a very cool choice...it has a higher summit (3900?), I think it has slides, and does get more lake effect even though its not that much closer to the lake.

I think it's the highest summit in the southern adks.

http://www.postimage.org/gxcWgIS.jpg (http://www.postimage.org/image.php?v=gxcWgIS)

[megatron]

The 2 choices were Gore, and Snow Mt., which is the main peak on Blue Ridge. Blue Ridge is located in the towns of Schroon , and North Hudson. You can easily see it driving along I-87 through the Schroon Lake area. At the time the decision was made, I-87 did not exist, and Rt 9 was the only "corridor" type road.

The original plan fro Gore entailed 9 peaks. When the APA was spawned in 1973, they put the kybosh on the majority of the total plan.

C

[Harvey44]

Wow. Do you know which 9? Pete Gay was probably one...

Is Snow Mtn near Hoffman?

[megatron]

Wow. Do you know which 9? Pete Gay was probably one...

Is Snow Mtn near Hoffman?

Yup. Yup. And, yup.

C

[MidnightCarving]

hoffman was supposed to be part of the consideration if i recall, but limited access had that one doomed early.... I can see hoffman from my house though so i always thought it would be awesome if i were looking up at the trails before i left in the morning.

[I:)skiing]

Guess it all comes down to the speed at which you ski it and the potential outcome. We could pick our way down just about anything without a major cliff.....safely. Or ski a green backwards baiis out---just as, if not more dangerous.

I went with rumor---but then conditions also come into play.

[skiboy895]

Just rode out Rumor and Lower Steilhang today. Rumor was tough, but your able to pick your way through it. With Steilhang, however, your skiing along some pretty steep pitches with lotsa moguls and suddenly turn a corner and near vertical steeps, huge moguls and not much of a line to get down. Coupled with how narrow the trail is, it's my pick for the hardest.