— Skiing —

Ski with the New York-North Jersey Chapter

The New York-North Jersey Chapter of AMC has a winter ski program that includes Nordic cross country, alpine (downhill), Nordic backcountry/XCD, and backcountry alpine touring (AT)/telemark activities. The Ski Committee offers:

  • Cross-Country Skiing Weekend Trips to Nordic Centers with groomed trails, set tracks, and a warming hut. Trail fee. Equipment rentals and lessons (extra cost).  Groomed and track-set trails offer skiing for both novice and experienced skiers. Beginners are encouraged to take a morning lesson offered by the center and then re-join the rest of the group in the afternoon.
  • Cross-Country Skiing Day Trips to local/municipal parks or NY State Parks. *These are Short Notice outings, only possible right after a big snowstorm*. Check the trip description or with the leader for the required skill level and trail fees, and for availability of on-site equipment rentals or commercial lessons.
  • Alpine Resort Trips for Skiers and Snowboarders. Day trips or weekend outings. The group may divide according to skill level for the activity and then gather for lunch or après ski. Destinations are often Catskills or Berkshires lift-serviced downhill ski resorts which offer bus service from Long Island, New York City, and North Jersey.
  • Backcountry Alpine Touring (A.T.)/Telemark Weekend Outings. Meant for advanced-level winter hikers who are advanced to expert downhill skiers with all the required equipment (ask the outing leader for details).

Trip leaders cannot provide lessons for Beginner level skiers. We strongly recommend that beginners take a lesson to start. You will enjoy yourself much more than if you try to wing it by yourself.

  • Cross-Country skiing lessons are available at most Nordic centers (but not at Minnewaska State Park).
  • Downhill skiing lessons are available at alpine downhill areas.

________________________________________________

For Cross-Country Skiers, the following areas within a 1.5 to 3-hour drive from New York City offer groomed trails, equipment rentals and lessons:

Other Cross-Country Skiing Destinations in Downstate New York and Northern New Jersey

  • AMC’s Mohican Outdoor Center in the Kittatinny Mountains of New Jersey can be used as a base for cross-country skiing (assuming deep enough snow cover). Find out more about transportation to and reservations at Mohican. There are several good tours within a few miles, especially Blue Mountain Lakes. (1 hr 45 min from NYC)
  • Minnewaska State Park – Shawangunk Ridge west of New Paltz, NY. (845) 255-0752 (2 hours from NYC)
  • Mohonk Mountain House – Shawangunk Ridge west of New Paltz, NY. (845) 256-2101 (2 hours from NYC)

Cross-Country Skiing Destinations in Upstate New York and Southern Vermont

  • Prospect Mountain is located just east of Bennington, VT, on the Stamford-Stratton Plateau at over 2000 feet elevation. (3.5 hours from NYC)
  • Lapland Lake Nordic Vacation Center in the Southern Adirondacks is probably the most popular destination for a cross-country ski weekend trip from NYC. (3.5 hours from NYC)
  • Garnet Hill Lodge is a bit north of Gore Mountain in the East-Central Adirondacks. (4 hours from NYC)
  • Osceola-Tug Hill XC Ski Center and Osceola Snow & Sport Resort are located on the Tug Hill Plateau in North-Central New York State, just to the east of Lake Ontario, where they get 250 or more inches of snowfall every winter. It’s the snowiest low elevation area in the entire eastern half of the United States. (Yes, more snow than Buffalo.) (5 hours from NYC)

Check the AMC Outdoors Connector for scheduled trips.

  • For Activity Type, choose Skiing. Fill in the start date and end date, location, chapter leading the outing, etc. Then click Search.
  • You can also go to Outdoors.org, click Adventures, then click Skiing (in season). From there you can use the Outdoors Connector to search for ski outings by date(s), chapter, state, region, type of skiing, etc.

For more information about our skiing program email ski@amc-ny.org


More good stuff for skiers…

Join the Hudson Valley NY Skiers Google group (email amcski-nynoj@googlegroups.com) for up-to-date info about snow conditions, ski gear and equipment, and upcoming ski trips.

  • When you send your request to join, please make sure to mention that you’re a skier and whether or not you are an AMC member.
  • Please also include what kind(s) of skiing you enjoy.

For more detailed information about ski destinations accessible within a day’s drive from NYC, check out the Ski The Northeast website. There’s lots of information there about places to ski, types of ski gear, different styles of skiing, and more.

________________________________________________

What types of skiing do we do?…

Our leaders and members enjoy all the different kinds of skiing.

DOWNHILL SKIING AND SNOWBOARDING AT SKI RESORTS 

Our leaders sometimes lead outings to lift-serviced alpine ski resorts. These outings are usually held on weekdays. They’re usually focused on using Alpine Touring (“A.T.”) or telemark gear for ‘skinning’ up the resort’s trails to ski back down. However, there’s nothing wrong with joining the outing and riding the lifts for a day with a few fellow AMC members. Beginners are strongly encouraged to take a group ski lesson in the morning and rejoin the AMC group later in the day.

_______________________________________________________

CROSS COUNTRY SKIING AT NORDIC CENTERS 

Nordic centers provide groomed trails suitable for classic or freestyle (skate) technique cross country skiing. These commercial facilities usually offer ski rentals and have a lodge with cooked food and beverages available for sale.

We lead some trips for cross country skiing at Nordic centers like Lapland Lake, Mt Van Hoevenberg, or the Osceola-Tug Hill XC Ski Center upstate, or the Trapp Family Lodge or the Craftsbury Outdoor Center in Vermont.

Close to home, there are two very popular cross country skiing destinations on the Shawangunk Ridge that still get fairly reliable snow, Minnewaska State Park and the Mohonk Reserve. Both have groomed carriage roads that are great for either classic or freestyle cross country skiing.  Note that these facilities do not offer ski gear rentals or food service.

_______________________________________________________

BACKCOUNTRY SKIING – ALPINE TOURING / TELEMARK

When most people think of ‘backcountry skiing,’ they think of people climbing mountains (using climbing skins on the skis) into the high alpine to ski back down the steep slopes and couloirs. Our leaders enjoy this kind of thing, but this activity absolutely requires that participants are at least advanced-level downhill skiers with extensive winter hiking experience, and their own appropriate equipment.

Outings to the tallest Adirondack High Peaks or the Presidential Range of New Hampshire may require basic mountaineering skills such as the use of crampons and ice ax, and/or avalanche safety skills, as well as true expert skiing skills.

We also offer less intense outings to the Catskills and southern New England for skiing old ski trails like the Thunderbolt Ski Trail on Mt Greylock in Massachusetts, or little-known forested slopes in the Catskills. These outings still require advanced downhill skills and solid winter hiking experience. There are a few destinations with managed glades and marked trails that are suited to less experienced backcountry skiers, such as Dutch Hill in southern Vermont or the Avalanche Pass Ski Trail in the Adirondack High Peaks region.

Remember, ski with a partner, and please don’t go out in the woods alone in winter.

_______________________________________________________

NORDIC BACKCOUNTRY SKIING – UNGROOMED TRAILS, ROLLING TERRAIN 

This is a more cross-country-oriented type of backcountry skiing. The idea is to take metal-edged, (usually) fish scale-based skis out onto woods roads or gentle hiking trails on rolling terrain. New York’s Adirondack Park offers countless miles of trails through beautiful forests with good snow cover and a feeling of true wilderness. Bushwhacking through the forests and skiing across frozen ponds are favorite activities. This type of outing requires that participants are advanced to expert-level cross country skiers with extensive winter hiking experience (e.g., on snowshoes).

Remember, ski with a partner, and please don’t go out in the woods alone in winter.

_______________________________________________________

For more information… 

Join the Hudson Valley NY Skiers Google group (email amcski-nynoj@googlegroups.com) for more up to date info about snow conditions, equipment info, and upcoming trips. When you send your request to join, please make sure to mention that you are an AMC member and that you’re a skier. Please also include what kind(s) of skiing you enjoy.

For more detailed information about skiing in areas accessible within a day’s drive from NYC, check out the Ski The Northeast website. There’s lots more information there.

—