Packed Powder today & Fireworks tonight!

We have beautiful powder and packed powder today here! The sun is out, the sky is blue, so stop by to ski, ride, or take a Skyride at Hunter Mountain!


C-Lift, 7:30am

Yes, I said 'take a Skyride'! Skyride tickets are $8 per person, round-trip this weekend only...and tonight is our Torchlight Parade & Fireworks ceremony to bring in the New Year! The parade kicks off at 5:45pm and fireworks start at 6pm, so stop by to check it out!

Today: 2 more trails + 2 more lifts open & more snowmaking!

Hello skiers, riders and Hunter Mountain fans! This morning we opened two more trails: Heuga Express and Drop Off, and have opened GII lift D-Lift. The snow is looking good so far, and we saw a few snowflakes in the afternoon.

Tomorrow is our New Years Eve Torchlight Parade & Fireworks. The parade begins at 5:45pm, and the fireworks kick off at 6pm, so come celebrate New Years with Hunter Mountain!



Thanks to all of those who came by this week to ski, ride, and just to visit! Today we even ran the Skyride for people who just wanted to head up and check out the snow. We hope to see you tomorrow at the parade & fireworks!

We're still making snow!

In case you're all wondering, we're still blowing snow! We blew on the Belt, Way Out and other places over night, and today the guns are still up in Hunter One and on Madison, our racing trail.


Guns on Hunter One

The West Side is is open as well...Way Out, Clair's Way and Z Lift are all running! Stop by and take a few runs!

Want a free lift ticket? Join the mailing list!

We want to reward the readers (and posters) in the HunterBlog...so here's how we're going to do it:

We're going to start handing out free lift tickets.

This is how you get one...

Sign up for the Hunterblog mailing list! Scroll down and sign up in the field on the sidebar. Every Thursday, a lift ticket winner will be drawn, starting next week...so sign up now!

Today's Fabulous Weather!

We are experiencing awesome weather today. We've had flurries throughout the night, and this morning the day was blanketed with soft, big snowflakes. It recently stopped snowing (this post is as of 9:03am) and the sun is out.

Some of the trails still have guns on them, and we're hoping to blow all day if weather stays cold (don't worry, Hellgate and The Belt are clear...the guns are out of the way of people for the most part!) If you haven't headed up to Hunter yet, today is a great day to get out and ski or ride...everything is fresh groomed, there's new packed powder and fantastic conditions.

Here are some photos I took early this morning (click for larger versions):








We hope to see you all soon!

Come join us New Years Eve for a Torchlight Parade and Fireworks!!!

Bring your family and friends to Hunter on New Years Eve for our traditional Torchlight Parade followed by a spectacular show of fireworks. The parade kicks off at 5:45PM directly followed by the firework display. So come down to Hunter Mountain, bring some friends, grab a drink at the bar and get a front row seat to the show! Join all of us here, at Hunter Mountain as we kick off the celebrations of the New Year.

Snowmaking resumes tonight!

Just wanted to let you all know that we will be setting up the guns and blowing snow tonight, and into tomorrow. We're going to blow snow *whenever possible* throughout the week...so get ready! We will primarily be reblanketing our trails (Hunter One, Mossy Brook, etc), and I promise that the snow will look much better when we blow a bit.

As for the forecast, tomorrow (Wednesday) is going to be in the 30's, returning to more mild weather for Thursday and Friday. As an aside, while some of the snow around the very base is of a brown persuasion, I have heard people raving about great conditions...don't be put off by the weather off the slopes...the conditions are still pretty sweet!

Hope to see you soon, and again, happy holidays from Hunter Mountain! Remember to call the Snow Phone or check the website for more information throughout the day!

Guess What's Open?! WAY OUT!

Hello hello hello, we have a special surprise for all of you today...we've opened Way Out and started running Z-Lift! Hopefully the cover over on Way Out will stick around...we are really excited to have part of Hunter West open...so stop by and take a few runs down our 34th trail!

As for snow blowing, we've had a number of hours to blow for the last few nights, and are hoping for more cold weather...unfortunately it's not looking too promising for getting too much more snow down, but we're confident in how much snow we have, and are getting everything ready for the holiday week. We're doing everything we can to get more trails opened...we just have to wait for the weather! Thankfully, we're looking at a snowstorm in the forecast next week, so hopefully we'll get a few inches of natural powder!

Also wanted to post up a picture I took around 7:30 this morning outside on the deck of the Learning Center...enjoy!



Click on the image for a larger version. Also, small note, there's no Podcast this week, as we have been postponing events due to more warm weather...so check back next week. There's just no point in repeating the same stuff over and over again, but next week there will definitely be one.

One more thing...

We're making snow!

We've been making snow for two nights in a row now, and blew all day on Tuesday, on East Side Drive and Way Out. We are unsure as to how much more snow we will be able to make, due to weather contraints; however, we will be reblanketing the open trails for the holiday week. When things quiet down a bit, I will snap a few photos and post them -- I also have photos of our new pipe cutter and some news to post, so check back before the weekend.

Please check the pic of the day for photos. Please also see this post as a reminder and for more information on what to expect from this blog.

Pic of the Day

The website is updated every day with conditions and weather information, as well as a picture. Please remember that when the blog is not updated, you can check the website. Please be understanding of the fact that I cannot always post every day.

Just so you know:
...We are open every day during the holiday week, 8:30am to 4pm.
...Tickets go on sale at 8am.
...Hunter One is expected to be open, totalling 17-20 trails open for visitors.
...Group, private lessons are available, as well as Playcare and other children's programs.
...Triple Peaks cards are on sale through Friday.

Hope to see you for the holidays!

Keep an eye out for possible snowmaking!

Hello again skiers & riders! I hope those of you who came to Hunter this past weekend enjoyed yourselves... we've had some nice conditions and many people were pleased! I wanted to let you all know that we are looking at some snowmaking opportunities in the next 24-48 hours, so hopefully we will have some fresh snow cover on our trails soon! Despite the warmth over the past week, we have lost very little snow, and only one trail has been closed, leaving us open with a very healthy 19! We're getting some great feedback from our visitors.

Keep up to date by checking our website and blog!

Triple Peaks Card & other last minute gift ideas!

Give the gift of skiing this holiday with our Triple Peaks Card, only on sale through this week. The Triple Peaks Card gives the holder three non-holiday lift tickets for $99.95 - our greatest value yet! The card was on sale through October, then taken off the rack... but it's back, and offered only for the next five days! What better gift is there than three days skiing at Hunter Mountain?

Click here for more information about our Triple Peaks Card, or to purchase!

... use e|ski to save time at the ticket window!

Want to get out on those slopes more quickly? Drop by our website, Huntermtn.com, and use our e|ski system to save time waiting at the ticket window! Gift certificates, rentals, group lessons, Single- and Try-Paks are available directly from our website... all you have to do to redeem them is stop by and pick them up. When our tickets are full-price, lift tickets will be 10% off when purchased through e|ski, so sit tight for some serious savings!

Check out our e|ski options here!

... stop by our Ski Shop & Board Room for all the latest gear!

Stop by our ski and snowboard shops to purchase the latest gear for friends and family! Our shops have the latest and greatest gear, from clothing and accessories to ski and snowboard equipment! If you're all set with clothes and equipment, head in for a custom boot-fitting... we've got something for everyone! And if you're not sure what to get, we've got gift certificates for skiing, riding and for our shops.

... last week for College Season Passes!

This week is the last opportunity to purchase a College Season Pass - the sale ends on Dec. 23rd! This pass is available to students ages 17-22 with a valid college ID. Purchase four College Passes together and save even more: either get one season pass for $299, or choose the FourPlay option, which gives you four season passes for $999! Remember, sale ends December 23, and we will no longer be selling them!

Click here to learn more about our College Season Passes!

What did you think??

Hey guys, I'm going to post a bunch of stuff tomorrow, I know there were quite a few people here at Hunter this weekend, so please let me know what you thought! We'd love to get some feedback -- I spoke to a few people who were really enjoying the slopes, and wanted to hear more!

Tomorrow we're going to release some news about snow blowing and other things, as the weather looks to be returning to cold, and we're excited! Check back soon! For those of you who don't know, please also check out the Pic of the Day here.



A few other things (you guys can hear it before everyone else!):
1. Monday and Tuesday ticket pricing: $50 adult + $15 voucher
2. the Quad, B & C lifts will be open
3. 19 trails will be open
4. Playcare is open by reservation only
5. Children's programs not offered during the week

That's it for now! Hope you all had great weekends!

No podcast today, but other stuff going on!

Happy Thursday, folks. I just wanted to point out quickly that I am not going to do a Podcast today because we've been pushing a lot of things off due to not-so-great weather, so stay tuned until next week and hopefully by that time we will have some more stuff coming up! There IS some cool stuff happening this weekend, though...

The sushi bar is opening this weekend! That's right, we will have sushi served from 12-5pm both Saturday and Sunday. As you may know, we have some awesome sushi up here. Goldye's will be opening in The Learning Center for the weekend as well.

Group lessons for first timers will be offered off the back deck of The Learning Center this weekend, too! Levels 2-6 will be starting at 10am, noon, and 2pm. Stop in the Learning Center to pick up a group lesson and meet out on the back porch. Single-Pak and Try-Pak for levels 1, 2 and 3 will be offered as well.

That's all for now, stay tuned!

Oh yeah, one more thing...

We're blowing snow tomorrow night!!

No Lessons for Ladies' Day Wednesday

Quick announcement...this week's Ladies' Day Wednesday will not be offering lessons. Ladies' Day itself will still be offered, complete with rentals and the $10 lunch voucher.

This will only be for this week (Wed, 12/13)...every other week we will be offering lessons as well as the rentals and lunch voucher. For more information on Ladies' Day Wednesday and other specials, go here.

See you on Wednesday, girls!

Want to join an Alpine Racing clinic?

We're looking for skiers who love speed. Our Adult Seasonal Alpine Racing Program (ages 19+) has some participants signed up and are looking for more to join the group!

The program meets every weekend beginning December 16th through March 11th. We focus on developing our race skills, free skiing and practicing in the gates. We have some participants specifically interested in slalom training and if we can get some more participants we can developed a Slalom Specific Program.

Let us know if you would like to develop your all around race skills or have a specific area of ski racing you would like to focus on and we will do our best to organize such groupings. Interested? Give Jen Schmidt a ring at 1-800-HunterMtn x2278 or e-mail her at jschmidt@huntermtn.com for more information or to sign up.

NASTAR Postponed, TBA

Just a quick note to point out that NASTAR, our local grassroots racing event, has been postponed. Because of the warming weather, we're not going to open the race track until daytime highs drop and we can build up more snow on Madison.

Please keep checking back for new dates, as we will probably cancel this week's dates (Wed - Thu - Fri) and maybe next week. Weather has been notoriously unpredictable this fall and winter, and we're doing our best to get everything to happen as soon as we can! Keep in touch!

Pics from last night's Rail Jam!

Hi guys, we've put up the pics from last night's rail jam -- thanks to everyone who came out! Our next rail jam is on January 6, 2007, and we hope to see you all there! Click here (or on the pictures below) to browse through the photo gallery!



Props to Lauren from SnowboardSecrets.com, who stopped by to check out the rail...check her website soon for a short story about our new rails! She gave us a little shout-out too!

Demo Weekend & Rail Jam...come hang out!

I hope everyone is having an awesome weekend...we certainly are! People have been riding the demos since 8:30 this morning and we're looking forward to a second day of our demo weekend! See below for a small picture of some of the tents --



The park guys are out there setting up the new rails, too, so watch out! Tonight is going to be sweet...the guys from RadXSports are here hanging out, so if you do have to miss the 'jam, tune in at some point to catch some clips.

ALSO, the guys from AlpineZone made a little video yesterday when they stopped by to hit the slopes -- check it out! Thanks Greg, Jim & Doug!

New Podcast! 12-07-06

Hello hello, and hope you are all enjoying the updates! I just finished recording our latest Podcast, so feel free to download it by clicking on the Podcast icon below!


12-07-06

For an archive of all of Hunter's podcasts, go here. Enjoy and stay tuned for more 'cast news next week!

RAIL JAM & CONSUMER DEMO WEEKEND!

It's going to be a busy weekend at Hunter Mountain! On Saturday and Sunday we have Consumer Demo Weekend, and on Saturday starting at 4pm is our Winter Kick-off Rail Jam (scroll below for pictures of our new rails!)

The list of companies who will be joining us for Consumer Demo Weekend includes:
Salomon Skis, Atomic Skis, Dynastar Skis, K2 Skis, Nordica Skis, Rossignol Skis, Fischer Skis, Goode Skis, Volkl Skis, Head Skis, Marker Bindings, Burton Snowboards, Ride Snowboards, Salomon Snowboards, K2 Snowboards

For more information about Consumer Demo Weekend, go here.

Again, the Rail Jam kicks off at 4pm, the bar is open and pizza will be available -- stop by, hit the rail or watch your friends. I'll be out there taking pictures, so a bunch of lucky skiers and riders might even be posted up on the website! See you guys on Saturday!

Scoop for the weekend!

Alright guys, here is some info...

Today, 6 trails are open, including Belt Parkway and The Battery. Tonight we are planning to blow snow on the following trails:

Minya Konka
Lower Crossover
Mossy Brook
Off Broadway
Madison
Gateway
Eisenhower
Hunter One:
-Bucky's Run
-Central Park North
-The Learning Zone.

This does not mean the trails will be open by tomorrow, but they will begin to be covered with snow and a number of them may be open by the weekend. Hunter One will be open this weekend, with group lessons available. Stay tuned for more information, as children's programs may also be available.

I know some of you have been asking about LocalMotion #1, and we are still not 100% sure because of the weather. We are planning to have Madison open before Sunday, but stay tuned to find out more about whether or not LocalMotion will be held on Monday, the 11th.

Last thing -- the rails for our rail jam came in today! Check them out (only in small versions, sorry!)





Hopefully we'll see you all at the Rail Jam on Saturday!

Quick Reminder about Conditions & News

In response to a number of frustrated e-mails I've received, I'm posting a reminder about ways to find out about what's going on here. This blog is not the only source of information, and will not be updated multiple times every single day.

Ways to find out what's going on:
1. Call the Snow Phone. I update the phone twice a day with condition reports. This has all the information you will need about conditions and weather.
2. Check the website. We have a listing of open trails and all condition reports listed on the phone. We will have terrain park listings when that opens, too.
3. There are new pictures posted on the website almost every day. The pictures are in the top of the page and change during your visit to the website.
4. Download the weekly Podcast. Podcasts are generally posted Thursday morning. They detail the events for the weekend.

As far as what's happening today, we just opened Belt Parkway, so we now have 5 trails open. For further information, call the Snow Phone. 1-800-HunterMtn option 1, then option 1 or 2. I'm going to post a few other things today, so stay tuned.

More updates, as requested!

Alright people, I know you are all waiting for more updates, so here's the scoop: we're blowing and blowing, and now have Hunter One and the Belt covered (but they will not be open by tomorrow, we still need some more snow on them) -- Hellgate to 7th/Broadway/Midstation to Kennedy will be open tomorrow: same thing that was open Thanksgiving. Call the SnowPhone around 6pm tonight for the full conditions and weather.





There are some pictures for you guys -- if you look closely enough, you'll see the guns blowing on the Belt. We're opening at 8:30am tomorrow, and tickets are $38
Adult, $34 Young Adults & $26 Junoir/Senior Citizens. Stay tuned for more prices as the week continues, and call in for condition reports! See you tomorrow!

Heavy snow...guess where?!

Hello again skiers, riders and Hunter fans! I looked out the window minutes ago, and to my amazement, heavy snow was coming down! I thought I should tell all of you. It's a bit difficult to take pictures in high enough quality to show how heavy it is snowing, so you'll just have to believe me...however, I do have a picture of the mountain today, and the scoop on trail openings!

This photo was taken by Steve early this morning...

Here's the skinny on what we're doing:
- we're setting out the guns on Hunter One and Belt Parkway tonight. Weather permitting, Hunter One will be open on Wednesday, and if temperatures stay cold, we will widen the cover on Hunter One and open lessons and childrens programs this weekend. This is absolutely not a 100% guarantee, but we are spreading out and covering as much as we can.
- The Belt may be open by Thursday, again, weather permitting.
- That said, ticket prices will start on Wednesday at $38 -- check back tomorrow for more prices. Each ticket price will come with the same $10 coupon we offered on Thanksgiving weekend...redeemable for $10 off a lift ticket at any time throughout the season.
- We also may be blowing on Minya Konka, and possibly others. Keep checking back for updates. Basically if the prices go up, it means there are more trails open.

I just took these about an hour ago...

We'll know more by tomorrow, so check back soon for updates!

Brooklyn Brewery Beer Dinner Postponed

The Brooklyn Brewery Beer Dinner previously scheduled for December 9 has been POSTPONED. New date to be determined soon. For more information, please go to our homepage at http://www.huntermtn.com

HUNTER WILL OFFICIALLY OPEN ON WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER 6TH

Snowmaking was restarted Saturday afternoon, and will run as long as temperatures allow. We have set a re-opening date of Wednesday, Dec. 6th. We've decided to remain closed for a couple of days to give us time to build up a deeper base, and start to spread out onto some other trails.

This coming weekend, December 9 & 10, is our annual Consumer Demo Weekend. We will also be holding our first Rail Jam of the season, check back for more details later in the week!

Snowmaking weather for the foreseeable future looks very good, and we'll be spreading out snowmaking early this week, so we'll have a few days of good snowmaking weather to cover some additional terrain. We should have several trails open by the weekend.

Check back on Monday for further updates on snowmaking, upcoming events, and price information!

Hoping to open Monday, if weather cooperates!

Well, once again the weather isn't playing fair! We were hoping for it to get cold late Friday night, and its just starting to cool off this morning (Saturday.) With hopes to blow snow by this afternoon, we will not be opening on Sunday. We aim for a Monday opening, and with weather temperatures staying in the low 30's, it looks like we'll be able to blow snow straight through this week. Check back for more updates!

Hunter Mountain Closed Saturday... PRAY FOR COLD!

DECEMBER 1 - Snowmaking will resume as soon as temperatures permit early Saturday morning, but realistically, we need some time to recover what we have lost this week. Snowmaking weather for Saturday night is much better than Friday night, and we'll take full advantage of it. We hope to be ready for Sunday, but check back here Saturday afternoon for updates. We want to offer you the best ski conditions we can offer, considering the weather hasn't been playing very nice!

On a positive note, virtually all weather forecasting entities agree that it's going to turn quite cold early next week, with the potential for a little natural snow on and off during the early part of the week. We'll be spreading out our snowmaking operations quickly once the real cold air settles in.

Make sure to check back for more updates on opening and snowmaking through-out the weekend. Also you may check out our website for more frequent updates at Http://www.huntermtn.com or give us a call at 1-800-HunterMtn. Pray for cold, and lets hope we can hit the slopes this Sunday!

Hunter to close until the weekend

Due to severely warm weather, Hunter has chosen to close down its available trails until this weekend. Friday night, an "Arctic blast" is supposed to roll in from Alaska, and we're hoping to blow a ton of snow and will be open on Saturday. We do still have plenty of snow, and a large base...we simply do not think skiing in such conditions are worth staying open for (sorry!)

We hope you'll all stop by this weekend and enjoy the (hopefully) cold weather and new snow. Keep checking back and calling the SnowPhone for further information! You can also still stop by for season passes, tickets and to check out the resort...the lifts and trails will be closed.

Thanks!! See you all soon!

Tomorrow's Terrain

Hello again skiers and riders! I've received a number of phone calls and e-mails today as to what the snow is going to look like tomorrow, so here's the scoop.

Hunter One will be closed until it gets colder (we only planned to open it for the weekend anyway). That said, lessons will not be offered until the area is open again. C-Lift will be closed, and Playcare will be closed until Friday, December 1. Reservations can still be made for Playcare by calling 1-800-HunterMtn x2235.

For now, summit-to-base terrain will be open for advanced/expert skiers only. We are going to hold off on grooming and blowing snow until the cold front comes in at the end of the week. There are variable conditions and by Wednesday, we will probably have summit to F-Lift available, but will close Kennedy.

The cover surrounding the base of F-Lift has melted. This means, in all likelihood, tomorrow skiers and riders will have to remove their skis and boards to get on F-Lift. The Quad will be operating, as usual. No big deal, I promise!

Once again, we are planning to stay open through the week. While we have chosen to wait to blow snow and groom, we believe we have built enough of a cover to maintain at least summit to midstation throughout the week. So, there it is. If you do happen to come during the week, enjoy the open trails, and ski in control to protect yourself and others.

Keep in touch with the most up-to-date weather and conditions by calling the Snow Phone at 1-800-HunterMtn. Snow Phone weather and conditions are updated in the evening and in the early morning if significant changes have occurred overnight. (A few of you called asking about that today).

We've had a fantastic opening weekend here at Hunter, thanks so much for coming out!

Beer dinner tickets available!

FYI, this week we've begun selling tickets to our Brooklyn Brewery Beer Dinner without the overnight package. They've previously been sold as part of a ski & stay package...they are now being sold alone.

Brooklyn Brewery Beer Dinner

December 9 at Van Winkle's at the Kaatskill Mountain Club

Click here for the Menu

The Kaatskill Mountain Club at Hunter Mountain will be hosting a Brooklyn Brewery Beer Dinner on December 9, 2006. The dinner will feature Brooklyn Brewery's brewmaster Garrett Oliver and locally renowned chef Shamus Butler, head chef at Van Winkle's. It will be open to the public and includes accommodations at the Kaatskill Mountain Club.

The menu will be "beer centric," pairing different beer with each course of the meal. "The Kaatskill Mountain Club is pleased to host such a renowned brewery and its brewmaster, Garrett Oliver. We're very happy to be able to provide such a unique opportunity to everyone who is interested in fine food and fine beer," says Sarah Slutzky of the Kaatskill Mountain Club.

Brooklyn Brewery Beer Dinner Tickets are $89 per person and are available by calling Van Winkle's Restaurant at 800-486-8376 ext. 3026, or click here to purchase tickets on-line.

Looking for Snowboard Clinic participants!

Hello all, and I hope some of you have had the opportunity to come ski at Hunter! This is our third day open and I wanted to let you know that we're looking for a few more people for an adult snowboard clinic. We have two people interested so far and need 6-8 to start a program. This will be an adult snowboarding clinic for intermediate or better snowboarders.

These programs are from 9:30am-2:30pm (with a one hour break for lunch at 11:30am) every weekend from December 16 to March 11.

For answers to specific questions you may have about our Seasonal Programs, please contact Charlie Knopp at 800-HunterMtn, ext. 2287.

Need more info?
2006-07 Seasonal Programs for Adults

Hunter One to Open Saturday!

Tonight we're hoping it will be cold enough for us to make snow, and by Saturday morning the slopes of Hunter One will be covered with a fresh layer of snow for the many skis and boards waiting. Right now Hunter Mountain has four trails open available for expert skiers***; Hunter One's opening will render the resort available to skiers and riders of all levels. Hunter One will only be open this weekend, Nov. 25 & 26. (It will be back open for good once the weather gets colder).

Group lessons (ages 13 and up), Single-Pak, and Try-Pak will all be available tomorrow at The Learning Center. PlayCare is also open... so stop by and enjoy yet another feature just opening for the season here at Hunter!

Remember to keep in touch with the latest weather and conditions by calling 1-800-HunterMtn for morning and evening updates!

**Children's programs including Mountaineers and Explorers are not yet available. Watch our website for updates on Explorers/Mountaineers opening date.

***Summit-to-base trails in the current condition qualify as expert-only terrain. These trails, specifically Hellgate, may not be suitable for intermediate skiers.

Second Podcast!

If you haven't already downloaded Hunter's second Podcast, check it out here!

#002 - Hunter's Opening on Thanksgiving!

Remember to right click (or Ctrl Click for Macs) and use Save Target As or Save Link As to save the file to your computer!

Some photos from the Summit!

Hey again guys, I took some pictures from up top to show you all the fantastic corduroy snow coming all the way down Hellgate. I hope some of you come by tomorrow to check it out!










Enjoy, and happy Thanksgiving!!

Hunter's opening on Thanksgiving!

Hunter's opening tomorrow! We're not positive about what trails will be open but so far, F-Lift will be operating for Hellgate and 7th Avenue, and weather permitting Hunter One may be open (C-Lift). We're blowing snow at the base as well, but are not sure how much we will be able to make by tomorrow.

Tickets will be $38, and a $10 coupon will be given with each ticket, useable any day throughout the season. Midweek season passes can be used through Friday, Big Lift is not valid at this time. Due to time constraints, I'm suggesting that people who need updated information call the Snow Phone - 1-800-HunterMtn option 1, then 1 or 2. The Podcast will also be available tonight.

Some photos from this morning:








Click on image for larger version!

Snowguns on Hunter One

We JUST started blowing snow on Hunter One -- check it out! These pictures are as of 4:15pm. Enjoy! And, as always, click on the image for a larger version!!!!








We're happy to say that if weather stays cold, Hunter will not only be open to diamond-savvy skiers and riders, but to those of all abilities. Thanks, and stay tuned!

23A/Mountain Road to Open Tomorrow!

Some more excellent news! The Rt. 23A mountain road is going to open tomorrow (Wednesday, November 22) between 3 and 4pm, right in time for Thanksgiving!

The road has been closed since a major washout in June and has undergone months of intense repairs. As promised, the road will be open in time for the ski season and for Thanksgiving...so enjoy!

Snowblowing continues....

Well, it's a lovely, brisk morning here at Hunter Mountain, and below is a photo of our progressing snowblowing (as you may be able to see, the snowguns have been moved further down).

Please click on image for larger version...more pictures later, possibly.





Thanks for visiting! As you can see, our blog has had over 6500 visits in the month and a half that it has been up! Thanks so much for all of your questions and comments, and please keep checking back!

Further info: Due to the weather forecast starting Thanksgiving, we've decided to concentrate snowmaking on the summit to F-Lift, with the intention of downloading on the summit quad to return to base. We've done this in the past...we know it's not ideal...but we'd like to get open and stay open. There's no real cold on the lower half of the mountain in sight; if we spread out too thin, we may run into problems over the weekend.

Eye candy from the summit!

I know you guys can't wait to see what's going on up here...the parking lot is already full of people who have driven up to take pictures! So, to keep you all updated, I rode up to the summit today via F-Lift and took some pictures of what's going on. Enjoy, and more to come! Click on the images for larger versions:

FYI, if you haven't heard, we started blowing snow on Saturday night, but there is still no opening date...Thursday or Friday are possibilities. Check back soon for more info!

Hunter's hoping to fire up this weekend!

Hello skiers and riders! We know you are all anticipating the ski season, and like you, we are looking forward for the chance to fire up our snow guns! This weekend's weather is supposed to be cold enough for us to blanket the mountain with a fresh coat of snow... and if that happens, next week we may be open! We hope to see each and every one of you at the mountain this year... and if we do open next week, you will be hearing from us very, very soon... maybe even skiing in time for Turkey Day! If you get extra antsy for news in between these mailings, please feel free to call the Snow Phone for information on conditions and weather: 1-800-HunterMtn!

Hunter's first PODCAST!

Hello all, it's 11:12pm on Wednesday night, and I'm posting Hunter's first ever Podcast!!!! Please allow me to explain how you can go about receiving it every week.

I just wrote out feeds solely for the Podcasts and decided not to use them, because we already HAVE feeds for this blog and don't want to overdo it. So, everything is going to be in the blog and accessible on the main website by clicking on the little Podcast logo (which will be up tomorrow morning). This way, people who are using RSS feeds for the blog will be getting news, updates, AND the Podcast...so, in the end, if you want the Podcast, subscribe to the RSS feed (bottom of the right sidebar).

The first Podcast is only a few minutes long...but it's something!

If you have any suggestions, please don't hesitate to get in touch. By the end of the week, the 'casts SHOULD be subscribable via iTunes and AudioBlogger, as well as a few others...I am running out of time for tonight! So enjoy the first Podcast...here it is:

#001 - Hunter's First Podcast!

** Remember that you can right click if on a PC and hit "Save Target As" to save it to your computer! The file is in mp3 format, just under 5mb.

Podcasts coming Thursday (I hope!)

I'm currently working on getting Hunter Mountain Podcasts up and running. If all goes well, #1 will be recorded Wednesday evening and will be available for subscription/download later Wednesday night. We are planning on having Podcasts available once a week.

The Podcasts will cover events, weather, snow reports/conditions and other stuff here at Hunter Mountain. If I can, I'll throw in some interviews and have some guests, but we all know how busy Hunter is in the winter, and it's going to be difficult to get people in here to chat. Either way, look forward to Hunter Mountain news, right from the marketing office, every Thursday morning (or Wednesday night, if you catch it early).



For more information on Podcasts, go here: Podcasts on Wikipedia
Remember that you do NOT have to have an iPod to listen to Podcasts! If you've got questions, ask me!! If you've got any ideas, hit me up -- I'm looking for some contributions!

Route 23A/Mountain Road Info

Hello hello. It is another foggy Monday in Hunter, NY. I thought it would be a good idea to update you all on the status of the mountain road/rt. 23A. I'm getting a lot of questions about it, so here's the latest news.

The DOT said the road would be open around Nov 15, but right now it is looking more like somewhere after Nov 20 and Thanksgiving. There's still no set date but we are still hearing that the road will be open by the end of November; most likely by Thanksgiving.

We apologize for the lack of concrete information (no pun intended!). As soon as we hear more, we will let you all know!

Some questions we've answered...

About a month ago we got a few questions in and I wanted to post the answers. Because I haven't been here as long, I asked our Marketing & Sales Director to answer. So below are his responses.

A few years back Hunter issued a master plan. When will that be updated? [Rob Megnin] We're in the process of doing that now. Much more to come, but for now we really can't say much more than that.

While mountain biking, I noticed alot of trees being cut in the vicinity South of Lower K. Is this future expansion or something else?[Rob Megnin] Was done for festivals and to create open air venue for shows, concerts and other events that would fit into the model.

I think it would be great if the mountain would ask what the season pass holders feel is lacking or needs attention/expansion on the mountain by making a suggestion box available at the season pass holder's party. [Rob Megnin] We have many ways for guests to do this. This is one forum. Another is on the table tops we have surveys which have open ended response opportunities. Many tell us what they think here. There is a comment card that can be filled out in Snowsports Services too.

Feel free to send in your questions: jpezak*huntermtn.com

Waiting for the weather...

I figured since everyone is wondering when we'll be open, I'd take a picture and let everyone know what we're dealing with right now.

FIRST, we do not have an opening date! People please read this BEFORE you email me and ask me! We will probably be open by Thanksgiving. Depending on the weather, it could be before or after that, but we have not locked in a date, due to the rain. Once we do have a date, we will let you know! Yes, we know everyone else is opening on the 17th. That's ok. We promise the wait will be worth it, if there is one!

Accuweather says it's going to rain all the way through Sunday, so we're waiting another week before we bust out the snowguns. I know, I know -- why have other mountains blown snow? Here at Hunter we figure it's more cost-effective and less disappointing to wait until the bad weather blows over, than to blow snow and have our beloved skiers and riders watch it melt in the rain!

With that said, here's a picture of what it looks like here in Hunter today. Very wet, very foggy, very not cool:



Again, no opening date yet, but watch for the snowguns next week -- and if you don't live nearby, don't worry -- I'll be posting pictures!