NewEnglandSkier13 It seems like recently I've been skiing on one of the coldest days each week! Today we visited Abram for the first time in a few years. I skied there a lot growing up, and it remains one of my favorite ski areas. We usually base ourselves at the West Side base area and today was no exception. We got first chair on the Skyline Double and did a few laps on the terrain it serves. All of the trails in that area were open and groomed. We then made our way over to the main mountain where the Way Back Machine was on mechanical hold which excited me because that meant that the Maine T was open! The Maine T is a classic Hall T and is the longest T-bar in New England (it's also one of the steepest)! Most of the trails on the main mountain were open. Groomed trails were in good shape and ungroomed trails were definitely skiable, but firm. After a few laps on the T-bar, it closed and the chairlift opened. We spent most of the rest of the day skiing the terrain on the main mountain. Round-A-Bout is a fun cruiser which was in great shape and ungroomed double black diamonds such as Lower Zephyr and Rocky's Run are among the few trails which give me pause each time I ski them. The cold kept people away and it was never busy anywhere on the mountain. We were able to take multiple breaks to stay warm and had a great day at Abram!
lotsoskiing Looking at NE SkiHistory site, I am curious what the deal was with the 2016-17 trail map. Trails appeared then disappeared (Whatsamatta U?). And were some widened appreciably? That year's map is just so far off the ones on either side of it...
NewEnglandSkier13 lotsoskiing;c-47424 wroteLooking at NE SkiHistory site, I am curious what the deal was with the 2016-17 trail map. Trails appeared then disappeared (Whatsamatta U?). And were some widened appreciably? That year's map is just so far off the ones on either side of it... Their current trail map doesn't really tell the whole story and there are a lot of trails not on it. A bunch of trails were cut around 2016, but they were never graded. Since then, some of those trails have grown in and aren't really skiable, but others such as Tucker's Tumble and Watsamatta U are open when there enough snow. They are in desperate need of a new map.
NewEnglandSkier13 rickbolger;c-47426 wrotegreat report! those empty chairs are killing me :D :D :D Yeah, I'm sure it'll look different tomorrow! Have you ridden the T-bar yet?
ciscokid Ya had to get ibrake all excited again! Great report! T can use a paint job like the red paint at the bottom shack Once again those trails look crowded
newpylong Is one of those growing in trails left side, first image? I was gonna ask. Also looks like they abandoned that smaller pod far lookers left and a tubing? lift or short tbar between that and the main hill?
NewEnglandSkier13 ciscokid;c-47428 wroteYa had to get ibrake all excited again! Great report! T can use a paint job like the red paint at the bottom shack One again those trails look crowded It definitely could! The drive terminal and first few towers have been recently painted, but the rest hasn't been touched in a long time.
NewEnglandSkier13 newpylong;c-47429 wroteIs one of those growing in trails left side, first image? I was gonna ask. Also looks like they abandoned that smaller pod far lookers left and a tubing? lift or short tbar between that and the main hill? Yes, that picture does show one of the trails which was cut and never really opened. The pod on looker's left used to be a beginner's area with its own T-bar, but was abandoned a while ago in favor of the Westside beginner area. The Flying Squirrel T-bar was used for tubing for a few years and then as a terrain park lift, but now it hasn't run in a few years.
conrad Great report. It never occurred to me that it is the longest t-bar in New England. Maine must be the best represented state in New England for "serious" t-bars (i.e. not just beginner slopes) with Mount Abram, Sugarloaf, and hopefully soon Saddleback. New Hampshire catching up perhaps with Waterville Valley and Cannon. Anyways, super nice that you got to ride all three lifts in one day. And had good skiing!
NewEnglandSkier13 conrad;c-47432 wroteGreat report. It never occurred to me that it is the longest t-bar in New England. Maine must be the best represented state in New England for "serious" t-bars (i.e. not just beginner slopes) with Mount Abram, Sugarloaf, and hopefully soon Saddleback. New Hampshire catching up perhaps with Waterville Valley and Cannon. Anyways, super nice that you got to ride all three lifts in one day. Don't forget the new T-bar at Sunday River and the one at BMOM! Yes, the mechanical issue definitely worked in my favor. The one down side to visiting mid-week is that the T-bar usually isn't open.
TomWhite I’ve been to Mt. Abram twice this season. Sam is a die hard, 4 of us chose not to ski 3/5 (Mt. A or BMOM) cos the cold and wind. I rode the T-bar last year. Lower Rocky’s is a genuine double black. In Sam’s photos Upper Rocky’s sign is UR, 2nd is LR then further down (last) is another LR looking up at 1 of 2 steep sections. My favorite trail is Lower Fractured under the chair when it’s bumped up. They had a major snowmaking problem. So they had a late start to the season. Plus they haven’t made a lot. I like Mt. A’s trails better. I like BMOM’s glades better. If Mt. A clears more glades and finishes clearing the couple trails Sam mentions, it will be excellent when there’s good snow.
NewEnglandSkier13 TomWhite;c-47434 wroteI’ve been to Mt. Abram twice this season. Sam is a die hard, 4 of us chose not to ski 3/5 (Mt. A or BMOM) cos the cold and wind. I rode the T-bar last year. Lower Rocky’s is a genuine double black. In Sam’s photos Upper Rocky’s sign is UR, 2nd is LR then further down (last) is another LR looking up at 1 of 2 steep sections. My favorite trail is Lower Fractured under the chair when it’s bumped up. They had a major snowmaking problem. So they had a late start to the season. Plus they haven’t made a lot. I like Mt. A’s trails better. I like BMOM’s glades better. If Mt. A clears more glades and finishes clearing the couple trails Sam mentions, it will be excellent when there’s good snow. Yes, Lower Rocky's is the real deal! I agree, Abram has some great trails, they just need to work on their glades. Obviously they have a high standard to live up to with BMOM nearby! I think in many other areas Abram's glades would hold their own.
lotsoskiing I think the longest t-bar in NE is now the new GMVS one at Mt. Ellen. Just under 4000' long and over 1000' vert. Not nearly the character of an old Hall, but IMHO any surface lift is a great lift!
NewEnglandSkier13 lotsoskiing;c-47438 wroteI think the longest t-bar in NE is now the new GMVS one at Mt. Ellen. Just under 4000' long and over 1000' vert. Not nearly the character of an old Hall, but IMHO any surface lift is a great lift! Looks like you're right!
IBRAKEFORTBARS NewEnglandSkier13;c-47430 wroteciscokid;c-47428 wroteYa had to get ibrake all excited again! Great report! T can use a paint job like the red paint at the bottom shack One again those trails look crowded It definitely could! The drive terminal and first few towers have been recently painted, but the rest hasn't been touched in a long time. Yep, those towers really need some TLC. There’s a great video on YouTube of the ride up that classic Hall T. IBRAKE
FlannSki That T-Bar looks like a lot of fun. This is one of those places I'd like to try based solely on the trail names.
NewEnglandSkier13 FlannSki;c-47451 wroteThat T-Bar looks like a lot of fun. This is one of those places I'd like to try based solely on the trail names. The T-bar is very fun and the Rocky and Bullwinkle themed trail names are definitely unique!
IBRAKEFORTBARS NewEnglandSkier13;c-47454 wroteFlannSki;c-47451 wroteThat T-Bar looks like a lot of fun. This is one of those places I'd like to try based solely on the trail names. The T-bar is very fun and the Rocky and Bullwinkle themed trail names are definitely unique! Are there spots on the T track that let you catch air if you know how to let the T launch you? 😁
