Had breakfast with a few friends this morning over at the Blue Ribbon in Schenectady. We had one cancel on us last night because of the snow - no friends on a powder day, they say. Apparently they had a great time at Belleayre, so good for them! His cancelation made me consider skiing, so I pitched the idea of doing XC at Prospect after breakfast with my sister. She had some errands to run and people to see, so that went out the window. I was feeling lazy and tired, and our breakfast dragged into lunchtime as we sat and chatted. Though as the afternoon dragged on, I got a burst of energy around 1:50pm and capitalized on it. I threw my gear together, changed into suitable clothing and ran out the door. My idea was to do a couple hours at West - some well deserved lift served turns and a chance to check out what they’ve done to the place since my most recent visit in 2018.
Well, during my drive to the Northway, I had a change in mind. We got somewhere between 7 and 8 inches in the Capital Region last night. In the mountains, maybe more?… I checked with a friend in Williamstown - not enough snow there to ski, but I was certain I’d have better luck at elevation. My mind set, I changed course to head to Petersburg. If there wasn’t enough snow, my microspikes and hiking boots were both in the car with me and I could still recreate a bit.
I had one detour before skiing - I wanted to check the would-be base of the ski area down off East Hollow Road. At the junction of it and Route 2, with plenty of snow you can still make out parts of the lift line near the top as well as some sections lower down.
I thought I could make out the 1 other primary trail and one spur trail still, but wasn’t entirely sure given I’ve only ever seen a couple pictures of them. At the hairpin turn on E Hollow Rd where the bottom of the ski runs that never ended up getting lift service was, I could still see a pretty sizable clearing. There were a couple of signs indicating that was public DEC land, and a couple sets of bootprints (though no ski tracks) heading towards the mountain. There was also a small structure - it reminded me of the very old ski patrol sledge “shelter” you can see on the Marble Mountain T-Bar line if you are hiking Whiteface from the ASRC.
Today wasn’t the day to see if any of those trails were remotely skiable, though I was curious as on a hike 1.5 years ago at the original base, I was peering into the woods and noticed that there were a couple sections that looked suspiciously well gladed. A WMBA instagram post from a couple years ago speaking out on illegal trail maintenance in that area mostly confirmed my suspicions, but not fully.
The parking lot off Route 2 was mostly unplowed and empty save for one Subaru at the back of it, a few tire tracks and a section at the very front of the lot by the road that was kind of melted due to piles of salt, and wide enough to fit 4 cars side by side. I popped my car there, leaving plenty of room to enter and exit the lot still. Looking at the mountain, I could see one trail pretty.
My first lap took me left out of the lot. I’m a little unclear on the trails, but I might have ascended the Berlin trail. It was a bit difficult, though the path was broken a bit. The fresh snow was loose in spots and caused me to slip a couple times. I did eventually make my way up what I’m assuming was the connector trail that brings you (going uphill) from Berlin to The Drop. There was probably about a full foot of snow on average; some drifts a bit deeper, a couple spots slightly lighter. Some sections of trail were quite wide still for being 45 years unmaintained, though some were narrow or at least had some regrowth in the middle of them. While the trails themselves are very interesting to look at, you’re not really getting any clear views save glances through the trees.
Anyway - when The Drop meets Berlin Corridor, I found the owner of the Subaru. We chatted briefly at that intersection before he asked if I’d like to lead the rest of the way to the top since I seemed faster I obliged, taking in the surroundings and beginning my transition He wasn’t far behind me, and so we continued talking. Ed was a very friendly guy and a good conversationalist. He’s been skiing Petersburg since just a couple years after it finally closed for good. Lived out in Eastern Mass not too far from me and we chatted mountain biking for a bit before I found out he lives locally in the Berkshires, just down the street from the parents of some friends of mine near Boston. Small world. He’d been lapping the mountain; both half and full laps, and was just about done for the day. He did recommend I try West Ridge, as he’d set a good track that would make for good skiing earlier. It was a lot of fun, and far less hits than I expected.
I ended up descending Deer Hollow with skins on - pretty good coverage until right before the bottom where I found a water bar that was mostly covered. My mistake was attempting to ascend The Drop. Holy cow, it is STEEP.
After a very short bit of climbing, I had to start switchbacking every 5-8 feet. I would occasionally slip and have to use my poles to catch myself. There did become a point where even switchbacking wasn’t possible - with only one other set of tracks that had clearly gone downhill and not up, I was pushing through decently deep snow. After slipping and knocking my skis off, I ended up carrying them and booting up the next section until the trail finally began to flatten out not too long before merging with East Ridge Trail. I was getting a bit tired from pushing as hard and quick as I was to beat last light, so the shallow reprieve that continues most of the rest of the way to the summit was very welcomed.
I reached the top with enough light to transition, but only barely. My headlamp came out, I drank some water and then proceeded towards Panorama. That final run in near-darkness was sublime - no hits, plenty of powder and some fast and tight turns and occasional areas where the trail widened up to a pleasant glade. Great success! Next time I come back, I’d like to get a downhill run on The Drop rather than up, and see if I can’t program a GPS route that will help me pick my way along the Northwest trails that were never lift served.
This place means a lot to me symbolically. It was the first place I heard about that really sparked my interested in lost ski areas and pushed me to begin touring. Being less than an hour from where I grew up and having such a high base elevation, it represented something a bit sad; something that I wish I could have experienced. When I first visited, driving through a few springs ago, I had never been on Route 2 before. It taught me that the lower Taconics aren’t just dinky hills - they have some serious peaks, too. You don’t have to go to the Adirondacks, the Catskills, or Vermont to find tall peaks near the Capital Region. The Taconics are something to marvel at and enjoy. The fact that the full ski area could have spanned from 1100′ to 2570′ - a full 300 vertical feet taller than any other area in the range? It’s a shame that more people don’t get to enjoy it, but I’m grateful that I’m healthy and able enough to ski it under my own power.
