Off Topic - Tupper Lake Ski Area

[skicdave]

As we usually do when touring about, we scout out the local ski areas and stopped in the other week in the Adirondacks at Tupper Lake, NY. The ski area was blocked off by a gate, and checking for their website it appears that Tupper has been closed recently. Anybody know anything about the closer of Tupper Lake? or if it will be reopened?

Tnx

[Frankontour]

Is it the same area than Big Tupper ?

If yes, it's closed for few years now... About 3 years I think. It's a sad thing as it looked nice, according to some pics I have of this resort !

Unfortunately, it still doesn't have its own page on www.nelsap.org... (http://www.nelsap.org...) but it's in the list of the closed ski areas (and effectively it's at Tupper Lake)

http://www.nelsap.org/ny/ny.html

[skicdave]

Yes Frankontour.. it's official name is 'Big Tupper', my mistake. And yes I didn't recall every seeing it on nelsap.

I just check nelsap now and noticed all the closed areas in NY... what a shame. One of the things on my 'things to do in the future' would be to buy property backing onto a hill, and installing a lift. Ideally something with a decent pitch. I'm hoping the USFS we put up :hojos: for sale someday. Great backyard skiing indeed!

[Skilasnow]

It wasn't very long ago - 3 or 4 years - that NY had the most operating ski areas of any state in the country. Maybe they are slipping down the list now...

[Frankontour]

About NY, this is nothing for the number of lost ski areas. Take a look in NH and you'll see...

We have hundreds of lost ski areas in Quebec too, but I'm not sure if someone have enough info about them to make some decent pages in NELSAP. I sent them infos of about 75 lost ski areas in the province 2-3 years ago, but as you can see, there is just 3 lost ski areas of QC on the website now. (and one of them have a gigantic error lol!). I miss some information. I have stats of them in the 70s and 80s, but not before that :(

If I wasn't a poor university student, I would try to buy for sure some of the recent lost ski areas in the Laurentians. It's comic to see how few of those mountains could reborn tomorrow without problem. Mt Christie and Mt Sauvage closed after the 1996-97 season, but the grass is still cut every year and the places could reopen without problem... easilier than La Réserve which was quite wild after 2 periods of 5 years of closure in a row, when they reopen it in 2001-02.

There is also obviously the Mt Plante which is still very popular during winter... almost 25 years after its closure. When I visited the place last summer, the grass was perfectly cut in the old very steep t-bar line and the grass had been cut enough recently in the other trails of the area. Funny thing, the grass was quite high just between the parking and the bottom of the trails... just like if the telemarkers want to keep the place secret ;) (really easy to understand them, you can believe me and I wouldn't tell it here if it was a Quebec skiers website ! ;) )

just a little preview...
http://www.mtnphil.com/mike/plante_00/plante2.JPG

[<enzo>]

Tupper wasn't a bad area, at least when I skiied it regularly for 2 years while at my first college back in the early 70's. Nothing on it was of true Double Diamond stature (and most were barely single Diamond!), but there was some terrain that hadn't been developed yet that could have been fun. At least tickets were cheap - $65 for a season's pass!

Sorry to see it go, but I can imagine that it had a hard time competing with Whiteface when there wasn't much natural snowfall.

[Frankontour]

It's sad to see close some 1000+ footer close like that. I know there is few ones in New England and we have also few ones in Quebec. It's tough to believe that ski areas like that could simply close without finding any buyer...

highest lost ski areas in NE/QC

Saddleback ? : 1831' (ME)
Mt Echo : 1500' vertical (QC)
Mittersill : 1400' (NH)
Mt Jasper : 1250' (QC)
Big Tupper : 1152' (NY)
Mt Whittier : 1100' (NH)
Maple Valley : 1017' (VT)
Mt Moose : 1000' (NH)

Of course, there is certainly other ones I forgot... and there is few ones that just reopened ... like la Réserve, Mt Shefford in QC + Magic, Crotched/Onset, in New England and few ones are just on the line... like Mt Glen here :confused:

[elwood]

If you guys are interested in a bit of ski history, check this site out (http://www.nelsap.org/) ...

It has an archive of closed NE ski areas... Pretty interesting.

[ski&ride]

I heard a rumor that Cannon Mtn was planning to expand into Mittersill next year. Does anyone know if this is correct? I did some backcountry boarding at Mittersill last winter on a sweet powder day. I almost hate to lose the free trails.

Ski&Ride

[Frankontour]

Last year, they announced they would open the very lower part of Mittersill. They even built few trails, which are just beside the Brookside slope. They talked of a traverse from Red Ball or so, but I suppose they wanted to build a lift too. This year, I didn't have news of that, but I suppose they'll open the lower Mittersill. Don't worry for the upper mountain for the coming year, I'm 99% sure there won't be lifted ski there, next year. But for 2004-05... I wouldn't say nothing actually.

I'm not sure if it's a good idea anyway to open this side. Most of the mountains I know that have opened a connected mountain got real problems with that.

Just think to : Magic / Timberside, Crotched / Onset, Killington / Pico (still waiting for link since 6 years... and over $400 000 000 in the hole for ASC oops).

Anyway, if you ask the question on any ski website, the vote will be 90% or more to maintain Mittersill as it is now. And a sure thing it that the Cannon costumers who would ski the groomed runs of Mittersill would NEVER like them like we like the wild powder trails !!

Can we have more MRG or Wash in east ? please !!!

[<enzo>]

When did Moose and Saddleback close? Saddleback was a great "unknown" area, and Moose was great for nite skiing on the way home after a day at Wildcat.

Sounds like the mild winters of the last two decades have been tough on the NE areas!

[Mumster]

Hi Enzo:

Just curious - Why don't you register? :confused:

You make a fair number of posts.

[Frankontour]

Saddleback : not definitive. I mean, they actually look to find a new owner, but if they're not able, the ski area won't be open next year.

About Moose, it closed in the late 80s, according to NELSAP.

See this page, you'll find interesting infos + pics about this lost ski area.

http://www.nelsap.org/nh/moosemt.html

I agree with Mumster... you can register, it's free and you could even reach the Toni Matt club :) :D

[BladeGirl]

Frankontour:
Last year, they announced they would open the very lower part of Mittersill. They even built few trails, which are just beside the Brookside slope. They talked of a traverse from Red Ball or so, but I suppose they wanted to build a lift too. This year, I didn't have news of that, but I suppose they'll open the lower Mittersill. Don't worry for the upper mountain for the coming year, I'm 99% sure there won't be lifted ski there, next year. But for 2004-05... I wouldn't say nothing actually.
Last year Cannon brought a snowcat groomer up the hiking trail from Cannon to Mittersill & groomed the path from the top of the mountain down to the top of the old Mittersill Lift. I don't know if that part has a trail name, but its always "naturally" bumpy. It was weird to see it groomed smooth. I was only on it once in its groomed state, but clearly they are seeing what they can do. They ALSO groomed out two trails top-to-bottom! I was appalled!

-BG

[Frankontour]

Hmm, yes, I admit it's quite horrible to see groomed trails in a lost ski area... especially Mittersill. I hope that the experience wasn't a success and that they won't do that until they bring a new chairlift there. Anyway, what's the joke of grooming some trails when the only way to reach them is to hike ????

[elwood]

Mumster:
Hi Enzo:

Just curious - Why don't you register? :confused:

You make a fair number of posts. Enzo is :disinfo: 's secret identity...

[SkiStooge]

I love Cannon and Mittersill. I, for my own greedy reason, kinda hope that they do not annex Mittersill as a part of Cannon. I like the Mitt raw. It's become, for several years now, one of my "traditional off piste days". I know a lot of ski areas are closed and some could be re-opened but we have enough over-priced ski terrain available here already. I carry a season pass for Cannon (fully reciprocal from Gunstock due to college status...used to just get a discount at Cannon but with the college season pass I get both plus a discount at Sunapee) and like Cannon as it is.

If Cannon acquires the Mitt, I have a scary feeling that, due to the size of the combined terrain, it is gonna start to draw development to the area up there. I need more people skiing Cannon like I need to move to Texas. Just don't need it. OK, so, as I said, greed drives my motivation, but let the masses go over to like Killy or Snow or something.


OK, Have fun, be safe. Al :skistooge:

[<enzo>]

elwood:
Enzo is :disinfo: 's secret identity... Identity? There are no infidels with that identity! They will commit suicide before they take that identity!

:D

If I register, do I get a cookie? ;)

[elwood]

&lt;enzo&gt;:
If I register, do I get a cookie? ;) Yup,

You get a nice cookie stored in your browser so you don't have to log on every time!

[skicdave]

Don't worry Enzo... a cookie to allow you to login etc isn't going to hurt :p