Even if I face hour-long liftlines tomorrow, my goal of somehow finding uncrowded skiing during the President's Day Weekend is now a resounding success. If it sounds as if yesterday at Middlebury was uncrowded, you should see today at Bear Creek! <BR> <BR>When the alarm went off this a.m., I checked the outside temperature, saw it hovering around 0F, and went back to bed for another 90 minutes. I therefore didn't arrive at Bear Creek until 10:30 a.m. What did I find there? <BR> <BR><IMG SRC="http://www.firsttracksonline.com/discus2/messages/8/3421.jpg" ALT="18 cars in the lot at 10:30 a.m."> <BR> <BR>18 cars. Yep, you read right: 18 cars in the ski area parking lot at 10:30 a.m. on President's Weekend Sunday. <BR> <BR>Get a load of these crowds: <BR> <BR><IMG SRC="http://www.firsttracksonline.com/discus2/messages/8/3422.jpg" ALT="Looking down Salt Ash"> <BR> <BR><IMG SRC="http://www.firsttracksonline.com/discus2/messages/8/3423.jpg" ALT="Looking up Salt Ash"> <BR> <BR>Where's Waldo? For that matter, where's anybody? I defy anyone to spot a single soul in those pictures. <BR> <BR>Bear Creek is a class act, and look for a full feature article here at FTO in the near future. In the meantime, here's the Reader's Digest version: think skiing, country club-style. You ante up a hefty membership (initiation) fee and annual dues (analagous to a season pass), and you belong to the club which caps visitors at 450 per day. Today they didn't even come close. Members and guests will find 1,300 vertical feet of beautifully groomed terrain (but not overly so -- there's still character left on the trails), an immaculate "clubhouse" in place of a base lodge, and world-class food and guest service. <BR> <BR>Let me show you around a few of the facilities: <BR> <BR>The club house: <BR><IMG SRC="http://www.firsttracksonline.com/discus2/messages/8/3424.jpg" ALT="Bear Creek clubhouse"> <BR> <BR>The locker room: <BR><IMG SRC="http://www.firsttracksonline.com/discus2/messages/8/3425.jpg" ALT="Locker room"> <BR>(Yes, it has showers like a country club.) <BR> <BR>The tavern area, the closest thing to a cafeteria. (The upstairs has a formal dining room for those with a bigger appetite): <BR><IMG SRC="http://www.firsttracksonline.com/discus2/messages/8/3426.jpg" ALT="Bear Creek tavern"> <BR> <BR>It was a day for screaming GS turns without another soul in sight. Even the occasional dip into the trees found little of last week's crust and barely any tracks: <BR><IMG SRC="http://www.firsttracksonline.com/discus2/messages/8/3427.jpg" ALT="Bear Creek woods"> <BR> <BR>Everything is open. Aside from a rock or two near the top of Salt Ash, I saw nothing even resembling a bare spot all day, despite the fact that only 2 trails sport snowmaking coverage. <BR> <BR>This may be a private club, but there's very little to stop the rest of us from skiing Bear Creek. The price of admission for non-members on Saturdays and holidays is a hefty $75/day, and once there are enough members present, you can't buy a ticket -- but I suspect that this doesn't happen very often. Their published limit is 450 skiers/riders. On non-holiday Sundays that drops to a reasonable $50, and on Thursdays and Fridays you get a lift ticket and a lunch buffet for $35 -- and if my lunch today was any indication, that buffet should be scrumptious. The lifts are shut down Mondays-Wednesdays. <BR> <BR>Last run was a screamer down Gold Creek -- when was the last time you saw a green circle with a double fall line? I didn't pass another soul from top to bottom. Then again, except for within 50 verts of the bottom of the chair, I swear that I never passed another soul on a single run all day. <BR> <BR>Gotta love dem holiday crowds!
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