West Mountain Ski Resort
Author: Eliza
Summary:
West Mountain, located in Queensbury, is the perfect place for a ski day with your friends and family. With 31 different total trails varying in difficulty, snow tubing, and the opportunity to night ski it provides a plethora of things to do during the cold New York winters. All tickets can be purchased online via their website and parking is typically not an issue, as there is a large parking lot at the base of the mountain. Their lift tickets are very reasonably priced. West Mountain has a rental service to rent any gear you would need, however, it is highly recommended to pre-rent your gear to guarantee that it will be available.
Date: Observations and data on multiple different dates in January 2023
Site/location: 59 West Mountain Road, Queensbury, NY 12804
Distance from Camp Hudson Pines: 10.4 miles (approx. 15-minute drive)
Participants: 18-year-old moderate-expert skier, 18-year-old novice snowboarder
Length of Observation: 3 days
Links: https://westmountain.com/winter/
Activity: During my visit, I did one day of skiing, one day of snowboarding, and one day of tubing. We did the tubing as a family and everyone had a splendid time. The tubes are a good size for all and the magic carpet moves relatively fast. While we were there the crowds were pretty steady and we could still get many runs in, while not waiting in line for an excessive amount of time. You do have to reserve tubing ahead of time so keep that in mind!
For being such a small resort West Mountain has a lot to offer. There are a lot of fun runs, and there is something for every level of snowboarder/skier. How many runs are open depends on the snowfall at that time. We were there at the beginning of the season and there wasn’t a lot of snow. You can always count on greens and blues being open, so if you are looking for extreme runs West Mountain might not be your place. The runs are surrounded by trees, which makes it quite scenic, and at the top of the lift, you can see for miles around which is also very beautiful.
On my third day at West Mountain, I decided to try snowboarding for the first time. The rental process was very easy and the employees were helpful. West Mountain has an excellent bunny hill, which also has a zippy magic carpet. The bunny hill is wide, so there is room to prevent all the beginners from crashing into each other. The West Express chair lift, which is directly next to the bunny hill and the main parking lot, offers easy greens perfect for beginners. I felt that West Mountain was the perfect place for a beginner because of the wide and accessible runs. Some of the greens can be fairly steep so keep that in mind and ask which runs are best if you are a true beginner.
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Reflections:
West Mountain is a great place to spend your winter. This mountain is better for beginner and more casual skiers/snowboarders but it will be a fun time no matter your ski level. This is the perfect place to teach people new to winter sports (or yourself) and I would highly recommend visiting this winter! Make sure and check out their events schedule as well for fun events during your visit.
