Number of ratings for this region: 40
The latest 20 ratings are listed below
20
Name of XC Area:Grafton Ponds Area number: VT36 Times that I have skied there: Several times I last skied there in: Jan, 2006 Trails that I skied: Don't remember names, but you ski up, cut across, up, and down. My favorite trails: Trail marking: Very good Trail grooming: Very good Rating: 4.5 stars What I liked: Great workout trails; climbs and descents and flat trails for gliding. What I disliked: Because of lack of altitude, natural snow cover can sometimes be skimpy -- slalom some downhills. Pretty scenery -- good views of village from upper trails. Comments: Big plus is snowmaking; friendly staff. Inn and restaurant in the village are first-rate. Submitted by: HK from: Mass. Date submitted: Jan 3, 2006
19
Name of XC Area:Timber Creek Area number: VT38 Times that I have skied there: Weekly I last skied there in: Jan, 2006 Trails that I skied: All My favorite trails: Ages, Monarch, Serpent Tail, Hilltop Trail marking: Very good Trail grooming: Very good Rating: 4.5 stars What I liked: Good variety of ups, downs, and flats. What I disliked: No complaints. Comments: Lodge is way too small. Submitted by: Harris from: Mass. Date submitted: Jan 3, 2006
18
Name of XC Area:Prospect Mountain Cross Country Ski Center Area number: VT37 Times that I have skied there: Weekly I last skied there in: Oct, 2005 Trails that I skied: Woodpecker, EZway, Troll Road, Hobbit Hollow, Danish Delight My favorite trails: all Trail marking: Very good Trail grooming: Very good Rating: 5 stars What I liked: Excellent grooming. What I disliked: Comments: More snow than you would believe! Definitely worth the 4 hour drive from my house. Great early and late season skiing when everyone else here in northern Vermont is closed. Submitted by: LL from: Burlington, Vermont Date submitted: Dec 28, 2005
17
Name of XC Area:Ascutney Mountain Resort Area number: VT28 Times that I have skied there: Once I last skied there in: Dec, 2005 Trails that I skied: None - There was no X-Country Skiing Available During Our Visit My favorite trails: Trail marking: Poor Trail grooming: Poor Rating: 0.5 star What I liked: What I disliked: Although groomed trails were advertised, they were not available - in fact, besides the general manager, none of the staff had ever been asked about cross country skiing before. Comments: This is par for the course for this facility. Workers are not aware of policy - for example, a "two for one deal" was not in force for the holidays, although it was confirmed to be available by a phone call the night before. This place is not serious about doing business and should be avoided.
Submitted by: mbm from: Clermont, NY Date submitted: Dec 27, 2005
16
Name of XC Area:Hildene Ski Touring Area number: VT33 Times that I have skied there: Once I last skied there in: Dec, 2003 Trails that I skied: My favorite trails: Trail marking: Very good Trail grooming: Fair Rating: 3 stars What I liked: What I disliked: Not enough hills for me. For a full day, you will repeat a lot. Comments: Submitted by: John W from: Orange CT Date submitted: March 4, 2005
19
Name of XC Area:Viking Nordic Area number: VT31 Times that I have skied there: A few times I last skied there in: Mar, 2005 Trails that I skied: All My favorite trails: Viking Run Trail marking: Very good Trail grooming: Very good Rating: 5 stars What I liked: Great for beginners or 20 year veterans. Very scenic. They always seem to have more snow than surrounding places. Trail grooming is better than other places. What I disliked: Minor inconvenience of crossing the road a couple of times. Comments: Two minutes away from Magic Mountain (alpine skiing) if you want a nordic/alpine weekend. Submitted by: John W from: Orange, CT Date submitted: March 4, 2005
18
Name of XC Area:Blueberry Lake XC Area number: VT17 Times that I have skied there: Once I last skied there in: Feb, 2005 Trails that I skied: various My favorite trails: all Trail marking: Very good Trail grooming: Very good Rating: 4.5 stars What I liked: woodlots,scenery and trails What I disliked: nada Comments: The staff was exceptionally friendly and helpful and the trails wonderful Submitted by: pstanden from: burlington,VT Date submitted: Feb 26, 2005
17
Name of XC Area:Grafton Ponds Area number: VT36 Times that I have skied there: Once I last skied there in: Feb, 2005 Trails that I skied: Big Bear, Little Bear, Chivers, and others ... My favorite trails: Big Bear Trail marking: Very good Trail grooming: Very good Rating: 4.5 stars What I liked: Although there wasn't much snow when I visited, the trail grooming was excellent. They use a huge snow cat for grooming. The trails are VERY wide with a two very well defined tracks on either side of a wide lane in the middle for skate style.
The wide trail is nice for negotiating turns on downhill runs.
There's a small log-cabin style warming hut at the top (of Big Bear). Found matches, paper, kindling and wood to build a fire in the wood stove inside the hut. If your crew is up to a little climbing, plan on reaching the warming hut at the top of Big Bear. Bring snacks, etc, maybe fire starter??? marshmallows, matches??? Maybe that'll keep them from whining about the climb :-)
What I disliked: Comments: The ski center (lodge) is small, but has a warm rustic feeling with a wood stove and some benches for sitting. They don't serve food, but it's ok to bring your own and eat it in the lodge.
There's a place in Grafton, just a few minutes away, to buy sandwiches for lunch. Don't remember the name of the place, but it's advertised in the lodge and on the printed trail maps.
They have a hill for sliding (tubing), but you must use their rental tubes - can't use your own. I thought the rental price for the tubes was a bit high, given that there's no tow row to get you back to the top.
They've got an ice skating pond as well, but it was closed the day I visited due to a warm spell followed by a 6 inch snow fall.
Overall, a very nice day. Again, the best feature was very nicely groomed trails.
Submitted by: S.N. from: Date submitted: Feb 23, 2005
16
Name of XC Area:Trapp Family Lodge Area number: VT12 Times that I have skied there: Several times I last skied there in: Feb, 2005 Trails that I skied: Sugar Road, Parizio My favorite trails: Parizio, road back to lodge Trail marking: Very good Trail grooming: Very good Rating: 5 stars What I liked: well laid out well groomed higher altitude, always fabulous snow What I disliked: Comments: Great Place, great nordic center Submitted by: BWG Burlington VT from: Burlington VT Date submitted: Feb 12, 2005
15
Name of XC Area:Viking Nordic Area number: VT31 Times that I have skied there: Once I last skied there in: Feb, 2005 Trails that I skied: beginner trails My favorite trails: Trail marking: Very good Trail grooming: Very good Rating: 4 stars What I liked: Complete beginners! First day on cross country. Had a great lesson; terrific beginner facility. What I disliked: Comments: Not all that easy to find. On the East side of Londonberry. Submitted by: mts from: Connecticut Date submitted: Feb 6, 2005
14
Name of XC Area:Mountain Meadows Area number: VT25 Times that I have skied there: A few times I last skied there in: Jan, 2005 Trails that I skied: All except the Brown trail (it's closed). My favorite trails: Black and Blue trails Trail marking: Very good Trail grooming: Fair Rating: 2.5 stars What I liked: The scenery is nice; the trails are roads that are groomed. What I disliked: There were lots of rocks showing, especially on the purple trail. What was odd is that on Sat. 29 Jan. they didn't have the Black/Blue turnoff roped off and I skied it three times. It had some rocks showing but was in much better shape than the purple trail. On Sunday, 30 Jan., though, they had Black/Blue roped off. Why rope off a trail that was so clearly in better shape than nearby trails? I got the impression that no one from the shop had skied Black/Blue to see what it looked like.
Also, with Black/Blue roped off and Brown closed, the already small amount of trails available got severely decreased. If one were skating and didn't mind going round and round, this area is good. If you want to see varying scenery and not spend your day seeing the same trails over and over, you won't be happy here. Comments: One staff member who was out on the trails a lot was very helpful. Other staffers, especially some in the shop itself, seemed more inclined to keep up personal conversations than to notice a customer standing there who needed help. Submitted by: LS from: New Jersey Date submitted: Jan 31, 2005
13
Name of XC Area:Mountain Top Area number: VT24 Times that I have skied there: A few times I last skied there in: Dec, 2004 Trails that I skied: Sunset, Lake Trail, Eight Ball, Turkey Trot, Nose Dive, Logger Head, Round Robbin My favorite trails: Sunset, Round Robbin Trail marking: Very good Trail grooming: Very good Rating: 5 stars What I liked: Combination of Grooming, Trail Variety, Snow Making and breath taking views What I disliked: Nothing Comments: Complete package with rooms and dining; horse drawn sleigh ride is worth while Submitted by: S. C. from: Chicago Date submitted: Dec 18, 2004
12
Name of XC Area:Smuggler's Notch Ski Area Area number: VT8 Times that I have skied there: Several times I last skied there in: Feb, 2004 Trails that I skied: Most of them My favorite trails: All of them (Don't remember the names) Trail marking: Very good Trail grooming: Very good Rating: 4 stars What I liked: The trails are very scenic and well groomed. Most are for beginner to intermediate so there is something for every family member. What I disliked: They need to develop more trails. Comments: Smuggs has been rated the #1 Family resort in America by Ski Magizine,Ladies Home Journal and other publications and as a time-share owner, I would certainly agree. They have everything anyone could ever want in Snow Country and a fantastic childrens' program as well. Submitted by: Ezra Burgess from: Picture Rocks, Pa. Date submitted: Nov 15, 2004
11
Name of XC Area:Wild Wings Cross Country Area number: VT34 Times that I have skied there: Several times I last skied there in: Mar, 2004 Trails that I skied: chickadee,loon,goshawk.wood cock,snow goose My favorite trails: chickadee, snow goose Trail marking: Very good Trail grooming: Very good Rating: 5 stars What I liked: scenery, layout of trails, elevation makes good snow conditions What I disliked: crossing the road Comments: fair priced, friendly owners Submitted by: Sue L from: Date submitted: April 9, 2004
10
Name of XC Area:Wild Wings Cross Country Area number: VT34 Times that I have skied there: Once I last skied there in: Feb, 2004 Trails that I skied: Grouse, Goshawk, Blue Jay My favorite trails: Blue Jay Trail marking: Very good Trail grooming: Very good Rating: 4 stars What I liked: The trails were very challenging. There were plenty of hills to climb, which I don't mind, and plenty of places were you can coast and enjoy the scenery. The layout of the trails led you to wonder what was around the next curve or over the next hill. The experience was similar to backcountry skiing in the Adirondaks (except that these trails are groomed). What I disliked: Comments: The town of Jamaica is near if you want to take a short trip. There are good places to eat and interesting places to shop. Submitted by: MB Weber from: Aberdeen, NJ Date submitted: March 23, 2004
9
Name of XC Area:Mountain Meadows Area number: VT25 Times that I have skied there: Once I last skied there in: Feb, 2004 Trails that I skied: all My favorite trails: blue Trail marking: Very good Trail grooming: Fair Rating: 4 stars What I liked: mostly in woods, narrow and twisty, good hills What I disliked: too many road crossings Comments: too expensive, but that's Vermont! Also there aren't 58 kilometers of trail here. More like 35 km when you consider all the overlapping trails. Submitted by: mark from: Albany, N.Y. Date submitted: Feb 29, 2004
8
Name of XC Area:Jay Peak Resort Area number: VT1 Times that I have skied there: Once I last skied there in: Feb, 2004 Trails that I skied: All My favorite trails: None Trail marking: Poor Trail grooming: Poor Rating: 0.5 star What I liked: No other xc skiers on the trails. What I disliked: Jay Peak does not set tracks for xc skiing. Jay Peak rents snowmobiles that use the xc trails. Too few trails. Comments: We were advised to go to nearby Hazen's Notch in Montgomery Center where they have excellent trails. Submitted by: LCJV from: Thompson, Conn. Date submitted: Feb 22, 2004
7
Name of XC Area:Sleepy Hollow Inn Area number: VT14A Times that I have skied there: Several times I last skied there in: Jan, 2004 Trails that I skied: My favorite trails: Butternut Cabin Trail marking: Very good Trail grooming: Very good Rating: 4.5 stars What I liked: Excellent grooming. Good variety, mix of woods and views. What I disliked: Comments: Definitely the best Nordic area for families in VT. Enman kids were both College All-American nordic competitors and are excellent coaches for kids. Generally, a very friendly vibe. Submitted by: td from: Burlington Date submitted: Feb 4, 2004
6
Name of area:Morse Farm Area number: VT15A Times that I have skied the trails: Few Date that I last skied the trails: Dec, 2003 Trails that I skied: all Trail marking: Very good Trail maintenance: Very good Rating: na Favourite trails: Harry's Heaven, Maple Loop What I liked: When trails aren't groomed, are even more fun. Great layout, nice variety of woods and field. What I disliked: They're working on some drainage problems crossing trails - but looks like they're making progress Comments: Submitted by: RB from: Date submitted: Dec 29, 2003
5
Name of XC Area:Hildene Ski Touring Area number: VT33 Times that I have skied there: Once I last skied there in: Jan, 2004 Trails that I skied: My favorite trails: Trail marking: Very good Trail grooming: Very good Rating: 3 stars What I liked: Great folks, great warming hut. Really convinient if you are checking out the stores in Manchester What I disliked: Not a whole lot of acreage. I'm not in shape by any means, and I was able to do two of the three big loops in about an hour. It makes a good morning or afternoon, but I don't know if it would hold attention for a whole day. Comments: Lots of shopping up the road in Manchester. Submitted by: Bill from: Mystic, CT Date submitted: Jan 26, 2004
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