Katie and I ventured to the Camelback Resort! She has been here before, but this was my first time on this mountain. I just bought my new skis and boots last week, and I was eager to get on the mountain and try them out!
I was very pleased with my purchase! Having new skis that were waxed and sharpened made a huge difference making turns and controlling my descent down the mountain! The skis I rented at Elk were shorter (130cm verses 148cm,) but were difficult to control on the turns and trying to plow. Perhaps a combination of this being my second time and having new equipment was at play, but I felt I was much more successful! I still fell a few times (I’ve become very good at sitting down when I feel I’m out of control and can’t stop or get my feet into the plow,) but I spent much more time traversing the mountain instead of falling all over it.
This was a VERY warm day for February, with temps in the high 50s! When we got on the mountain, the tamps were still registering high 40s/low 50s. When we finished for the night, around 9:00, it was still in the mid 40s, so it was very comfortable, with no breeze.
Also, because I found it difficult for Katie and I to communicate at Elk, I purchased a bluetooth helmet headset for us to use. The headset part fit inside the earflaps on the helmet, and the bluetooth communicator clipped to the outside flap. It’s designed more for a motorcycle helmet, but we were able to make it work with out ski helmets. It has about a mile range (I was able to stay in communication with Katie when I was on the bottom of the mountain and she was on the top, however, we did lose each other when we were coming down separate trails. I assume this is because when she was at the top and I was at the bottom, we had a clearer line of sight. When we were on the trails, the trees and mountains were blocking the signal. However, I was very happy with the performance of the headsets. If you’re going on a solo trip, you can also pair the headset with you phone, so you can take phone calls and play music without having to stick an ear bud in your ear.
Some compare/contrast:
Elk Mountain: Smaller mountain. More intimate feeling. Easy to walk out of the lodge and onto the mountain. Fewer trails. Not all trails are illuminated for night skiing.
Camelback: Much larger mountain. Much more dwarfing feeling. A little bit of a hike out to get out of the lodge and onto the mountain (the ski racks were kept on the slope, not near the lodge, so I would recommend getting some ski locks for the racks, to keep your gear locked down when you can’t see it.) All the trails are illuminated for night skiing, so you have many trail choices no matter what time you’re on the slopes.
** So, I can’t say that one mountain is better than the other, as I don’t have much experience yet, but I would recommend either mountain, based on the type of experience you’re looking for, if you’d rather a more hometown feel, or a more commercial skiing environment.
