# Blue Mountain Vs. Camelback



## deepsouthmafia (Oct 4, 2018)

Which is better?  Is it true that Blue has more of a “locals” vibe?


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## raisingarizona (Oct 4, 2018)

deepsouthmafia said:


> Which is better?  Is it true that Blue has more of a “locals” vibe?



Zoloft vs. Paxil?


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## Not Sure (Oct 4, 2018)

deepsouthmafia said:


> Which is better?  Is it true that Blue has more of a “locals” vibe?



From a weekday skiers point ....I avoid both on weekends as they are zoos . Both have their good and bad points. Blue has better sustained pitch, more vert , more bumps but interconnects set up some dangerous intersections. Camelback has less dangerous intersections but can get boring if it's groomed , lower cleo is a fun low pitch bump run . Unfortunately they groom the bumps out after the weekend and I haven't been able to time the good bump conditions . JMO 

As far as Local vibe ...Blue is closer to Local . Camelback has a nickname "the UN " every language is heard on the slopes which is a challenge for the patrol .


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## tnt1234 (Oct 4, 2018)

I think Blue is a better mountain.  They seed a lot of bumps, so even if it's grossed man made, you have some variety.  The trails are better - the main face has some decent pitches and sustained pitch with less run out.  The double car area has some character trails.

When the kids were little CB was fun because it's a wide mountain and you could kind of work your way back and forth on all the different chair life.  Kind of felt like you could always find a different area.  But the front side trails are really only one pitch, then all run out.  The lower pod - forget teh name of it - skier's right....isn't bad. 

But Blue will give you better skiing, such as it is.

Locals vibe? Yeah, I don't know about that.  On the weekends both are so mobbed by 10am it's kind of hard to say there is any kind of vibe other than 'wait in line for everything' vibe.


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## tnt1234 (Oct 4, 2018)

The bars at the upper lodge at blue are nice.  Just crowded.  Folks do hang and apres in the parking lots....so that's kind of a local vibe I suppose.

CB...I remember a few years ago, skiing there with my daughter.  Buying a waffle for the ride home.  Two guys speaking russian and pulling off whisky flasks were so drunk waiting for their waffles, they literally fell down.  Just flat out fell over.  They might have been locals.  I didn't ask.


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## raisingarizona (Oct 5, 2018)

tnt1234 said:


> CB...I remember a few years ago, skiing there with my daughter.  Buying a waffle for the ride home.  Two guys speaking russian and pulling off whisky flasks were so drunk waiting for their waffles, they literally fell down.  Just flat out fell over.  They might have been locals.  I didn't ask.



Oh man, that sounds like some sweet af #vibes.


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## NYDB (Oct 5, 2018)

Did they finally kick you off TGR?


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## trackbiker (Oct 5, 2018)

Elk is better than both of them and not as crowded on the weekends. (Except the lodge is too small and tends to be crowded)


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## BenedictGomez (Oct 5, 2018)

I rarely ski the Poconos, but I will say Blue Mountain is better than Camelback.


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## Not Sure (Oct 5, 2018)

trackbiker said:


> Elk is better than both of them and not as crowded on the weekends. (Except the lodge is too small and tends to be crowded)



Amen brother! Its 2 hours one way for me vs 1 for Blue or CB. In the last 2 years I’ve driven past CB on the way to Elk and looking at crappy conditions and in freezing rain only to arrive to a powder days . They got 30” of lake effect last December , I’ll ski there on a weekend anytime. 
The “ No woods” policy sucks but take what you get I guess.


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## BenedictGomez (Oct 5, 2018)

trackbiker said:


> Elk is better than both of them and not as crowded on the weekends.



Sure.  But those are WAY farther away then what he's asking about.  

 This is akin to someone asking Gore or Whiteface, and then somebody responds Jay Peak.


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## danimals (Oct 5, 2018)

Blue is way better. And camelback has way worse intersections. I’ve seen camelback close due to it snowing before. I was a pass holder at camelback, and the nail in the coffin was when the closed due to incline to weather (sunny with no wind) despite website saying they were open. 


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## Not Sure (Oct 5, 2018)

danimals said:


> Blue is way better. And camelback has way worse intersections. I’ve seen camelback close due to it snowing before. I was a pass holder at camelback, and the nail in the coffin was when the closed due to incline to weather (sunny with no wind) despite website saying they were open.
> 
> 
> Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk



My biggest Beef with Blue is the lower part of the mountain was added for PR ONLY ! " Biggest vert in Pa. " by what a few feet !#$$%
How stupid is it to dump all the trails into one spot 200yds uphill from the lift? Any weekend look at the web cam and you'll see people barely able to ski next to young kids who could care less at full speed . 

Another really bad area is Lower main St , Sidewinder and  Shuttle intersection . People cut over from lower with lots of speed only to be met by Sidewinder coming right down almost head on . 

Camelback for all it's interconnects do not have the pitch ....speed,collision  potential that blue has . Maybe slow speed collision ? 

Elk has all it's trails empty near the lift with little mingling of abilities . 

Rant over . Maybe there trials could have been laid out better ?

https://www.skibluemt.com/winter-sports/skiing-snowboarding/trail-map/


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## WWF-VT (Oct 6, 2018)

raisingarizona said:


> Zoloft vs. Paxil?



"Tastes Great" vs "Less Filling" ?


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## tnt1234 (Oct 7, 2018)

trackbiker said:


> Elk is better than both of them and not as crowded on the weekends. (Except the lodge is too small and tends to be crowded)



Yeah, but I can get to blue in 1hr 45, CB about the same - maybe 2hr.  Elk is 3.  For that drive I can be to Belleayre or Hunter.

I do like Elk, but the catskills mountains are much better.


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## BenedictGomez (Oct 7, 2018)

tnt1234 said:


> Yeah, but I can get to blue in 1hr 45, CB about the same - maybe 2hr.  Elk is 3.  For that drive I can be to Belleayre or Hunter.
> 
> I do like Elk, but the catskills mountains are much better.



Same.  The trip to Elk for me is about 15 minutes farther than Plattekill, and Plattekill >>> Elk.


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## John9 (Oct 7, 2018)

Camelback is 1 hour away for me, is my weekday go to. On weekdays it's empty.weekends or holiday periods,  mad house.  Many people here like bumps and ungroomed tree skiing, camelback is not that. If you like carving or high speed cruising, you can enjoy CB. I have heard many good things about Blue.Don't think it's a big difference.


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## ss20 (Oct 7, 2018)

Vermont/New Hampshire/Maine ski mountain discussion points- terrain steepness, natural snow amounts, tree skiing, moguls

CT/Mass/Catskills discussion points- snowmaking, terrain variety, daytrip-able-ness

Poconos ski discussions- how likely you are to get hit by someone, whether or not the mountain is open, how many drunks are on the hill


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## IceEidolon (Oct 7, 2018)

Siliconebobsquarepants said:


> How stupid is it to dump all the trails into one spot 200yds uphill from the lift? Any weekend look at the web cam and you'll see people barely able to ski next to young kids who could care less at full speed.


I think it would help a ton if Finish Line/Ski School Carpet Run was open as part of Paradise, not closed off with a giant snow pile at the top. That way people only merge onto lower Razors/Home Stretch from one side and the beginners stay in one stream down to the corral. How often are those top carpets used, anyway?


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## BenedictGomez (Oct 8, 2018)

ss20 said:


> *Poconos ski discussions- how likely you are to get hit by someone, whether or not the mountain is open, how many drunks are on the hill*



The next time someone asks me how come I live 1 hour or less to all the Pocono mountains, yet can go 2 or 3 years in a row without skiing a single day in the Poconos, I'm going to copy/paste the above post.  I'd add,_ "is it currently an ice rink"_, but other than that it's perfect.


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## gorgonzola (Nov 1, 2018)

free gss!


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## raisingarizona (Nov 1, 2018)

BenedictGomez said:


> The next time someone asks me how come I live 1 hour or less to all the Pocono mountains, yet can go 2 or 3 years in a row without skiing a single day in the Poconos, I'm going to copy/paste the above post.  I'd add,_ "is it currently an ice rink"_, but other than that it's perfect.



Exactly. That's why I originally posted....

Zoloft vs. Paxil? 

Because no matter which one you choose it's still depressing.


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## tnt1234 (Nov 1, 2018)

But I still remember a KILLER day at blue about 3 years ago....there was a freakish snow storm that cut across PA and NJ....Catskills got a bit, VT got skunked.

Daughter and I left at 6am, snow had been falling for 8-10 hours.  drive was a solid hour longer than usual.

But Blue had the sense to NOT GROOM about half the mountain!  It was just flat out awesome.  And pretty empty.  Roads were really tough.  Schools were closed, and by the time we left around 3-4, it was filling up for night skiing.  But we had an absolute blast.  I think it was like 10-12" storm, and real light snow.


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## BenedictGomez (Nov 1, 2018)

tnt1234 said:


> But* I still remember a KILLER day at blue about 3 years ago....there was a freakish snow storm that cut across PA and NJ*....Catskills got a bit, VT got skunked.
> 
> Daughter and I left at 6am, snow had been falling for 8-10 hours.  drive was a solid hour longer than usual.
> 
> But *Blue had the sense to NOT GROOM about half the mountain!  It was just flat out awesome.  And pretty empty.  Roads were really tough. * Schools were closed, and by the time we left around 3-4, it was filling up for night skiing.  But *we had an absolute blast.  I think it was like 10-12" storm*, and real light snow.



I was there that day.  We got 36" in my town in Jersey.  

I had the foresight to shovel every 6" or 8" and would periodically lay tracks with the SUV out the driveway so I could get out in the morning.   I was passing "ghost rigs" on the highway, truckers just abandoned their vehicles, which were subsequently plowed in 5' high.

It was way more than 12" at Blue though, closer to 20".  Best Pocono day of my life.


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## IceEidolon (Nov 1, 2018)

If I remember right, Sidewinder had just opened but not as a park - that was a treat. Plus the powder just kept coming down all day long.

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## Not Sure (Nov 1, 2018)

BenedictGomez said:


> I was there that day.  We got 36" in my town in Jersey.
> 
> I had the foresight to shovel every 6" or 8" and would periodically lay tracks with the SUV out the driveway so I could get out in the morning.   I was passing "ghost rigs" on the highway, truckers just abandoned their vehicles, which were subsequently plowed in 5' high.
> 
> It was way more than 12" at Blue though, closer to 20".  Best Pocono day of my life.



Yes I made a mistake that day I traveled to my BC spot near Jim Thorpe expecting 2' . Turns out 5 miles north of the Blue Mountain there was only 12" with no base I hit rocks galore . Should have went to Blue  . I live about 20 miles South of Blue the cutoff was crazy from that storm. I had 3' as well .


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## ss20 (Nov 1, 2018)

BenedictGomez said:


> I was there that day.  We got 36" in my town in Jersey.
> 
> I had the foresight to shovel every 6" or 8" and would periodically lay tracks with the SUV out the driveway so I could get out in the morning.   I was passing "ghost rigs" on the highway, truckers just abandoned their vehicles, which were subsequently plowed in 5' high.
> 
> It was way more than 12" at Blue though, closer to 20".  Best Pocono day of my life.



I vividly remember you tracking that storm and then telling us about your experience.  That was the season we do not speak of and everyone wanted that jackpot of snow. Didn't it go back to being super hot shortly after that storm?


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## tnt1234 (Nov 4, 2018)

BenedictGomez said:


> I was there that day.  We got 36" in my town in Jersey.
> 
> I had the foresight to shovel every 6" or 8" and would periodically lay tracks with the SUV out the driveway so I could get out in the morning.   I was passing "ghost rigs" on the highway, truckers just abandoned their vehicles, which were subsequently plowed in 5' high.
> 
> It was way more than 12" at Blue though, closer to 20".  Best Pocono day of my life.



Yeah, maybe it was that deep.  I remember those rigs on 78 as well.  Creepy.

It was so deep, we were behind a plow on 287 trying to cut out the first exit for 78 - part of the highway where 287 is two separate 3 lane highways just north of the somerville circle and you have to exit left into the western lanes to get to the 78 exit....

Plow got stuck!

He waved us off and we had to go up past 78 and turn around.

So worth it....

Switchback - I think that is the trail name - and Nightmare> Dream Weaver were ungroomed bliss.  And the groomed trails were just incredibly soft.  Only thing that was kind of surprisingly blah was Challenge.  Guess it was just o windy during the storm for the snow to collect on the icy head wall!

Fun times.


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## JoeB-Z (Nov 5, 2018)

At Blue you get hit by faster crappy skiers than at Camelback due to at least some pitch! The one time I went it was a weekday. Very scary, just so different from my VT mountain. So many really bad skiers. Even the equipment was awful.


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## Not Sure (Nov 5, 2018)

JoeB-Z said:


> At Blue you get hit by faster crappy skiers than at Camelback due to at least some pitch! The one time I went it was a weekday. Very scary, just so different from my VT mountain. So many really bad skiers. Even the equipment was awful.



That had to be a night skiing ? Week days/weekends  are a Jekyll and Hyde comparison.


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## mbedle (Nov 5, 2018)

Siliconebobsquarepants said:


> That had to be a night skiing ? Week days/weekends  are a Jekyll and Hyde comparison.



Agreed, weekday skiing at Blue is like having the place to yourself.


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