Conditions Report
Conditions report from Tuesday, January 13.
Camelback Mountain Resort is located in the Pocono Mountains and is one of the biggest resorts in Pennsylvania. It is a great day trip from NYC, which is approximately 1 1/2 hours away, and also only 2 hours away from Philadelphia. Its proximity to these two major cities makes it a great ski destination as the only ski-in-ski-out mountain in the Poconos.
The weather conditions on the mountain were great in the morning with clear, sunny skies, no wind, and temperatures in the upper 30s. It did rain in the region over the weekend, but there were no signs of the precipitation on Tuesday: there were no bare spots, and the slopes were perfectly groomed. The mountain was in great shape and had a base depth of 16 to 36 inches, with seven lifts running, and all of its 39 trails open.
Camelback’s north-facing slopes make it ideal for not losing a lot of its snowpack due to inclement weather, and the sun didn’t start shining down on the slopes until around 11:00 a.m. This may be great for mitigating snowmelt, but it sometimes does factor in with icy conditions. The resort is located in the mid-Atlantic region, where temperatures go above and below freezing almost daily throughout the winter. This causes the snow on the slopes to melt throughout the day and freeze overnight, which is why the East Coast is infamously known as the “Ice Coast.” However, Mother Nature has been kind to East Coast resorts, with temperatures staying below freezing most of the season.
Snow groomers did an outstanding job keeping the slopes in great shape. The mountain featured that picture-perfect corduroy snow that every carver dreams about hitting. The runs were fast and smooth, and the conditions weren’t choppy or sloppy, which was surprising, due to the temperatures forecasted to reach the low 40s by 1:00 p.m.
Two lifts service the summit at Camelback Mountain: the resort’s premier Black Bear 6 Lift, a high-speed detachable six-person bubble, and the Stevenson Express Lift, which is a high-speed detachable quad. The Black Bear lift is located right in front of the lodge and gives skiers and snowboarders access to the Western side of the mountain and to some of Camelback’s more difficult slopes, like the double black diamond Basilisk. The run drops into the single black diamond Sullivan Trail and is a winding slope that has a steep pitch and is truly a crowd pleaser for anyone who wants to feel like they’re flying down a Wiggle on a double diamond slope. A basilisk is the name of a legendary reptile from European folklore, known as the “King of Serpents.” The expert slopes on this side of the mountain are steep and a little sketchy in the morning for beginners, due to possible icy conditions.
The Stevenson Express Lift is located on the Eastern side of the mountain and feels like it gives access to more terrain than the Black Bear 6. Stevens Express gives access to two expert trails, Cliffhanger and Pharaoh, and also to intermediate and beginner slopes. Anyone who has ever skied at Camelback Mountain knows the trail, Nile Mile. It’s the longest trail at the mountain, 1.1 miles, and an intermediate-rated trail; however, most would agree that it is more of a beginner run than intermediate. It’s wide, not too steep, with some fishhook turns, and it’s a great way to start the day for the first run on the mountain to get the legs warmed up and get a feel for how the snow conditions are. It is perfect for groups or families that are comprised of different skill levels who want to hit the same run together, but still fun enough to keep the more advanced members of the group happy.
Most of the runs off the Stevenson Express Lift lead to the Trails End Pub & Grille at the bottom of the mountain. However, there are some trails that will get skiers and snowboarders back to the main lodge as well. The Trails End Pub is located at the bottom of the Stevenson Express and features an outside patio with firepits and seating to relax. The pub also gives access to Camelback’s hotel, which is great, for guests staying there who want to make their last run of the day off the Stevenson Express. However, walking from the Trails End Pub to the main lobby of the 453-room hotel in ski boots is not recommended. (From personal experience, it is a lot farther than one would think.)
Camelback’s terrain parks, including Sunbowl and Oak Grove, along with Rhododendron Glen, were all open this past weekend. Sunbowl is the mountain’s progression park for beginners, Oak Grove is geared for intermediate skiers and snowboarders, and Rhondodendron Glen boasts the biggest features on the mountain. Some jumps on Rhododendron were approximately 15 feet high, which is not small, and gives avid terrain park addicts something to look forward to.
Camelback Mountain Resort has made some changes to its senior management this offseason, and it seems like it is already paying off. Before the start of the season, the mountain brought in Jason Bays as Vice President and General Manager of Camelback Resort, Olivier Marc Glattfelder as Resort Manager, and Laszlo Otvos as Director of Mountain Operations. The resort has since brought on board Richard Alvez, Cory Rosenberg, and Kavon William Langley to the team at Camelback. Alvez will be the Director of Contact Center, where he will work to continue to improve all of Camelback’s aspects of guest service operations, and Kavon William Langley has been appointed Executive Chef at the Resort. Cory Rosenberg was also added to the team as Camelback’s Executive Director of Sales Strategy.
These senior management changes signify Camelback’s pursuit of being the best and putting the right personnel in place to make that happen. Camelback Resort is a true four-season resort and features a 125,000-square-foot indoor waterpark and an outdoor waterpark, a 453 Room Mountain Hotel, one of the largest snow tubing parks in the U.S., a 1,000 and 4,000-foot zipline, a 4,500-foot-long mountain coaster, plus many other amenities. “We want to be really exceptional in every business that we’re in, across all seasons,” Bays said in an interview with SnowBrains. “I say to our teams, we’re a four-season mountain resort, with emphasis on MOUNTAIN.”
This has been a long time coming for Camelback Mountain, which has gotten the reputation from locals for focusing on everything else happening at the resort, and not the skiing or snowboarding. This emphasis on focusing on making everything at Camelback Mountain Resort the best it can be, including the skiing and snowboarding, is what many people have been waiting to hear for a long time. All of this is a promising evolution for the mountain resort, and its guests, skiers, and snowboarders will likely see the results this ski season, not next year.
Camelback Mountain Resort is listening to skiers and snowboarders and moving towards making it a better mountain for them. The difference can already be seen. The snow conditions were great, the lift lines moved quickly, and the staff was friendly. Look for this Pocono Mountain ski resort to make some waves on the East Coast this season and in the future, and for other resorts to take notice. See you on the slopes.
CONDITIONS
