Alpine ski referral

duluth_bishop Feb 07, 2011 13 Comments

Looking to change up the ski scene a bit and am wondering what’s worth a 6-8 hour drive from Duluth?  Or with that limitation, should one stick with Lutsen or Giant’s Ridge?

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13 Comments

funkenschutz

about 14 years ago 

Two words: Mount Bohemia.  Search previous posts for the thread.  If you are anything above intermediate, you will not be disappointed.

ian

about 14 years ago 

Depends on what you are looking for...

Powder?
Terrain?
Groomers?
Midwest Backcountry?
Good bar with a ski hill?
Cheap tickets?

bertsch

about 14 years ago 

Definitely not ready for backcountry and am very inexperienced in powder.  Mainly just looking for someplace with longer, intermediate to advanced intermediate in mind.  Mount Bohemia would probably be a one way trip for me at this point.

Ruthie

about 14 years ago 

Drive 8 hours more and go to Bridger Bowl in Bozeman MT......I've driven out there many times in one 16 hour drive (Bismarck is half way) and then skied four days and drove back in one day.  Split it up with multiple drivers and it is a piece of cake.  

They are having an awesome snow season....you may never come back!  :-)

Herschel

about 14 years ago 

Double Down on Ruthie, but realistically, local ... say yeah to the Uper Eh!  Whitecap is just over two and half hours.  Southshore Brewery at end of day. Giants Ridge ain't bad, Lutsen is beautiful.  Toss a coin.

samh

about 14 years ago 

Don't come out to Bridger Bowl if you're as you say, "...just looking for someplace with longer, intermediate to advanced intermediate in mind."  We have primarily advanced terrain here in Bozeman.  

You'd be better suited spending your time driving up the Shore to Lutsen or driving East to the U.P.  Michigan has a great offering of long-ish runs that are groomed daily at a level that's perfect for an intermediate skiier. 

If you want to take a real ski trip to Montana you'd probably enjoy The Big Mountain in Whitefish, MT or Moonlight Basin, just south of Bozeman.  These two are definitely more than 8 hours from Duluth but offer true Rocky Mountain skiing.

Ruthie

about 14 years ago 

I hate to disagree with samh but there is plenty of intermediate terrain at Bridger.  Don't go to Schlossmen's and don't hike to he top of the ridge but there is plenty of other terrain to ski at Bridger.  Samh is right on with Moonlight Basin.  Big groomed cruiser runs and nobody there!  Light gets a bit tricky in the afternoon with big shadow areas and then bright light.  If you stay in Bozeman you can find reasonable lodging and you are 50 minutes from Moonlight and 20 minutes from Bridger.  Go west, young person ... go west!

Loki

about 14 years ago 

Just up at Bohemia.  5 hours total drive.  The Keweenaw is a really interesting place.  The skiing is the best in the Midwest for sure, however it is a bit scratchy right now.  Hanging in Houghton and Calumet is well worth the trip however.

Richard

about 14 years ago 

Seconding Bohemia. But if you don't think you are up to the task 'cause off the terrain, then Lutsen is a solid bet. One of my favorite places in the Midwest.

Gary

about 14 years ago 

Duluth should dedicate one snowstorm day a year as Lake Avenue ski day.  Close the street from top to bottom, let the skiers and boarders make runs to the bottom, warm up at Luce and ride a bus back to the top.  That would get us on the map!  Sorry that's a little off-topic Jen.

Resolut

about 14 years ago 

I'm quite excited to go back to Bohemia in a mere three days. (If I can focus and finish my work...)

If you're looking for something new and you don't think you're ready for Mt Bohemia, I'd check out the Porkies in the U.P. 

It's just three hours from Duluth and has a lot of fun groomers and glade runs. If you want to leave behind MN ice and give some powder skiing a try, they have Snow Cat ticket you can get for an extra 20 bucks.  They'll drop you off at the top of a gently sloped, open, powdery forest adjacent to the ski area.

huitz

about 14 years ago 

@Gary, didn't they do that once?  Or maybe it was for sledding, I forget.  But I seem to recall that people said it just wasn't fast enough for some reason.

So, I'm assuming we're all talking about downhill.

Lutsen has nice, long intermediate runs, but they usually have icy snow and sugar (an icee!!) as does Giant's Ridge when it's not complete slush.  Both places do a decent job grooming, which helps.  With fresh snow, both places tend to have it heavy and wet, which is nowhere near as fun as dry powder.

Well, that's where we live :^)  I agree with others that driving west and making a mini-vacation out of it is worth it if you are big into skiing.  But then you have to pay for gas, blah blah...

Paul Lundgren

about 14 years ago 

I'm not necessarily recommending Welch Village Ski and Snowboard Area (one hour southeast of Minneapolis) ... I've never even been there. But I kind of dig this kid's video, which was shot there two days before this thread started.



Nerd note: He's using a GoPro HD Hero 960 camera.

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