A Snow Gateaway in NY

February brings the cold weather, rain, wind and snow to New York City. When the weather is cold like these days, it is harder for commuters to reach their offices, to walk on slippery sidewalks and to exercise in Central Park. So why not to take a break and go for skiing in NY? When I made a quick search on the internet last week, I was surprised to found out there are lots of ski areas in NY, just 2 or 3 hours away from Manhattan. Then I called my friends, and packed my backpack for a weekend trip to Catamount. I met with my friends on Saturday morning and hit the road to Catamount. After two and a half hour drive we were there. Catamount has 33 trails and park areas, the trails are uncrowded and the lift lines are short but it is a little bit icy in the afternoon. If you are first timer you can take a group lesson, rent equipment and get your carpet lift ticket just for 75 USD. The only problem in Catamount was the restaurant, foods are expensive, quality is poor, workers are lack of understanding. There were out of bagels at 9 am on Sunday morning.

Swiss Hutte

After all day skiing, we believed that we deserve a good dinner, and we found the Swiss Hutte. I ordered tortellini and schnitzel both of them were excellent. Everything we ate there were delicious, but the desserts were the best. Swiss Hutte has a remarkable location, it is in front of the trails. Because they light up for night skiing, while you are having your meal, you can watch the view.

That night we chose to stay in a motel called Holiday House Motel, even it is one of the cheapest places to stay in that area it is overpriced for a room without wifi and with old furnitures but it is very close to skiing area. So I can say that it is good for one night staying. Overall, Catamount has been an enjoyable experience for me and I will be looking for new skiing areas close to the NYC for upcoming weekends.










New York'ta Kar Kacamagi

Subat'in yagmuru, sogugu, kari, ruzgari New York'a geldi. Havanin soguk oldugu bu gunlerde, sabah erken saatte ise gitmek de, kaygan kaldirimlarda yurumeye calismak da, Central Park'a spor icin gitmek de cok zor. Dolayisiyla bu havada yapilacak en iyi seyin, sehrin icinden kendimizi kurtarip, karli daglara dogru yola koyulmak olacagini dusundum. Internetten yaptigim kisa arastirma sonucunda, Manhattan'a sadece 2 - 3 saat uzaklikta bircok kayak merkezinin oldugunu ogrenince sasirdim. Hemen arkadaslarimi aradim, cantami hazirladim ve haftasonu icin Catamount'a gitmeye karar verdim. Cumartesi sabahi arkadaslarimizla bulustuk ve 2,5 saatlik bir araba yolculugu sonrasinda Catamount'a ulastik. Catamount kayak merkezinde 33 tane pist var, pistler kalabalik degil, teleferiklerde sira yok fakat ogleden sonra pisler biraz buzlaniyor. Ilk defa gelenler icin ise ders, ekipman kiralama ve teleferik icin 75 USD olan paket, uygun fiyatla kayak olanagi sagliyor. Fakat Catamount'daki restoran problemli, calisanlar anlayissiz, yiyecekler kalitesiz ve pahali. Pazar sabahi saat 9'da bagel bitmisti bile.

Swiss Hutte

Cumartesi butun gun kaydiktan sonra kendimizi guzel bir aksam yemegi ile odullendirmek istedik. Daha once reklamini gordugumuz Swiss Hutte isimli mekana gittik. Restoranin mimarisi cok guzel, bir dag evi havasi yaratilmis, yedigimiz tum yemekler ise cok lezzetliydi fakat gecenin kazanani tatlilar oldu. Ayrica mekanin tam olarak kayak merkezinin karsisinda olmasi ve pistlerin gece kayakcilari icin isiklandiriliyor olmasi, yemeginize harika bir manzaranin eslik etmesini sagliyor. Guzel yemek ve arkadaslarla sohbet sonrasi, kalacagimiz motele donduk.

Cumartesi gecesi kalmak icin Holiday House Motel'e rezervasyon yaptirmistik. Wifi olmayan, eski mobilyalar ile dosenmis bir oda icin odedigimiz fiyat fazla olsa da, temiz, guvenli ve kayak merkezine cok yakin olmasi nedeniyle pisman olmadik. Catamount'da gecirilen eglenceli bir haftasonundan sonra Manhattan'a pazar aksami geri donduk, simdi sira onumuzdeki haftasonlari icin yeni kayak merkezleri arastirmakta.