New York's Largest Ski Resort Opens Extreme Terrain "The Slides"

The Slides are known for their tough flavor of East Coast skiing. The area isn’t groomed, featuring natural snow and committing descents. At this time, Whiteface Mountain is requiring that everyone who enters the area is equipped with a beacon, shovel, probe, and helmet (depending on the conditions, skiers can also be allowed to enter the area with just a partner and a helmet).

The Slides, which are only opened when ski patrol deems them safe, are accessible by hiking from the top of the Summit Quad. They transport skiers down just below the 4,867-foot peak of Whiteface’s summit.

According to NYSkiBlog, The Slides “may be the most western-like terrain you will find inbounds in an eastern ski area.”

NYSkiBlog noted a key difference between western and eastern steep skiing, though. Tough trails out west tend to see considerable snowfall — The Slides less so. This means that terrain features are less likely to be buried, so those planning to visit The Slides should prepare to make tight, short-radius turns as they navigate around obstacles. Frozen waterfalls pepper The Slides.

“Give The Slides the respect they deserve, and they’ll give you the ride of your life,” reads a blurb on Whiteface Mountain’s website.

Mountain-wide, all of Whiteface Mountain’s lifts are open, with 96% of its terrain accessible for a total of 92 named trails. 139 inches of snow have fallen at the ski resort this winter, roughly 20 inches shy of its ten-year seasonal snowfall average of 181 inches.

As the long President’s Day weekend approaches, skiing in the Northeast is looking prime — keep those powder boards on hand.