A
Anonymous
Guest
It was a day for face shots, face plants, and as much fresh, untracked as you could ski. <BR> <BR>I took a day off to ski the pow at Berkshire East -- a moderately priced, fairly steep, family-owned resort -- located in Charlemont Ma. The picnic tables at the bottom of the hill foretold the story, no less than 2 feet of fresh, unsullied white. At 9:00 a.m., about 25 hardy souls were queued in the lift line awaiting first tracks. My buddy Sven couldn't get out of his driveway in the a.m. so it was solo for me until about 10 when he showed. <BR> <BR>The drifts at the top of the hill were remarkable, easily on the order of 4 to 5 feet. My first run was down the race course. It alternated between huge billowing face shots and stopping dead when the hill eased up a bit. The snow was windblown and heavy. Every other run in the morning was a repeat of this experience. <BR> <BR>Sven appeared around 11 and we immediately skied a tree run that was as good as it gets in Mass. Steep, deep, and through the open pines. Truly magnificent. The crowd continued to build and the lines got maybe 10 minutes long. By 11 or so, much of the hill had been cut up, but PLENTY of fresh lines remained in the woods and on the sides of trails. I switched to tele in the p.m. and had a real blast skiing the chowder at semi-warp speed. <BR> <BR> <BR>B.E. is really a great place and I encourage all who are relegated to the flatlands of Mass to take advantage of this gem in the Berkshires. When there is natural snow, it is the best area in Mass IMHO. Not real big, or *real* steep, but it is real close. As has been said many times in the last few days, these are truly the best of times.