Newspaper Page Text
Life
Sunday, February 10, 1985
Appalachians
a playground
for winter fun
By Heidy Brosofsky
Th« Sunday N«w«
If Colorado or Switzerland are
out of your reach, yet you
can’t shake the craving for
snow-covered slopes, than ski
South.
Despite a reputation for mild,
pleasant winters, the Southeast
boasts a number of ski areas as near
as 1% hours from Forsyth.
Georgia lays claim to a few snowy
hills, but most of the prime
Southeastern slopes are located about
five to six hours from Atlanta in
northwestern North Carolina.
The Banner Elk/Blowing
Rock/Boone, N.C. area offers about
4,000 accomodations, including 2,000
motel/hotel rooms, and 2,000
individual villas, condominiums and
cabins.
Novices, unfamiliar with ski areas,
may consider joining the Atlanta Ski
Club, which exceeds 5,000 members.
The second largest ski organization
in the country, after Miami, Fla., the
Atlanta Ski Club offers “No Hassle
Ski Vacations” to western resorts as
well as weekend, mid-week and daily
discount trips to Georgia and North
Carolina ski areas.
As many Atlanta Ski Club members
already have discovered, each ski
area has some distiguishing
characteristics, giving skiers options
galore.
SKI VALLEY: Beginners may
want to stay close to home for the
first attempt. Sky Valley, located IVz
to two hours from Forsyth, is one of
Georgia’s few ski areas, featuring a
225-foot-wide beginner’s slope.
A unique characteristic of the 13-
year-old resort in Dillard is that it
also caters to non-skiers offering
riding stables, hiking trails and
nightly entertainment in its slope
side lounge.
A cafeteria is available for those
who don’t want to shed their ski gear.
And a fireside restaurant and formal
dining room (on weekends only), are
open to visitors.
Before heading out to any of four
slopes, beginners might take
advantage of the $6 group lessons,
held hourly from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m.
daily, or private lessons costing sl2
per hour.
More than 500 skis are stocked for
rental at the resort’s pro shop for day
or night skiing (every evening except
Sunday). The resort has one, two
person lift.
SUGAR MOUNTAIN: Skiers who
dislike seeing the same slope all day,
will take pleasure in tackling any of
16 slopes at Sugar Mountain in
Banner Elk, N.C., about 5% hours
from Forsyth.
One of the busiest slopes with more
than 200,000 skiers a year, Sugar
Mountain boasts a 1,200 vertical drop,
which is the largest of all ski areas
south of New York.
Sugar Mountain has seven lifts
(both surface and chairlifts), and
skiers have the option of either two
expert trails or various beginner and
intermediate slopes, with the longest
run measuring Wt miles.
In an effort to increase family
business, the resort has introduced
the Sugar Bear Ski School for
children, from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. daily.
The $35 enrollment fee covers a
lesson, lift ticket, ski rental and two
meals.
Monday through Friday, beginners
can take advantage of a S3O special
which includes ski rental, lessons and
Ski vacation guide to slopes in the south
Ski Areas
Sky Valley
Dillard, Ga
Sugar Mountain
Banner Elk, N.C.
Cataloochee
Maggie Valley, N.C.
Appalachian Ski Mt.
Blowing Rock, N.C.
Ski Scale
Scaly Mt., N.C.
Beech Mountain
Banner Elk, N.C.
Ski Hawksnest
Banner Elk, N.C.
Hound Ears
Blowing Rock, N.C.
lift ticket.
The resort also takes pride in its
lodge which is level to the main
highway. A slope-side hotel, 350-seat
cafeteria and a 200-seat restaurant
are open to visitors.
CATALOOCHEE: The advances
skier should find one of eight slopes at
the Cataloochee Ski Area in Maggie
Valley, N.C. rather challenging.
A drive from Forsyth ,
Cataloochee has the closest,
advanced terrain in the area. The
advanced slope, fittingly called
“Ohmygosh,” is 4,000 feet long with a
vertical drop of 740.
Beginners may take advantage of
daily lessons from one of 30
instructors. Prices are $9 for a 1%-
hour group lesson, S2O for a one-hour
private lesson or $35 for a half-day
private lesson. In addition to two
regular lifts, a special ski school lift
tows students up the slopes.
Maggie Valley considers itself a
family resort, offering a Cattrackers
ski program to children age 4 to 7 for
$lB a half day.
More than 2,000 accomodations are
available in Maggie Valley, so
Cataloochee skiers will likely have no
problem securing a room. The ski
area does feature a cafeteria, open
bar and lounge.
APPALACHIAN SKI MOUNTAIN:
This ski area in Blowing Rock, N.C.,
houses one of the largest ski schools
on the Eastern seaboard, the
French/Swiss Ski College.
The school not only places
emphasis on ski techniques, but also
on personal safety.
Although Appalachian is smaller
than many surrounding resorts, it is
perfectly suited for the intermediate
skier, featuring a vertical terrain
with few curves.
Out of the five slopes, three are
considered intermediate, one
beginner and one advanced with a
vertical slope of 365.
The ski area, which offers seasonal
memberships, has a restaurant and
cafeteria.
SKI SCALY: A good deal attracts
many skiers to Ski Scaly, in Scaly
Mountain, N.C. about two hours from
Forsyth •
The quaint ski resort offers a $lO ski
package which includes lift tickets
and ski rental, every Tuesday and
Thursday.
According to the owner, the pack
age deal and student discounts at
tracts college-goers to the area.
The resort specializes in skiing and
makes no claim to fancy restaurants
and gift shops. More than 400 students
run through the ski area a day, taking
advantage of hourly lessons costing
$7 for a group, and sls for individuals.
Beginners may use the rope tow to
pull them up the novice hill. Other
skiers can enjoy two intermedia
te/advanced trails, one of which is a
2,000-foot slope through the woods
with a vertical drop of 225.
BEECH MOUNTAIN: The largest
ski resort in the Southeast, Beech
Mountain is located in Banner Elk,
N.C.
About a 5%-hour drive, Beech has
an altitude of 5,000 feet above sea
level with the longest run 3,400 feet.
Twelve slopes six beginner,
three intermediate and five advanced
(highest vertical drop is 830) make
Beech Mountain one of the most ver
satile ski area.
The resort also offers three moun-
Adiilt Junior. Adult Junior
No. of Vertical Weekend Weekend & Weekend & Weekend & Phone
slopes drop & Holiday Weekdays Nights Holiday Weekdays Nights Holiday Weekdays Nights Holiday Weekdays Nights Number
4 250 18 13 9 12 10 9 12 9 6 9 6 6 404-746-5301
16 1,200 25 20 14 20 15 12 12 10 8 10 8 6 704-898-4521
8 740 21 13 10 12 10 7 12 10 7 8 8 6 704-926-0285
5 365 18 11 11 13 9 9 9 6 5 7 4 4 704-295-7828
3 225 15 10 7 8 7 5 12 8 7 8 5 5 704-526-3737
12 830 22 18 12 22 18 12 12 10 8 12 10 8 704-387-2011
7 619 20 12 8-6 12 8 8-6 10 8 6 8 6 6 704-963-6561
2 107 F-Ml2 - - F-M 10 - - F-M 12 - - F-M 10 - - 704-963-4321
Forsyth County News
SOUTHERN
4 *...•■ ~ #Vw 4*4l* ..m '
Special photo
CATALOOCHEE: Family resort harbored in Maggie Valley, N.C. caters to advanced as well as novice skiers
tain-side hotels, an outdoor ice-skat
ing rink, village shops,
condominiums and chalets.
Group lessons are $lO for IMt hours,
and private lessons fors2s.
HOUND EARS: Uncrossed and in
expensive characterizes Hound Ears
in blowing rock, N.C.
The small ski area, five hours from
Forsyth, is ideal for inexperienced
skiers who don’t want to fight crowds.
One of the two slopes is an interme
diate 1,200 foot run with a vertical
drop of 107 feet. The other slope is a
short, flat run ideal for the novice.
To attract novice skiers, Hound
Ears offers half price on lift tickets
and equipment rental Monday and
Friday.
The ski area features a dining
room, lounge and lodge.
SKI HAWKSNEST: By next year,
Ski Hawksnest in Banner Elk, N.C.
plans to have the largest beginner
slope in the Southeast, after a new
chairlift is constructed this summer.
The resort has seven slopes, includ
ing two beginners, an advanced/be
ginner, an advanced 1,350-foot run
called “sock-em-dog,” a 2,600-foot
intermediate run named “right stuff”
and an expert slope that is a natural
snow glade run.
To prevent skiers from waiting
more than 15 minutes for a lift, Ski
Hawknest has a limited ticket sales.
Local skiers
take to moun
tains. See photos
on Page 4B of
today’s Forsyth
County News.
1B