The Black Lantern Inn was a familiar place where I ate with my kids, sometimes once a week. My room was well beyond my expectations for a last-minute booking: a king-sized bed, separate living area, jacuzzi bath, and many thoughtful details, including several back issues of Skiing History Magazine to flip through.
The New River Gorge's moist, shaded forests are an ideal habitat for flowers that color the hillsides in April and early May, making it an excellent time to see the gorge in bloom.
"Tucked in south central Wisconsin, just 3.5 hours north of Chicago and 1.5 hours from Milwaukee, Green Lake has earned the nickname of the 'Hamptons of the Midwest.' Families have been summering there since the 1800s, when the shoreline was dotted with a handful of rustic resorts."
Kirkwood has had a pretty solid past few days, seeing 42 inches of snow through the past 7 days, 31 of which fell in the past 48 hours. As of April 13th, Kirkwood has 5 lifts spinning with 45 of 84 trails open to skiers and snowboarders.
The underlying logic is simple: the further away a visitor comes from, the longer they tend to stay - and longer stays mean more money flowing into the local economy through lodging taxes, restaurant bills, and retail spending.
If you could have a trail that went through Warren County and connected with a trail that goes up to Tahawus, then you could connect that to the Albany trail, and you could go all the way from New York City on a multi purpose trail into the heart of the Adirondacks, which would be pretty cool.
Since 2023, Casa Susanna's chef Efren Hernández has been pouring care and craftsmanship into his cooking at Casa Susanna in the hamlet of Leeds, just over two hours north of the city. And during summertime, the menu definitely celebrates the area's peak produce. But it's dishes like brick-red chicken posole, and the hallmark tetela - right now stuffed with mantequilla beans and Alpine cheese and served with salsa morita - that make a case for a winter visit.
Owl's Head has officially joined the Indy Pass, a fantastic news for Townships locals and travelers alike. It remains fiercely independent since Fred Korman opened it in 1965 with just three lifts.
Vermont actually resembles California - not because of its beaches but due to its distinct regions. For example, Burlington correlates to the Bay Area. And in the Northeast Kingdom, where I grew up, we classified everything below White River Junction as 'Southern Vermont.' Down there, half the towns seem to channel Boston or New York City, kind of like Santa Barbara to L.A., which makes the Kingdom something like Humboldt County - rural and spectacular, with a recalcitrant outlaw streak.
Mt. Baker is the PNW's snow vacuum. It's close enough to the Pacific to get storm after storm, and the North Cascades do what they do best: force moist air straight up, wring it out, and bury everything in sight. Maritime storms roll in wet and heavy, then pile up fast when they hit terrain.
Nestled in the Appalachian foothills near Mentone, Cloudmont Ski & Golf Resort is the southernmost ski area in the eastern United States. With a vertical drop of just 150 feet and two rope tows, Cloudmont runs on snowmaking and sheer stubbornness, opening for a few precious weeks or days each winter.
