Ontario Snowboarding
First Trip to Blue Mountain
Many people have no idea that Ontario is actually home to an Intrawest resort: Blue Mountain. It’s actually Ontario’s largest mountain resort, but I use the term “mountain” lightly.
After visiting Blue Mountain, I’m pleased to say there are plenty of nice things about it:
* It has a nifty little village, very much like Whistler;
* There is a wide selection of runs, many of which are pretty long (by Ontario standards);
* It’s still pretty close to Toronto.
Blue Mountain definitely has the most enjoyable runs I have experienced
in Ontario. Although the conditions were pretty lousy yesterday
(reminiscent of early season conditions), I had a good time just
exploring and enjoying the variety.
There are, however, some annoying issues that will likely limit the number of times I visit.
1. Unlike Moonstone or Horseshoe, which are right off Highway 400, a
good 30-40 minutes of non-highway driving are necessary to reach Blue.
It is a longer trip (granted, not *too* much longer, but I would say at
least 15-20 minutes each way).
2. Blue is more expensive. A day pass is $50 + GST. And believe me, they check the times.
<rant>
3. (And this is the most ridiculous part): If you would like to enter the terrain park, you need to pay another ten dollars and watch a video on park safety.
ARE YOU KIDDING ME. While the $10 fee is good for the entire year, I’m
now paying $60 + GST for one day of riding that includes the park
experience. Hey Intrawest, for
another $13 I could ride for a day in Whistler, an admission fee that
INCLUDES most of your parks and two mountains worth of terrain!
… or I could just stick with Moonstone, which is closer, cheaper and a little more rider-friendly.
That said, Blue is worth a try every now and then.
</rant>
Discussion
5 comments for “First Trip to Blue Mountain”
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If you thought the conditions at Blue were lousy on Sunday, you would not have wanted to be there Saturday night… because in comparison, Sunday’s snow was actually quite decent!
If I can add two more comments in regards to Blue Mtn vs Moonstone:
1. Blue has longer line-ups. Much longer line-ups. Always.
but
2. Mt. St. Louis Moonstone does not offer night skiing. I’m not sure how far of a drive it is for you, but for those of us who have to spend hours in the car getting to and from the hill, MSLM just isn’t always an option.
I guess, in the end, it’s still basically personal preference. Either way, I like riding at both resorts and switching it up between the two is a great idea to keep things interesting.
You have a very good point. Blue has night skiing, and a whole lot of it. I still can’t understand why Moonstone doesn’t invest in that. Serious operational overhead, I guess..
Anyway, the terrain park rule really drove me nuts. And the prices are a bit high. But I can live with the drive, especially for the selection of runs. I’ll be going back again, I’m sure.
Thanks for your comment!
–adam
Ugh; yeah, well that’s the “Zoo at Blue” for ‘ya. I was a snowboarding supervisor at one of adjoining private clubs up in Collingwood when I livd in Ontario.
The one thing that I loved, as a local, was that Park pass though. It meant that Blue Mtn could build the big, “dangerous” jumps & rails that no other resort would put in; and everyone in there knew what they were doing & had at least rudimemtary park etiquette!
But I totally hear you about the cost of it: absolutely exorbitant!
ps – hello! from http://www.snowmellen.net
Hey, thanks for the comments.
I guess it would act as a pretty good filter, eh? One thing I’ve realized after talking this over with a few more people is that places like Moonstone are full of jackasses that love to cut in line; you can be standing on top of the hill, waiting to hit a jump or a rail, and some jerk will just cut along the side and jump ahead in line. Not only is it ignorant.. it’s dangerous.
Also, if you go to Blue, say, two or three times.. the cost is minimal, because from what I understand you only pay the 10 bucks once.
–adam
Exactly Adam!
Everyone has park etiqueete, keeping us all calm & safe!
^_^