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Old Farm Clearing to Raymond Brook - 12/31

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  • Old Farm Clearing to Raymond Brook - 12/31

    I took advantage of the great snow conditions yesterday (12/31) and skied from Old Farm Clearing to Raymond Brook trailhead on Rte 28. Entire route was well broken out with virtually no blowdown. It is very well marked. Steve Ovitt (retired ranger for this area) and his volunteers have done a tremendous job with this trail system. I purchased one of his maps that has all of the new trails at the outdoor show in Saratoga this fall, but they are probably also available in North Creek.

    We went via the Halfway Brook trail rather than Botheration Pond to keep the mileage down. It ended up being about 8 miles with around 1000 ft climb. Snow conditions were excellent throughout. There was plenty of loose snow on the Raymond Brook trail to easily stay in control. The hardest section was below the Rabbit Pond trail junction where there was more skier traffic and the snow was pretty chopped up and a little bit heavier. Next time I would try spotting a car over at the Ski Bowl. We started around lunch time and never saw a single person on the entire trip.

    I really enjoy the history of this area. Parts of the trail were on the original trail system from the 1930s. You can see a copy of the map on this link. There is an article in the Schenectady Gazette about the skiing at Gore in 1939 “City Skiers to Romp Here on Snow Train Trip”. A few pictures from the trip…..

    Halfway Brook Trail


    Near Barton Mine Road


    Rescue Sled Shed from the 1930s


    Raymond Pond Trail

  • #2
    I'm a day behind you...

    I did the Raymond Brook Ski Trail today, then went over to the Old Farm Road trailhead and skied the Botheration Loop clockwise, doing the Halfway Brook trail to the Botheration Loop trail and back out.
    Offonadventure.com

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    • #3
      There is a new blog report by the Saratoga Skier with additional info on these trails here.

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      • #4
        Thanks for the blog link
        Going to head out shortly, probably just skiing (have hiked it several times) the Botheration loop today but definitely check out the rest of the net work over the next several weeks.

        Does any one have an idea where the new trails mentioned in the blog will be?

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