Growing up in New York meant that most of my winters were filled with snow and cold temperatures, thus leading to my learning of snowboarding. I started snowboarding with my dad at around the age of eight. Near our house there are two mountains: one is more of a learners mountain (Mt. Peter), while the other has plenty of trail options for different levels of difficulty (Mt. Creek). I remember when I started learning how to snowboard with my dad; all I wanted to do was ski like everyone else I knew but he insisted that snowboarding was going to be the new popular thing, and he was definitely right!
Learning how to snowboard was very difficult. In the beginning, you fall a lot and it gets frustrating because the instructors make it look so easy. But once we both got the hang of it we moved to the larger mountain nearby us and made it our winter home. We together often, even if it was just for a few hours on a weekend. And sometimes if there was fresh snow and school didn’t get canceled, I’d take off and we’d go snowboarding together.
Eventually my brother and mother learned to snowboard as well and it became a family thing we did together. So much so that we started going with our family friends on weekend trips each year together. The first year we went together was to Okemo Mountain, in Vermont.
Okemo Mountain Resort was a great spot for our families to go too. The mountain itself was large enough to offer many trails but not too crazy that it wasn’t kid-friendly. I remember this being so exciting for me, boarding on a new mountain, with new trails, and with more people I knew. The best part about Okemo Mountain was that the green and blue trails were easy enough for all of us kids to do. We were all excited to be on more challenging but safe trails. The house we rented nearby was next to one of the trails and we were able to snowboard down to the lift in the mornings.
Going to a new place we weren’t sure what to expect of the surrounding towns, but the town Ludlow was an adorable winter town we walked around. There is plenty of restaurants to eat dinner at and cute little winter shops for gifts and souvenirs. From the mountain itself the town was only a 10-15 minute drive.
Another benefit of Okemo Mountain was the resort. There are options to ride a mountain roller coaster (which was lots of fun). ice skating, and resort-hosted events each week. There website and app allows you to view the map ahead of time to plan out your day of trails. And you can purchase or schedule lift tickets, lodging, lessons, and rentals before you arrive at the resort. This is smart to do so as to make sure you can accomplish everything you want to while you are visiting Okemo Mountain.
When you visit any new mountain to ride or ski it is important to make sure you are being safe on the new trails and lifts. Some of the trails and lifts might have different rules or operate differently than your usual mountain. Be sure to follow these new rules to keep everyone (including yourself) safe. It is also important to always check weather conditions and temperatures before your day because they will be different than what you are used to at home.
I feel like this was a great family experience we had together and I recommend it highly for any family full of riders or skiers. The variety of things to do besides boarding or skiing ensures no one in the family will get bored and allows for everyone to experience something new along their trip. If you have a family with children who love to be in the snow this is definitely a trip to take this winter!
