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By Peter Minde
LAKE PLACID — On 19 March, the World Cup circus convenes at Mount van Hoevenberg in Lake Placid, New York, for the final stop of the season. If you’re coming from out of town, Nordic Insights has the lowdown on how to watch the races. Read on! (If you’ll be watching on TV, we’ll have our customary viewing guide up later in the week.)
Getting to the races
The Cliffs Notes version of ticket options goes like this: One can purchase one-day or full event general admission tickets. The next level up is one-day or full event grandstand tickets. The super duper Legends and Crystal Globe Club passes, at $550.00 and $750.00 respectively, afford grandstand seating, parking at the venue, and “exclusive viewing areas,” among other perks. This URL explains the various admission options.
A writer was astonished to learn that the Olympic Regional Development Authority, ORDA, will be installing grandstand seating in the start-finish area. However, Rebecca Dayton, ORDA’s Vice President of Sport and Events, explained, “[Biathlon events] need a huge amount of space. The cross-country footprint is significantly smaller. We have room for four grandstands, about 1600 seats.”
For those who want to roam the course, there will be plenty of netting and V-boards to guide you around. According to Dayton, spectators will be able to go out to the furthest reaches of the full five-kilometer loop, should they choose; you can see the spectator path shown on the map below. There will be online and physical guides to help you navigate.
Most people will take a shuttle bus from the Lake Placid Horse Show grounds to Mount van Hoevenberg. Located at the intersection of Route 73 and Old Military Road, it’ll be well marked. The shuttle will drop you off in the 1980 biathlon stadium. From there, it’s a half mile or so walk to the 1980 cross-country stadium for admissions.
Built in simpler times, the modest 1980 cross-country lodge wasn’t intended to be a permanent structure. The first time I went into one of the wax rooms there, in 1982, some Scandinavian wag had left a graffito on the drywall: “rød, blå, grønn,” in appropriate colors. The contrast between the old lodge and the new one will be jarring.
You can bring your skis on the shuttle. If you’re planning to spectate and then ski when the races are finished, van Ho will have a ski check set up. No need to schlep your boards everywhere.
Mount van Ho’s 1980 trails are closed because of the recent thaw. However, there’ll be opportunities for young skiers to get on snow. On Saturday, 21 March, 5th through 8th grade skiers can try their hand on the Ho’s 1500-meter sprint loop in the Future Stars sprint. On Sunday, skiers from 1st grade through U18 can ski One Last Lap, honoring skiers retiring from the World Cup. This URL takes you to registration for both events. I don’t know why I’m crying while writing about One Last Lap.
This winter, Mount van Hoevenberg has been as crazy as the New Jersey shore during summer: junior biathlon championships; national xc championships; the Lake Placid Loppet citizens’ race; two weekends of IBU Cup racing; USCSA championships; and, finally, World Cup Finals. Plus the sliding competitions. Why has this winter been so busy?
“Every Olympic year is always your busiest year,” Dayton said. “You try and schedule the most events, because you get the most coverage, you get the most enthusiasm from fans and spectators, because of the lead-up to the Olympics or the post Olympics.”
The new World Cup trails, snowmaking system, and lodge were built starting in 2019 when Lake Placid committed to hosting the 2023 World University Games.
While van Ho has regularly hosted elite sliding events since the 1980 Winter Olympics, the World University Games in 2023 were the first big ski tournament held here in some years. With the new trail system and lodge, van Ho has gradually attracted more and more big ski races ever since. Within just the last three seasons, the venue has seen SuperTour racing, Junior Nationals, U.S. Nationals, and now the third American World Cup stop this century (following Soldier Hollow in January 2001 and Minneapolis in February 2024).
“This was the year [for U.S. Nationals] to be in the East” on the multi-year hosting rotation, Dayton said. “We were excited to be back on the calendar. Then the opportunity for the World Cup Finals came, and this was the year they’re willing to come to North America.”
What about skiing?
The weather is the gorilla in the room. This has been the best winter in the last 10 years. Since the thaw at the end of national championships, Lake Placid enjoyed seven weeks of frigid temperatures, with abundant snowfall. However, we’ve entered the dreaded spring thaw.
Today, Monday, March 16, the forecast calls for a high temperature of 59 degrees (15 Celsius). [Editor: While I deeply respect that Peter knows as much about Lake Placid skiing as I do about Alaska skiing, I still thought that this was, somehow, a typo, given that it is, you know, mid-March. It is not: It is currently 60° F at the venue, with south winds of 22mph, gusting to 35mph. Something something or as they call this in the Adirondacks, Monday, apparently.]
After that, it’ll cool off. If skiing is available, expect dirty and wet snow, frozen granular, bare spots, and mashed potatoes. Don’t expect anyplace to be 100 percent open. Check each ski center’s URL below for conditions.
Here are your point forecasts for the venue through NWS and yr.no, btw. Also, Gus Schumacher has been doing yeoman’s work in sharing current conditions photos to his Strava. The content is legit appreciated, even by readers not named Eli.
But where should you ski? Your best bets are Paul Smiths VIC, and the Frenette municipal trails in Tupper Lake. These two places usually receive a little more snow and hold it longer than Lake Placid. I’ve taken the liberty of listing all the local options below. Please check conditions before you go.
Mount van Hoevenberg, of course. During race weekend, the World Cup trails will be closed to civilians. As noted above, the 1980 trails are closed. If they reopen, one can choose the south side: East Mountain, Porter Mountain, and Innerloopen, formerly known as the lower section of the Ladies’ 5km (gentle reader, I’ll spare you my revisionist history rant).
On the other side of the access road are the trails used in the 1980 biathlon events. They can be accessed by a bridge over the road, or tubes beneath it. The Ho’s trail map is detailed and good. Please follow directional arrows and keep it one way. I’ve skied here over 40 years, and it still doesn’t get old.
Between machine-made snow and the real stuff, the competition trails will have good snow depth. Depending on the weather, they may open to the public following the races. Former manager Kris Cheney-Seymour recounted a presentation on the new facilities to the Saint Lawrence University ski team. One of the kids asked, “You mean we won’t have to ski Ladies’ 5 km any more?” Seymour replied, “When you see the new trails, you might wish you could still race on Ladies’ 5.”
Portions of the Ladies’ 5 km loop are incorporated into the World Cup trail system.
Scott’s Cobble, Lake Placid. Closed as of 12 March. This is in no way meant to be derisive: a golf course in summer; it converts to skiing in the winter. Fifteen kilometers of skiing over rolling terrain in winter. Fabulous views.
Dewey Mountain is a municipally owned ski center in Saranac Lake. As of 15 March, the lower trails are open with powder over an icy base. Small compared to van Ho’s approximately 50 km of trails, Dewey has a lot to offer. Bill Demong, Tim Burke, Lowell Bailey, and Annelies Cook all cut their teeth here as youngsters. Night skiing available.
Paul Smiths VIC, Paul Smiths. As of 14 March, everything was open; grooming is paused today due to weather, but should resume tonight or Tuesday.
The Visitor Interpretive Center, or VIC, was originally opened by the Adirondack Park Agency, APA, to educate visitors about Adirondack ecosystems. In 2011, the APA turned management of the VIC over to Paul Smiths College. It was a natural fit because one of the college’s main draws is its forestry program. About 50 km of trails, including singletrack. The VIC features five km of FIS-homologated trails that mere mortals can actually ski. Check out the Draper Lussi and Kingsley-Smith trails. On a clear day, you can see Whiteface, some 16 miles away. No food service; you may want to brown-bag lunch.
James C. Frenette Recreational Trails, Tupper Lake. Good conditions as of 13 March. Down home municipal ski center. For those older than dirt of a certain age: when you were a kid, did your parents buy you ice cream from the Good Humor truck? Did you eat that ice cream with a flat wooden spoon? The wood for that spoon was logged on this land by the Oval Wood Dish Company. Great views of the defunct Big Tupper alpine center. Views of the defunct Oval Wood Dish factory in the village. Condition reports on their Facebook page. Food options in the village.
(Cascade Ski Center, in Lake Placid, unfortunately closed in September. But if you’ve got two million dollars burning a hole in your pocket, here’s the listing.)
If you’re interested in hiking, bring snowshoes and microspikes or crampons. The state Department of Environmental Conservation requires snowshoes when there’s more than eight inches of snow in the woods. With the warm temperatures, there’s a lot of rotten snow and high water at stream crossings. At least one bridge, on the Calamity Brook trail, is washed out.
Things to do if the weather goes totally south:
John Brown’s Farm, Lake Placid. The home and burial site of the famous abolitionist who led the Harper’s Ferry uprising.
The Saranac Laboratory Museum, Saranac Lake. Built in 1894, this was the first lab dedicated to tuberculosis research. Founder Dr. Edward L. Trudeau’s research was the driving force that turned Saranac Lake into a cure destination. The Doonesbury cartoonist Gary Trudeau is his great-grandson.
The Wild Center, Tupper Lake. A unique natural history museum. Worth the drive.
Coffee, restaurants, and watering holes
Below are coffee, restaurant, and, uh, adult beverage recommendations. These are not exhaustive listings. Some are fancy; some are down-home. If you prefer the chain coffee shop named after a Herman Melville character, sorry: the nearest one is in Plattsburgh, 52 miles away.
Lake Placid coffee:
- Origin
- Capisce
Saranac Lake coffee:
- Origin (your correspondent’s local)
- Nori’s. Health food store with an attached café. They know how to pull a great espresso.
Lake Placid restaurants:
- Lisa G’s
- The Greeks ADK (rave reviews from athlete parents at nationals)
- White Bear
- Caffe Rustica — Italian
- Burgers and Pies
- Cascade Inn
- Heritage Indian Grill
- Big Mountain Deli
- Players
- Papo’s Tacos — inside the Green Goddess. Opens at 4:30 p.m.
Saranac Lake restaurants:
- Blue Moon Café — open until 2 p.m.
- Lakeside Drift
- Our Plates — Dominican cuisine. The real deal.
- Hotel Saranac
- Left Bank Cafe
- Grizle T’s / The Scullery (old school north country bar; your correspondent’s favorite haunt)
- Bitters ’n’ Bones
- Belvedere — Italian
Keene / Keene Valley restaurants:
- Noonmark Diner
- Restaurant 46
- Ice Jam Inn
Notable local breweries. Except for Prison City, these all have food:
- Lake Placid Pub and Brewery; Big Slide; RiverTrail Beerworks. The first two are in Lake Placid; RiverTrail is in Saranac Lake. They all have the same ownership. Differing beer offerings and menus. It’s probably easiest to get seated at RiverTrail.
- Ray Brook Brewhouse, Ray Brook (between Saranac Lake and Lake Placid)
- Prison City Brewing, Lake Placid
- Blue Line Brewery, Saranac Lake
- Racquette River Brewing, Tupper Lake. They have food trucks, not a kitchen. One or more food trucks open daily. Winter may affect this.
Are you going to be in a short-term rental or a suite with a kitchen? Green Goddess in Lake Placid and Nori’s in Saranac Lake are both excellent health food stores. Both Lake Placid and Saranac Lake also have mainstream grocery stores.
Welcome to my little corner of the world. I hope you have fun!
From Peter’s bio on the NI staff page: “Peter is a mostly retired wine-business lifer. If he isn’t exploring outdoors, he’s playing and writing music. He lives in a cure cottage in Saranac Lake with a cat named Ziggy. When Ziggy is caught up on his sleep, he will judge you.”
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