Head west to the bountiful Berkshires

Jiminy Peak has the highest summit of a ski area in Massachusetts. (Jiminy Peak Resort)

The pace of the ski areas in the Berkshires is similar to their peaks — broad and rolling. The ski areas that dot these small mountains do a reasonably good job of separating New England from New York — we see you straddling the line, Catamount.

They might not offer the most vertical drop, the fastest lifts, the most natural snowfall or same volume of manmade snow as the biggest resorts of northern New England, the ones that people from Greater Boston flock to seemingly every weekend.

What they have each done, successfully, is carve out a niche for themselves in their corner of the world, even if it doesn’t revolve around the Hub of the Universe. Each area is able to take advantage of a steep pitch on the upper third of the mountain that is just long enough to keep people dialed in.

Route 7 is the main north-south road through the area, and like the Berkshires, its 54 miles in Massachusetts is at a pace much slower than I-91 off to the east, which whisks the New Haven, Hartford and Connecticut River Valley crowd north.

While they might not cater to the Boston crowd, heading west as opposed to north is well worth the drive off the beaten path for a weekend or in the middle of the week.

Jiminy Peak

Rising to a 2,350-foot summit, Jiminy Peak in Hancock is the tallest lift-service resort in the Bay State and arguably the most polished. It also has the state’s first six-pack, the Berkshire Express, which was installed for the 2000-01 season.

Unfortunately, on a recent day I was able to check it out, icing on the lines resulted in the Express being on hold and eventually closed, leaving the Whitetail Quad as the primary way to the top.

Jiminy has 45 trails with a good mix for all abilities. For the expert, there are plenty of options, with the first 600 or so vertical feet being steeper than what one might expect from a mid-sized resort. The trail layout for the expert runs is pretty straightforward, running straight down the fall line.

Upper Lift Line, which follows the Summit Triple line, Upper Exhibition underneath the Berkshire Express and Jericho are posted as double black. Jericho is the type of trail to get first thing in the morning and rip into the corduroy. Upper Whirlaway starts as a diamond and leads to Exhibition East but was being used for racing on my visit. Whitetail is a straight shot with the lift on the skier’s left.

A little farther away from the cluster of summit lifts, Wild Turkey and Cutter are solid choices, especially in firm conditions.

The intermediate terrain is found just below the steepest section or on the shoulders. Going right off the Express at the summit on West Way leads to a few good ones like North Glade (not tree skiing), Riptide, Upper Fox and Grand Slam/Race Arena. The other pod of squares is off the Widow’s Quad at the top left side of the mountain when looking up from the base.

Left Bank is an easy beginner that works the left shoulder of the mountain. The all-natural Round-A-Bout, just behind it, is a good alternative as it is less used than Left Bank. Going right off the Express, following West Way (a circle/square) can be followed along the ridge, past the wind turbine and down to the bottom, or take Lower Glade (again, not tree skiing).

The beginner area is to the left of the base lodges and includes a carpet and a triple chair.

There are three terrain parks, with Alex’s Park being the best of the bunch. It is located near the base between the Summit Triple and Grand Slam Double terminals. It also has a carpet of its own for those wanting to strictly lap the park.

Want to dabble with some easy park features? Hit up Grommetville under the Novice Chair near the main base lodges and the more advanced Coyote Ridge at the top of the Ace of Spades trail off the Grand Slam Double.

The base area has two buildings next to each other for booting up or grabbing a bite to eat — J.J.’s Lodge and Crane Lodge (the building with the ticket windows) — both near the Express. It should be noted that bags are not allowed to be left in the main areas. There was a small building outside of the Crane Lodge that sufficiently kept a boot bag out of the elements.

The parking lot on a Thursday had more New York plates than Massachusetts, and the area boarding schools had their vans lined up for the races. The thing that caught me by surprise was the number of cars from Pennsylvania. Jiminy Peak is about three hours from Scranton, putting it just on the edge of a place for a day trip, and more likely an overnight spot.

Of the state-high 45 trails at Jiminy Peak, 25 are lit up for night skiing, including Whitetail and all three terrain parks.

The shops in the base village included a ski shop, candy store and coffee shop.

Ski-in/ski-out accommodation is possible at the Country Inn, which offers suites with kitchenettes. It also is the site of the John Harvard Restaurant & Brewery, with Christiansen’s Tavern nearby.

Jiminy Peak is owned by the Fairbank Group, which also owns Bromley and Cranmore. There is a large summer operation with the Mountain Adventure Park, which includes a mountain coaster, alpine super slide, rock climbing wall and a massive trampoline, and the Aerial Adventure Course, which has six different ropes courses and a zipline.

Mountain biking also is popular, with the Grand Slam lift running whenever the Mountain Adventure Park is open. The Berkshire Express operates on weekends and holidays.

Jiminy is not on any mega pass, making it a good choice for someone who isn’t tied into a certain pass.

Catamount

Both Massachusetts and New York get to claim the resort with 1,000 vertical feet as their own, as it straddles the border.

The trails off the Ridge Quad ski a lot bigger than you would think when looking at the trail map. Nearly one-quarter of the trails are diamonds, and Catapult is the steepest trail in the Berkshires, the resort touts.

Ripper and Christopher’s Leap are recent additions to the trail map and both start with a steep pitch and are perfect for making some GS turns when space allows.

The intermediate terrain on the looker’s right side (New York) of the mountain has plenty of fun cruising trails, such as Sidewinder, Shawenon and Alley Cat, which doubles as the race trail.

On the Massachusetts side, the Meadows Triple and Promenade Triple give access to beginner and some good easy intermediate terrain, with trails including Walter’s Way, Mountain View, Echo’s Run and Promenade.

From the top of the Ridge Quad, the beginner Ridge Run connects to Upper Promenade and produces a run of 1.75 miles of top-to-bottom skiing.

Of the 43 trails, 39 have snowmaking. Most of the trails off the Meadows chair have night skiing as well as some options off the Ridge Quad and the recently installed Catamount Quad, which handles the short intermediate trails in front of the base lodges.

The Schaefer family, which has owned Berkshire East for more than 50 years, purchased Catamount in 2018 and has invested more than $20 million into the resort, including the Catamount Lodge that has a two-way fireplace and great deck. The owners also significantly upgraded the snowmaking system.

There are five lifts and three carpets. Of the five lifts, three have been replaced since the ownership change. Those changes have been a patchwork of chairs purchased from other resorts. The lack of a high-speed lift works to help preserve snow on the steeper upper half of the mountain for a longer period of time but can be a sore spot for those who are used to the latest in lift technology.

Even the Ridge Quad, which has been on site for nearly 20 years, had a previous life at Belleayre in New York.

The Glades Triple, which services about the top 80 percent of the mountain, is down for the rest of the season because of a maintenance issue. The mountain posted an update in mid-February about needing to get a crane to the top terminal, something that can’t really be done until after the season.

Catamount is on Indy Pass, and its Summit Pass also provides access to Berkshire East and nearby Bousquet.

The CataMonster looms overhead waiting for the summer. It is North America’s longest zipline, checking in at just over a mile long, and can be about 250 feet above the trails. For those who enjoy playing in the trees but not quite soaring that far above them, the Aerial Adventure Park is more likely to suit their needs.

Ski Butternut

You might remember it as Butternut Basin, but it is still in Great Barrington and still operated by the Murdock family.

The resort will be adding a new Jane’s Quad during the summer and it is expected to be ready for next ski season. The line already has been cut and it will go just a bit higher than the current Overlook Triple, meaning those wanting to take the beginner trail Uptown will no longer need to hike up before heading down.

Lift tickets Monday-Thursday are $40, and for the second straight season L.L. Bean has sponsored $25 tickets on non-holiday Fridays. The public certainly has taken notice, as the parking lot was nearly full on the Friday of Presidents Day weekend. There were many more New York and Connecticut plates in the lot than Massachusetts, with some coming from New Haven, almost two hours away.

While it left the Lower Lodge, the one closest to the parking lots, slammed, the singles line topped out around 5-10 minutes for the Top Flight Quad and little line to speak of — group or singles — at the other lifts.

Ski Butternut’s marketing director Dillon Mahon suggested using the Upper Lodge for a much better experience booting up. That will be even more important in the future, as the Upper Lodge is the one closest to the new quad.

It is very much a family mountain, and all of its 22 trails have snowmaking. What it has going for it is that it mixes wide trails with some that are narrower than normal and give a sense of being among the trees.

It has 1,000 vertical feet with the summit topping out around 1,800 feet at the top of Top Flight.

The diamond Lucifer’s Leap and square Applejack are both solid trails.

Downspout and Freewheeler, trails that will be serviced by the new quad next year, are on the wider side, but both have good pitch.

For beginners, there is a quad and four carpets in the learners area between the two lodges to get your feet wet before heading to the Cruiser Quad or taking Pied Piper trail down from the summit.

Twist and West Way is where the terrain park is set up, and there is a progression park off of Cruiser.

There also is a carpet-serviced tubing area at the end of the parking lot.

Ski Butternut is part of the Freedom Pass, which has ski areas across the country but in New England also includes Lost Valley in Maine, McIntyre in New Hampshire, Mount Southington in Connecticut and Yawgoo Valley in Rhode Island. It is an add-on to an unlimited season pass that gives three days at the other areas.

Bousquet

Pittsfield is the biggest city in the Berkshires, and on the south end of the city is the oldest ski area in the Berkshires, first welcoming skiers in 1932 on the farm of Clare Bousquet. It was the first American ski area to offer night skiing in 1936.

Among those to have skied there are Presidents Kennedy and Ford, and it served as the starting point for Olympians including hometown girls Heidi Voelker and Krista Schmidinger.

With 750 vertical feet, Bousquet has 22 trails with two chairlifts and two carpets. There is 90 percent snowmaking and the lights shine bright on the vast majority of the hill.

The top third of the hill, a mix of tree-lined and open slope, is steeper than one would think when looking at the mountain stats and seeing “1,818-foot summit.”

Easy Rider off the top to Grand Slalom is a popular choice. The latter is a wide diamond-rated cruiser. Main Street also is a wide intermediate trail that naturally collects people. Jewett and the shorter and steeper Roberto’s Chute are quick blasts that will keep you engaged. Louise’s Folly is a double black that goes off the back side but is one of the few trails without snowmaking and was roped off just before Presidents Day weekend.

The Summit Triple was installed late in the 2020-21 season after spending about 35 years at Haystack/Hermitage Club in Vermont. The Blue Chair is a double with a center pole that the New England Ski Lift database said was installed for 1980-81 season.

There is no beginner terrain off the top, with the best option being Drifter, which swings around the side of the hill.

Bousquet is on Indy Pass and the Summit Pass. For next season, owner Mill Town Capital is offering a $229 season pass for young adults (ages 18-29) for the first time. The mountain explained in a blog post that it is an attempt to keep people engaged in the sport while starting off in the world.