Thank you!
Your support is sustaining the future of local news in our communities.

Winter sports await

Winter sports await

Tubing at Butternut.

Courtesy skibutternut.com

The flakes have started flying, and the forecast shows nothing but cold for the foreseeable future. After an unusually warm fall, the transition may feel abrupt, but let the frosty temps remind us that it is now December and snow-sliding season is nigh upon us. So unpack your parkas, wax your skis, and don’t forget to pick up any last minute gear.

Listed below are our region’s best offerings for gravity-powered, high-speed, non-motorized winter recreation. Please be aware that projected opening dates are weather dependent, and subject to change.

Downhill Skiing

Mohawk Mountain

The Northwest Corner’s own Mohawk Mountain has taken advantage of the recent chill by firing up its state of the art snowmaking equipment. The resort announced an opening date of Dec. 6, and if the weather stays cold and snowy then the slopes should be ready for your freshly-tuned edges. Season passes and seasonal rentals are available now; information on options and pricing is available at www.mohawkmtn.com. The mountain will be open for night skiing every day except Sunday this season, with the lifts spinning until 8:00 p.m. Monday through Friday, and until 9:30 p.m. on Friday and Saturday nights. Updates on resort operations can be found on its Instagram @mohawkmtn.

Ski Sundown

The classic New Hartford resort also hasn’t formalized an opening date, but when it does, it will be spinning its lifts long into the night with its characteristic long hours. The resort is scheduled to be open until 10:00 pm every day except Christmas Eve, when it will shut down operations at 4 o’clock so employees can enjoy the holiday with their families. The resort will open back up for an evening session from 6:00 p.m. – 10:00 p.m. on Christmas Day. Season passes are still available at the resort’s website at skisundown.com, as well as additional information about events, rentals, and facilities at the mountain. Ski Sundown has also gotten its snowmaking program rolling, as can be seen on their Instagram @skisundown.

Butternut

Butternut has thankfully emerged undamaged and unthreatened from the recent wildfire on East Mountain, and is eager to assure skiers and riders that everything is on track for a great season at the mountain. The retail shop has reopened for weekends after wildfire-induced closures, so be sure to stop by to stock up on winter essentials. Stay updated on shop opening hours at skibutternut.com or on their Instagram @skibutternut. The resort has also extended its $50 discount on both its unlimited and midweek season passes until Dec. 8.

Butternut’s flight chair on a snowy day.Courtesy skibutternut.com


Catamount

The dual-state staple is also advertising short-term reduced prices, offering a slew of Black Friday deals on its website, catamountski.com/. The mountain is slated to open on Dec. 7, and encourages riders to buy their season passes before the first skiers carve their way down the mountain’s 1000 feet of vertical drop. The resort offers a range of pass options, including their Night Summit Pass which allows access from 3:00 p.m. until the lifts stop for just $199. Recent posts on their Instagram, @catamountmtnresort, depict a pleasantly wintry scene on the hill with snow guns blazing.

Bosquet Mountain

Bosquet’s Instagram, @bosquet.mountain, also shows robust snowmaking operations in progress. Information on season passes, rentals, instruction, and package deals are available at the resort’s website, bousquetmountain.com. For the terrain park-inclined, the mountain has announced it will be hosting a rail jam from 4:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m. on Dec. 13, its opening day. More details on the event will be announced soon via Instagram.

Jiminy Peak

Further north, Jiminy Peak has announced its own opening day of Saturday, Dec. 7. The mountain has picked up a few inches of snow from recent weather systems moving through, and is forecasted more by the end of the week, setting the stage for some potentially stellar turns on the hill this weekend. Information on season pass sales, rentals, and more can be found at www.jiminypeak.com. Keep up with their Instagram, @jiminypeak, for updates on openings and other news.

Tubing

For those who prefer to careen down icy slopes in a seated position rather than standing, several facilities in our region offer tubing opportunities that appeal to the whole family (provided they’re over 42” tall).

Bosquet will be providing tubing throughout the winter, while Mohawk Mountain and Butternut will offer timed slots on Friday evenings and during the weekends. Information on pricing, schedules, and rules can be found at the resorts’ websites.

Alec Linden

Latest News

Lelah M. Somers

Lelah M. Somers

DOVER PLAINS — Lelah M. Somers, 97, a longtime Dover Plains, New York, resident, passed away peacefully on Saturday, Oct. 10, 2026, at Ferncliff Nursing Home in Rhinebeck, New York. Lelah was born on July 3, 1929, in Pawling, New York, to the late Byron and Lelah (Watts) Brill. Lelah grew up in Pawling and on Nov. 22, 1946, in Pleasant Valley, New York, she married James F. Somers, Sr. Mr. Somers passed away on Sept. 3, 1970. Lelah worked for New York State as a therapy aide for thirty-years and as a senior companion for New York State for thirty-two-years, with specific care provided to the mentally disabled.

She enjoyed taking care of the mentally disabled, was a wonderful mother to her four children, always putting her family first. She is survived by her son, James F. Somers, Jr. and his wife Donna of Dover Plains; two daughters, Doreen Monica of Wingdale, and Frances “Fran” Horton of Dover Plains, who was also her caregiver for many years; seven grandchildren, Debbie, Margie, Leah, Stephanie, Deirdra, Benji and Jimmy and several great grandchildren and great-great grandchildren, and many nieces and nephews, and her step-son, Kenny Elliott. In addition to her parents and husband, Lelah was predeceased by her daughter and son-in-law, Carol “DeeDee” Maile and Gil Maile, her son-in-law, Stephen Monica, and her son-in-law, Benny Horton as well as her companion of over forty-years, Andrew “Mac” McAlravey and her siblings, Ferris Brill, Eleanor Barryann, Richard Brill, William Brill and Barney Brill.

Keep ReadingShow less

The art of getting into art school

The art of getting into art school

Hudson Valley Regional Portfolio Day returns to Poughkeepsie.

Provided

For a young artist considering college, the question isn’t simply whether the work is good enough. It’s which work to show, which school might be the right fit and even whether a creative life can lead to a sustainable career.

On Friday, Oct. 16, hundreds of aspiring artists will have the opportunity to explore those questions at Hudson Valley Regional Portfolio Day, presented by The Art Effect at the MJN Convention Center in Poughkeepsie.

Keep ReadingShow less
education

A colorful life together at Atelier Valla

A colorful life together at Atelier Valla

Textile designer Justine Valla sits in her father’s chair, which she painted, alongside her husband, illustrator and muralist Victor Valla, in their Atelier Valla studio.

L. Tomaino
I lost the ability to paint after the accident. I struggled to paint again.
— Justine Valla

Husband and wife Victor and Justine Valla share a lavender and pink studio, Atelier Valla, across the driveway from their pink house, nestled into a hillside in Salisbury. The colors, said Justine, “were inspired by Monet’s house at Giverny.”

Creating art has been a lifelong pursuit for both.

Keep ReadingShow less
our community
google preferred source

Want more of our stories on Google? Click here to make us a Preferred Source.

David Ruchman’s “Acquired Taste”

David Ruchman’s “Acquired Taste”

Filmmaker David Ruchman

Bleacher and Everard Photography

In a region known for its vibrant but geographically scattered arts community, discovering something new can require a little effort. The same might be said for finding a new place for an extraordinary meal. While the Northwest Corner, Berkshires and Hudson Valley have no shortage of creative talent, opportunities to experience it — whether on a stage, in a gallery or on a plate — aren’t always just around the corner.

In David Ruchman’s short film “Acquired Taste,” that challenge becomes the premise for an unlikely friendship between Nick, an aspiring young food critic living in an area with limited dining options, and a gruff New York City master chef.

Keep ReadingShow less
film

Follow the Clay Way for ceramic delights

Follow the Clay Way for ceramic delights

Jane Herold’s beautifully simple dinnerware.

Provided

As the leaves across Litchfield and Dutchess counties rush to make it to the ground, your last chance to peep autumn is fast approaching. On Oct.17 and 18, the 10th annual Clay Way offers peepers a route to follow lined with unique art that rivals the area’s natural beauty.

The two-day event is a ceramics-focused open studio tour through northwestern Connecticut, with a few studios peppered in just over the border in Dutchess County. Featuring nine open studios and 25 participating artists, the tour promises a wide variety of work, from decorative objects to grand vessels and a whole world in between.

Keep ReadingShow less
open-studio

A new home for the unexpected at Kent Fine Art

A new home for the unexpected at Kent Fine Art

CAMERON (1922-1995) is on view at Kent Fine Art in Pine Plains through Nov. 14.

Provided

Where can one find the work of an artist associated with occult rituals, surrealist visions and the underground California art scene? In a beautifully renovated former carriage house in Pine Plains, of course.

Unexpected discoveries are, after all, part of what Doug Walla has spent his career making possible. The longtime New York City art dealer and founder of Kent Fine Art, has brought the work of Marjorie Cameron Parsons Kimmel, known simply as Cameron, to his new gallery space. The exhibition, on view through Nov. 14, introduces visitors to an artist whose life and work moved between mysticism, poetry, film and the avant-garde.

Keep ReadingShow less
exhibit
google preferred source

Want more of our stories on Google? Click here to make us a Preferred Source.