Pros: Great Snow, Interesting Trail Layout, No Crowds, Good Bumps
Cons: Far Away, Overpriced, Exaggerated Vertical, Small Base Lodge, Slow Lifts, No Glades
The Good: Elk Mountain consistantly provides the best skiing conditions and mountain experience in PA. I've skiied Elk many times over the years and they always seem to have the best snow, the least crowds, and the best skiers anywhere else in PA. There are no true steep runs and the mountain skis only 926 vert feet (dispite the 1000 ft they claim); however, Elk Mountain more than makes up for that in long runs that wind thru the woods. The slower lift system does help to keep the slopes less crowded.
The Bad: The base lodge is no-frills and it is very small (gets extremely crowded very quickly), there is no close lodging, and it's in the middle of nowhere. Also, the current trend in PA seems to be glade skiing (see Blue Mountain, Jack Frost, Sno Mountain, and Camelback). Apparently Elk is very much against opening up the trees. Elk is also the most expensive mountain in Eastern PA. While that wouldn't be so bad, but it seems that the management doesn't use any of that money to upgrade the lift system or expand the base lodge.
All in all, Elk Mountain is still my favorite place to ski in PA because it consistently skis the best.
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