Mount Peter

Mt Peter is located in the Hudson Highlands portion of the Appalachian Mountains, just about an hour’s drive north of New York City. This is a small mountain, suitable mainly for day excursions and families with kids who are just getting their ski legs under them. 14 named trails stretch out over 69 acres, with a fairly even difficulty mix of 30 percent novice, 35 percent intermediate, and 35 percent advanced. It’s important to note that this difficulty rating is according to the mountain, so an advanced trail here might only be equal to an intermediate at another resort.  The vertical is 450 feet with the base lodge at 750 feet and the summit at 1250 feet.

The Trails

There are three double lifts and two rope tows at Mount Peter. The setup for the mountain is organized from left to right in degrees of difficulty. On the left are the easiest runs, Rim Run and Snowfields. In the center are the intermediates, Cedar Lane, and St. Pete’s. On the right are the expert trails, The Devil’s Tail, Dynamite, and The Wild West. On the far left are three terrain parks as well. A dedicated learning annex is located in the center with The Hub and Deer Run.

This is the first year that Mount Peter has offered tubing as an alternative to skiing, and for families, this is a great option as well.

Bottom Line

Mount Peter is often lauded as one of the best ski areas for families, this is one of the most beginner friendly slopes on the East Coast. There are free group lessons three times per day for beginner skiers 5 and older. These lessons are held every Saturday and Sunday and focus on the basics of skiing. There’s also a ski school program aimed at the younger crowd 4 and under (as long as they’re potty trained) that includes two hours of instruction, rentals, and hot chocolate at the end.

While this mountain isn’t going to provide much of a challenge to an experienced skier, that’s not what the resort focuses on. Instead, Mount Peter emphasizes family friendly fun combined with a small mountain atmosphere. Keep in mind that the parking lot can often get crowded on the weekends, so plan to arrive early to avoid most of the crowd.