Mountain Creek Ski Resort - Vernon, New Jersey

Address:Vernon, New Jersey
Tel: (973) 827-3900

Looking to really catch some air? Whether you're a freestyle skier or a snowboarder, Mountain Creek's Jib Lab terrain park team makes it their job to help you fly. Mountain Creek boasts the region's only Superpipe, the same pipe where the 2006 Olympic Snowboard team qualified. Also making a name for the mountain is 2002 Halfpipe Silver Medalist Danny Kass who calls the resort home.

Purchased in 2001 by Intrawest, the company responsible for the creation of resorts such as Whistler-Blackcomb, B.C., Mont Tremblant, Quebec, and Copper Mountain in Colorado, Mountain Creek is already putting its best foot forward by undergoing a lift revamp and establishing itself as a resort with year round activities, filled with action sports.

Boarders and freestylers definitely rule the mountain here, so if you're looking for an extreme vacation, filled with boarders carving down the mountain, then Mountain Creek is the place for you. The Mountain features 45 trails with varying degrees of difficulty and 11 lifts to take you there. Eight of these are new high-speed lifts, with mountain management striving to make lift lines shorter.

Mountain Creek's reputation for great snowboarding draws crowds from all over the region, making beginner skiing on weekends slightly more difficult with the ever-present obstacle of snowboarders flying down the mountain. The mountain has a tendency to be less crowded on weekdays and during twilight hours (with 100% night skiing on all trails), so make sure to take advantage of the discounted prices of these time periods to ensure a less stressful first time experience.

Mountain Creek is indeed a snowboarder paradise. Its five terrain parks cover one-fifth of the mountain, and its 19 terrain park trails make it the largest terrain park in the region. The resort has its own terrain park planning team called the Jib Lab, which strives to constantly improve upon the terrain features. The terrain park includes 8 hits and 28 jibs, including log jibs and various boxes and rails. Their internationally renowned SuperPipe with stadium lighting, and their hard work, must be getting someone's attention. Mountain Creek was rated by Transworld Magazine as the No.3 resort in North America for 2006 for the best rail and jib variety.

Located only 47 miles from the George Washington Bridge, Mountain Creek presents a variety of options for the long-stay visitor willing to take a drive into the city. For those looking for a shorter drive, there are plenty of activities around. A variety of shops in the Village of Warwick, or a quick trip to a local winery, is sure to occupy a lazy day away from the mountain. If you're not interested in leaving the comfort of the resort, grab the kids or some friends and head over to the Coca-Cola Tubing Park, open weekday evenings and all day Saturday. For an additional fee, you can spend all evening riding the tubes. For an ensured adrenaline rush look up the Competition Services at Mountain Creek. The instructors here will teach you how to slalom and freestlye with the best of them.

The true charm of Mountain Creek is its proximity to New York City. This allows you to snowboard and ski all day, with plenty of time left to make it for happy hour or a dinner reservation. If you're too tired to head into the city, the resort itself provides a variety of dining options for all tastes. From grabbing a quick bite to eat to a romantic evening for two, the options can be found at the resort's Vernon and South base areas. In addition to dining options, the resort provides a variety of nightlife for your après-ski enjoyment. Live music, and themed food and beverage nights, ensures Mountain Creek's status as a happening place to be after dark.

If you're day-tripping it to the mountain, make sure to leave very early or late (in both directions) as rush hour traffic tends to make the drive a little less bearable. On Thursdays, New Jersey Transit offers bus service between the Port Authority Bus Terminal in Manhattan and Mountain Creek, departing at 3 p.m. and returning at 11:42 p.m. If you're looking to spend a few days at the mountain, plenty of lodging is available, with prices and luxury ranging from bed & breakfasts in nearby towns, to luxury vacation townhouses, lodges, and a ski-in ski-out hotel. Intrawest has promised even more options in the future, so have no fear of getting stuck out in the cold.

46 trails. 11 lifts. 7 tubing lanes. 7 terrain park trails. 36 rails. 1 huge SuperPipe with stadium lighting. 170 skiable acres. 1,000 snowguns. 16 miles of trails. 45 trails lighted for night riding. 1, 2 and 3 bedroom luxury vacation townhomes. Think you've got to drive all day to find it? Forget it! We're only an hour from the George Washington Bridge!