Ski resort reviews can be helpful only if you know the skill level and skiing perspective of the person authoring the review. I am a middle age advanced skier who will often at high speeds hit a small lip in the terrain and get a little air. I will venture in and out of short mogul fields hoping to enhance my mogul skiing technique, and then often duck in and out of moderately spaced glades. If I had to describe the type of skier with which I most closely identify, it would be a high speed cruiser who enjoys medium to giant slalom (GS) turns. For Presidents’ Day week, I planned what would be a Vermont nostalgia trip for me and my granddaughter. We planned to Ski Okemo, Stratton, and Pico Mountain. The first time I put on skis (thirty-three years ago) was at Stratton. I fell in love with Pico Mountain (which at that time was called Pico Peak) about thirty years ago as a novice skier, and also visited Okemo at about the same time. I haven’t been back since, and today I am a very different skier now than I was back then. With that said, here are my impressions of Pico Mountain (Pico) using the 5 point rating system:

Terrain – Rated 4.0:
After this recent visit to Pico, I can now say that I am still madly in love with her. I believe that any mountain’s terrain is perfect if it exhibits the following five necessary trail conditions: trail variety with respect to difficulty and character, steeps, glades, moguls, and lastly, above the tree line access. Like most eastern ski resorts, Pico has no above the tree line access, but it certainly has all of the rest. My granddaughter and I always start the day out with an easy warm-up. No black diamonds, maybe an intermediate or novice/beginner trail or two. We chose the “Little Pico” triple chair at the far left of the mountain (as you face the summit). This lift had yet to reach its terminating point, which is only half way up the mountain, when to my immediate left we got a good look at the adjacent trail named “A Slope” (rated as a double black diamond). Immediately I knew that when we got off that lift, we were going to make the hardest right turn that was within our capabilities. As of that moment, I decided that as long as I was breathing air and physically attached to skis, those skis would never go left towards “A Slope.” That trail had twists and turns that gave it lots of character. There were several very steep sections with outcropping boulders which demanded taking jumps in order to save your hardware as well as your life. And if you were good enough to jump and clear the boulders, you landed in a mogul field of Volkswagen Beetle sized moguls. This trail was truly serious business, and displayed three of the five aforementioned trail conditions specifically relating to difficulty and character, steeps, and finally moguls. For the rest of the day we avoided that far left hand area of the mountain like the plague. When we reached the base of the mountain, we boarded the “Golden Express” quad in order to transfer to the “Summit Express” quad. The connecting trail to the summit lift is named “Fool’s Gold.” After making my first two or three turns on “Fool’s Gold,” the light bulb in my head clicked on, and reminded me why I initially fell in love with Pico thirty years ago. The trail was wide and long (about 30 yards wide and 400 yards long). For a mere connecting trail, it had a definite bit of character and was ideal for great cruising. I was able to crank off about five fast and swooping GS turns. We reached the summit and my love affair with Pico rekindled and really blossomed. Every trail emanating from the summit followed a very natural descent (the exception being “Upper Giant,” a double diamond which was closed). It was as if the trail designers followed the precise path of rain water as it descended the mountain. “Upper Pike, Upper Ka, and Sunset 71;” all black diamond rated trails, are excellent cruisers. Those trails are followed closely by a great intermediate rated cruising trail called “Forty-Niner.” All these trails share something else that is exhilarating and something to behold; it is the scenic view upon descending the mountain. I recommend that you initially take “Forty-Niner” from the summit. As “Forty-Niner” begins to veer to the right, go straight ahead. You will see the trail marking for “Sunset 71.” Hit the lip confidently (take a little air if you have the guts) and go straight into “Sunset 71”. “Sunset 71” will open up to your delight for some ultimate cruising. We returned to the summit once again and took “Upper Pike” down until we encountered the “Birchwood Glades” and an adjacent trail also called “Birchwood Glades.” We had a great time bouncing and hopping between moderately sized moguls and moderately spaced trees. If you are a “hot-shot” skier regarding glades, I recommend you ski the “Doozie” glades on the right side of the mountain. These glades are accessed by taking the “Knomes Knoll” triple chair and then transferring to the “Outpost” double chair. “Doozie” combines steep terrain with large moguls and tight trees. The “Doozie” glades and “A Slope” are truly for the experts, and not the “wannabe” experts. A mere mistake in both of those areas can be physically damaging. The one fault that Pico may have is its scarcity of beginner terrain. There are no green circled trails emanating from the summit (a summit view tends to be a very motivating experience for beginner skiers). Pico’s “Bushwacker/Swinger” beginner trail is their longest, and tends to be more of a connecting trail that takes skiers from the left side of the mountain to the right side. As you can tell, after thirty years my love for Pico still burns fervently. I suggest that you ski Pico for yourself. You will have a great deal of trouble keeping the smiles off your face. But remember! She is still my girl, but I will allow you to share your love for her.

Service – Rated 3.0:
As you enter the base area from the parking lot, Pico has a separate building for the purchase of lift tickets. The line was quick and as well as efficient. Pico’s base large is well kept and efficiently run (unfortunately the bathrooms, like many other ski lodges, are on a lower level. Why can’t lodge designers but the rest rooms on the main level?). Some of Pico’s lifts are extremely old, such as the “Outpost” double chair. It got me up to the top without any problem so maybe I shouldn’t complain. The trail snow conditions were quite good, and better than those at Okemo. The bump runs that we did take were actually covered with snow and not bullet proof blue ice. Everything appear to function relatively well at Pico. I can’t recall any instances of service disappointments as well as instances of exemplary customer service.

Crowds – Rating 5.0:
I can’t figure out this year’s Presidents’ Day week. No lift lines whatsoever for any of the Pico chair lifts. At lunch time the base lodge cafeteria was somewhat crowded, but we found seats after about a three minute wait. My granddaughter and I often found ourselves to be the only skiers/riders on many of the mid-mountain and below intermediate trails. It must be the rotten economy.

Activities – Rating 4.0:
I have to admit that as snow boarder, I would have been pretty disappointed with Pico. There was one small beginners trail on the right side of the Mountain called “Triple Slope.” It displayed some very modest snow boarder rails, and that was about it regarding terrain park features. Pico is a stone’s throw away from Rutland, Vermont where shopping and dining can be found. There are also many country stores selling homemade baked goods, maple syrup, and the usual “general store” type gift items.

Value: - Rating 4.0:
Pico’s standard lift ticket prices are somewhat less expensive than comparable eastern big mountains. I also felt that their cafeteria prices were also a little less than most ski mountain food. The skiing experience you derive when skiing Pico is comparably well worth the dollars spent. My daughter and I both skied Pico for the day at a grand total of $78. In early December, Sports Authority was running a deal that up to December 24th of 2010; you could purchase two Pico lift tickets for $78 ($39 per ticket). If I had acted prior to December 15th, I could have picked up the two tickets for $69 ($34.50 per ticket).

In summary: As a long-time skier, I have visited many mountains. A good majority of those resorts are simply vague blurs of my mind. I can’t usually recall the particular scenery, and their trails became indistinct. After thirty years, Pico has always been a bright spot in my memory. I was surprised at how accurate my mind had vividly retained the scenic view as you descend from the summit. The reason for my retention is very simple. Pico Mountain is just a darned good place to ski.