Jill D.
Yelp
We have been loyal to CBK for over a decade; however, this will likely be our last season here. Camelback Mountain has always struggled with weather and prioritizing the opening of their trails. Sometimes main trails never open, such as Birches, which is an important long, beginner trail. I mistakenly purchased the $549 season pass this year and we are so annoyed that yesterday (1/13/25) was not only empty, but it seems as though more and more people are catching on to Camelback's shortcomings; and there's a lot of these this season. It seems to me that they're more interested in putting a parking ticket/notice on your windshield and grabbing a quick $40 (when you already have a season pass) than getting their act together and opening the Stevenson lift and most of the rest of the mountain trails. They say they have 15 trails open, but honestly, it's really only two runs. I don't want to hear about every turn being named a different trail; it's all just ONE run, and it's so boring. It is also notorious for being icy -- the whole mountain. I'm not sure why as they seem to be the only mountain in the area with this issue. I read one other review where it said you could ice skate down, and this is no exaggeration. We learned how to ride on the ice here, but unfortunately it can be dangerous for those that are not experienced. There is also extremely limited ski patrol, so all of the bratty teens are charging down the mountain which also causes people who are trying to learn to become nervous and fall. Again, this isn't me but I've observed this so often there; and there's no penalty because there's no staff on the mountain ensuring the safety of all skiers and riders. So back to the mountain conditions; here, we paid full price for a season pass and are literally getting a fraction of what we paid for. The staff is either "meh" and can't be bothered or just not happy and friendly at all. There's an older gentleman who touched my hip and then on another occasion my arm. If he touched me again I was going to say something; or simply push him off the embankment, as NO ONE should be touching the guests for any reason. Weird!! The new lift access gate barely ever works for your pass, and so they make you remove your gloves to fish around your gear to take out your pass and hold it directly over the sensor, instead of the damn thing simply working?! Thirsty Camel service is horrendous and they run out of everything. Good luck getting anyone to come to your table. We waited an hour and then walked out. The "double Black" trails are a total joke. What's double Black about them? Are you trying to match that ridiculously huge lift to the trails? This is a hill, people. It can be fun at times, maybe if you wait until mid-February, but there's literally nothing open as of mid-January? We actually went to Shawnee this past Saturday and they are operating at 100%; ALL trails open, great staff, great learning mountain and pretty darn good for us seasoned riders. I hadn't been there in decades and was pleasantly surprised. The terrain park had so many features, I'd lost count. Camelback has a couple of features and jumps open but that's it; and right now you get stuck at the bottom because the only lift open is the Sunbowl lift. Hope you have another 40 minutes to reach back up to the main base. Good luck! And Shawnee mountain is 28 minutes from Camelback. How is it that Shawnee has all trails open and Camelback only 15 trails (again, that is only a couple runs)??!!! I don't know about anyone else but, my money is on Shawnee in this region, as Camelback seems to just be looking at a way to pay off their court penalties and that new far-too-big-for-a-hill six-person lift that only reminds you of how brown and unopened the mountain is. Shawnee's season pass is the same price and you just get so much more. Don't waste your money on CBK. They're prices are terrible and they just seem to not care about this mountain anymore.