It’s a feeling that Chris Bates just can’t shake.
“Being outside, in the winter, on the mountain—there’s nothing like it,” he said. “There’s a sense of exhilaration when you’re on a pair of skis. It’s a rush I’ve never gotten enough of.”
Sitting inside the main lodge at Cataloochee Ski Area high above Maggie Valley, Bates has been the general manager of the business for the last 17 years. Gazing out the windows onto the snowy slopes, the troves of eager skiers and snowboarders already cruising down the mountain, Bates can’t help to be excited that the 54th season at “Cat” is underway.
Of the many goals Cataloochee Ski Area is focusing on for the future, expanding its “Learn to Ski” program has become a top priority.
“Some of it is relief,” he chuckled. “Typically, we’d have already been open for three weeks by now, but with the warm fall we had, we had to wait. And, with the recent cold snap, we were able to coat the first few trails with snow within one day.”
“Coat,” as in the state-of-the-art snowmaking equipment that has put “Cat” on the map in recent years as not only one of the first resorts to open nationally, but also one of the most efficient and high-tech in terms of what they’re able to do with where they are situated and how (or if) the weather cooperates with them.
“With our location, we realize we’re going to have warm and cold days, where we need to capitalize on our cold days,” Bates said. “What used to take us four or five days to make enough snow for the trails now takes between eight and 10 hours.”
But, Bates noted with a slight grin, it isn’t just all about business when figuring out when to open the “Cat.”
“A lot of it is that we’re skiers who run this company. When it comes to getting out there and getting the mountain ready—we want to get out and ski, too,” he said. “Our initial design years ago was where we could work within a day to make enough snow to open, and we’ve done that.”
Stepping into the lodge around lunchtime, Ski Patrol Director Wayne Morgan kicks the snow off his boots. Grabbing a nearby table, he removes his gloves, facemask, goggles, helmet, scarf, and jacket, only to reveal a large smile as droplets of melted snow fall from his hair.
“It’s total freedom up there,” he said. “I don’t know really how to explain it. You come down that hill with the biggest grin on your face, which says it all.”
In his 12th season at Cataloochee, Morgan sees the ski area as something special.
“All the employees are like family here,” he said. “What it comes down to here is one thing: snow. Any day on the mountain is a good day.”
“It’s total freedom up there. You come down that hill with the biggest grin on your face, which says it all.” —Wayne Morgan, Cataloochee Ski Area ski patrol director
Growing up on the coast of North Carolina, where sandy beaches and flip-flops reign supreme, Morgan didn’t try skiing until he went to college in the mountains near Boone, home to Sugar Mountain and Beech Mountain. He then spent his career as an educator in Henderson County. But he never stopped skiing. After working at Wolf Laurel (Mars Hill) and a ski shop near Asheville, he was approached about being in ski patrol, a position held to this day.
“And I get to go work and do this everyday?” he laughed. “From growing up on the beach, once I got to the mountains, I never left.”
Originally from New Jersey, Bates, who learned how to ski at age three, has been involved in this industry for most of his life. Working in and around ski around in the northeast, he eventually landed in Haywood County, a place he felt his talents and aspirations could thrive.
“And in the last 17 years, we’ve doubled our terrain [to 50 acres], we’ve achieved our goals in terms of snowmaking, where now our focus is shifting to the whole experience,” he said.
With a trademark family-friendly atmosphere, “Cat” has always looked at ways to hone in on what makes the mountain great—the people who ski and snowboard it daily. It’s about making sure the first time skier/snowboarder has an equally pleasant experience compared to a veteran snow hound.
“If we can make their first day or two on the a snow a lot more conducive to learning and having fun, then they will come away from the mountain excited and wanting to become skiers or snowboarders. That’s where it all starts,” Bates said.
Alongside their expanding “Learn to Ski” programs, “Cat” is also increasing its rental options, where any and all can simply head up the mountain, pick up the gear they need, and immediately hit the slopes.
“We get around 140 days of skiing here, which is something unique to North Carolina and the southeast in general,” Bates said. “It’s a great feeling to see people pulling into the parking lot today—all smiles, all ready to go skiing.”
Cataloochee Ski Area in Maggie Valley has become a mainstay and storied mountain playground for skiers and snowboards from Western North Carolina and beyond.
This post is adapted from our annual Welcome to Western North Carolina magazine. Click here to read more online, or click here to order your own free copy.