Former Paleface ski center in Jay offers hiking, mountain biking and cross-country skiing with AuSable River valley views
By Tim Rowland
Hikers, mountain bikers and cross-country skiers will have 40 miles of new trails to explore in the northeastern Adirondacks, following an announcement by the NewVida Preserve in Jay that it is opening its trail network on weekends to nonmembers.
The trails at NewVida, formerly the Paleface ski center, include easy-level strolls to challenging hikes up and around Bassett Mountain, with rewarding views of both the East and West branches of the AuSable River valleys.
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“The views and the diversity of those trails are just phenomenal,” said NewVida owner Rick Vidal. Visitors must register and sign a waiver; trail maps and destinations can be viewed online.
The trails at Paleface represented a significant investment at the time, and Vidal said he began personally brushing them out, remarking and reorienting old trails and cutting some new trails for all ability levels. This also served as an excuse to explore more of the nooks and crannies on the 2,000-acre preserve.
Still, as the trails had been restricted to members and guests, they had seen relatively little use, which to Vidal seemed like a waste.
“In the 2½ years that we’ve had the property, there’s just not a lot of people utilizing them,” he said. “Our membership pool is small and we have a small lodging block that will grow, but for now only a portion of each of those constituents uses the trails. So it’s just like, why do we have this incredible outdoor park and no one uses it? So I’m really hoping that it becomes well-used and used safely.”
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NewVida has a public bar, restaurant and cafe, and private memberships that include gym access and discounts for food and wellness programs. More foot traffic could also serve to generate more business for the restaurant, bar and cafe, which is open for breakfast on weekends. “That’s kind of the intention; go do an excursion and then hang out,” Vidal said.
If weekend access proves successful, the trails could become open full-time. But Vidal said NewVida lacks the staff to patrol and pick up trash, so he wants to be sure such monitoring isn’t necessary. If that’s the case, NewVida also plans to build small destination sites along the trail system.
“I’m hoping that people who access them really treat them respectfully, the wildlife, the plant life, and everything else,” he said. “And if so, then we’ll continue to open up more and more — my vision is also to start to create little destinations where people can picnic and even camp.”
The Paleface ski center operated from 1961 into the early 1980s, and attracted visitors in summer with biking and horseback riding.
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To handle the traffic, the trails were solidly constructed and remain in good shape to this day, Vidal said. They could also become part of an evolving recreational complex that includes the existing mountain bike trails on Hardy Road and the new 660-acre state acquisition of what will become the Four Peaks — named for a previous resort called Four Peaks — Wild Forest.
Four Peaks includes the remnants of trails maintained by the old resort. Those trails, some in the form of old woods roads, can be sniffed out with relative ease, but while they retain a few of the old Four Peaks markings, the plethora of old ghost trails can be confusing.
NewVida offers connections to both Four Peaks and Hardy Road. It has 10 primary trails and 10 connector trails of varying difficulty.
“There’s what I call the beginner, which are all the paths that are largely flat and great for cross-country skiing, for walking and trail running,” Vidal said. “They’re on the lower mountain, like a trail that passes by the two cabins and exits by Beaver Creek, and has a phenomenal view.”
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Intermediate trails have elevation gain but no particular obstacles, while advanced trails — including a boulder-strewn adventure on the Red Trail around the cliffs of Bassett — require some scrambling.
The summit of Bassett itself is wooded, but just below it are open ledges with broad views to the south and east. Still evident is some of the old infrastructure from the skiing days, as well as ruins of long-gone buildings, and some whimsical Winnie-the-Pooh signage from the previous owner.
“There’s a sign that says, ‘Beware, don’t do something scary,’ like don’t go beyond these woods,” Vidal said. Of course, it’s hoped the new visitors won’t take it literally.
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