Frear Park

Frear Park, located about 1 mile north of RPI off of Oakwood Avenue, is a popular sledding spot for everyone from kids to college people.  When the Sledder Team visited, we stuck to the slopes on the south side of the park, along Frear Park Road.

The Team hustling towards the main area

The 'main area' of Frear Park is located across from the parking lot next to the tennis courts and provides easy sledding.  For the most part, the slopes are gentle, and the rides are average length.

Finding the main area is easy enough, as there will almost always be people sledding there.  However, there can be some congestion, so watch out for other while on the slopes here.  Still, these slopes earn a green circle (easy) rating.

Venturing through the trees proves worthwhile

The main area does have a hidden gem.  If you walk up the hill, you'll notice a small path which leads into some trees.  At the end, you'll notice a double black diamond (experts only) slope.  The trail is narrow (with heavy brush on both sides), steep, and very bumpy.  On my run down, I fell off my sled on the last bump and landed on my arm, leaving me in a pain for a bit.

If you gather enough speed and can hold on to your sled, you'll be in for nice, long ride.  This slope feeds into a popular green circle.  Be sure to watch out for the other sledders on your way down.

Down the double black diamond

Going off the beaten path and finding new slopes is half the fun in sledding.  Walking along Frear Park Road, away from the tennis courts, brought us to some less crowded slopes.

This slope (facing Frear Park Rd.) is a fun ride and has a jump for the daring

We found two black diamonds in this area that we liked.  Our favorite faces Frear Park Road.  It provides a long ride and is plenty fast.  If you're looking for air, stay close to the trees on your way down.  You'll hit a little bump and then a bigger one, which you can catch some serious air on.  Landing's painful (on a plastic saucer), but it might be easier on a foam or inflatable sled.  

The other slope faces in the opposite direction.  It's a bit steeper, but a bit shorter of a ride.  Also, there's a large divot (maybe from a bunker) at the bottom of the slope, which can hurt if you hit it.  The slope is worth checking out, if only for just one run.

Even the best need to take a break

All things considered, Frear Park is worth visiting.  Large, open areas are always fun for sledding and there's tons of exploring to be done.  We probably missed a few good slopes in our review, but we'll find more when we go back.  Be sure to check the map for the location of slopes we mentioned in this review.