Are Those Real Trails, or Just Names?

At one of my local ski areas, I noticed something I had never seen in about 18 or so days of riding there: a catwalk. I noticed it from a chairlift, but also saw that it was fenced off.

Then I looked at the trail map, and sure enough, there was the cat. I also noticed three or four other “trails” that I have never seen open. And they’re not necessarily high-skill routes. There are also two trails that I’ve seen open only twice, on a powder day.

It seems that some skepticism in reading marketing material is in order.