Twice as much touring, half as much riding…
Sunday, January 11th, 2009
Sometimes just to try is to succeed.
I decided to use my split-board to head off the property on Sunday and find some turns. It worked out…I didn’t cross another track all day (whether riding or skinning)…including the first line off the hill…
Dropping In...
Now instead of taking the trail all the way to the bar, I decided to pick up a side trail and get another descent under my belt.
Ready to ascend...
As I ascended i saw all sorts of possibilities but I decided to stick to the marked trails (most of which I had been on before in one shape or form).
Follow the Red Markers
My original goal was to make my way around the Ranch Valley (just under the ridgeline) and then grab a descent on the far side, but I’ll be the first to admit I misjudged the time to get there. The tube of my Camelbak had also frozen a second time when I hit the Dishpan; I got it to defrost in my coat early in the trek but when it froze the second time it didn’t want to come back, no matter what tricks I had up my sleeve. So that set me up to call it earlier (distance-wise) than I wanted.
Devil's Dishpan (You have to love the names)
So I hit another junction and headed down. Now I’ll also admit that what I headed down was flatter than I expected, but I was riding untouched snow so it was still fun. Unfortunately due to the lack of pitch I eventually had to switch back to “travel” mode and get back to the Nordic center. In no time, I was back at the Tollhouse and back on the resort.
So didn’t quite make it around to the the line I wanted, but still had a fun day.
(Stowe is littered with trails cut by the Civilian Conservation Corps in the Great Depression. Some have become an integral part of the resort; others are outside the boundary and frequented by tele skiers. Please research your trip when heading out. There’s lot’s of resources so make sure you use them. Also, please make responsible decisions regarding what you ride and when to call it a day.)
PS- sorry for the lousy pics, apparently the batteries I was putting into the camera should’ve been thrown out, so you got some more phone pics