2-24-07, Chuting Gallery, North Central Vermont
2/24/07
US elsewhere
2198
1
Day 30
2-24-07
Mt Mansfield stake: 74
Chuting Gallery to NE Ridge
North Central Green Mountains, Vermont
The route of the day had it all.
Same 5 minute commute from home, same casual stroll from the parking lot, same breakfast of cosmic brownies, same fair weather and powder snow. Same everything from yesterday, down to breaking trail and untracked powder. And curiously, a similar pattern to the ski: first a section of high speed silver surfer packed snowmobile trail, then a section of virgin forest and endless glade skiing, followed by an intermezzo of drab skating across a high mountain plateau, and then the climatic finish a sick vertical wall with cliff bands and steeps to cap the adrenaline and start the descent.
Or so Wayne promised.
After a decade of skiing in the open woods, he knew potential routes by geography and topography, grounded in experience, and wove new lines almost every trip into the woods. Each day a new adventure linking known features and destinations, creating lines that matured and blossomed like a fine wine with time.
It sounded like a great idea, I was game for a new line.
A warm front had moved through, but with little snow and temps had risen to the comfortable twenties, but the sun had sadly disappeared. Were the only ones in the parking lot (again) when we leave, and we make quick time up the hard packed trails.
Soon enough, were breaking trail up an abandoned logging road, a gentle ramble with open forest on either side. At the top of the ridge, following a mile of powder terrain, we emerge on the saddle separating the mountains along the ridge crest. A beaver pond in the saddle provides a clearing to view our objective. It looks impressive. A large face of snow and rock looms over the pond, looking like a treed Northwest mountain, complete with open faces, huge trees and cliff bands. And steep, right from the ponds edge. We skirt around the pond and quickly go to work on the exquisite face.
Our line follows a prominent rock prow up the right side of the face, with a steep treed gully providing safe climbing. The terrain immediately goes from mountain walk to alpine climbing as we weave our route up through the white birch glades. We follow a wide chute in the shadow of the prow, and find the snow is blower powder in the sheltered terrain.
We turn at the top and drop into our lines, face shots aplenty down to the pond. From there, well, you know the story.
***
Back at the car, were sated and grinning, victorious. Seven days after the storm and weve enjoyed multiple days of untracked powder in terrain anemic Vermont. Wayne shakes his head at the myth.
I laugh when I hear you Western folks fighting and complaining about skin tracks vs. snowshoe tracks with all that terrain available. Whats that all about? Why not just break your own trail and ski your own line?
I just dont have the willpower to argue this simplistic view of the world, the million person city of Seattle seeming so far away. Maybe not every place on this earth is as tranquil as Waynes Valley, but right then, right there, it certainly felt that way.
Yeah, I said, Youre right.
2-24-07
Mt Mansfield stake: 74
Chuting Gallery to NE Ridge
North Central Green Mountains, Vermont
The route of the day had it all.
Same 5 minute commute from home, same casual stroll from the parking lot, same breakfast of cosmic brownies, same fair weather and powder snow. Same everything from yesterday, down to breaking trail and untracked powder. And curiously, a similar pattern to the ski: first a section of high speed silver surfer packed snowmobile trail, then a section of virgin forest and endless glade skiing, followed by an intermezzo of drab skating across a high mountain plateau, and then the climatic finish a sick vertical wall with cliff bands and steeps to cap the adrenaline and start the descent.
Or so Wayne promised.
After a decade of skiing in the open woods, he knew potential routes by geography and topography, grounded in experience, and wove new lines almost every trip into the woods. Each day a new adventure linking known features and destinations, creating lines that matured and blossomed like a fine wine with time.
It sounded like a great idea, I was game for a new line.
A warm front had moved through, but with little snow and temps had risen to the comfortable twenties, but the sun had sadly disappeared. Were the only ones in the parking lot (again) when we leave, and we make quick time up the hard packed trails.
Soon enough, were breaking trail up an abandoned logging road, a gentle ramble with open forest on either side. At the top of the ridge, following a mile of powder terrain, we emerge on the saddle separating the mountains along the ridge crest. A beaver pond in the saddle provides a clearing to view our objective. It looks impressive. A large face of snow and rock looms over the pond, looking like a treed Northwest mountain, complete with open faces, huge trees and cliff bands. And steep, right from the ponds edge. We skirt around the pond and quickly go to work on the exquisite face.
Our line follows a prominent rock prow up the right side of the face, with a steep treed gully providing safe climbing. The terrain immediately goes from mountain walk to alpine climbing as we weave our route up through the white birch glades. We follow a wide chute in the shadow of the prow, and find the snow is blower powder in the sheltered terrain.
We turn at the top and drop into our lines, face shots aplenty down to the pond. From there, well, you know the story.
***
Back at the car, were sated and grinning, victorious. Seven days after the storm and weve enjoyed multiple days of untracked powder in terrain anemic Vermont. Wayne shakes his head at the myth.
I laugh when I hear you Western folks fighting and complaining about skin tracks vs. snowshoe tracks with all that terrain available. Whats that all about? Why not just break your own trail and ski your own line?
I just dont have the willpower to argue this simplistic view of the world, the million person city of Seattle seeming so far away. Maybe not every place on this earth is as tranquil as Waynes Valley, but right then, right there, it certainly felt that way.
Yeah, I said, Youre right.
That first shot really takes me back to skiing among the birch glades and the NW Kingdom boys. I showed it to my wife w/o telling her where it is, and she immediately said "Vermont!" Thanks for sharing. After over a decade, the days of 2" of ice over dirt fade in my memory and scenes these are what remain.
Tell Wayne we would have appreciated some lowly snowshoers ahead of us this past Sunday, or even a snowmobile track here and there, w/in less than an hour's drive from Seattle city limits. But alas, it was just us and the snow.
Tell Wayne we would have appreciated some lowly snowshoers ahead of us this past Sunday, or even a snowmobile track here and there, w/in less than an hour's drive from Seattle city limits. But alas, it was just us and the snow.
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