Stowe's Nose Dive 4/28

[powderfreak]

After working for the last four bluebird days, I was itching to get out and
make some turns. This is the first week since Thanksgiving that I've only
gone skiing twice. Alex Friend and I met in the Midway lot at 930am, hoping
to get up and back before the rain moved in. It was Alex's birthday today
and decided the office could wait. I like that mentality.

Today was day 100 for me and day 45 for Alex...milestones for both of us.
Warm weather and sunshine has done a number on the mountain in the past
week. Mansfield had lost another couple feet and now we are down to mostly
ribbons amid larger patches. We were still able to skin directly from the
Crossover/Nosedive intersection all the way up to where Nosedive ends at the
Toll Road...2,100 vertical feet higher.

On the skin up, here's a view of National.
http://tinyurl.com/43n4nn

Lower Nosedive was 95% covered, due to snowmaking earlier in the
season...here's Alex skinning up the lower section with the greening golf
course in the background.
http://tinyurl.com/4kg2cq

In the shambles (middle section) the coverage was limited. Luckily they had
groomed a swath for us, making for very enjoyable skinning.
http://tinyurl.com/3njgxj

Then we saw something I have never seen in person. As we were approaching
the Cliff Trail intersection with Nosedive, a large mangy canine trotted out
of the Goatdive woods, across Nosedive, and went up Cliff Trail. It looked
like a 80-100lb German Sheppard but was 90% gray...must've been a well-fed
coyote, maybe a hybrid canine of some sort as it looked twice as large as an
average 40-50lb coyote. For the most part, it looked like something that
should be roaming a northern boreal forest or the Canadian tundra instead of
Vermont.

The upper pitch of Nosedive above the racing shack was shrouded in clouds,
which I'm not used to seeing in the daytime anymore. Wind and clouds were
moving through on the upper mountain, but the rain was holding off.
Alex moving up into the void.
http://tinyurl.com/3hmbp2

We reached the foggy top in a little over an hour. On the skin up, mist and
drizzle on the upper switchbacks turned to larger, steady raindrops as we
de-skinned and guzzled some water. Now it was time to ski and milk all
possible turns down to the base...stopping only to savor the descent and
take a few shots.
Alex in the middle section, which required short radius turns down the
bowling alley.
http://tinyurl.com/4j6tnv
http://tinyurl.com/4g8b36
Trading off the camera...ribbon skiing is becoming the name of the game.
http://tinyurl.com/5y56dz
http://tinyurl.com/3rsjel

After cruising right down to Crossover, we were only left with a 60 second
stroll past the Midway lodge to our cars as the heavens opened up. Perfect
timing and yet another day of making turns down Mansfield.

On the way out, I snapped this shot of what's left on Gondolier and Perry
Merrill...Chin Clip is completely melted out. You could still make it down
Gondolier pretty easily, especially if you don't mind grass/mud skipping 5
foot sections. I doubt this stuff will last too much longer, though the
colder 40-degree weather may keep it skiable through this week.
http://tinyurl.com/4zppau

Its been a great season and growing up I've always dreamed of 100-day
seasons, now I know what one is like...its a five day a week full-time job
doing what we all love to do: slide down a mountain through the snow.

-Scott

[campgottagopee]

Too bad you didn't get any pix of that K-9. Maybe a Wolf????

[hardline]

its amazing how much snow melted of this past 10 days.

[GrilledSteezeSandwich]

Nice pics...serious stoke..and yeah..holy meltage since 420

[Newpylong]

Boy that looks terrible, lol.