Date(s) Skied: March 9, 2011
Resort or Ski Area: Middlebury College Snow Bowl
Conditions: P/MG
Weather: Windy and temps in the 20's.
2011 Trip #: 30
Trip Report: Santa brought me a set of skins and BCA Trekker Binding Adapters so that I could begin doing some alpine touring. In particular for ski areas that are closed in the spring or when the lifts aren't turning. This was my first spin on them and though at my house, at about 550 feet above sea level, it was calm, the winds were tearing at the base of the Snow Bowl, about 1,800 feet above sea level.
As you can imagine, at 6:30 there was a large crowd:
I got the gear ready to go in the wind:
And voila. The Head Monster 76's are converted into an AT set-up:
I stepped in and began to head up Allen. About ten steps into the trip my right boot pre-released. Turns out that when I had adjusted the Trekkers in January I must have not tested them in the bindings well enough. One was just too small for the bindings. Well, no need to fear at a ski area that is run by and for nerds like me (hey, we have a library and study room in the lodge!) there was a work bench outside with tools ready. I made some adjustments and set off again.
By and large I had no problem ascending Allen, but it was very weird going up hill with traction on a pair of downhill skis! Some pitches were just a bit too step for me right now, so I made it about 2/3 the way up and honestly the wind was so bad that I was not missing much at the summit.
My headlamp provided some light on this cloudy night:
Well, maybe not...that is the Worth Mountain Triple.
The snowfencing helped give me a point of reference on the trail's edge:
Attack of the nerds
I began my descent:
The snow on Allen was pretty windswept, but it was soft and I made some nice turns. I will admit that skiing with a headlamp did not work so great...my body was so disoriented.
At the bottom I headed over to the Sheehan Double side and skinned up underneath it hoping to find some more sheltered snow and a slightly easier climb. It was about 8pm at this point and I was tired.
Can you see the chair?
I skinned up all but the final pitch when the snow and pitch made the climbing tough. Yep, snow was plentiful here:
The descent was nice and soft, but I did notice that there was a firmer base underneath that prevented me from getting pure "powder" turns per se. It seemed clear that they got some icing in the last storm.
Skiing after work solo on a Wednesday night? Lots of fun.
And nice to ski my alma mater. I majored in skiing during my years, with a specialty in Sugarbush
Not a bad first AT outing, even if it is kind of gaper style, but heck, it works for me! I plan to do some outings, like at Pico, after work in the evening hours as the days get longer. The bugs are worked out and this dry run was lots of fun.
Resort or Ski Area: Middlebury College Snow Bowl
Conditions: P/MG
Weather: Windy and temps in the 20's.
2011 Trip #: 30
Trip Report: Santa brought me a set of skins and BCA Trekker Binding Adapters so that I could begin doing some alpine touring. In particular for ski areas that are closed in the spring or when the lifts aren't turning. This was my first spin on them and though at my house, at about 550 feet above sea level, it was calm, the winds were tearing at the base of the Snow Bowl, about 1,800 feet above sea level.
As you can imagine, at 6:30 there was a large crowd:
I got the gear ready to go in the wind:
And voila. The Head Monster 76's are converted into an AT set-up:
I stepped in and began to head up Allen. About ten steps into the trip my right boot pre-released. Turns out that when I had adjusted the Trekkers in January I must have not tested them in the bindings well enough. One was just too small for the bindings. Well, no need to fear at a ski area that is run by and for nerds like me (hey, we have a library and study room in the lodge!) there was a work bench outside with tools ready. I made some adjustments and set off again.
By and large I had no problem ascending Allen, but it was very weird going up hill with traction on a pair of downhill skis! Some pitches were just a bit too step for me right now, so I made it about 2/3 the way up and honestly the wind was so bad that I was not missing much at the summit.
My headlamp provided some light on this cloudy night:
Well, maybe not...that is the Worth Mountain Triple.
The snowfencing helped give me a point of reference on the trail's edge:
Attack of the nerds
I began my descent:
The snow on Allen was pretty windswept, but it was soft and I made some nice turns. I will admit that skiing with a headlamp did not work so great...my body was so disoriented.
At the bottom I headed over to the Sheehan Double side and skinned up underneath it hoping to find some more sheltered snow and a slightly easier climb. It was about 8pm at this point and I was tired.
Can you see the chair?
I skinned up all but the final pitch when the snow and pitch made the climbing tough. Yep, snow was plentiful here:
The descent was nice and soft, but I did notice that there was a firmer base underneath that prevented me from getting pure "powder" turns per se. It seemed clear that they got some icing in the last storm.
Skiing after work solo on a Wednesday night? Lots of fun.
And nice to ski my alma mater. I majored in skiing during my years, with a specialty in Sugarbush
Not a bad first AT outing, even if it is kind of gaper style, but heck, it works for me! I plan to do some outings, like at Pico, after work in the evening hours as the days get longer. The bugs are worked out and this dry run was lots of fun.
