Is Earning Your Turns Overrated?

[highpeaksdrifter]

I’m sure I’ll end up in the minority, but I’m going to say yes.

It sure has the mountain man, he-man thing going for it.
People who do it get a lot of respect for it from those who don’t
You get to ski lines and pow that nobody else does
Peace, quite and solitude of the wilderness
Great exercise

Even with all that said this is why I think it’s overrated:

You spend most of the day hiking and not skiing
I know guys who do it so I have people I could go with. In the High Peaks of the ADKs where I ski there is arguably the most choice of options in the East.

I love slack country skiing (Slides at Whiteface for example), and I like to hike. I hike from May – Oct. I do want to finally do Tucks this April. I guess I want to ski more then hike so I stick to lift served.

 

[SKIQUATTRO]

better than being inside watching football..doing anything outside is worth a high five....kudos to them, if i lived up there, i'd be doing it!!!

 

[JimG.]

I look at it this way...if you live 2 hours or closer to any of the places where we have seen trip reports so far this year, it is certainly not overrated. I'd be out there myself no doubt.

If you live 3 or 4 hours away, you have a decision to make. If it's closer to 3 hours, I'd debate it but would wind up going skiing. If it's closer to 4 hours, probably not skiing unless conditions are out of the ordinary (see Stowe trip reports this year).

4 hours or more away is a no brainer...way overrated. Not worth the long drive.

 

[SkiDork]

better than being inside watching football..doing anything outside is worth a high five....kudos to them, if i lived up there, i'd be doing it!!!

 

[andyzee]

It depends on the conditions. I did it last weekend at K and conditions weren't the best, but it was still nice being up there and being on snow. Hiked up Superstar May of 2005 and the skiing was great. In each case turns were limited, but depends on your pespective. If you look at it as skiing, well yeah, 1 or 2 slides down the mountain may suck. But if you look at it as hiking, well a hike up to the peak of a mountain is plenty good and your reward for hiking up, ski down!

 

[kingdom-tele]

guess it depends on what you value that given day, some days you value and appreciate the laps of powder you get from a chairlift, some days you appreciate and value being able stop and listen to the woods instead of the goof in the liftline, but overrated is awfully harsh, probably underrated in my opinion, then again touring for turns has never been about counting powder turns or doing for the "he-man" stigma (if you met me you would quickly realize how untrue that is), its about going where the lift isn't or isn't turning yet, sunrise on jay (with or without powder), deep woods glades, touring to town, following animal tracks, and probably the most important having an adventure with best of friends. If hammering out vert is you game then enjoy, but don't avoid the tour or skin because the ratio or hike to turns is poor, ski a little slower, or make more turns if it matters, but get out and go -

besides think of how long the hike down would have taken between may and oct.

KT

 

[awf170]

I really think that you need to think about it in a different way. It is not all about the skiing. You can't think that or you will not like. I like hiking and will drive 2.5 to 3 hours to hike in the summer. Hiking for turns you get the best part of the hike(the uphill) and you get to skip the horrible downhill part. Also, I love being outside in nature, and I love to skin. Skinning is so much more fun the hiking IMO.


Edit: Crap, you dorks beat me to it!

 

[2knees]

I wouldnt say overrated or underrated. Its all up to the individual. If i lived in the base terminal of jays' tram, i still dont know if i'd be into it. But for those who do hike, i say have at it.

 

[highpeaksdrifter]

better than being inside watching football..doing anything outside is worth a high five....kudos to them, if i lived up there, i'd be doing it!!!

I never suggested staying inside and watching TV as an alternative. I was comparing it to lift serviced skiing.

I did it last weekend at K and conditions weren't the best,

I've done it at Whiteface too, when the lifts weren't runnung yet. I was thinking BC.

, but overrated is awfully harsh

In no way was I trying to be harsh. I have the upmost respect for those who like it.

 

[JimG.]

I've done it at Whiteface too, when the lifts weren't runnung yet. I was thinking BC.

I thought you were limiting your comment to pre-opening hiking, before any resorts open up. My initial response made that assumption.

After seeing further comments, I do not feel that BC hiking is overrated. I would have to agree wholeheartedly with both kingdom-tele and Austin...it's an excellent change of pace from lift served sking and it provides a rush that is totally different.

 

[awf170]

Since we're already talking about earning your turns... who would be in for some sort of backcountry gathering this year? I was thinking of something like Cardigan when/if the snow gets good(probably around febuary). Also, maybe some trips up to Hojo's for an easy first time without any touring gear at all trip. I would be down for either one almost any sunday this winter, or any saturday as long as I have a few weeks of notice.

 

[rogue rider]

I think kingdom-tele summed it up well. It is all about your perspective and what you are into. For me, the powder factor plays a huge roll. I would take lift serviced powder over hiking for pow but if it comes down to lapping skied off groomers or hiking for a few euphoric runs in untracked blower, my preference would be to hike.

 

[SkiDork]

trees for pow.

 

[thebigo]

I have only truly 'earned my turns' once but when i made the decision last weekend, my thought was that I was going to spend much of the day exercising anyway so why not give it a shot.

My thought process was I could either run on the street for a couple hours (do that 5 days a week), hike a small local hill (done that more times than i can count) or get into some new variety of exercise for the day. I chose the new type of exercise and Im gald I did because it worked muscles that otherwise never get worked and gave me a cardio workout unlike any other activity.

The experience was almost theraputic. Last week I was angry about the delayed season and even found myself being short with coworkers praising the warm temps. This week the anger is gone, its almost as if I have control over my recreation now rather than a faceless business or the unpredictability of the weather.

For me my first experience was definitely worth it, the question is whether its worth another shot at the glades this weekend.

Edit: I thought you were referring to early season hiking. I cant comment on in season hiking.

 

[kingdom-tele]

HPD- no offense taken, you had made it clear you have and would do it again, and the offer extends to anyone if their in the kingdom, i will gladly go with you, just wanted to convey to anyone who hasn't toured for turns to not jump to a conclusion that hiking for a few turns is all there is, the whole experience is the key.

 

[highpeaksdrifter]

I wouldnt say overrated or underrated.

You're right, I phrased it wrong. I should have thought about it more and asked hike or lift which do you perfer and why?

 

[snoseek]

I say ski lift served midweek, and hike for powder on the weekends.

 

[salida]

probably the most important having an adventure with best of friends.

I could not agree more!

 

[koreshot]

Since we're already talking about earning your turns... who would be in for some sort of backcountry gathering this year? I was thinking of something like Cardigan when/if the snow gets good(probably around febuary). Also, maybe some trips up to Hojo's for an easy first time without any touring gear at all trip. I would be down for either one almost any sunday this winter, or any saturday as long as I have a few weeks of notice.

Seconded. Somewhere in the adks would be very niiiice.

 

[salida]

Since we're already talking about earning your turns... who would be in for some sort of backcountry gathering this year? I was thinking of something like Cardigan when/if the snow gets good(probably around febuary). Also, maybe some trips up to Hojo's for an easy first time without any touring gear at all trip. I would be down for either one almost any sunday this winter, or any saturday as long as I have a few weeks of notice.

I might be down... In all honesty, I don't like traveling in too large of a group though, it always presents issues. Not to rake on the commradery of AZ or an AZ backcountry group, as this would be more of enjoyable gathering than a superfoulous day in the mountains pushing for some high and mighty goal, so maybe group size wouldn't be an issue anyways.