On Sunday, my buddy Mike and I decided to give the Cog a shot. After hearing about a spacious, wide trail, and nearly direct route to the summit, this adventure was high on my list.
We hit the parking lot around 8:30am. I have no idea why they plow the road and parking lot, but am really glad they do. It allows for a really good starting point. It was about 10 degrees to start, and despite some seriously high temps last week, even the snow at the parking lot was light and powdery. We instantly knew that we were in for something good.
We headed up, me skinning and Mike on foot in ski boots. He sometimes would sink knee or hip deep in the snow, but he was generally good if he stayed on the boot pack. As we started to ascend, I could not believe how wide the trail was next to the rail. In the lower part of it, the trail was even on both sides. I'm guessing the trail serves as an access road in the warmer months. Most of the time it's right beside the rail, sometimes there is a line of trees separating the two. In any case, it's about 20' wide most of the time. It was however, truly disappointing to see the pipes for snow making along the lower portions of the trail. I had no idea that this existed. It kind of took away from the BC feeling but whatever. I assume they don't use them until the Cog opens.
We made really good time for the first half of the climb. Mike struggled a bit on one portion where the boot pack overlapped on the rails. The snow kept giving away underfoot, and his leg would plunge down between the railroad tides. We realized that snow shoes really would have made a big improvement for him. Mike threw in his crampons, cut over to the trail and we were off again.
As the sun got high enough to hit us, we were down to t-shirts. It was amazing weather. However, as we left tree line, we were cooling down quickly. Eventually, it gets too steep for skinning, and we were both using crampons. You could do it without, but they were really nice to have. Now, moving more slowly, and feeling the wind, I was fully layered up.
Although the appeal of skiing was diminishing with elevation, we decided to summit because the weather was acceptable. The temp at the top was about 0 degrees and I the winds were forecasted to be in the 30's with higher gusts. It was pretty intense for the final 1/10th mile to the summit as expected but it was well worth it. We moved slowly and carefully without issue. We snapped a few photos and headed down immediately.
On the way down, we put on our skis less than a quarter mile from the top. The skiing wasn't amazing at first but we could make much faster progress than on foot and it was nice being on our edges. I could easily see the potential up there after a big snow storm, but most of it was blown off (blowing in the direction on Tuck's!). The Cog itself always retained a snow drift along side it which was great. There were a few short sections that we had to take off skis for, but as we descended, the conditions quickly turned from packed powder to powder with plenty of room for turns. We enjoyed the long ski down the to the lot and loved the fact that we could ski right to the car. The trail wasn't all bumped up and had tons of snow. Epic day. Sorry no pictures this time.
11 March 2014
03 March 2014
Mt. Hancock, NH (Arrow Slide) - March 1, 2014
Osgood and I headed up to Mt. Hancock/Arrow Slide for some exploring this past Saturday. NH received lots of snow over Valentine's Day weekend and the following week, but some rain on February 21 and 22 coupled with truly freezing temperatures the week of February 24 locked everything down pretty solid.
We discussed a few options - Mt. Washington received lots of snow the week of Feb. 24 with strong west winds, setting up some potentially great conditions on the east snow fields. But sub zero temperatures and 50-60 mph winds on Saturday scared us away. We talked about a repeat trip to Tripyramid (North facing slide) and checking out Mt. Hancock for the first time (south facing slide). Both received minimal snow fall during the week, and their respective aspects made it unlikely any significant loading occured on top of the boiler plate. We chose Mt. Hancock because it was new, and because it was south facing, and we hoped that might help it soften up a bit.
We discussed a few options - Mt. Washington received lots of snow the week of Feb. 24 with strong west winds, setting up some potentially great conditions on the east snow fields. But sub zero temperatures and 50-60 mph winds on Saturday scared us away. We talked about a repeat trip to Tripyramid (North facing slide) and checking out Mt. Hancock for the first time (south facing slide). Both received minimal snow fall during the week, and their respective aspects made it unlikely any significant loading occured on top of the boiler plate. We chose Mt. Hancock because it was new, and because it was south facing, and we hoped that might help it soften up a bit.
11 February 2014
Mt. Ascutney - February 9, 2014
After most of New England received close to a foot of snow on Wednesday, February 5, there was little question we would head out this weekend. The question was - where? Given the lack of snow so far this year, most of my outings have been confined to resorts or the mellow slopes of Mt. Cardigan. I was eager to climb something a bit bigger and actually find some fresh snow.
Chad and I gave serious consideration to a few options, including laps in the woods off the Tuckerbrook trail now that Mittersill was (questionably) open or exploring some of the woods off of Lincoln Gap road. Ultimately, we lacked confidence that there was enough of a base under the trees, however. We also were surprised there was not more intel on the T4T forums about the quality of snow in the GOS following the mid-week storm. The combination of moderate avalanche concerns following high winds on Saturday and lack of excitement over that option on the world wide web had me questioning the merits of a 6 hour round trip drive just to ski the GOST without getting up high.
So we settled on Mt. Ascutney, an abandoned ski area just west of Claremont, NH. Although there is a cool network of mountain biking trails on a different face of the mountain that may have offered some more technical skiing, we stuck to the abandoned ski slopes figuring they had the best chance to have enough snow to allow for some pow turns.
As the pictures and video below attest - we were mostly right. The sapling growth after three years was impressive though, and definitely a deterent on the more sun-exposed slopes. At this rate, these slopes will be tough to navigate in another year or two, which is definitely too bad because it makes for a nice little tour when the conditions are not epic.
Chad and I gave serious consideration to a few options, including laps in the woods off the Tuckerbrook trail now that Mittersill was (questionably) open or exploring some of the woods off of Lincoln Gap road. Ultimately, we lacked confidence that there was enough of a base under the trees, however. We also were surprised there was not more intel on the T4T forums about the quality of snow in the GOS following the mid-week storm. The combination of moderate avalanche concerns following high winds on Saturday and lack of excitement over that option on the world wide web had me questioning the merits of a 6 hour round trip drive just to ski the GOST without getting up high.
So we settled on Mt. Ascutney, an abandoned ski area just west of Claremont, NH. Although there is a cool network of mountain biking trails on a different face of the mountain that may have offered some more technical skiing, we stuck to the abandoned ski slopes figuring they had the best chance to have enough snow to allow for some pow turns.
As the pictures and video below attest - we were mostly right. The sapling growth after three years was impressive though, and definitely a deterent on the more sun-exposed slopes. At this rate, these slopes will be tough to navigate in another year or two, which is definitely too bad because it makes for a nice little tour when the conditions are not epic.
23 September 2013
Millstone Trails, Vermont - September 14th, 2013
Seven of us traveled up to Millstone Trails in East Barre, VT on September 14, 2013. These VT mountain biking trips are a bit of a haul, but it is worth it once or twice a year to try some cool new terrain (or in my case, to watch people who are actually good at mountain biking try some cool new terrain).
Millstone is on the site of a huge network of quarries, which makes for some spectacular scenery while riding. On a warmer day, it would also be a great place to do some ledge jumping/swimming. Within the last few years, Millstone has invested quite a bit of money in developing a "second half" to its existing trail network, and this new half has lots of cool descents and other interesting features. And lots and lots of rock. The old network is pretty solid too, but more consistent with what you might find in Exeter, NH or Mt. A. in Maine.
Anyway, enjoy the photos and video (including a bonus video of Scott doing a clean run around a trail called Vortex). Clearly need to improve the camera angle going forward for these mountain bike posts, but we'll get there eventually. Also - credit where credit is due - thanks to Josh for a number of these pictures, his came out much better than the ones I took.
Millstone is on the site of a huge network of quarries, which makes for some spectacular scenery while riding. On a warmer day, it would also be a great place to do some ledge jumping/swimming. Within the last few years, Millstone has invested quite a bit of money in developing a "second half" to its existing trail network, and this new half has lots of cool descents and other interesting features. And lots and lots of rock. The old network is pretty solid too, but more consistent with what you might find in Exeter, NH or Mt. A. in Maine.
Anyway, enjoy the photos and video (including a bonus video of Scott doing a clean run around a trail called Vortex). Clearly need to improve the camera angle going forward for these mountain bike posts, but we'll get there eventually. Also - credit where credit is due - thanks to Josh for a number of these pictures, his came out much better than the ones I took.
(shockingly, I made it down this ramp)
16 September 2013
Iceland - 2013
Fortunate to travel to Iceland with Kelly for our August vacation. What a trip. Most August vacations center around a relaxing beach vacation. We decided to mix things up and spend a week in a country where there was a legitimate chance it would rain every single day and a 100% chance that it wouldn't break 65 degrees at any point. Consider it a risk well worth taking!
Iceland is a spectacular country, and when the sun is shining, its hard to imagine a place with more breathtaking views. Mountains, fields, cliffs, waterfalls, geysers, and black sand beaches at every turn. And lots of sheep hanging out dangerously close to a dangerously narrow road. As if I wasn't nervous enough learning how to drive stick!
We also met some really friendly people, including an Icelandic tour guide on his day off, and a guy and a gal who were both biking around the perimeter of Iceland over the course of 40 days. What a trip that would have been. I would love to go back again. I'd probably pass on the 40 day bike ride, but a multi-day hike through the highlands would be spectacular. And, of course, just about every mountain in the whole country is composed of perfect, wide open 35-40 degree slopes. Perfect for skinning up and ripping down.
Anyway, words really cannot due this country justice. So instead, I'll simply leave you with a few pictures and a 17 minute video. I know - the video is too long. But there was just so much good footage. No expectation that anyone watches the whole thing, but if you do, I think you'll be glad you did. And you might even book a flight to Iceland for yourself before its over.
Iceland is a spectacular country, and when the sun is shining, its hard to imagine a place with more breathtaking views. Mountains, fields, cliffs, waterfalls, geysers, and black sand beaches at every turn. And lots of sheep hanging out dangerously close to a dangerously narrow road. As if I wasn't nervous enough learning how to drive stick!
We also met some really friendly people, including an Icelandic tour guide on his day off, and a guy and a gal who were both biking around the perimeter of Iceland over the course of 40 days. What a trip that would have been. I would love to go back again. I'd probably pass on the 40 day bike ride, but a multi-day hike through the highlands would be spectacular. And, of course, just about every mountain in the whole country is composed of perfect, wide open 35-40 degree slopes. Perfect for skinning up and ripping down.
Anyway, words really cannot due this country justice. So instead, I'll simply leave you with a few pictures and a 17 minute video. I know - the video is too long. But there was just so much good footage. No expectation that anyone watches the whole thing, but if you do, I think you'll be glad you did. And you might even book a flight to Iceland for yourself before its over.
My faithful hiking boots. 2000-2013. RIP in Iceland.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)