Jay Silveira
New member
This report is a bit late because I had to get back to Montana and collect <BR>all the digital photos for the web page, but now it’s complete. Pictures <BR>are at: <BR> <BR><A HREF="http://www.JandEproductions.com/2003/26DEC03.html" TARGET="_top">http://www.JandEproductions.com/2003/26DEC03.html</A> <BR> <BR>Although we had some potential plans to meet up with SkiVT-L members for <BR>turns in the Mad River Valley, it would have been difficult since we were <BR>already a group of five, and we were waiting for the snowfall totals before <BR>we chose our destination. Sugarbush was our first choice due to the amount <BR>of terrain and expected lack of crowds. However, if the storm fizzled for <BR>the ‘bush, we were open to going somewhere like Jay Peak. When we checked <BR>the snow report early in the morning on the 26th, Sugarbush was already <BR>reporting 6-8 inches, and since Mad River Glen reported 10-12 inches a <BR>little while later, we figured that was a pretty good update for the ‘bush. <BR>Jay Peak had only indicated 12 inches in their morning report, so our <BR>decision was made for Sugarbush. <BR> <BR>We arrived at around 9:00 A.M., and were surprised to find that we were in <BR>only the second bay of parking, just behind the ones for employees and valet <BR>service. Around the base area, it certainly didn’t seem like a holiday <BR>week. The ski racks were hardly filled and there were no ticket lines. <BR>Chris got us four discount tickets, and we hopped on the Super Bravo chair. <BR>The wind was howling, and we were happy that the lifts were still running. <BR> <BR>For a first run we decided on Snowball/Spring Fling, and I think most of the <BR>group had picked it without any discussion. We were certainly on the same <BR>wavelength. As we traversed over to Snowball from the lift, E and I found <BR>that our skis were sticking horribly compared to everyone else’s. It seemed <BR>that we still had some moisture left from our run on Mt. Philo that had <BR>frozen onto the bases. We eventually got over to Snowball and found that <BR>the powder had been worked heavily by the wind. In a few windswept places, <BR>the snow was scoured down to the old crusty material below, but in general <BR>we were on top of plenty of fresh. It was tough to get an estimate of <BR>exactly how much new snow had fallen at this point, but later estimates out <BR>of the winds suggested it was around a foot. Reaching Spring Fling, we <BR>found that the left edge of the trail along the trees was untracked. The <BR>skiing was a little tricky since there were some huge drifts of snow, <BR>sometimes you would be skiing along in the powder and then, WHAM, you’d run <BR>into a waist high drift that would slow you down for a bit. There were also <BR>a few scoured areas here as well, and this forced you to stay on your toes <BR>and anticipate the changes in the surface. <BR> <BR>We knew that Heaven’s Gate wasn’t open, but we were curious if Castlerock <BR>could be opened with the amount of wind that the higher elevations were <BR>getting. To find out, we headed to Downspout, and surprisingly, unlike its <BR>usual crowded, skating rink state, it was deserted. This may have been due <BR>to the fact that there was nothing much to access without Heaven’s Gate <BR>open, but whatever the case, we were able to carve out some huge arcs in the <BR>new powder. A check of Castlerock indicated that it was still closed, so we <BR>decided to check out the Gate House area. We found good snow along the left <BR>side of Waterfall, and got some still pictures. Then someone said, “Hey, <BR>are these woods any good?” to which I replied, “Oh yeah, they should be <BR>great with this amount of snow!” Then we all disappeared into the untracked <BR>Hot Shot woods. The base was certainly deep enough to cover up most of the <BR>underbrush because my line took me all the way to the bottom before I knew <BR>what hit me. In a couple of moments, I saw James make his way down a line <BR>to my left, but no Chris or E. After a few minutes of waiting, I called <BR>Chris on the radio and he indicated that E had caught something in the snow <BR>and run into a tree with her head. That was a shocking thing to hear, but <BR>it was quickly followed up with a “She’s fine”. I guess she had fallen into <BR>a tree with her head, but very lightly, and the delay was due to <BR>reassembling her gear. Thankfully Chris and E got to ski the rest of the <BR>trees and we all got out fine. <BR> <BR>E and I were still sticking to the snow with our skis, so we decided to pick <BR>up some wax at the ski shop to eliminate the problem. Sticks of all-purpose <BR>wax were available for a dollar, and after a quick application, it worked <BR>like a charm. We headed over for another run on the Super Bravo, but found <BR>that it was on wind hold and had to hike up to the Valley House Chair. We <BR>decided on Snowball again, along with some of the Snowball Woods. However, <BR>only James and I hit the entrance into the trees, so we had to catch up with <BR>the rest of the crew below. The powder in the Snowball woods was a bit <BR>heavy, but coverage was good. We then opted for “Little Boy” trail, which <BR>was still untracked, so we worked on matching turns and farming the snow. <BR> <BR>With the upper lifts still on wind hold, we decided that lunch might be a <BR>good option at this point. Since it was a holiday for us, and probably my <BR>only Vermont lift-served day of the season, we decided to hit the Mushroom <BR>House for food. After about two decades of visiting Sugarbush, I’ve still <BR>never eaten there, despite the fact that I’ve always thought that the shape <BR>of the building was so neat. We figured that with the regular prices of ski <BR>area food being what they are, prices for food with table service would be <BR>outrageous. Surprisingly, prices were basically the same as those in the <BR>regular lodge, and we got some really good food. Big burgers with toppings <BR>and a side were about $7, and Dave got the special, which was basically a <BR>huge piece of steak in the form of a sandwich, for around $10. James <BR>laughed about the price, since he’d paid $7.50 last week in the Sugarbush <BR>lodge for an order of fries and a drink. Someone from the group pointed out <BR>that one of the greatest benefits of the meal was that we didn’t have to <BR>struggle to find a place to sit in the lodge (although we never went in the <BR>lodge so we’re not sure what it was like). Only about half the tables at <BR>the Mushroom House had people at them, the atmosphere was very relaxed, and <BR>the service was great. If what we experienced was the norm, I’d recommend <BR>going there if you’re buying your lunch. I’m certainly ready to go again <BR>and check it out next time I’m paying for food at the ‘bush. <BR> <BR>After lunch, the upper lifts were still closed, so we decided it was time to <BR>traverse for powder. I guided the group on a traverse behind Allyn’s Lodge, <BR>which set us up for a good line into the trees between Organgrinder and <BR>Ripcord. I ran a pretty harrowing traverse at times, (mostly for fun) which <BR>was more difficult for those that followed behind and had greater speed once <BR>I’d laid the track. Once we were in the area between Organgrinder and <BR>Ripcord, some of the group lost my line and dove early into the trees, but I <BR>stayed on my traverse and wound up at a great position on barely-tracked <BR>Ripcord. A few other people had skied the trail already, leaving some nice <BR>tracks, but I’d managed to get higher than anyone in the past and got to put <BR>the first track down for about a hundred yards. Below that, the whole group <BR>enjoyed untracked turns almost right down to the bottom of Heaven’s Gate. <BR> <BR>After such great, untracked turns, we all wanted more, and I knew I could <BR>build a traverse that would get us to a line even higher than my previous <BR>run. We came to one of those curious roads in the woods, and while I <BR>started to head through the woods to avoid an uphill traverse, the others <BR>broached the idea of heading up the road to gain some extra vertical. It <BR>was probably a couple hundred yards with 50-100 feet of vertical, but we <BR>could stay on trail all the way. So, up we went, and in the end we wound up <BR>at the bottom of Spillsville, with a ton of untracked vertical below us. My <BR>altimeter was reading 3,125’, so I’m guessing we had about 800’ of vertical <BR>to ski. We took turns making runs in the fresh powder, and got some still <BR>photos of the experience. <BR> <BR>The extra few minutes of hiking were definitely worth it, so we decided to <BR>hit the traverse again. This time, the traverse was really fast after all <BR>of us had packed it down, and at one point, James was ricocheting off trees <BR>because he was running it so quickly. Soon after that though, he tangled <BR>with a small evergreen and fell off the traverse head first into the powder. <BR>He had all of us in stitches as usual. The rest of the traverse went <BR>smoothly, and to try something different, we headed down Lower Paradise. <BR>The first pitch was just an untracked expanse of powder, sculpted into waves <BR>by the wind. E really enjoyed this section, as did the rest of us. The <BR>rest of the trail was excellent as well, although the final steep pitch had <BR>some crazy terrain contours that threw everyone around. E was zipping along <BR>and took a pretty crazy tumble to entertain the rest of us. <BR> <BR>It was after 3:00 and most of us were ready to call it a day, but I <BR>convinced everyone that one more run off the Gate House would be a nice way <BR>to ski right back to the car. We hit Pushover, and conditions were still <BR>excellent. The top section had a few bumps, and the rest of the way was <BR>pleasant cruising among the loose snow. I guess we were pretty lucky though <BR>to catch such a nice powder day on our holiday trip between rain events. It <BR>wasn’t epic due to the compaction by wind and the fact that it was only one <BR>foot, but it was still a great powder day out with friends. It would have <BR>been nice to meet up with Marc Guido the next day, especially if they opened <BR>up all the upper mountain lifts, but alas, we had to catch our ride down to <BR>Erica’s family in Massachusetts. <BR> <BR>Pictures from the day are available at: <BR> <BR><A HREF="http://www.JandEproductions.com/2003/26DEC03.html" TARGET="_top">http://www.JandEproductions.com/2003/26DEC03.html</A> <BR> <BR>J.Spin
