Category: February

2020-2021 Season, Earned Turns, February, Tenney Mountain

More Mellow

Eclipse Triple

No sense in burying the lead chronologically: When I got home, my partner asked me “how was the skiing?” I replied that it was better than staying home all day and watching YouTube. That sums up a day at Tenney; it honestly is better than than doing nothing.

I was just happy to be outside. I waited until temperatures reached double digit temperatures, which meant a late start. But not too late, as temperatures would eventually rise to near the freezing point. The mountain was quite active with at least a half dozen turn earners, plus some snowshoers, snowmobiles, families, and snow tubers.

Sweet William

The snow was a mix of wind blown soft pack and groomed. Did the owner groom a non-operating ski area again? It seemed like less flora was sticking up through the snow. I was not going to be skiing untracked, so the grooming did not bother me. I did not come for the snow conditions.

I made fast time to the summit and decided to ski the northern side of the mountain. Sunflower and Sweet William provide the most prolonged pitches at Tenney. I skied Sunflower and then skinned up Venus Fly Trap and hit Sweet William. Both trails have some identity, and thankfully lack the mishmash of never ending junctions characteristic of Tenney’s jumbled trail network. I finished the day off with a short hike to the top of the Triple.

I am probably all set with Tenney for a while.

Sweet William

2020-2021 Season, Earned Turns, February, Powder Day, Tenney Mountain

Embracing the Mellow

Shooting Star

It has been seven years (almost to the day) since my last time skiing Tenney. Despite living less than twenty minutes from the semi-lost area, I have only earned turns at Tenney five times in fourteen seasons. One might think that Tenney would be an ideal mountain to harvest days old untracked powder. But anything more than a few inches of dense snow will stop you in your un-tracks.

Recent snowfall suggested that a few inches of dense was exactly what I could expect. And base depths in the region were finally sufficient. But much to my chagrin, the management had seen fit to groom most of the mountain despite not being open. I was puzzled by this at first. But later, I reasoned that the condo association might help pay for the grooming given the amount of turn earners and the active outdoor community in the village. Maybe?

Forget Me Not

I made quick work of the first ascent and opted for mellow meadow skipping down Shooting Star, which was ungroomed but tracked up. It wasn’t much to write home about; but it was powder skiing. Near the base area, I applied my skins and pointed my skis straight up Morning Glory, where I briefly used the stiletto position on my heel raisers. Shocking that such a pitch exists at Tenney.

After topping out again, I headed for Forget Me Not. The trail had been mercifully groomed since my last outing, which literally required swimming through ten foot tall saplings. The final pitch was nice but not yet completely filled in. That dumped me into Snap Dragon which was enjoyable, until I found the only part of the mountain not yet opened back up by the new management. It was adventurous skiing, I did not regret it.

2019-2020 Season, February, Jay Peak, Powder Day

Last Day of the Season

The Bonnie

Staircase

It is pretty rare that I can say that my last day of the season was my best day of the season. If I had to end my season early, at least I picked the right day for it.

I do not have a record of the last time my season ended this early. My online reports date back to 1998-1999. The prior two years I took off from skiing to pursue other activities in college. The last time that I did not ski in March or April, I was a teenager.

This was my 22nd day of the season, my highest number of ski days in six years despite missing the ending half of the season. Something profound changed in my life this season. I hope you enjoyed reading about that change. I hope it reflected in my writing. I hope you find the thing that you want to change in your life and begin the process. For me, the journey continues. But my head is so far out of the fog that I can’t even remember what the fog felt like. For which I am thankful.

I have a lot to say about how the season ended. And I don’t mean about how my season ended or this particularly day at Jay. I don’t even mean to specifically write about the end of the ski season. But rather to use the inevitable season ending as a lens to inspect heuristics and cognitive biases on a societal scale.

It is surely beyond me, but I am going to give it a try.

More later. Right now, there is so much to digest, process and synthesize.

2019-2020 Season, February, Mount Washington

Ladders

Mount Washington

Mount Monroe

We should not imagine Sisyphus happy on his never ending journey up and down his ladder. Meaning is only an illusion. But yet, it is a critical part of our never ending ascent. Whether we actually believe that it is relevant or not relevant, meaning still seems to be of benefit to us (even if it is hollow).

Unknowing embrace of illusion is most peoples’ natural state. Knowingly embracing disillusions is the challenge of my adult life. Is it necessary that we fake ourselves into false beliefs? Belief itself is not important but rather it is the act of believing itself that seems to matter. Perhaps joyful irony can carry us forward?

Jacob's Ladder

Jacob's Ladder

Meaning is irrelevant. Instead of searching for it, what we need is to find a steady rung. Pause. Take it all in and be satisfied for a brief and calming moment. Allow the bewilderment to carry us up another rung; centering ourselves in momentary clarity amid the chaos.

Stepping up the ladder is necessary but vapid. Embracing this moment is joy. Content acceptance of the absurd should be rightly and mightily railed against. I shall never be satisfied pushing my rock up the mountain. But there is so much happiness to be found within that dissatisfaction.

Bretton Woods from Mount Washington

Cog Railway

2019-2020 Season, Cannon Mountain, February

Gullies & Glades

Cannon Gully

Three vacation week days after the powder day, I was doubtful that I would find much untracked remaining. But I was up for a scouting challenge. I pushed the northern and southern boundaries in search of any remaining untracked turns in some of the mountain’s most choice terrain.

After a few warm up runs in the upper mountain glades, I dropped into a remote off map gully. Was it even good to go? I opted for the lower entrance which was a safer option. The cut in had been hit hard and was quite bony. But turns in the gully were fantastic packed powder. It was the most challenging terrain I had skied so far this season and it showed in my exertion.

Things got a bit hairy down low. The untracked snow had setup poorly and packed powder was actually preferable due to more predictable feedback. As the gully choked down at lower elevations, it was apparent that things were not quite completely filled. The inevitable respite came eventually.

Cannon Trees

On to the opposite side of the massif. I found occasional untracked turns and fabulous snow in the higher elevations. But the lower elevation trees featured the same poorly setup snow as the earlier gully. I turned my skis into the packed down snow when possible. It was absolutely worth the effort, but not worth a second lap.

The holiday weekend crowds finally arrived around noontime, so I made my way back to Valley Station (where I found a two or three tram wait!) to end my day.