Stepping into Winter

I always look forward to the moment when I first step into the snow. It gives me a line on what to expect from the ski days ahead.

storm-skiing-at-gore
Storm Skiing

On Tuesday, I was surprised by what I found. That first step into the snow step was soft-ish, with just a hint of crunch. Ten inches of compressed snow remained from the last liquid event and it didn’t feel super saturated. Of course it was just above freezing.

Now, I know the Almaguin Highlands guys don’t ski the pipeline before it sets, but that’s not how we roll down here on Christian Hill. If it’s skiable we’ll hit it, consequences be damned.

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Plattekill Opens All Natural

For the second time in nearly 25 years, Plattekill opened the season with 100% terrain and all natural snow. If you were there, it sure felt like an historic occasion.

plattekill opening day 2016

I set my alarm for 4am, Catskill Standard Time.  As soon as I looked out the window, I knew I was on the wrong side of the clock. There was an inch on my car and it was snowing hard at 20 degrees.

When traveling to Plattekill, my goal is to arrive by 8:10.  This gives me a chance to say hello, and still make first chair. Realizing that snow in the flatlands would add time to the drive, I left at 4:30 am, even earlier than planned, to try to make up some time.

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Windham: Get ’em Going

My kids don’t exactly object to getting out of bed early. It’s more like they’re incapable of functioning without precise guidance before 8am. Each insulating layer requires new instructions. Putting on socks does not, apparently, imply that shoes should follow.

In spite of this, we made good time up the Thruway on Sunday. We arrived at Windham, parked, grabbed our gear and jumped on the shuttle bus. I left the kids to boot up while I got our lift tickets.

Junior made it to Hunter’s opening day with me, but Sunday was my 10 year old’s first day of the season. He’s stepping up to a longer pair of skis this year, so we got on D-lift, a fixed grip triple to start out mellow. The little grom did great but I noticed he was skiing really slowly.

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