Hot Gatorade

Although four hours each way seems like a long way to drive, there is no doubt it is worth the trek.

Looking back, most of the pictures I took on my iPhone appear super blurry on Tumblr. It's a shame, cause they aren't terrible shots normally. I suppose it's extra motivation to ski with my Nikon.

Did some awesome storm skiing at Killington. Here's a shot of Bruce charging down Ovation and myself and Sam Snyder being stoked on the fresh turns we were getting all morning.

Got away from the crowds and did the classic Killington-Pico-Killington tour with some good friends this weekend.

Mad River Glen might be the most fun place to ski in the world. Cameron was a real champ as I made him hike up to ski powder so I could get those first two shots.

I led a five day backcountry ski leader training for the Green Mtn College Adventure Program. These are the only pictures I took on the trip, and they are not very representative of the skiing and touring that we did. We stayed at Pico Cabin for two nights and did some resort skiing since there was no backcountry terrain in the east coast. It was a fun trip and an awesome start to my last semester of college.

We drove all day to a friend's house in Northern Vermont where, big surprise, more rain came from the sky, ruining our hopes of good conditions.

Here is a picture of the last pitch on "The Dip" at Jay Peak. It was my first time off the back side of the resort and it was awesome, to say the least. The rest of the ski area was firm and icy, but this run was soft and fun.

Casey drops his heel on a closed trail at Killington. Royal Flush is always one of my favorite runs to ski in the early season. It's steep and grassy, meaning that we can slide our skis on it pretty much regardless of the conditions. Hell ya!!!

http://marquette-backcountry.com/

This slide off of Mt Colden is unnamed, to my knowledge. It is also very difficult to get to, which is why I don't feel bad posting pictures of it. It is an amazing run, offering sustained, steep sections of fine Adirondack skiing. If you're going to the high peaks, I recommend this one. It was created by Hurricane Irene just a few years ago, so it is narrow and presents plenty of fun features (rocks, stumps, cliff bands, etc.). These photos were taken by Bruce.

One of the better known and more popular backcountry slides in the Adirondack Park, Angel Slide does not disappoint. The snow was surprisingly light and powdery, considering we were expecting a suncrust.

We enjoyed a few pints at the Lake Placid Brewery before falling asleep on a friend's couch.

I led a trip to the Black Mtn Cabin in New Hampshire last weekend. The shelter is a four-walled, poorly insulated, rustic log cabin that was built by the CCC in the late 1920s. There are eight bunks, a small woodstove, and a picnic table. The skies were blue and the snow was soft. The ski trail down Black Mountain has a true 1920s feel to it. You can forget about switchbacks. It is steep, wide, and littered with water bars, logs, and rocks. It presents a fun challenge to intermediate skiers and snowboards, but it is perhaps a little to much for the novice. This isn't anything like a Colorado hut trip. It is skiing the way it ought to be.

Spent St. Patrick's Day getting lost somewhere in Mendon, Vermont looking for some illegally cut ski trails. Although I don't personally trim, I will gladly ski the trails that other people cut. Me and Bruce had a great time flopping around through steep powder in search of these runs.

The Mad River Glen Telemark Ski Festival went off this past weekend with beautiful blue skies and soft bumps. It was a pleasure to be surrounded by so many other free-heelers demoing the season's best equipment.