back on moose mountain, "whoppin' and hollerin'!" with noah

the day: a week ago, the 27th, a beautiful day in the neighborhood! it was in the teens when we left the house, but the sun was out and it was bound to get warmer...

the adventure: noah--a new skier from north carolina--and i, went up wolfeboro road, to the AT and south peak on moose mountain, for his biggest backcountry experience to date. the snow was still soft enough to turn without too much of a struggle.

i have been up there a few times this year and as mentioned in the last goap! post, the coverage is great and few people ski it. i was aiming to take noah over to our stash we call the 'secret sherbie'--named for the sherburne ski trail down mt washington from tuckermans ravine. that was if the sun didn't turn the fluff into what is sometimes called 'wet cement.'

the memories: it was definitely the day to go out. only where the sun was shining on the snow, it was indeed getting softer. while it wasn't quite wet cement, it was thickening up and heavy enough to make turning in the deep real work. check out the chunky snow kicked up in a turn noah caught in a picture coming down a south facing slope from north peak. 

noah is really getting the hang of backcountry skiing. the AT trail coming down from south peak, was packed out by snowshoers. to keep our speeds safe, we often went 'off trail'. more than once, i heard a good bit of "whoopin' and hollerin'!" from his direction.

luckily, the 'secret sherbie' was shadier. with the temperature going up, the snow was getting heavy. i've always said, when you have the choice go left, that's why we took option B, avoiding a sunny option A. it went well--i heard another "whoop" when noah followed me over the "stump jump!" (scroll through this goap! post for a series of pics jumpin' the stump.)

notes:

• deep snow, even when it's getting heavy, 'unfluffy', is still heaven... 
  
• it's a joy to add noah to the history of "the best skiing ever!"
• we did share a spot of tea this time--cookies, chocolate, and some muffins too--but the picture i took with noah's fancy camera was out of focus...
• so glad noah is loving his new hampshire winter adventures. here's a picture he took of his ski up--and half way down (it's a long~ish story)--moosilauke this week...

go outside and play!

out in the backcountry, enjoying a very fine snow year!

the day: a couple of saturdays ago, the 14th, cold ~ish, maybe teens, and feeling like it could snow soon. definitely completely overcast--some wind but not in the woods ...

the adventure: simon and i had been trying to get out skiing for a while. he mostly has weekends and since i have been avoiding cardigan due to the increased activity up there, i suggested going up wolfeboro road, to the AT and south peak on moose mountain. 

i had been up there a couple weeks before and the coverage was great--since then, we had gotten another foot of powder. not too many people go up from the eastern, goose pond side. even fewer people go up another old road that branches off a ways up wolfboro. if you know where to turn left, you can cross over and hook up with what we like to call, the 'secret sherbie'--named for the sherburne ski trail down mt washington from tuckermans ravine.

all in all that gives a good bit of steep ~ish terrain. the AT is narrow, mostly less than a ski length wide-- sometimes, half that, even less. the old roads are mostly more than two ski lengths wide. even nicer than being wide, the 'secret sherbie,' totally opposite from wolfeboro road and the AT, there are practically no rocks.

the memories: deep snow, plenty of steep, and first tracks made for what simon's dad, skip, likes to call "best skiing ever!" there was plenty to smile about. even though i mentioned very few people use the trails we were on, we followed somebody hiking in my old ski tracks. no snowshoes, no skis, boot packing in the worst way. weirder still, the boot prints head off into the woods a half-mile from south peak. my comment to si, "whoa, they are on an adventure."

notes:

• deep fluffy snow is my idea of heaven... 
  
• i have a long history of "the best skiing ever" with simon--but i miss skip in the backcountry...
• first tracks on secret stashes are to be savored--that said, i don't mind sharing...
• a spot of tea is always appreciated--even when i forget the cookies...

go outside and play!