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Written on: Thu Jan 22, '09 11:06 am
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Jill A
Topic creator
registered since: 13.03.2008
Posts: 16
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Snow conditions couldn’t have been much better. The bitter arctic cold had abated. Our group of eleven skiers and one energetic dog were delighted. The trail chief between Hazen’s Notch and Jay Pass had never skied the section looking this good. None the less, with lots of climbing and breaking trail, our time was slow. Several of us were surprised, even with the snow and cold temperatures, to see several places with varying degrees of open water. None presented any crossing issues, but they did ice up a few skis, necessitating time to scrape. It took us until 2 p.m. to do 6.5 miles and reach the pass. Those four and a half hours on the trail were enough for most of the group. The car we spotted at the pass was put into full service, facilitating an early exit for seven skiers and the dog.
Four of us continued, knowing we would have to be fast to get through in daylight. We had been duly warned about a trail intersection easily missed, and also knew that much of the trail would be broken. We set off at a good pace, hoping to do seven point one miles in less than three hours. We were all surprised by the extent of the climbing. The trail map profile didn’t do it justice. Having a broken trail to follow certainly offset the climbing, at least until we followed the tracks right off the Catamount Trail! Between the warning and the sudden cessation of familiar blue paw prints, we quickly realized the error. Not much time was lost retracing to the junction, but then we had to break trail again.
As we gradually got closer to Jay Village, traffic on the trail picked up. There were welcome tracks from snowshoers, and then a group of three skiers going our way on the trail. Light was getting dim. The luminosity of the snow was very helpful, but deep evergreen forest made darkness fall quickly. We all had headlamps and put them on, fortunately only needing them for maybe a tenth of a mile before we popped out on a snowmobile trail. We were relieved as a quick check of the route description let us know we had only an easy three tenths of a mile to go. That was good, as I don’t recommend anyone trying to follow the Trail in the dark. We soon left the snowmobile trail, found an orienting blue blaze and completed the easy finale to the Jay Store. We were all tired yet delighted. A joyful spirit prevailed.
Of the four of us, only one had skied from Jay Pass to Jay Village previously. For another it filled a single gap in a long stretch of previously skied Catamount Trail. For myself, it completed my ski of the entire Catamount Trail. We were a happy gang, especially having had an absolutely beautiful scenic environment, excellent trail markings throughout the day, great snow, great company and yes: our mission accomplished!
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Written on: Thu Jan 22, '09 12:11 pm
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walrus paul
registered since: 13.11.2007
Posts: 18
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congratulations jill!
-wp
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