Jim Bauman
New member
Arrived at Bolton about 2:00 p.m., changed in the Hotel bathroom, and set out for the top of the Vista chair. I encountered just one other skier at the bottom who had skied all the way to his car at the base lodge parking lot. He reported great rock ski conditions above mid station and marginal below. Snow on the drive up the access road began around 1500' and fully covered the ground around 2000'. <BR> <BR>For those who've not hiked Bolton, I heartily recommend it as a very accessible option for October turns. Only about 1000' vert. hike and only about 30 minutes from Burlington. <BR> <BR>Snow depths above the mid station ranged from 4-6" to over a foot in wind blown areas. Top layers were still fairly powdery and bottom layers just starting to get consolidated. First foray began on the top lift platform ramp, and headed for Cobrass. Top of Cobrass had simply too much thick grass, though, and not enough pitch, so a dozen tricky "turns" later, I headed back up top. <BR> <BR>Next choice was directly under the chair, where I'd observed linkable drifts and good cover on the way up. October skiing is unlike any other kind. It's a bit like skiing in 6" of fresh atop hardpack, except the hardpack is grabby, not slippery. Very tricky, requires some nervous commitment to the fall line, but rewarding nonetheless. The magic returned in just 5 or 6 turns as rhythm, puffs of white, and little flights in between turn transitions confirmed what I'd expected, this is indeed skiing. <BR> <BR>After heading down about 6 lift towers worth to just above the trail intersection where things get flat, I headed up for one more descent. This time I chose "Show Off" I believe, and found even better cover and deeper snow near the trail edge due to the prevailing winds and the snow fence effect. By this time the weather had moved in, and strong gusts full of snow pelted me in the face as I savored a mountain all to myself. It ended all too soon in a flurry of hops, whoops, and puffs of snow. Just a couple scrapes and scuffs on the base brought the reality of a ski season still several weeks away to my mind. <BR> <BR>Below the plateau at mid station snow got considerably less deep, but staying in the fall line, dodging water bars and rocky spots, and linking snow patches brought me to within 100' of the car. Temps down here had melted the snow I'd seen just 2.5 hours earlier, and mud marred a complete descent attempt. Rather reminiscent of a certain early April descent of the Bruce Trail with a couple other masochistic skiers. Bolton was getting hammered as I pulled out at 4:45, and snow continued all the way down to 1000' elev., but I fear today's temps have zapped the "snowpack" for now. Camel's Hump sure looked good, though... <BR> <BR>Here's to more October dumps, <BR> <BR>-Jim B.