Gore Mt., NY 3/11/00

[Jimski]

<I>(Note from the Administrator: This report was originally posted on 3/14/00. Due to our move to new servers, the date and time attributed to this post is incorrect.)</I> <BR> <BR>I always try to be a skiing optimist and see the silver lining in any experience. Let's just say that out of 35 days this season this was my second least fun day. <BR> <BR>After carefully monitoring the Weather Channel all Friday PM the Dugan's decided that the prospect of snow Saturday not changing over to rain until later in the evening was worth the gamble. Sometimes you get the bear and sometimes the bear gets you. The temperatures seemed OK but as we headed south through the mountains all the peaks looked socked in from around 2500'. Half way from Indian Lake to North Creek we needed to start the wipers on the first intermittent setting and crank up the defrosters hotter. <BR> <BR>While getting the stuff out of the van in the parking lot we were approached by a guy hawking comp tickets for a small fee. For $25 I had Shirley in business instead of the going rate of $44. This turned out to be the best part of the day. Another highlight of the trip was I got to use my "Hot Buns" that Shirley got me for our anniversary. I love practical gifts and these things were worth every penny for riding chairs this day. <BR> <BR>The base area looked like a bombed out war zone. 99% gravel, 1% ice crystals, major washouts, planks to walk across a stream blocking access to the triple, very little place to put your skis on, good thing you don't have to if taking the gondi, etc. We could see and hear major snowgun activity on Twister as they tried to maintain a way down to base from mid station. We headed up the triple to stash the packs at mid and take a warm-up down Sunway. Immediately upon heading up we froze over our goggles and Shirley's glasses and were blind by the time we got off. We groped our way down Sunway through heavy loose corn and occasionally channeling into 10 to 20 ft passageways along the side of the trail to avoid bare spots almost totally across. Most of what was skiable had a heavy concentration of gravel giving it the texture of "chocolate chip cookie dough" ice cream. Things got browner and scratchier the closer we got to base. At the gondola I informed the girls that I was going back to the van and dig out the rock Rossis as I wasn't going to trash the Volkls. It's one thing to trash your skis if you are having a fantastic time such as fresh powder at Hickory with no set base but not on a day like this. <BR> <BR>Up the gondi we went and headed down Pine Knot towards the summit quad. The goggles froze over before we could get out skis on. We were sullen and quiet but not complaining. Again the surface was heavy loose corn mostly with scratchy but edgeable ice on the more steep sections. Pine Knot had good coverage side to side all the way. They had to have been making much of it to keep access to the summit open. First run was Cloud/Headwaters. I was having serious trouble turning the old skis in the heavy corn. Exhausting, not very pretty and blind as a bat. Are we having fun yet? Second run I did Lies and found it to be enjoyable in that it was groomed and firm and held an edge quite well. It's as close as I got to carving sweet turns on those old Rossis all day. Next trip down we did Open Pit and found it to be the iciest but still good edging all things considered. The goggle icing was becoming way too serious to handle and we opted for the shush to mid for a thaw out and dry out break. What a rush doing a full tuck with contacts and not goggle. I was icing over faster than I could blink. <BR> <BR>After thawing out we headed down Twister to sample the fresh manmade. Definitely the best trail of the day. We had perfectly good non sticky fresh powder but the guns were creating additional goggle freezing along with nature. So now we can't see or hear each other or anything else but the surface was excellent. Up the gondi, up the quad and Shirley heads for mid to take an early lunch and glasses thaw out again. I convince Shana to try Lies as I felt the edging was as good as it ever gets. We both take it slow enough to ski and ride without eye protection and she has to do the heel side slide down the first 100 ft of so. As I stood below waiting she built up quite a little loose corn mini avi below her board. She said she couldn't set her edge hard enough to come around to a toe side. After getting off the steepest part where the corn didn't slide she started cranking those big snowboard arcs and beat me to the bottom easily. The misty ice glaze was starting to wear on us. Shana wadded up the front of her windbreaker and it stayed that way like a ball of putty. My Gore-Tex rain jacket took on the sheen of a patent leather motorcycle jacket. The shafts of my poles were twice their normal diameter and banging them together would not dislodge any accumulation. We headed to mid to join Shirley for lunch. <BR> <BR>After lunch we did Twister again and found the guns off. I guess temperatures were slightly too warm now. Good skiing, no visibility. The fog was socking in worse and more densely. Shirley says that's it and heads in. Shana and I make our way to the top and do Chattimac and Hawkeye. Chattimac was well covered with heavy loose corn and Hawkeye was more packed powder mixed in with groomed corn. They probably recently made more on Hawkeye. I would have enjoyed this stuff immensely on my Elan's but really anticipated conditions more like the previous weekend and left them home. About this time the freezing fog turns to ice pellets and the stinging effect on cheeks, nose and unprotected eyes was too much. That does it, we're out of there. By the time we dry out, pack up and head for the van--you guessed it--it starts snowing. The once full lot was half empty by the time we left about 2:45. Half way down the access road it changes to full rain and stays that way till half way from Long Lake to Tupper Lake where it turns to all snow and accumulates enough to make driving tricky. Sunday would be way better at Whiteface.