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By Phil Brown
In the wake of a series of high-profile search-and-rescues, the state Department of Environmental Conservation is urging backcountry travelers to be prepared. The following news release was issued this morning. DEC ADVISES BACKCOUNTRY VISITORS TO BE PREPARED FOR WINTER CONDITIONS THROUGHOUT MOST OF THE ADIRONDACKS Snowshoes, Skis Strongly Recommended For All Trails Visitors to the backcountry…
By Phil Brown
Recently, forest rangers have engaged in several high-profile search-and-rescues in the High Peaks Wilderness. Perhaps the one that got the most attention was the rescue of Steve Mastaitis, who spent the night in a snow hole on Mount Marcy. Three others were rescued the following weekend in the High Peaks Wilderness. Today, the state Department…
By Phil Brown
The Mountaineer in Keene Valley will host the tenth annual Backcountry Ski Festival this weekend. Most of the ski tours are full, but you can try out gear for free at the rope-tow hill at North Country School from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Saturday. That night, skiing legend Glen Plake will show slides and…
By Phil Brown
He had a watch but was afraid to look at it. Instead he tried to gauge time by the slow movement of the stars across the sky. Alas, he forgot that he set his watch alarm for 4 a.m. “When it went off, I was disappointed,” he said. “I knew I had to wait some more.”…
By Phil Brown
When I skied to Avalanche Lake a week ago, the bottom of the Trap Dike in Mount Colden didn’t have much snow. Evidently, there is enough snow higher up to ski the dike and the upper slide. The video below is from Drew Haas. 2/20/2012 from ADKBCSKI on Vimeo.
The round trip to Raquette Falls is an ideal ski in winters with a dearth of snow. By Phil Brown By early January, we were desperate. We had enough snow to ski the Whiteface Mountain toll road, local golf courses, and a few easy trails, but that was it. As the ski-less days dragged on,…
By Phil Brown
We sent files for the March/April Explorer to the print shop Monday, so I took the next day off to ski to Avalanche Pass and, given the dearth of snow this winter, was surprised at the quality of the skiing. I also tried out our new Go Pro video camera during the descent of…
Despite lack of snow, most cross-country facilities manage to stay open. By Rick Karlin Donald Preuninger and Brian McDonnell have something in common: they both took over cross-country-ski centers before one of the warmest and driest winters in recent memory. But they aren’t complaining about the weather—not too much, anyway. “I can’t tell you we’re…
By Phil Brown
We’ve seen many photos of the Adirondacks taken on blue-sky days with puffy clouds or during sunsets when the horizon is ablaze with red, orange, and purple. We’ve seen far fewer taken in the middle of a blinding blizzard or horrific rainstorm. If you have one, you might submit it to Teton Gravity Research’s Gnarliest…
By Phil Brown
We finally got a bit of snow in Saranac Lake. Not enough for backcountry skiing, but enough to get you thinking about it. On my lunch hour yesterday, I hiked Baker Mountain and took the photo above. The few inches we got might be enough to ski on golf courses, the Whiteface highway, and a…