Looking to escape the icy slopes of the East
Coast and still get in some decent skiing? Well, you’ll have to work for it, but you might give the backcountry a try in
Mittersill, near Franconia Notch State Park in the famed White Mountains of New
Hampshire. The area is located a snowball’s throw from Olympic disappointment Bode Miller’s home ski hill Cannon
Mountain and just a few…OK, more than that…hour’s drive from New York. The area was started by an Austrian baron
after World War II and awaits reopening as a bona-fide area some time in the near future. In the meantime, this is said
to be some of the finest East Coast back country around. And if you need a place to stay after a vigorous day of
rondonee, kick back at the Franconia Inn.
Red Corner: Carpathian Skiing
We’ve posted a few times about the great ski deals to be had behind the former Iron Curtain. Today’s post continues with this theme by covering a brand new resort in the Carpathian Mountains that you’ve undoubtedly never heard of.
The Carpathians pass through scenic Ukraine and get plenty of the white stuff throughout winter. A handful of Soviet era resorts have operated in the region for a number of years. The most popular, Dragobrat, was recently upgraded with European equipment and at only 40 cents per lift remains a great deal.
Investors, however, realized that the Carpathians had potential for so much more. As a result, they raised $125 million to begin building a brand new resort in the area. Bukovel, as it is now called, plans to eventually expand to two dozen lifts and 75 miles of trails and by 2010, be larger than Vail and Whistler. It is currently operating with 6 lifts, however, and is still a great deal at just 19 euros for a day pass (although it is not the easiest place to get to). Check out the site for some impressive photos of what to expect. If you really want to shed some tears, click on their live webcams to see tons of snow and almost no people in sight.
Bukovel may not be a household name right now, but if plans go accordingly, it will be soon. So pack your skies and get a jump on the resort before everyone else learns about it.
Snowshoeing in Mammoth
You know, I’ve made a big deal about how
great the skiing is at Mammoth Mountain. And it is. The skiing is superb there. But I neglected to mention another one
of the activities that I really enjoy doing when I make the trip to Mammoth. Snowshoeing and cross-country skiing at
Tamarack Lodge. I’ve covered many miles around Tamarack, gliding through the placid glades and stomping around
the snow-blanketed Twin Lakes. As this
article points out, the Tamarack Lodge offers vast and sprawling acres
of open land for snow frolic, area that is not only quiet, but breath-takingly lovely. We’ve been doing so much
on the whole alpine skiing thing, I just wanted to throw this out there.
4th annual Adirondack Backcountry Ski Festival
My, it has been an odd winter here on the East Coast. We went from a long series of delightfully warm days in the
coldest of months (Dec/Jan), to a monster snowstorm that lasted for a mere day and then whose snows disappeared like
the clouds that brought them. Now, while it’s chilly, it is still quite warm given the season.
A sign of
global warming? The apocalypse? That Tom and Katie are definitely through? Who knows?
But here’s the
rub: there is still snow upstate, and that means skiing. In this case, I’m not talking about the downhill kind where
you sit in a comfy chair for the ride up the hill. I’m talking about backcountry. Basically, that means you have to
work for your runs, using randonee gear to haul yourself up the slope. For East Coast backcountry fans, it also means
the start of the Adirondack Backcountry Ski Festival, which starts up
this weekend.
If you’ve never done backcountry before, this is a great event to get you started. The
event is in its fourth year and they hold clinics and events to bring people up to speed on the gear and techniques
you’ll need to leave the lifts behind. There will also be a catered buffet dinner party (say oooh, ahhhh) and a
Backcountry Magazine presentation featuring Naheed
Henderson and Nils Larsen and their trip to discover the roots of skiing in the Chinese Altai Mountains. Nice way to
spend a weekend, I’d say.
Photo of the Day (3/1/2006)
I had to do a double-take with this photo, which appears to be a model of a ski area rather than the real thing. But it’s still pretty cool. Shot by atomtigerzoo, the photo comes from a series called miniland by the photographer. Check it out.