Mix it up on mountain
Off-ski winter fun adds variety to outdoor experience
I spend just about every moment of the winter years as I grew up spending time in ski country. I consider the mountains my second home; the trails of my ski resort my WORD.
What I find interesting about that now is this: I almost never veered away from alpine skiing as my choice each day. There were a lot of reasons: My gang of ski pals waiting for me, the ease of living in a ski in/ski out place (thanks Mom and Dad) and the simple joy I got skiing every single run.
Looking back, I have no regrets. But, as a (dare I say it) senior skier now, I realize more and more that embracing mountain and ski life is actually about more than those fluid, delightful alpine runs. There’s a whole winter world out there, after all.
And so, a few years back, my husband and I started adding non-alpine winter day activities to our ski trips. I recall a spectacular day at Deer Valley, Utah. We hit the first chair and skied some great runs. But before noon, we put our skis away, donned snowshoes and headed out with a guide to take on Guardsman Path. I’d been hesitant when we planned it: what if it was a perfect ski day? But after spending a few hours deep in the woods and hiking alongside the ski resort I realized this: not skiing all day sometimes makes an even better ski day.
Here in the east, back in my day, finding non-alpine fun was a bit more solitary. Today, resorts have embraced more winter activities and even better: spots like Great Glen Trails in Jackson, New Hampshire, have sprouted up — a kind of non-alpine winter playground that not just offers you, but teaches and guides you, to all kinds of winter outdoor fun.
It’s also great to have a quiver of winter snow sports available since weather can be a challenge sometimes. Too windy for lifts to run? Perfect day to get down in the trees and snowshoe or Nordic ski. Super cold? Go out early and ride a fat bike to get your heart pumping, then hit the ski slopes when the midday sun warns things up. It’s good to have choices.
Now, when friends ask me to help them plan a ski getaway, I almost always include a side activity, and I always include at least a couple on my own trips. Here in New England, there are a million ways to up your winter ski trip ante. Consider these:
Great Glen Trails, Jackson, NH: Great Glen Trails, tucked into and flowing up onto the edge of Mount Washington and the Presidentials, Great Glen Trails may be known for Nordic skiing (and it’s 45 kilometers of trails are worthy) but this is no basic trail tucked into the woods. Great Glen Trails is like a winter playground. With Nordic skiing, tubing, fat biking, snowshoeing and even a Snow Coach to ride you way up Mount Washington, it’s more like a full-scale winter fun center.
Check in at their natural beam, sun-soaked 20,000 square foot base lodge and they can set you up for a few hours or an entire day (literally: they offer sunrise snow coach rides and nighttime guided snowshoe hikes) of winter fun. With rentals, lessons and special events, those wanting to get out in the crisp winter air can find the way they’d like to do that and take it on with confidence.
For those who want to combine it with a ski day, Wildcat Mountain Ski Area is almost directly across the road, and Attitash, Black Mountain and Cranmore are a quick drive away. And for a full day off the slopes but out on the snow? You cannot beat this place. It may just be impossible to do it all in one day. Which is a good thing: You’ll want to return. www.greatglentrails.com
The Outdoor Center at Gunstock, NH: Talk about your prom queen that keeps it on the down low: Folks may not know what a topnotch nonalpine program Gunstock Mountain has — but it does.
Guests at Gunstock can choose from Nordic skiing, fat biking, tubing, snowshoeing and — get this: skijoring (a winter sport in which a person on skis is pulled by a horse or dogs. For real!)
The Center, located at the entrance of the ski resort, has a large supply of rental gear, including “Kindershuttles,” a covered sled for little ones that attaches to a snow shoeing or Nordic skiing parent so the little one can get a taste of outdoor winter life too.
The Outdoor Center holds special events to show folks how to savor the outdoors in unique ways, like their evening snowshoe ridge tours. You can even hire a guide for your own private tour any time. www.gunstock.com
There are so many more. Snowshoe events at Wachusett Mountain here in Massachusetts. Outdoor photography lessons on skis or snowshoes at Vermont’s Sugarbush.
Never let go of your love of the alpine ski day. But, like I have learned: open your mind to more outdoor winter mountain sports. It only makes this ski life better.