The Teardrop Trail 02/24/2010
We woke up early this morning and ripped up the teardrop trail in nearly 2 feet of on the ground and more piling up by the minute.
It’s amazing what one will do for a little powder skiing. Tuesday night, with a rapidly improving snow forecast we plotted taking in the Teardrop trail before breakfast. In the morning we awoke to find snow in Burlington with a consistency perfect for making snowmen.
Undiscouraged by Burlington snow conditions, I hopped in my old CRV, with my intrepid co worker Zeke, headed to Underhill State park watching the snow drifts get higher as we careened down snow covered roads. We weren’t sure we had made the right decision until we hit the access road at Underhill state and were confronted with about 15 inches snow covering the unplowed road and fresh powder falling from the sky. This was going to be epic! A single set of tire tracks parted the sea of fresh Powder on the access road. We were to late to get first tracks, but we had a good shot at freshies and with a little luck we wouldn’t have to break trail.
We blew up the access road with snow flying over the windshield as the bumper plowed it out of the way. Getting out of the car at the parking lot we found a solitary Subaru and a skin track headed up with evidence of two or three skiers in front of us.
The powder was on the heavy side but plentiful and we knew we were in for a treat. Just after the junction with the CCC road we found we followed our predecessors skin tracks on a excursion off the teardrop. We knew we were off course within a few hundred feet but we decided that as long as the skin track was heading in generally the right direction we would continue following it rather than busting trail through 1 ½ to 2 feet of dense powder. It worked out we found ourselves back on the teardrop trail again few hundred feet below where it connects with the CCC road. When we hit the CCC road we found that the people in front of us had already headed back for a second lap, which meant they had been at least one hour in front of us. They were definitely more hard core then us this morning. We continued out skin up arriving at the top of the last major pitch just in time to meet out nemeses. Two other OGE employees and one of their friends had crawled out at the butt crack of dawn to bust trail for us. Thanks Guys!  On the way down we ventured into the glades to get some pristine turns through the wet heavy powder and enjoyed what may have been the best turns we have had so far this year. We would have gone for seconds and thirds if work hadn’t been calling.
Update 12/25/2009
I went to Mad River Glen Before work this morning. I am now convinced that the snow yesterday was dry and fluffy. It’s been warm and yesterday’s heavy powder and last nights snow 2 to 3 feet of solid snowball making cement. You could throw down some sweet turns if you maintained some serious momentum. If it chills down this snow will make a phenomenal base for the next dump.