Road Tripping East

[fisheater]

I have been saying I’m tripping east, this year I plan on making it happen.
My dog eared copy of Best Backcountry Skiing in the Northeast, has me pointing my truck towards Burlington, VT. Locations that interest me are, the trails that can be accessed from Stowe or Trapps, the Bolton backcountry, Camel’s Hump, and maybe if time allows one of the Rasta areas. I am looking for up and down skiing, that I can find on a map. While I could possibly ride chairs for a day, that isn’t what I am driving for.
So here’s a question for @phoenix , or @lemon, When I read about skiing on say Mt Marcy or the Wright Peak Ski Trail, i read about narrow trails. Skiing to the top of Mt. Marcy sounds like an adventure. Skiing down a 10 foot wide trail sounds not really great. So while the Adirondacks are closer to Michigan, it doesn’t sound like more fun. So guys tell me what I’m missing, and thank you in advance.
New Hampshire definitely holds an interest to me, and has for over thirty years, when I looked out from Mt Mansfield and saw Mt Washington towering to the east. However, I am thinking the end of February, I’m not avalanche trained, skiing solo. So I don’t think Mt Washington is in the cards.
I would appreciate any local advice you guys would like to post. Being a tourist, from a decent drive away, I’m looking for relatively easy to find. A little traffic on the trail is safer solo. I just want the quiet of the backcountry, to the resort scene. Oh, and no groomers!

[corlay]

I havent done the type of skiing you are searching for,
but I can chime-in with a few pieces of related info:
1. Marcy
I've hiked Marcy in Summer (on foot) and I just cant imagine attempting that trial (to the summit) on skiis in winter - unless I was a young man in my 20's in tip-tip shape, that only ventures out for *extreme* challenging experiences...
2. Washington
Can be a very dangerous place in winter. Super high winds, and weather can turn on a dime.
I bet there are fine XC trails in the vicinity, but wouldnt even consider getting in the upper elevations, in Winter, especially solo. (wooderson would be a good resource for this area)
3. Jack Rabbit
If looking for a spot to layover for a day, on the way to VT, consider the Jack Rabbit Trail in the NY ADK. XC-only, and runs from the town of Keene to Lake Placid and then up to Saranac lake and Paul Smith's village. (roughly 30mi total) This isn't really much of an XCD trail, though. More of a winding rolling hill wilderness experience.
4. Tug Hill Plateau
Also in NY, Tug Hill (north of Syracuse, east of Lake Ontario) gets GOBS of lake-effect snow each year. (they just got 10"-12" this week). Might also make a nice "pit stop" for you, on the way to VT. I havent done much skiing up there, but researched it a bit recently. There is a State Forest with marked trails in Barnes Corners, that looks interesting, but also probably not "up/down" type skiing.

[xcdnewb0313]

You might check out Granite Backcountry Alliance I skied the Maple Villa Glade last season when the backcountry around Mt. Washington was too sketchy. There are a lot of options around there for glades too besides Maple Villa...

[phoenix]

Sounds like an exciting trip! There is some fine skiing to be had in the places you're looking at. Around here (VT), Bolton is pretty sweet. The trail system at the Nordic Center is easily accessible, the trails are really nice (many are groomed, but they give access to the fun stuff), and there are a bunch of glades throughout them which are perfect for xcd.
Same trail system is also access to the deeper, beyond the area, deep backcountry. Lots of folks go up there, drop down for turns in beautiful woods, and skin back up. You'd want to check locally if you get there for a little more detail on navigating that BC; I got pretty lost back there myself one day but that's another story.
That same trail, Bolton/Trapps trail (without dropping down) continues on following the ridge towards Stowe, and there's great skiing on the Stowe side; from the Moscow road just south of Stowe off rte. 100 you can ski up the trail to the aforementioned ridge, and have some nice open glades to dip into off the trail.

I haven't skied Camel's Hump much, but it's also a great trail system, which I don't think gets much, if any, grooming. It's a very down home, laid back, undeveloped sort of place, no active lodge or anything, just a place to park and the trails. There may be a warming hut at one of the other access points. There's also a trail that circumnavigates the mountain; I haven't done that, only a section of we stumbled on after a bushwack run off the upper mountain. Speaking of which, you can ski up some of the hiking trails and catch some tree skiing, but it's more down trail stuff as I recall. Though locals there have a ton of off the trail stuff, I'm just not familiar with it. A resource for you would be the Camel's Hump Nordic Association, they have a Facebook page I think; though that might be called Camel's Hump skiers or the like. I'll look later and see what I can find.

Remarkably, I've yet to ski some of those Mt. Mansfield classics Goodman talks about, but his descriptions are excellent; I've skied a bunch of other classic backcountry, but undeveloped runs off of Mansfield; used to ski Smuggs regularly and we'd hike over from the top of the Sterling lift, along the ridge, and drop down... usually into the Smuggs side of the Notch, sometimes the Stowe side.

The Adirondacks are beautiful, more wild than Vermont, with a whole ot of options; the years I lived there, I was primarily skiing those trails like Marcy, Wright, etc., though again, someone more local and current can expound on the many other options. I will add that the tour up to Lake Colden is an absolute gem, though again it's a down-trail run out. I happen to find that skiing fun, but definitely get it's not for everyone. Parallel skills rule on those.

I'm typed out, so will take a break. Lemon should pop in and give you a better Adirondack report. Here in VT, you might get in touch with Grant on the other forum; he's very active and familiar with lots of stuff in the areas you're interested in Vermont as well. I'm way up near Jay Peak and been staying pretty local in recent years... but hoping to make it out a bit farther and wider this season.

And lastly, just a quick question: What gear will you be bringing? I'm thinking that'll help fine tune recommendations for 'ya. Do feel free to ask any more questions as they come up, I'll help if I can.

[mca80]

3. Jack Rabbit
If looking for a spot to layover for a day, on the way to VT, consider the Jack Rabbit Trail in the NY ADK. XC-only, and runs from the town of Keene to Lake Placid and then up to Saranac lake and Paul Smith's village. (roughly 30mi total) This isn't really much of an XCD trail, though. More of a winding rolling hill wilderness experience.

I rode my bicycle from Saratoga Springs up to Lake Placid and over west to Long Lake (?) and back down to Saratoga. Was about 350 miles total, camped for 6 nights. Keene and Keene Valley are beautiful and nice little towns. I imagine the skiing in that area could be fun. Lake Placid is... eh, not my style. You can get really remote in parts of the Adirondacks so be careful.

[lemon]

Marcy is quite the adventure. It's really fun, as long as conditions are manageable. The alpine bowl is not steep enough to slide and wide enough for nice big turns. I'm not an expert tele skier but I'm no slouch either. Some parts are kinda narrow though. Just turn when the trail turns and never pass up a wide section where you can speed dump.
IMO wright peak is much harder.

the McKenzie Pass section of the jack rabbit trail is really fun! Xcd black diamond bigger tele green run. You want to ski down the saranac lake side. You can also add in a trip up and down little haystack.

Scarface glades, one of my favorites and not too pushy. Shorter tour, no views from the summit really but fun. Off trail adventure.

Avalanche pass. XCD HEAVEN. Awesome views, awesome trails.

Whales tail and the heart lake trails. Shorter trails but all intermediate and fun. The Mt Jo alpine trail is a little harder and has a steep narrow section right off the summit. The lower glade is super fun. Whales tail is a pass, surfy on one side, shorter and steeper on the other but very easy going and fun.

SLIDES- there are alot. Some avalanche often, some only have really small sections that are steep enough to slide. They are the premier terrain here.

If you or anyone is coming here, stop by my shop. Cascade Welcome Center. I dont gate keep anyone. I can help ya plan stuff out.

[phoenix]

"Avalanche pass. XCD HEAVEN."

Glad Lemon brought this up; this is what I called the Lake Colden trail (you top out at Lake Colden and Avalanche Lake). Can't recommend it highly enough. It's aanother down the hiking trail descent, but I've always considered it "intermediate". And it's wicked fun for a trail run, though the highlight is when you pop out of the woods into a stunning pass on when you top out.
Cascade's been a dedicated xc/xcd/tele for decades, I have very fond memories of the years I worked there late 90's. It's been in new hands as of a few years ago, sounds like the tradition continues). You have a great resource with Lemon offering info. It's minutes from the trailhead for most of the tours we've talked about there.

[fisheater]

Thank you for the great responses. @corlay Thank you for confirming my understanding that Mt. Washington is dangerous is February, especially for a Midwesterner without avalanche training or experience.
@xcdnewb0313 Thank you for mentioning the Granite BC Alliance glade zones. They are covered in Goodman’s book. However on their own, for me they don’t offer the allure to drive past the Adirondacks or Vermont. Mt Washington is still on my bucket list. I have a modest bucket list as I get older.
@mca80 I am never surprised by your past adventures. Three hundred fifty miles through the Adirondacks on a bike is impressive!
@phoenix i was hoping you would respond. I had a feeling you would be positive about skiing in the Adirondacks. I wasn’t surprised your mention of Lake Colden, your recommendation really puts it on my map. I wish you could comment more on the trails Mr. Goodman wrote about on Mt Mansfield, but your response was still quite encouraging. I am also encouraged by your positive review of the Bolton Backcountry. I also respect, and would exercise caution to not be “confused” about my location.
@lemon Thank you for responding. As I refine destinations, I will reach out to you if I point my truck towards the west coast of Champlain. The Adirondacks are unique, and I appreciate your enthusiasm. I definitely want to ski in the Adirondacks sometime in that not distant future. It is very kind of you, and generous to offer to show your knowledge of your magnificent backyard.

[Sidney Dunkin]

That sounds like it will be a fun trip, I love road trips. A couple straightforward tours I would add are the Whiteface Memorial Highway and the Mount Washington Auto Road. While neither tour is very steep I don't know if they are exposed to avy terrain so you should check this out.

Also, if you're flexible, plan your trip around the weather for best snow conditions. If it were me, I would hit a resort at least once if I was fortunate enough to get a good powder day. There will still be plenty of powder left in the BC for subsequent ski days.

Are you planning to do the motel thing, sleep in your truck or something else? Have fun and be safe, Sid.

[scottyX]

lots of great info already posted, I'll throw in a few cents' worth too...

the bc conditions here have sucked the past few years, so it's helpful (sometimes essential) to consider an area that encompasses VT, NH, and the dax. two of the three often get washed out/stay dry while the other gets a blizzard. opensnow is really useful, as is https://www.betatrails.org/conditions . as the time draws closer, I'm sure I and others can let you know where has a decent base and where doesn't.

VT:

camel's hump: I mostly ski the west side because it's closest to home and I'm not too fond of it, but I know a lot more people ski and love the east side of the mountain (in the book). if you end up on the west side I can give you more info.

Mansfield area: any trail that can be accessed from a lift (e.g., bruce, teardrop, stuff around bolton) gets skied immediately, so depending on conditions it then becomes ok to survival skiing (but hey, at least you earned that view you got at the top!). the stuff in the book in the ranch camp valley is awesome, though steeple especially gets skied quickly. as with many places, the farther in you go, the better the skiing gets. that whole area has a lot of long low angle approaches, so if you're willing to put in the miles and start early, you'll be rewarded.

DAX:

a couple nice change of pace mostly flat tours: gulf brook rd to boreas pond (map at trailhead and online) - southern perspective to the high peaks, no crowds, absolutely spectacular. camp santanoni has a similar vantage with more traffic (haven't done it though).

agree with the general assessment of Wright, but if you happen to be there in good conditions (esp midweek), it should ski like a solid blue run.

NH:

i haven't done much there, but with mt Washington on your bucket list, you'd be remiss not to at least do the Sherburne while you're in the area. even if conditions are shit elsewhere, it should reliably ski well enough as an ungroomed green/blue, plus you'll get to the base of tucks and get some familiarity with it if you do want go back for more later. and it should be a good social occasion to boot.