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| Approaching the end of our run at the French Gulch winter trailhead. Note the large puddle just behind me to the left - there was NO snow on this trail just yesterday! Today had a nice cover of new snow; but a very wet & sticky snow. Max & Zorro, with happy husky faces, doing their best to power me through this sticky snow to the "finish line". |
"Mother Nature - you ROCK!" we say that with our deepest appreciation - Brad, Max & Zorro.
Saturday/Sunday/Monday had us in short sleeves and shorts. Tuesday was partly cloudy, so short sleeves and jeans. Late Tuesday and into Wednesday, Mother Nature answered Max & Zorro's prayers and started dumping a May snowstorm upon us!
Wednesday morning found the 4 of us (Max, Zorro, Mother Nature & I) hitting the trails for a mid-May skijoring treat! It continued to snow during our entire outing, often hard enough to bring visibility down to a few hundred feet. The snow was a heavy, wet & sticky "spring snow" - making the outing extra exhilarating - but no complaints here. We encountered no other people or tracks on our outing - breaking trail in 2 to 6 inches of fresh, heavy powder for 9 miles! Needless to say, Max & Zorro are happily napping now and I am happily on the couch resting my burning legs!
The Route: Sally Barber winter trailhead off Sally Barber Rd; skijor up to Sally Barber Mine and then sprint down to French Gulch; hang a right onto French Gulch and cruise up the gulch to the edge of the last open meadow in the gulch; take a short break; then sprint down the gulch to the French Gulch winter trailhead.
Vital Stats: 8.8 miles; 2h 5m total time; 1h 45m moving time; 5.0 MPH moving average; 16 MPH top speed. Only a 5 MPH moving average? you ask - did I mention the conditions: heavy, wet & sticky snow gripping the skis and breaking trail in up to 6 inches of this heavy white stuff...
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| Cruising up the lower sections of French Gulch. No tracks + fresh snow + falling snow = Siberian Heaven. |
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| Tilt the camera up from the last shot. Snowing so hard that the trees down the center of the picture almost look hazed or fogged over. |
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| A look back at the path we skijored through the last open meadow in French Gulch. That's not fog or low clouds making the picture hazy - that's falling snow. Woo! |
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| Another shot capturing the snow falling around us in French Gulch. |
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| Taking a break at the edge of the last meadow in French Gulch OR digging to china at the edge of the last meadow in French Gulch - depends who you ask ;-) |
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