Repeat

Catching air in the backcountry! Wheeee!

Fun sled dogs, fun times, fun day! Whee!

After having our favorite network of trails FINALLY skijorable yesterday, we HAD to return today! It was a very similar outing to yesterday with one exception. Come along for the ride.

As usual, we started on unmaintained backcountry trails to tickle our toes in soft powder. Along the way, we pass by some of the remnants of the old, historic mining town of Preston. This town was once bigger than Breckenridge in the 1800 mining days but was abandoned in the early 1900s as is nothing more than a collection of old mining and mining town relics at this point.

Zipping by one of the old mining cabins once in the town of Preston.
There are tons of old cabins like this littered throughout the forest near
here as Preston was once such a large town.

After galloping through the Preston townsite, it was time to connect onto the groomed trails at Gold Run Nordic Center. Before doing that, though, Jack & Rudy had other plans to cool off first :)

Both fun kids wanted to hop off trail to roll in the soft & untouched powder.
Yesterday was 1 degree (F) when we started the outing, today was 10 (F). As
you see, 10 is "hot" and makes you want to get into deep & cold powder ro
roll and cool off!

Ok, the one difference between yesterday and today? Well, unbeknownst to me, I bumped the camera on my chest after the snow rolling break above. As a result, the camera was pointing at my feet the rest of the outing, so I have no further footage. Oh well, trust me, it was as nice & fun as yesterday all morning long.

Today's video highlight goes along with the first two photos (before I bumped the camera). Come along for today's fun skijor in the backcountry as we approach and enter the old townsite of Preston.

[watch on youtube if no video loads below]

Back to the trailhead and Nancy's camera was still pointing upright :)

The great kids on a snow wall to receive end of run treats. What a fun day!

An almost identical skijor as yesterday except for most of the video footage being lost: 8.4 miles traveled with 700 feet of elevation climbed and a top speed of 22 MPH.

2025/2026 Season to Date: 25 days on the trails covering 159.2 miles with 18,500 feet of elevation climbed.

Backcountry Powder Day

Laying fresh tracks in about 2-3 inches of new snow to start today's skijor outing:

Zipping along, laying fresh tracks!

Breckenridge Ski Resort reported 8 inches of fresh snow this morning. But, we only had about 2-3 inches at our house; so I was skeptical about that report. As you see in the prior photo, we found only about 2-3 inches of new snow at the start of our outing. So, my skepticism was seeming like reality as we started the day.

But, then, the magic happened. The higher (in elevation) we went, the deeper the snow got. I found myself changing from skeptical to wondering just how much new snow we'd encounter!

Trotting by an old, abandoned mining cabin in about 5-6 inches of fresh snow
at this point.

The further we went, the deeper it got...

Busting through at least 8, maybe 10, inches of fresh snow at this point!
For the curious, those are fox or coyote tracks going down the trail in
front of Jack (most likely fox, but could be coyote).

Did I say, "The further we went, the deeper it got?"

Snorkeling through 10-12 inches of fresh powder at this point! Wow!

How about some powder blasting video fun to go along with the deep snow we found? I love doing powder clips in slow motion as is it so cool to watch the powerful sled dogs blasting through powder as they tow me along. Wheeee!

[watch on youtube if no video loads below]

Of course, breaking trail through deep snow is a real workout. That means you MUST stop, drop and roll snow angels to cool your jets at any pause along the way :)

Stop, drop and ROLL!!!

A great day enjoying backcountry fresh powder all to ourselves, right guys?

"Oh yes, that was a FUN workout!" says the happy & focused kids.

Today's fresh tracks to trail breaking tally: 8.1 miles traveled with 900 feet of elevation climbed and a top speed of 20 MPH.

2024/2025 Season to Date: 55 days on the trails covering 415.8 miles with 39,600 feet of elevation climbed.

Freshies

Exploring an old 1800s mining cabin with my pals on this morning's backcountry skijor.

"Cool old cabin!" says happy Jack looking back to me.
"Checking if there is any gold hiding under the snow!" adds Rudy
the miner :)

The forests in & around Breckenridge are littered with old 1800s mining cabins in various states of deterioration and/or restoration. Some, like the one above, have received some restoration help from the local Open Space & Trails Department while others are left to slowly deteriorate. Jack & Rudy always have fun sniffing and exploring around all the cabins.

Today's skijor was a fun day of laying fresh tracks in the backcountry. We started the day laying fresh tracks in about 2-3 inches of fresh snow:

Laying fresh tracks in the morning's untouched new snow.

The further (and higher) we went, though, the deeper and deeper it got. Here's a cool shot of the kids blasting through what was about 4-5 inches of fresh snow:

Fun shot of powder plowing Jack & Rudy and cool view of my right
ski floating over the fresh snow with my left ski slightly buried in snow.

Further and higher.... deeper and deeper...

The powder kids in now what is about 6-7 inches of fresh snow! Wheeee!

Now come along for a wonderful & peaceful backcountry skijor video clip. We are laying fresh tracks in new snow over old snowmobile tracks for most of the clip. You'll also see a line of wildlife tracks in front of Jack for most of the clip - these were either fox or coyote tracks. As the clip comes to a close, the snowmobile tracks disappear and we transition to some nice, deeper snow to continue the peaceful glide. What a pleasant day far away from civilization! You'll also see another deteriorating mining cabin to our left about 15 seconds into the clip; this cabin is in much worse shape than the one in the first photo as it has been left to deteriorate naturally.

[watch on youtube if no video loads below]

Along this route, we also get some nice views of Breckenridge Ski Resort across the valley from us. Today was a pretty unique & interesting view of the ski resort. The tops of the mountains were blocked by low clouds while the base of the mountains was not:

An interesting effect in this shot of the ski resort:
ski runs down low with missing mountain tops up high :)

A fun outing with increasingly deeper and deeper snow - what a way to earn end of run treats:

"Love laying fresh tracks!!!!" says snow loving Jack & Rudy
awaiting treats from atop a nice snow wall.

A very peaceful outing with lots of fresh, fun snow: 8.9 miles traveled with 1100 feet of elevation climbed and a top speed of 20 MPH.

2023/2024 Season to Date: 81 days on the trails covering 678.0 miles with 65,400 feet of elevation climbed.

Sights

Nice shot of Breckenridge Ski Resort far across the valley from cool running Jack & Rudy :)

Impressive blue skies! Nice shot of the ski resort.
Cool running Jack & Rudy.

We spent this morning skijoring seldom used trails tucked away in the backcountry. Along the way, we had many sights to take in, such as views of the ski resort (from far away) as you see above.

Despite the gorgeous blue skies you see in the prior photo, we started the morning tucked away in the shade of the forest laying fresh tracks on lesser used trails:

Laying fresh tracks on this "unpublished" trail in the backcountry.

When you drift deep in the forests around Breckenridge, you often come across the ruins of old mining cabins. It's pretty amazing how many of the long abandoned structures still exist sprinkled throughout the forest.

"Has a roof. Has walls! We should move in!" declares cabin inspecting
Jack & Rudy.

Eventually we dropped out of the forest and into the awesome morning sun. I love this cool shot of Jack & Rudy following a solo snowmobile track we found taking across this vast open meadow:

Using the track to zoom, zoom zoom. Cool snow poofs coming off
Jack & Rudy's feet as we zip along.

Further along and another old mining cabin to investigate. There is a front door (straight in front of Rudy) and side door (follow Jack's line) to this cabin. Jack & Rudy thought it would be polite to plow a path to each doorway for others to use :)

"If we plow, others can visit too!" declares the hard working
powder plowing kids.

The best sight of the day? Well, finding our cool retired mentor Zorro at the trailhead to share 'end of run' treats!

"Glad you came back!" says focused Zorro.
"Cool day!" adds Jack.
"Chilling back here until the treats really come out!" says mellow Rudy.

A very peaceful morning on quiet, lesser used trails in the backcountry: 8.4 miles traveled with 1000 feet of elevation climbed and a top speed of 20 MPH.

2021/2022 Season to Date: 97 days on the trails covering 811.7 miles with 77,000 feet of elevation climbed.

Sightseeing

Great morning to get away from the busy weekend crowds and take in the views from the backcountry!

Pretty shot of the mountains and ski runs of Breckenridge Ski Resort
across the valley from us. Nice shot of cruising Jack & Rudy too :)

We are in the middle of the busy, busy MLK 3-day weekend, so we decided to visit some lesser known trails this morning in hopes of enjoying a peaceful skijor in the backcountry without crowds. It was a smashing success. As you'll see in the photos, we were following some snowmobile tracks all morning. But, these were certainly tracks from another local, like us, as we were on pretty secret (i.e., not "tourist published") terrain all morning. This made for a very peaceful skijor with great views along the way!

Here we have a nice shot of Jack & Rudy cruising along as Baldy Mountain is in view to our far right. We spent yesterday on Baldy at & below treeline doing laps as we entertained the crowds.

So peaceful to look at popular & busy Baldy from a distance!

Our route took us deep into the forest to pass by many old "mining cabins" leftover from the mining heydays in the 1800s in & around Breckenridge:

Cool old cabin to the left and Jack & Rudy cruise on by.

Then, out of the trees for a bit and into view comes big Mt. Guyot. This mountain is the home to Georgia Pass and the ghost town of Parkville (once the busiest mining town in Summit County)!

The trees have parted and there is big Mt. Guyot dead ahead!

Finally, we conclude the sightseeing with the video counterpart of the first photo. Come along as I am gliding behind Jack & Rudy as Breckenridge Ski Resort comes into view. Pretty views, pretty mountains and some pretty cool clouds in the sky this morning.

[watch on youtube if no video loads below]

Jack & Rudy's favorite view? Hmmm...

"We love the view of snow in our eyes as we roll snow angels!" declares
the goofball kids.

Back to the trailhead and time to gather the crew for 'end of run' treats. Everybody ready?

"Ready, set, dish out the treats!" exclaims the happy, happy threesome.

What a peaceful way to spend a busy holiday Sunday off the beaten track: 9.2 miles traveled with 900 feet of elevation climbed and a top speed of 20 MPH.

2021/2022 Season to Date: 62 days on the trails covering 498.9 miles with 47,100 feet of elevation climbed.

Play

Such a happy pair of young sled dogs at our turnaround point on the trails this morning!

"We are having a GREAT time!" exclaims the happy pair!

Zorro joined us for a "long Zorro run" yesterday, so he got most of today off. I took the youngsters, Jack & Rudy, on a fun tour on the trails around and on Prospect Hill. We started the day on a soft snowmobile trail to open up the throttle:

Airborne kids hovering over the trail as we open up the skijoring engine. Wheeee!

A little further along and the reality that Jack & Rudy are still goofy 2 year olds came to show itself. As we were going along, Jack gave Rudy a little bump with his left shoulder and then threw himself off trail into a snow angel as if saying, "Tag, you're it - come and get me!" Well, you do not have to tag Rudy more than once to get a response from him. He quickly launched himself towards Jack showing he can do rodent dives to play with his brother in addition to hunting for rodents :)

"Come and get me - I dare you!" says goofy Jack to Rudy.
"Incoming, I'm going to tag you too!" demonstrates Rudy in a beautiful "dive into Jack".

Oh those silly kids. I separated the two and put a stop to the game of tag. We then had a team organization meeting to review the concept of skijoring (e.g., it does not involve wrestling :)

The team meeting went well and we were able to restart and explore the mining relics on Prospect Hill. Here is a fun old mining cabin that Jack & Rudy took time to evaluate for us to use as a second home :)

"Roof looks strong & intact!" says roof inspector Jack.
"Walls look strong and the front door is open inviting us in!" adds building inspector Rudy.

We did an "out & back" route this morning, the "back direction" always has pretty views of Breckenridge Ski Resort across the valley:

Jack & Rudy cruising along in a snowmobile track as Breckenridge
Ski Resort is in view across the valley. Nice views!

Eventually we made it back near the trailhead and added Zorro in the team for a short run to the finish as a full team. Ok, Zorro, take us to the finish!

Power Zorro leading the way for the trio to tow me to the end of the day's run.

Finally, as we end every day - some well-earned 'end of run' pork treats!

"All eyes on you!" says the focused trio :)

A fun day cruising around Prospect Hill with Jack & Rudy with a short moment of unapproved trail wrestling and then a fun run to the finish with Zorro: 8.1 miles traveled with 800 feet of elevation climbed and a top speed of 20 MPH.

2019/2020 Season to Date: 115 days on the trails covering 779.2 miles with 71,400 feet of elevation climbed.

Single Track

Cruising behind Zorro on the Mountain Pride Mine single track skijor trail. Wheeee!

Zoom, zoom, zoom we go...

Single track trails are always fun and challenging to skijor with Zorro. By "single track" I refer to a trail where the set track is only 2 skis (or 2 snowshoes) wide with powder outside of the track on both sides. As a result, the "set trail" is only 1 person wide (aka "single track"). All is fine if you are a solo human and riding in the single track. But, I have the additional engine named Zorro who wants to propel me along the single track much faster than a human was meant to go. How to proceed? Well, I ride with one ski in-track and one ski out-of-track. The in-track ski is the accelerator - shift my weight to this ski and we speed up. The out-of-track ski is the decelerator - shift my weight to this ski to add friction to reduce speeds. Note in the photo above that my left ski is in-track while my right ski is in powder out-of-track.

With that background... On to today's video highlight. Come along as Zorro tows me along the fun single track. If you watch closely you can see me alternating skis in versus out of track as we weave through forest. Wheeee!

[watch on youtube if no video loads below]

Zorro is always fascinated by old, abandoned mining cabins we encounter in the forest. They always grab his attention and we joke that he is our realtor looking for a backcountry hut for us to move into. Well, Nancy jokes that she has 4 rules for Zorro's realty hunt and this hut below seems to satisfy them all. (1) Roof - check! (2) Walls - check! (3) Running water - look at all the snow to melt and it will run when melted! (4) Heat - look at all the free firewood around the cabin!!!

"Meets all the requirements, let's move here for 'skijoring out the front door!" declares realtor
Zorro as he gives the property an approving glance as we trot by.

Done with the backcountry single tracks around Mountain Pride Mine and we connected onto the wide and popular Baldy Mountain Trail. Time to really uncork the skijoring engine:

Flying!!!

Done with the day's outing as we come back to the trailhead to hook up little Jack for a short sprint to end the day:

All smiles, all speed, all fun!

Skijor outing complete and time for the 'end-of-run pork treats' for the hard working sled dogs. Take a look at the role reversal in the following photo. Zorro, the usually composed adult, getting a little pushy while Jack, the wild puppy, is the composed & patient one! Haha, that was funny to write :)

"Get with it! I've been working hard!" declares pushy Zorro.
"Have you ever seen such patience & composure? I deserve extra!" declares puppy Jack.

Nice day cruising the backcountry around Mountain Pride Mine on Baldy Mountain: 6.1 miles traveled with 800 feet of elevation climbed and a top speed of 22 MPH.

2017/2018 Season to Date: 36 days on the trails covering 263.3 miles with 23,500 feet of elevation climbed.

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Bluebird

A beautiful bluebird day with temperatures just cold enough to skijor the early morning spring crust!

"What a fun day!" exclaim the happy pair at our turnaround point of the outing.

It was a bright & sunny early morning with endless terrain to skijor all over the mountains!

Heading "into the sun" as we "make our own path" gliding along the spring crust.

We took a few dips out of the open meadows and into the forest to visit some of the old, abandoned mining cabins. Zorro is always so fascinated by the cabins :)

"Roof, walls, abundant water supply - I say we could live here!" states home inspector Zorro.
"Yeah, right, mom will NEVER agree to move here!" says sensible Max.

Turned around and heading away from the sun as parts of Breckenridge Ski Resort start to come into view in the upper left

A glimpse of peaks 9 & 10 of Breckenridge Ski Resort with a small hill in front of us
obstructing the rest of the resort.

Up & over the small hill in the previous photo and you get the full ski resort....

Beautiful shot of peaks 6 through 10 of Breckenridge with sprinting Max & Zorro
towing me along.

A pretty bluebird day to tour the spring crust: 9.2 miles traveled with 1000 feet of elevation climbed and a top speed of 20 MPH.

2016/2017 Season to Date: 129 days on the trails covering 1080.0 miles with 114,200 feet of elevation climbed.

Climb-n-Cruise

Having a great morning touring around the top of Brewery Hill!

"Oh yes. We are having a BLAST!" say my super happy partners at a turnaround point on the trail.

There are so many mountains that rise above treeline in & around Breckenridge that things that would be a mountain elsewhere are simply hills here. For example, the top elevation of our outing today was around 11,500 feet on top of Brewery Hill. But, since we never rose above treeline, an 11,500 foot "mountain" only gets the title "hill" in this area - thus Brewery Hill which would be Brewery Mountain in most of the country :)

Anyway, it was a warm start to the morning (especially for February), so we decided to climb quickly to get to higher & cooler elevations and then tour around the rolling terrain atop Brewery Hill. It was an excellent decision as we found not only cooler temperatures but also 2-3 inches of fresh snow all to ourselves!

Laying fresh tracks in 2-3 inches of fresh snow as we cruise around the rolling terrain atop
Brewery Hill.

The only tracks we saw all day were our own tracks when we repeated sections of trail:

Zipping along one of our many out/back side trails atop Brewery Hill.

As you glide around Brewery Hill, you encounter many relics from the mining days of the 1800s. Here we are inspecting an old cabin. Note that the gangline is very taut - Max & Zorro wanted to get closeup to the cabin whereas I wanted to look from a distance and not get caught in a "cabin well" by getting too close ("cabin well" is basically same thing as a "tree well" but with a cabin instead of a tree :)

"What wonderful accommodations! Can we stay the night?" asks curious Max.
"I want to get CLOSER!!!" says trying to move me closer as hard as he can Zorro.

Love when I get a quick & happy glance from Max or Zorro as we are cruising along!

"Did I mention I am having a great time today?!?" says Zorro looking back as we go along.
"You are funny kid!" smirks Max to Zorro.

A steep climb day to get to fresh snow and cooler temperatures at higher elevations: 8.3 miles traveled with 1400 feet of elevation climbed and a top speed of 20 MPH.

2016/2017 Season to Date: 87 days on the trails covering 714.1 miles with 77,600 feet of elevation climbed.