Zealand area xc skiable? and Waterville area?

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carla

carla

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I know you Northeners are getting lots of snow Franconia Notch and beyond. Can anybody report on whether the Zealand road and environs are XC ski-ready?

Or if not, is there enough snow that snowshoes are required?

And same query re Waterville area, although I think it's too far south...

(Still bare ground down here in MA, so difficult to really "get it" regarding snow without witnessing it.)

Thanks!

--Carla
 
Gale River Road was XC-skiable last Saturday, and much more snow has come down since.
 
There is snow on the ground in the northern presi's but there really isnt a good base of compacted snow underneath. I suspect that the Zealand area is in the same shape FWIW I would speculate that there will be a lot of rocks and twigs lurking under the snowcover. I expect if the forecast mix of snow rain snow hits Sunday evening with a cold snap afterwards, I think there will some prety hard crust formed by mid week.
 
Well, clearly, then, this is when you need those volunteer groomers to get out there in their double-wide snowshoes with their best curling brooms to prep the course for us! Perhaps a national draft of "Pathfinders" or "Rangers" ("up front!") in the CCC style to take care of business.

For the Zealand Trail, you'll also need good berms on either side for schtemming. Schtem, schtem for your life! (Who said that?)
 
Dr. Dasypodidae said:
Mathias Zdarsky?
Click to expand...

No, but no points off: the quote is wrong. I had to go find it, and it's in Goodman's "Backcountry Skiing Adventures" (available at the Mountain Wanderer!), p58. It was Otto Schneibs, and the quote is "... chtem -- schtem like Hell!"

The history of [Mt.] Moosilauke is intimately tied to the history of the Dartmouth Outing Club (DOC). The DOC began purchasing tracts of land on Moosilauke in 1920 and now owns more than 4,500 acres on the mountain. DOC skiers were a major force in New England ski history, in part because of their activities on Moosilauke. They were greatly assisted by the legendary German ski coach Otto Schneibs, whom they hired in 1930. Schneibs advised the Dartmouth skiers to abandon their stiff, upright style and adopt the technique pioneered by Hannes Schneider at his renowned Arlberg ski school in Austria. This "called for a low crouch, an up-and-down motion, skis apart in the stem position, and use of poles. The graceful telemark went into eclipse," writes Allen Adler in his excellent book New England & Thereabouts -- A Ski Tracing.

A popular anecdote about Schneibs comes from a talk he gave in Boston. As described in The American Ski Annual, Schneibs was posed with a difficult question:

"Otto," asked a bright-eyed young lady who had the look of one haunted by a deep problem, "what would you do if you were coming down a steep narrow trail a little too fast and there were stumps and trees and ice and things all around?"

"Vell," [Schneibs replied], "either take the damned skis off und valk, or schtem -- schtem like Hell!"​

Granted, there is a slight difference between the Zealand Trail and Mt. Moosilauke, but I'm pretty sure the technique would be similar.

So, who is Mathias Zdarsky?
 
plenty of snow

I skied it today. Plenty of snow on the road, top to bottom. The trail from the road to the hut is still a bit rough.
 
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