cross country ski question

Zealand and Carrigain are two of my target peaks this winter with long road hikes. I may have to do them as overnight backpaks pulling my pulk up to a camping spot (or staying at the Z hut ).
But I was also thinking that maybe I should try to ski at least the road parts. Thing is, I have never cross country skied (only downhill). People I've seen on trails make it look pretty easy.
My question is; for a zero experience skier pulling a pulk, would it actually be easier or harder than snowshoing these two roads The other thing is that I would have to rent skis and boots for 2-3 days, but my initial google search indicates that it would be relatively cheap (<$40?). I know one response would be that I should try it first, and if RI ever gets snow again this winter before I go , I will.

IMO, you're much better off walking. Here is my rationale:

1) Efficiency/Speed: If you don't really know how to xc ski, it isn't very efficient: you don't get much kick glide and downhills are more terror than fun.
2) Boots: You're going to be wearing new boots you've never used before for a good number of miles, the potential for foot/blister issues is high. You will also have to carry/pulk your regular boots
3) Muscles: Both pulling a pulk and skiing use different muscles than hiking, there is a good potential for the soreness/weakness in those muscles to impact other parts of your legs when you adjust your stride.

My background is that I have tried xc skiing a few times, and while I enjoy it as entertainment, I wouldn't use it as transportation in the backcountry. Note, I have also tried using the Karhu Meta "sliding snowshoes" and those were the worst of both worlds.

bignslow said:

IMO, you're much better off walking. Here is my rationale:

Click to expand...

Thanks B&S. That is kind of what I figured, but I thought I'd ask. Maybe if we get some snow in RI, I'll try it locally just for the heck of it.

I wouldn't go so far as to say you shouldn't try it just because it may be less efficient than what you're used to -- after all, if you want to do something, you've gotta start somewhere and gradually come up the learning curve to get the payoff. However, it also makes total sense to work up to being an entry-level intermediate XC skier as the initial step in the learning curve. THEN add the sled (and/or winter pack on your back) into the mix and build capability with them.

At my fairly basic BC skiing level, I find that the 2-mile Sawyer River Rd stretch, time-wise, is about a breakeven with walking -- it's faster, but there's the time consumed by the extra setup/un-setup. However, it's still worth it if conditions are good because it's much more relaxing and gives your day a fresh dimension of variety. The 4-5 mile Bonds jaunt is long enough to put you totally in the black with the skis, almost no matter what your overhead is with them.

To cut down on the overhead of the skis as much as possible, I've been fortunate to find a pair of NNN-BC (basically, a flavor of backcountry-grade XC binding) ski boots that also work perfectly for hiking if it isn't too cold out. Operating in that mode, I eliminate the time required to change into and then out of the ski boots, and my speed on the skis is slightly greater because I'm not schlepping 3-4 lbs of extra boots.

Alex

What B&S said. I use BC skis (Canadian Army surplus) with Silvretta 500's (Google) that take my plastics (Scarpa Inverno), but I wouldn't use them to pull a pulka - at least not without skins. With skins you ought to be all right, but I think snowshoes would be more practical if you are inexperienced. Cross country and Backcountry would require you to carry an extra pair of boots as XC boots aren't good hiking boots at the best of times and they won't take crampons.

If you are willing to invest in plastics you can use them for winter mounaineering with crampons, snowshoes or skis. You do need to use bindings that are compatible with mountaineering boots such as the Grivel Randonnée or the Silvretta 500 (not 550), not the Fritschi Diamir, which like the 550 are stictly AT.

For the beginner skins are a real pain, but you'll need them if you're going up.

I'd stick with snowshoes.

Good luck and have fun.

I've skied with a full winter pack. No. It's crossing the streams (not in a good way). Ski for fun or even for travel, but not for the work of pulling weight (in which case, snowshoes).

Of course, live life, experiment!

But my school of hard knocks taught me to keep skiing fun & light and separate it from hauling as work.

Especially if you're just getting started. Start with dessert and you will fall in love with skiing!

And if you do decide to walk it, stay out of the ski tracks!

AMF said:

And if you do decide to walk it, stay out of the ski tracks!

Click to expand...

will do.

You know, if you do learn to XC ski and work your way up quickly to ungroomed trails, it's well worth a try to broaden your winter transportation horizons. It can really be a lot of fun.

Re: Carrigain: Once you get the hang of skiing in the woods, Sawyer River Rd and even the first mile or two of the Signal Ridge Trail up to the big flat junction in the woods can be fun, GIVEN GOOD CONDITIONS (caps on purpose) and somewhat beefier gear to handle the inevitable variation in conditions. I've done it on XC skis without metal edges, and kind of wished I'd had them, but it was OK without. We did not need skins, as the grade was not enough to need them; I suppose if it were icy or otherwise slipperier than normal, they might come in handy. Backpack vs pulk is up to you, I've done both and there are pros and cons to each, but I'd advise a season of learning before you get to that point.

Re: Bonds: First 4-5 miles are so flat, if conditions are nice, skiing can be way more fun and you don't need anything special. If a train didn't need skins or snowplow technique, you won't!

In either case, if conditions at the trailhead indicate recent rain/freeze, or snow is mushy, ditch the skis and just hike it in.

The last couple miles down the Sawyer River Rd back to your car at the end of a long day (or two) might just get you hooked on ski/hike hybrid trips for good. I'd say I'm a strong intermediate skier, by no means expert, and it was anything but scary.

I've found that xc skis are good for making time on relatively straight and level routes, though I'm sure those with more skills than I undertake terrain that is much steeper and requires more maneuverability. For the latter I am happier, and safer but perhaps slower (unless you account for unplanned maneuvers, butt slides etc.) on bc skis. I'd suggest renting each type or even lessons for familiarity and technique with each. It might be intuitive for some but, at the least, there are subleties in technique that could mean more efficiency and long distance comfort. BC skis come in various lengths and widths depending not only on your size but also your purpose, there being advantages and disadvantages in each change in dimension.

Start by going to a touring center and taking a lesson in classic x/c skiing. Once you know how to ski on a nice prepared surface, then consider trying backcountry skiing.

While I've not done backcountry pulling a sled with my gear, I do find that I can cover ground quite a bit faster than I can on snowshoes, assuming the trail is not steep, narrow, sharply curved, or has a lot of deep waterbars.