Skiing at Sugarloaf 1/29/15

Two days after our first big snow storm on January 27^th, I took advantage of the ebbing weather patterns to parley myself an outstanding day of skiing.  When central Maine’s Carrabassett Valley strikes that rare combination of fresh snow, mild winds and bright sunshine, its time to ski the ‘Loaf.







Sugarloaf Maine is the BIGGEST U.S. SKI MOUNTAIN east of the Mississippi River (Killington is second).  Among eastern resorts it offers the third most continuously vertical drop, behind only Whiteface (NY) and Sugar Bush (VT), and it offers the only above-treeline skiing in the east that is actively serviced by lifts.

And it is seriously challenging; 43% of its trails are black diamonds or double diamonds.  Although it lacks Whiteface/Lake Placid’s Olympic pedigree, it is so big and challenging that in the early ‘70’s several World Cup championship events were canceled in Europe and held here. Among eastern ski mountains, Sugarloaf definitely kicks butt. 

My 4WD Pathfinder made short work of the many still-snow covered roads during the 2hr 15min journey from Freeport, and I arrived without drama in time to catch an early chair up the mountain.  For anyone harboring the misguided notion that Maine is a land of flat, featureless forests, guess again.

The ‘Loaf’s north facing slopes perfectly catch the light dry snow blown in by the nor’easters of the Canadian Maritimes.  This makes for good off-piste skiing and buttery smooth groomed surfaces perfect for carving.  Unfortunately it also means skiing in shadows while the morning sun is still rising, but the forgiving surface allowed me to attack trails like Tote Road, Cinder Hoe, Binder, and Hay Burner with gusto.

After thoroughly abusing the west-side trails during my morning runs, I took an early lunch at Bullwinkle’s mountain side grill before heading over to the east side of the mountain.  Here trails like Buckboard, Whiffle Tree, Spring Board, and Pole Line are warmed to perfection by the bright afternoon sun, and the friendly slopes make for relaxing skiing that was much appreciated by my hammered knees.  Also appreciated were trails mostly empty of other skiers, even on an epic day like this.

Sugarloaf is a mountain that dictates its own terms; it is notorious for high winds that shut down lifts, and fierce snow squalls that block out the sun and make skiing treacherous.  It’s often brutal weather can frustrate your best laid plans.  But – when the winds are light, the snow is fresh and the sun is shining brightly in bluebird skies, Sugarloaf beckons.  And when it beckons, you go.  
See Yah!!

The First Big Storm

As you can imagine, the recent nor’easter that clobbered the northeast and mid-atlantic states hit Maine particularly hard.  Here in Freeport we got at least 2 feet of snow, but many towns further north got more.  Fortunately, only a few areas in Maine reported power outages, and none for us here in town.

The howling blizzard made for an interesting show from inside our cozy home; it was kind of like being on the inside a snow globe!!

Just sitting inside like a spectator got the better of me, so I pulled on a parka, clicked into the bindings of my snowshoes and trekked into town.  The fierce winds of the storm kept most people indoors, so it was kind of eerie to see our normally busy little village of Freeport with empty streets, save for a few other hearty souls on snowshoes or cross country skis.

Nearly every business was closed, including the McDonalds.  Yep, that historic, stately looking building is our McDonalds. 

Still, there is that one merchant whose doors are never locked and whose lights never go out – L.L. Bean.  All 4 of Bean’s stores were open – I don’t think they had any customers, but they were open for business! 

Finally I reached the north end of town where a friendly place hove into view – the Broad Arrow Tavern.  The Broad Arrow Tavern is part of the very nice Harraseeket Inn, and the tavern was warm and inviting – 

and obviously I wasn’t the only one who thought so!!  Their fully stock bar featured only Maine’s finest beers on tap, and they had a very satisfying Gritty’s IPA with my name on it!

It was an all day effort to dig out on Wednesday.  Our oversized driveway is almost the size of a small parking lot and it collects a lot of snow, which certainly gives our front yard a different look, but we were none the worse for the wear.  At the rate we are going our yard will still be covered when Alex and Joel arrive for 4^th of July week! :-)  Thank God we live in South-coast where the snowfall is moderate; northern Maine gets much more snow than we do!  
See Yah!!

Pictures from Doug's Birthday!!

Your indulgences please for the late postings of these few pictures from my 60^th birthday party. This was a very special time for me – having been away for so much of the last two years, spending my 60^th with family and friends was certainly the best gift of all!!  Thank you everyone for coming, and making it so special!!