I made the trip from Greater Saxapahaw to Davis in 5 1/2 hours, by going a little more north and using the Corridor H. weird array of hydro coal power plants mountain-top mining and wind farms
Sunday afternoon conditions at Canaan Valley were good except for the sky portending rain instead of the forecast foot of snow
took the shortcut from timber to the pipeline saddle and just postholed it to the top of bald knob, took me 25 min. The next day skis and skins took 15
When I got down to Whitegrass it was after 6 but I managed to get a ride back to my car at the CV parking lot
Stayed at Purple fiddle, grubby as ever, basically just me and their cat
oddly two of my favorite childhood books were in my room. The sign says "Quiet hours in the hostel begin at 3 am!!"
Their post weekend beer delivery
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It rained off and on all night but whiteout snow and wind were the order of the day early. Met Kelly K. in the lodge but he was heading out so we didn't get to ski, another time
The liftie was hating life -- loudly and angrily
later it was windloading and trees
I went back to the pipeline from the trail behind the lift, so beautiful and skinned to top of weiss knob, sweet turns down then back up baldknob and down now filled up trees at WG, hitched one of the last rides out
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next day spydeeTJB drove down and we met at Timberline, he had never been and we made a lot of runs, the lift seemed to be running faster with no lines or stoppages. The trees were a bit wierd and crusty, as were the ungroomed parts but it was all very good
We went over to Canaan and everything was softer deeper and less tracked, I was on my new Billygoats, spydee was floating his Rossi Soul 7s... very fine afternoon
About 4 I left and drove back to whitegrass this time I skinned up form the base to Roundtop a couple of times. I mounted tech bindings on my Dyn.Chams -- they are so much lighter and smoother striding then my Barons, and much easier in transition. Also they ride with less slop then my axials or Barons because your toes are clamped solid in the pins, the heel may have more play but I think the toe is where most of your power is focused. I had two falls, one a kind of elegant somersault when I buried tips in a creekbed, and they released when they should and no sooner. I'm going to transition every thing over to a tech set-up whether in bounds or out. I was making the ascent to roundtop in a about 30 minutes -- for me that's great
Goodnight skis
Goodnight trees
Love the Valley
--broke my drive home up w/ a 4hr session at Massanutten yesterday, I'll post something later
The runs on either side of it were good too and for some reason nobody was going in there. I found CV to be hit and miss this day. Some of the trails were in great shape while others the wind had really taken a toll on them. The more covered trails=better conditions. I don't really like the big flat area they have if you head to the left from the top. Its just huge if you want to try to get to some of the runs on skiers left on the lower half of the mountain like meadows 1,2,3 and the lower half of dark side. All in all CV is still probably your best bet for trees and the best chance for pow in the SE.