By Steve Bergsman
Early last winter my wife and I took a journey along the western slope of the Colorado Rocky Mountains and enjoyed a host of winter sports that included everything from snowshoeing to cross-country skiing. Later in the winter we took a similar road trip through the White Mountains of New Hampshire, stopping along the way to enjoy the same sports in a different setting.
It was the end of March, and over at Jackson XC, the Jackson Ski Touring Foundation shop, they were making the seasonal change to golf. But after a harsh winter in northern New Hampshire there was still so much deep snow on the ground that people were still shushing away, one grooved stride after another. On a cold but beautiful sunny day we went cross-country skiing with Thom Perkins, Jackson XC executive director.
The snow on the ground was a bit wet, but the snow-covered golf course, part of Jackson's famous cross-country trail system, was pristine and inviting. Besides, my wife, who was a relative novice at cross-country skiing, didn't mind the slow pace or the drag on the downhill.
Perkins knew just about everybody in Jackson, which wasn't so hard since the postcard-picturesque mountain town boasts a population of just over 800. He could play a mean guitar and also talk history, geology and even the politics of his White Mountain town. He was also a good instructor. Although my wife was cautious, he got her psychology aligned with her skis so that pretty soon she was moving at the pace of a trekker.
Through woods, alongside fast-moving streams, over wooden bridges we moved on, enjoying the tranquility. Although the temperature never got out of the 40-degree range, with the sunshine unobstructed by clouds we worked up a good sweat for our couple of hours on the skis.
We were a bit tuckered out by the afternoon jaunt, but that was our second snow activity of the day. We had spent the morning snowshoeing deep into the White Mountains with our naturalist guide, Whitney McCann, whom we met at the Joe Dodge Lodge at the base of Mount Washington. The Appalachian Mountain Club maintains a series of huts along the Appalachian Trail, but that wasn't our goal. McCann was something of a beaver-whisperer, and our objective was Lost Pond, which was home to a great beaver lodge.
She knew all-things beaver, and we often stopped to look at the stubs of trees gnawed down by the local beaver population. She would lean low over the conical remains of the a tree, check for coloration and texture, and with a sense of wonder tell us the age of the tree that had been reduced to building materials for a beaver lodge.
The temperature was around 30 degrees but the sun was coming up over the mountains, so it was pleasant to cut a trail through the snow. The hike to Lost Pond wasn't excessive and we made good time over the uneven ground. The beauty of Lost Pond was unfortunately lost on us, however, because the beaver lodges were completely covered in deep snow.
For about 75 years, from the late 1800s to the 1950s, the White Mountains were one of the premier vacation spots on the East Coast. Indeed, some of the grandest resorts at the turn of the 20th century were built in the area. As late as the 1950s, 35 trains a day arrived with visitors.
Part of the Appalachians, the rugged White Mountains consist of a number of smaller ranges, including a line of summits called the Presidential Range because all the peaks are named for presidents or other prominent Americans. The most famous mountain is the 6,288-foot Mount Washington, the highest mountain in the northeast.
The locals say the White Mountains got their name because the wind-blown peaks of the chain are bereft of trees with the lowest tree line in the country. Mount Washington holds the record for the fastest surface wind gust at 231 miles per hour back in 1934.
But the beauty of nature is what sets this area apart. The road north from Jackson into the White Mountains is one of the great scenic byways in America as it skirts through the valleys and notches (mountain passes) at the base of the Presidential Range.
The snowshoeing and cross-country skiing here are replaced by hiking, camping and other rugged outdoor activities in warm weather. However, there was one year-round activity that we tried: ziplining on the slopes of the Bretton Woods ski area.
I've done ziplines in half a dozen countries and in all seasons, but the Bretton Woods Canopy Tour was the most varied, with nine zips (longest at 900 feet over Rosebrook Canyon), two bridges and three rappels. I had done a rappel at a zipline once before, but these were better. Our guides, John Halupowski and Mike Ives, were great, testing us early on the short rappel and eventually working us up to the final 65-foot drop.
Our day wasn't over at sundown. Perkins, our renaissance-man ski guide, was also one half of a singing duo, Bennett and Perkins, the opening act for Loudon Wainwright III's show at a local concert hall. At Perkins' invitation we went out for a "hoot," or open-mic night, at the Wildcat Inn, a Jackson tavern where the duo was performing.
WHEN YOU GO
Snowshoeing: Appalachian Mountain Club, www.outdoors.org
Cross-country skiing: Jackson XC, www.jacksonxc.org
Zipline: Bretton Woods, www.brettonwoods.com
Entertainment: Wildcat Inn and Tavern, www.wildcattavern.com
Accommodations and dining: Eagle Mountain House and Golf Club, www.eaglemt.com, and Omni Mount Washington Resort, www.omnihotels.com/mtwashington
Steve Bergsman is a freelance writer. To read features by other Creators Syndicate writers and cartoonists, visit the Creators Syndicate website at www.creators.com.
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