Day: March 18, 2016

2016 03 13  Sublime Spring Skiing at PTdN

Tom V

At the EOS Party on Sat evening, there were only two people who said they planned to go skiing at 11 am the next day at the P’tit Train du Nord (PTdN).  And one of those two was a maybe.  I certainly did not think I would go.  But back home after the party, I was browsing Facebook and saw a post by the PTdN people with a night-time photo of the freshly groomed trail and the comment that the conditions would be great on Sun.  I was suddenly tempted, but decided I would see how I felt in the morning.
After getting up and moving all my clocks ahead one hour, it was still early enough and the weather was great.  I decided to go for it, despite not having been on my cross-country skis in over a month due to bad weather and scheduling conflicts.  Yes, it was going to be a few degrees above zero, but I wasn’t scared of putting on klister.  I drove to the vieux gare de Mont Rolland in Ste-Adèle and arrived at 11 am just as Mickey and Sharon were parking.  The parking lot was two-thirds full, but there were no other Beaver Tail skiers.
2016 03 13 PTN TV 07Sharon decided to go skate skiing while Mickey and I prepared our classic skis.  I put the gloppy universal klister on my skis and we set out north.  The klister worked surprising well and we made good progress.  It was about +4 C or +5 C, with sun and no wind.  It was a real treat to be skiing with no hat or headband and a light pair of gloves.  Mickey had skied a lot this winter (including doing the Canadian Ski Marathon) so he was in his usual top form.  Fortunately for me, he dialed back his effort level so that I could keep up with him.  But he did egg me on to go “just another km” and before I knew it we were 13 km out.  The PTdN is a linear trail so I did the math and realized I was now committed to a 26 km ski, my longest this year by far.

2016 03 13 PTN TV 12 2016 03 13 PTN TV 02
The return trip was mostly downhill and given the often icy surface (when the trail was in the shade), double-poling was the easiest way to move along.  We stopped often to take photos, or at least that was my excuse, I just needed to take some breaks!  We finally returned after 3 hr 25 min for a well-deserved lunch at the Café de la Gare.  I was feeling tired and sore, but It was one of my most enjoyable outings of the year!

2016 03 12  EOS Party at La Perle

Tom V

The season really does seem to be drawing to an early close.  After a late start, and some uncooperative weather during much of the last month, the local parks (e.g. CSJ, BDL, Mt Royal) ended their trail grooming activities the previous weekend and the snow has been rapidly disappearing from our lawns.  So it seemed appropriate to be gathering last Sat evening for the End of Season (EOS) Party.
2016 03 12 EOS MT 02Thirty-nine members and guests gathered at La Perle in DDO.  This was the second year in a row we were meeting here.  We had our own corner of the busy restaurant (conveniently located by the TV screens showing the hockey game) and there was much mingling and conversation as we arrived and found our places.  Then the food, pre-selected by our organizer Roy, began to arrive. And arrive. And arrive.  Everyone found lots to enjoy among the many choices and nobody complained about still being hungry!
During the meal, I conducted a quick survey among the attendees as to where they would prefer to go skiing the next morning.  The choice was near unanimous — nowhere!  Indeed, many had been out on their bikes that afternoon and were planning to do so again the following day instead of skiing.  But there was one person (Sharon) who said she would ski and one other person (Mickey) who said he might ski.  So I announced that the designated location for the Sun ski outing was P’tit Train du Nord (Mont Rolland) at 11 am DST.  So how did that turn out?  Is the season really and truly at an end?  Check the Sun outing report to find out.
The EOS Party was a great success thanks to all who attended.  But it was especially due to Roy for all the planning and organization he did in the preceding weeks.  Thanks, Roy!