Skiing Around

 

  

Things took a turn for the worse on Monday when temperatures went up above freezing.  Though there was plenty of snow, I almost decided against skiing.  Then,  while walking Roxy, the snow was a nice consistency that I couldn't resist.  If you take the rail trail west from our house, it gets very little sun, so that's where I headed.

  

  It's not too far to get to Buttermilk State Park where I saw what was left of the supply of stones for the new steps on the Gorge Trail.  The bottom picture was taken in early August at the same spot as the top.

  There are a few left to send over to the other side via the rope and a sling.  It was tempting to cross that way myself.

  I wonder how long this rigging lasts?

   Good thing they didn't use this pine near the one they did use for the anchor.  Heads up...

  

  The dam that used to hold back water that formed Lake Treman.  

   Might as well call it Cane Lake now.  I'm going to get the kids from school to help me recreate the Bad Bunny Halftime Show.

   Sluice pipe below Comfort Rd bridge.

   Lick Brook is always a treat.  I had to take the skis off and walk down the trail.  But totally worth it.

   Too hungry and getting too warm for skiing in Treman State Park again, I headed for town and visit my buddy, Jim.  I hoped he had something to nourish me to make it back home.  He lives right along the rail road tracks that pass between the bottom of Lick Brook and Treman and the snow hadn't started melting enough yet making the tracks skiable.  The engineers don't like it when they come around a curve and there's a skier on the tracks.

  A flood control dike back to Big Box Land.  The hillside is most of Lower Buttermilk Park. The service road I skied up goes along Owl Creek on the left side of the hill.

  

A drainage pond from an unnamed big box parking lot.

  The Bridge to Everywhere.  I could go north to Taughannock, west on the tracks to Treman or all the way to Spencer, east to Brooktondale.  And I didn't have to take my skis off to cross the highway at the light between McDonalds and the Salvation Army. 

  For now, it's necessary to go around this NYSEG substation to get on/off the rail trail, but access is coming soon.

 

Back to the Rec Way for a couple-hundred feet to get to the top of the hill above our house.  The snow had softened up to the point that when I got to the sidewalk across the street from our house, a ski got bogged down in the soft snow and I did a faceplant.  Nice ending.

  For a day I considered not skiing, I'm calling it a respectable 13 miles.