Jun 08
While the winter weather and snow conditions were less-motivating than usual across the Northeast this past season, the winter was not without its many, many great days – including this one here, with 11-year old Turner Barbour showing us all how it’s done in Vermont’s Mad River Valley. (Click on the thumbnail within the post to enlarge photo.) – Brian
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Jun 01
Sometimes the trail doesn’t lead you quite the way you were hoping to go. In this case, while pedaling and skiing our way through Switzerland’s Engadine Valley this past April, and after a nice morning on the snow, we turned a corner on a bike trail only to discover several downed trees across our path along the river. The local trail crews had not yet been out for the spring yet, so we should not have been too surprised. However, given that the nearest access to a parallel road across the river would require some hefty backtracking to a bridge upstream, we remained determined to push on.
Tempted to haul the bikes over the downed trees, we set off on foot to see how many trees we were talking about. Four trees…not so bad. Another 200 meters ahead, however, the trail was gone – wiped out by a recent snow and rock avalanche – and only a very precipitous swath of slippery earth remained. And beyond that, we could spot even more downed trees…and snow. So much for that idea.
Our thoughts turned to the river. If we could find an easy place to cross, we could link into a network of farm paths and pedal back up to the main road along the valley. No backtracking. Onward motion. But the widest stretches of river were waist to belly deep, with slippery footing and a swift current of snow melt flowing. With another snow squall breathing down our backs, we opted to stay dry.
So back up to the bridge we pedaled. We embraced the extra 300 meters of climbing necessary to reach the high road across the valley, pedaled through a brief snow and rain squall (our first rain drops of the trip!), spotted a faint rainbow and still made it to a cozy camp spot on the Austrian border by dark – warm, dry and excited for another big day in the mountains.
(Click the image preview below to view enlargement. View more posts about the trip HERE.)
-Brian and Emily
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May 27
This past winter, the land encompassing Vermont’s Bolton Valley Nordic Center and adjacent backcountry was placed on the market by its owner, Redstone. With the fate of the land uncertain, the Friends of Bolton Valley Nordic and Backcountry was formed with the intent of securing long protection of and access to this prized stretch of the Green Mountains. The group has embarked on a year-long fundraising effort, in partnership with the Vermont Land Trust, with the goal of purchasing and conserving the 1100+ acre property sometime in 2013. Here’s an update on the issue, brought to you by our friends at Backcountry Magazine, here.
Also, head to the Vermont Land Trust’s website, here, for more details about the progress of the project, how to get involved, and more.
Thanks.
-Brian
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May 21
With plenty of summer weather prevailing across the Northeast lately, and with plenty of ocean time under our belts lately, we’ve been thinking about the great times we’ve had skiing to the beach over the years. It’s not something we get to do very often, but it’s something we hope to do a lot more of in life…and it’s no doubt an unforgettable experience. (My sister and brother in law took it to another level this winter, with some fun skiing ON the beach in southern New England. Stay tuned for a little video evidence of this later.)
Nonetheless, the image above triggers some great memories. Along with our good friends Craig Augustinsky and Brennan Severance we were exploring a remote island along the coast of East Greenland in early July a few years back. We pushed one day/night, straight through the midnight hour, to a quiet beach on the far side of the island. We had some ambitions to build a drift wood fire and bivy under the lingering twilight, but a stiff breeze, chilly temps and fun snow conditions kept us climbing and skiing our way back toward the cozy confines of our established camp – where we finally crashed out in our tents around 4am.
The next day, we skied down to another beach, harvested some fresh north Atlantic mussels, and thanks to a bit of fresh cod Brennan hooked into, we whipped up one heck of a seafood stew for lunch.
– Brian
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May 14
Since returning last week from a month long, bicycle-powered skiing adventure in the Alps (more posts HERE), we’ve been thinking a lot about the incredible freedom, access and mobility that bicycles and camping make possible. (Caution: If you throw skiing into the mix, too, you might not ever come back.) During our recent adventure in the Alps, we were also pleasantly reminded (again) of how vital it is for all of us to regularly immerse ourselves in the outdoors for longer periods of time, to truly unplug and to simply tap into the rhythms of nature for a while.
More than anything, these adventures remind us of what really matters most – be it our health/fitness, connections to people/community, or the greater need for large scale land/water conservation (especially with mounting pressures on even our last remaining wild areas and open spaces)…so that our great grandkids might be able to have some the same experiences that we have today…to name a few.
It’s also very refreshing to live with just one bowl, one spoon and one good cup for a while. It’s empowering to be warm and dry even while shaking snow off the tent at night. And it’s a true gift to be standing atop a quiet and beautiful, snow-covered mountain with skis on the feet – and a great big world of possibility below.
Also, we’d like to express a special thanks to the following for their support of this adventure: Julbo USA, Mammut USA, Surly Bikes, Black Diamond, Switzerland Tourism, Swiss International Airlines, SCARPA, Patagonia, Ibex, Muscles Not Motors, BOB Trailers, Ortlieb USA, Smartwool, Primus Camping, Pale Morning Media…and a very special thanks to Lars & Barbara, Urs and Siggi, Heidi and her family, Jami and Tom, and all of our family members and friends who continue to support us along the way.
Here’s to making sure we can all continue to enjoy the freedom of the hills!
(Click the image preview below to view enlargement. View more posts about the trip HERE.)
-Brian and Emily
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