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Show LThere are ski opportunities I riahi in our own backyard By Beth Heggeness 7T Although spring is de i-SfniBly i-SfniBly in the aur-with Matures in the six-L six-L for the past couple of !eeks-up in the LaSal 'fountains this March it 'kill looks like winter, ind winter sports enthusiasts en-thusiasts are still enjoying 5 the 3 feet or more of l nowpack on the lower Any mention of winter SDorts should immediately 1 bring the word "skiing t to mind. Moab is filled to the brim with frustrated l schussers and paralleled ' who drive many miles ) ' every winter to hit the slopes in Colorado or at Salt Lake area resorts. But, my husband, John, j and I have discovered that ' the ski slopes are not so ' very far away for those ; who become part of one of - the fastest growing sports ' in the country cross : country skiing. Popularity Growing The proliferation of this ; winter sport is attributed . 1 to many factors two be-j be-j ing the ballooning popu-, popu-, larity of skiing in general j and the "back to nature" movement or participation ; in outdoor activities of all ' kinds. Anyone who skis and 1 lives in Moab must know ; I the frustration of driving ; several hours to get there, j paying for sky-high lift Si tickets, then standing in I line for half an hour to get H I on a lift to go half way up ' ' the mountain with another ; wait in line to get to the top. And, what about all the people and noise? Winter time can be an ' extremely beautiful time of year, but it's hard to be outside'to eniov it some- -v -". ' , ..- f . , . , . V V " ' i " :"" ' , tAi 1,1 - " . - v '. ; ' .J . -, 4 ' . t if ! i' . ,' ' ; . a r i r i 1 . i 1 r.'- t . j I ' if' i i f -' f ' f ! Back among the snow drifts and junipers of a LaSal Mountain mesa, Castle Rock and the valley are often visible far below. Underfoot is perhaps three feet of snow great for the cross-country skier, but more than enough to trip up a hiker. John Heggeness doesn't enjoy having his picture taken, but he is an enthusiastic back country skier! (Photos by John and Beth Heggeness) times. The roads aren't plowed, your snowmobile takes expensive gas and makes annoying sounds, hiking in 3 feet of snow is i ;-.' v " LI ' S - -r .'''' . J ( v V John demonstrates that if you can walk, you car cross-country ski. After some practice balancing on the 9 aTJ H - "ny skis' ' ' the rest is Just mileage getting out anc 1 doing it. With the LaSal Mountains so close to Moab c'tCUntry skiing can e a very enJ'yable wintei m mim- . impossible, and it's cold outside. John and I solved those problems this year, along with a yearning for, snow and real winter by invest- ' ing in a second set of cross country ski equipment. Because, to indulge in this sport, the roads shouldn't be plowed, personal energy ener-gy is all that needs expending, and the sport keeps you marvelously warm just because you are moving on your own power. Starting is Easy Getting over some of the other initial barriers to the sport could also pose a problem. I've heard any number of people say, "Cross country skiing? You've got to be kidding! That's harder than downhill. down-hill. And what about all that messy wax and the strange equipment . . . and then where do you go?" I've got news for them. As for cross country skiing being harder than downhill, down-hill, maybe that comment 1 was made by someone J who watched the racers on 1 Wide World of Sports one . weekend. It's my opinion r that if you can walk, you can cross country ski. Next, cross country ski equipment is not really very complicated or expensive. ex-pensive. There's actually less paraphernalia involved involv-ed than with downhill skiing, and it's easier to maintain the equipment yourself. Messy waxes? If you. really don't care to get into the fun of waxing your . skis according to your judgement of snow conditions, there's the new fiberglass "no-wax" skis to take the headaches out of that part of the sport. Once the investment of equipment is made, you can ski anywhere without with-out even waiting in line that gets enough snow to cover up the rocks. Plus, it's a quiet sport and you can go anywhere back among the trees that your heart desires. Prepare First Of course, as with any sport, skiing on the "skinny skis" (so called because they are sometimes some-times almost half the width of downhill skis) takes some advance preparation. prep-aration. It is wise for anyone to grab his downhill down-hill buddy and ask for 50:- . : ' ' -' n.., : ' W. ' . ...... downh iiggeness Pauses for a breather after a long Goin' a rUn- along the LaSal Mountain Loop road. K aownhill on cross country skis can be at least as thrilling as on downhill skis, and very often quite more challenging! The winter snowpack provides a nice backdrop for a day of fun. some pointers on turning and snowplow stops or getting some hints from a book or a class on the basics. Many shops that sell cross country equipment equip-ment also offer free clinics to beginners to start them out. Another good idea is to keep in mind that more care must be taken to find out about weather conditions condi-tions and possible avalanche ava-lanche hazards in the area in which you will be skiing. The Benefits But once you have it down, off you go! John and I enjoyed skiing recently just be driving up the LaSal Mountain Loop Road as far as we could, then getting out, strapping strap-ping on the skis, and heading out across an interesting looking meadow. mea-dow. Here in the LaSals there is not too much danger of avalanches, nor any terribly steep slopes to provide problems, and plenty of pretty country to explore. As we went along we left the noise and bustle of the snowmobilers behind to enjoy their fun, and wound our way up and around the junipers and pinyons of the LaSal mesas. What is there to see? Well, it depends on what you like, I guess. I enjoyed seeing the untracked snow rolling along in front of me. It makes me feel something like an explorer. explor-er. Those unmarred snowbanks snow-banks were positive proof that no one had been along that way before John and me (at least since the last snowfall). I also like stopping to reflect on things like rabbit tracks wandering aimlessly along among the trees. I think profound thoughts such as, "Where in the world was that rabbit going, and. why?" If you stop to study the matter, you can even tell something about the character char-acter of rabbits. They always seem to hug close to overhanging branches of trees and don't cross the wide-open spaces too often. Tremendous Views And, I can't forget to mention the breathtaking views back down the mountain slopes. Castle Valley and Castle Rock, blanketed in snow, are something else when seen from a hawk's-eye view. Last, but not least, it's kind of neat to stop for a sandwich and sit on a rock in the sun knowing that if you jump down without putting your skis back on first, you'll sink to your knees or thighs in the snow. (Everyone always did accuse me of enjoying such simple pleasures). I can get a thrill from skiing up to the base of a snow-covered mountain, looking up and thinking, "Wow, it took some special effort to just come here and be able to see this mountain in all the snow and the quiet . . . it's really different from summertime." sum-mertime." Finally, don't let anyone any-one kid you about the "downhill thrill" not being be-ing there when you're out on cross country skis. It's different, but it still exists. In fact, when the time comes to go back down, things can gel really exciting. It's easj enough to control where you are headed and how fast you want to go or skinny skis, but it does take a little bit more time to communicate to youi skis what your desires are But, I guess that only adds a little bit more suspense to the whole process. So, skiers, take heart . Know that living in Moat is not hopeless after all and hikers can sticl around during the winter i time too. And not only ; that, but there's at least another month of good cross country weather up ' there in the LaSals not more than an hour's drive ' away! |
