So, I've been hearing about Hammond Hill for a few years now. Mountain bikers have mentioned it. Trail runners extol its virtues. And for the last couple seasons, whenever I tell someone that I cross country ski, their first question is invariably, "Do you go out to Hammond Hill?" One of the things I love about skiing, hiking, and running is that I can go right out my front door. No need for a car. And I never get bored of the trails near Bassington Acres. They are myriad and varied. But when Vinnie and I called off day one of our winter backpacking trip on account of a -35 windchill and a high of 3 degrees, the first idea for the day was, "let's check out Hammond Hill!" Man, am I glad we did! What a park! It was cold today, for sure, but after the wind died down it was manageable. Since very few people had been out, we had to pretty much break trail, which was warming.
This is the view from the top of our road this morning. Snowing, gusts of up to 20 mph, windchill of -35. "Hey Vinnie, let's go skiing."
This is a map of Hammond Hill. We parked on Hammond Hill Rd at the intersection of Y1. We wound up skiing about 4 miles of the yellow trails. There was some serious altitude gain, but I can't tell you what it was exactly, because my workout app fritzed out. You can probably figure it out yourself from the topo, if yer so inclined.
As the clouds cleared and the sun came out, it was obvious that it was going to be an incredible day.
We skied through several different forests, dominated by different species and ages. Hemlock, white pine, beech, maple. Each woods interacted differently with the light to create unique moods and effects.
This was only Vinnie's second trip out on cross country skis. He did yeoman work today! I'm really impressed with how fast he picked it up. I guess kids his age are like sponges.
Not that there weren't a couple spills.
This grove of hemlocks and red pines was maybe my favorite of the day. Watch the beard freeze up over the course of the day.
Vinnie says, "Ja ja, we go skiing!"
Foreground, advancing beard freeze. Background, Vinnie dusts himself off again.
Action shot!
This trail gets Vinnie's thumbs up!
Gratuitous picture of cute puppies.
This is the view from the top of our road this morning. Snowing, gusts of up to 20 mph, windchill of -35. "Hey Vinnie, let's go skiing."
This is a map of Hammond Hill. We parked on Hammond Hill Rd at the intersection of Y1. We wound up skiing about 4 miles of the yellow trails. There was some serious altitude gain, but I can't tell you what it was exactly, because my workout app fritzed out. You can probably figure it out yourself from the topo, if yer so inclined.
As the clouds cleared and the sun came out, it was obvious that it was going to be an incredible day.
We skied through several different forests, dominated by different species and ages. Hemlock, white pine, beech, maple. Each woods interacted differently with the light to create unique moods and effects.
This was only Vinnie's second trip out on cross country skis. He did yeoman work today! I'm really impressed with how fast he picked it up. I guess kids his age are like sponges.
Not that there weren't a couple spills.
This grove of hemlocks and red pines was maybe my favorite of the day. Watch the beard freeze up over the course of the day.
Vinnie says, "Ja ja, we go skiing!"
Foreground, advancing beard freeze. Background, Vinnie dusts himself off again.
Gratuitous picture of cute puppies.
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