TR: Ski clock starts – D1 of 11-Twelve season

© 2011

It was no surprise when the storm hit, or that it was coming. The surprise was how much snow was left around 6,000 feet. Truckee locals have learned, Prosser Lake acts like a moisture magnet, summer or winter.

After running errands in town Pepper was antsy to get outside. There was fresh snow. A full 15 centimeters of it and it was blower light on top.

We headed for the woods but a 100 paces later it dawned on me that it was deep enough to ski. Not enough for turns, but a nice kick ‘n glide session with the dog was on the menu so I ordered up.

It was good to get back on the trail and drink in the fresh air of the woods washed in snow and see the clouds protecting the slopes high on the Carson Range. Pepper was digging running along, scooping up nosefuls of snow to sample and laughing with her tongue hanging out.

The pattern on my Guides was well matched to conditions. With most steps the snow compacted beneath, letting the scales hold tight. This delivered a nice kick for an even nicer glide. But there wasn’t enough snow to prevent hitting the occasional rock on the trail, or running in to low patches where moisture soaked the bases and then it was a fight to keep ’em from icing up. Three times I stopped to scrape the bottom clean, the last time on the home stretch after cruising out Alder Creek and then back on the tree-tunneled two-track to the lake bed then up the short-cut trail through the woods.

It was deep enough to set fresh tracks in, but not enough that your ski pole could stand up in it, and yet when they fell over, they disappeared beneath the surface. Even with more snow coming in a few days, it’s rather early to think the snow is here to stay for the season. But for today, it sure was nice to ski.

© 2011