Zealand Valley: New Hampshire's largest ski area!
Last week's stint at Zealand Hut was the most fun yet. I skied in on freshly-laid tracks through one to three feet of fresh snow from Thursday's storm. Matt and some guests had broken trail for me: Matt told me that it had taken him two hours just to get from the hut to the Hale Brook Trailhead, a little more than halfway down (typically, it takes us a little over one hour to ski all the way out to Route 302). I got in late that night, just after 5 PM radio call, but because of the extraordinary conditions, I arrived at the hut at the same time as, or before, most of my guests.
It was a busy weekend, both in terms of guest volumes (I had a full house Saturday night) and in terms of snow removal. But with over 40 inches of snow on the ground, I was in a splendid mood. Three guys from New York City came up for Sunday night and we spent the afternoon doing sick hucks off of local waterfalls, then we enjoyed dinner together over a couple of games of euchre. While we were skiing, one of them took this photo, on a descent I call "Employee Bonus" (so named because I've decided to keep its location a secret).
This week also saw the first ski descents of the season on the caretaker glades, Zealand Falls, the Sugarloaf trail, the birch glades on the east side of Zeacliff, and (one of my favorites) Thoreau Falls. Bretton Woods ski resort, which lies just over the minor ridge at the northern end of the valley, claims to be New Hampshire's largest ski area, but the Zealand Valley could swallow six or seven Bretton Woodses whole. We also get more snow, steeper terrain, no crowds, freshies that last a week or more, and you'll save $52 or $59 by skiing here weekdays or weekends, respectively. As for lifts, I've got a pair of high-speed quads that will take me anywhere I want to go.
What I'm reading now:
The Society of the Spectacle by Guy Debord. Some French socialist philosophy to revolutionize labor-capital relationships in the Zealand Notch. Debord writes about "the spectacle": the superficial trappings of contemporary capitalism (the spectacle includes mass media, consumer goods, celebrity cults, etc., etc.) as the means and ends of an emasculated consumer society: "it [the spectacle] is the sun that never sets on the empire of modern passivity." It's a kick-ass book to read when you're living the lifestyle of a nineteenth-century housewife six miles from the nearest highway.
It was a busy weekend, both in terms of guest volumes (I had a full house Saturday night) and in terms of snow removal. But with over 40 inches of snow on the ground, I was in a splendid mood. Three guys from New York City came up for Sunday night and we spent the afternoon doing sick hucks off of local waterfalls, then we enjoyed dinner together over a couple of games of euchre. While we were skiing, one of them took this photo, on a descent I call "Employee Bonus" (so named because I've decided to keep its location a secret).
 | The author, fully committed on "Employee Bonus" |
This week also saw the first ski descents of the season on the caretaker glades, Zealand Falls, the Sugarloaf trail, the birch glades on the east side of Zeacliff, and (one of my favorites) Thoreau Falls. Bretton Woods ski resort, which lies just over the minor ridge at the northern end of the valley, claims to be New Hampshire's largest ski area, but the Zealand Valley could swallow six or seven Bretton Woodses whole. We also get more snow, steeper terrain, no crowds, freshies that last a week or more, and you'll save $52 or $59 by skiing here weekdays or weekends, respectively. As for lifts, I've got a pair of high-speed quads that will take me anywhere I want to go.
What I'm reading now:
The Society of the Spectacle by Guy Debord. Some French socialist philosophy to revolutionize labor-capital relationships in the Zealand Notch. Debord writes about "the spectacle": the superficial trappings of contemporary capitalism (the spectacle includes mass media, consumer goods, celebrity cults, etc., etc.) as the means and ends of an emasculated consumer society: "it [the spectacle] is the sun that never sets on the empire of modern passivity." It's a kick-ass book to read when you're living the lifestyle of a nineteenth-century housewife six miles from the nearest highway.
2 comments:
Hey,
Suppose I wanted to come up and do some backcountry skiing around Zealand. Could I bring my typical alpine skis or is all the stuff there accessible only by tele? (I don't have any snow shoes, but I could rent some, and just carry my ski boots. Would that be a feasible approach?)
Thanks,
Matt
Certainly, any descent a tele skier can do, an alpine skier can do better, and with less effort. But you've got to ascend to descend. The major problem with an alpine setup in the Zealand Valley is the weight and bulk of alpine skis and boots. You'll definitely need snowshoes or x-c skis to make the 7 mile trip into the hut from the road, and it's going to be painful to carry alpine gear, in addition to all your other gear, all that distance.
May I recommend that you learn to tele? It's a lot of fun, not too difficult to learn, and you'll know how glorious it is to be free from chairlifts.
If you must use heavy skis, there are some other options closer to the road. The Sugarloaf hiking trail,for instance, has some skiable sections only 3 miles from the trailhead.
Finally, a disclaimer: skiing in the backcountry is very risky and the best thing would be to find someone else with plenty of experience to show you around. Don't ever ski alone, because there's no ski patrol in the backcountry, and on a cold day, a blown-out knee could easily be fatal.
Hope that helps. Hope I've inspired another tele convert. Have fun.
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