Ski The Ridge

No particular plan today as I drove toward Stowe. I was going to go up the ski trails and ski down Nosedive. As I drove up the mountain road I saw the Stowe x-country ski center so I pulled in. I figured I could ski Nosedive for another month the way this Spring has been going. Once I got going on the x-country trails the plan was to go up high above devils castle. I got on some trails I didn't recognize and the next thing I knew I was on the Bruce trail going up up. The Bruce trail comes out at the top of Nose Dive just off the quad. From there I went up the toll road and then out onto the ridge. I have hiked the ridge many times but never thought of it as a place to ski. It was amazing today. Plenty of snow filled in all the rocks and what in the summer is a pretty rough area. Skiing up there was mid winter ridge skiing. Great views today. One of those days that keeps drawing you further because it is so nice out. The trees were really interesting with all kinds of wind blown shapes and every tree was plastered and different on the ridge.

Too many pictures below. Rather than delete a lot of them I thought I would leave them and let the viewer, if there is one,  scan through them fast.

Ridge Panoramic:

Stowe x-country trails

On the Bruce trail

Looking down Bruce trail

tables are kind of low with all the snow

Going up toll road toward ridge

Out on ridge

tower coated in ice

ridge ski

Skiing toward top of Mansfield

Half way on ridge. Good skiing if you headed down from here.