20
|
WINTER
2015
Witha ski posseassembledandcamera inhand,my friendsand
I setout tohavesome fun in thewoods.Our first “offpiste”session
found us waist deep in fluffy, blower powder. Face shots were
goingaround faster thanschnappsat theAlphorn,andcliffdrops
were going down smoother than apple liquor. We must have
looked likedrunks trying tomaneuver in thedeep snowandafter
each run, climbingback upwas an arduous and sweaty affair.
Thephotos tellamuchdifferent storyhowever, thanwhatactually
tookplace inour secret “backcountry” location—theshotsscream
bigmountain skiing—grander than the realityof our little stash.
This is theone thingyou should knowabout powder photos cap-
turedalong theEscarpment —as cool as thesephotosmay look,
the linesare reallyonly fouror five turns long.Sure,we like topre-
tendwe’re out west, fantasizingabout shreddingbig lines and
never endingpowder fields. Someguys even like towear back-
packs,as if theyare trekkingondizzyingpeaks,exceptavalanche
equipment is replacedwithsandwiches,and touringequipment is
not required.
Mini golf isa termused in themountains,when thehighalpine is
socked inandyouare forced toskibelow the tree line. It’sa fitting
term touse forpowder skiing inOntario.
Much likemini golf, skiingpowder on the Escarpment is a lot of
fun, but in theend it just isn’t the real thing.
Ifyou’reapowderhound inOntarioandyouonly live for the ran-
dom,deepdays, you’re in luck.BlueMountain’s5x7pass issuch
agreatdeal; itpays for itself in just3visits.For the restofus though,
skiingand ridingon theEscarpment ismore than theoddpowder
day. Let’s put it thisway, the clubs along theEscarpment haven’t
investedmillionsofdollars instateof theart snowmakingbecause
Ontario is known for itsdeep snow.Nope. TheEscarpment is the
landofhardpacked,man-madesnow,perfectly laidoutby indus-
try leading, grooming technology. If you’re likeme, you get just
asmuch thrill out of catching the first few runs of the day on un-
spoiled corduroy as you do chokingon face shots in untracked
powder—well, almost.
☛
Haily Durnin and Jenna Mielzynski boot-packing up for another run.
Colin Scott visualizes the trees as gates.
ESCARPMENT
®
FEATURE
|
THE ISSUE WITH OUR BACKCOUNTRY
