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Snowshoefest 2016 was an unparalleled success.
Our good friends Aaron and Martha have hosted this weekend snow extravaganza for the past few years and they never fail to deliver on excessive amounts of snow -- and fun! Thanks for hosting us, Marthon!
No snowshoefest weekend would be complete without a video of our hijinks!
SnowShoeFest2016 from Aaron Schwartzbard on Vimeo.
Hubz and I make it a point to leave work early in order to arrive in time for Tip Top Coffee's excellent grass-fed burgers, only available on Friday nights. With our bellies full of good food, we binge watched Buffy (what?) until late.
Saturday morning we had a leisurely breakfast and then the whole gang headed out on snowshoes. The weather was mild (it can get really cold in this pocket of West Virginia) and we trekked up a long hill and into the Dolly Sods. It's a beautiful place, and we enjoyed the snow and the company of our friends.
On Sunday, we decided it was time to make good on our promise to do some Nordic skiing. We headed over to White Grass Cross Country Ski Area and several of us splurged (a whole $15!) on a group lesson, which proved to be invaluable. Thanks, Tony!
As we practiced our skiing, we got to watch a snowshoe 5K race and saw many of our trail running friends. Spirits were high and the weather was balmy, with bright sunshine and lots of melting going on. Many people sported short sleeves and there were even a few who went shirtless.
We ate delicious food from the White Grass Cafe and ventured out into the woods to practice our newfound Nordic skiing skills. As the sun began to disappear behind Weiss Knob, we headed home, vowing to return soon.
Snowshoeing is far and away our favorite way to spend a winter day. It's a fantastic crosstraining workout. You can even run in snowshoes if you're coordinated (and the snow isn't too deep).
An impulse buy I made two winters ago, our snowshoes have paid great dividends in fun.
Though we haven't been able to snowshoe in DC since Snowmageddon 2010, we found a winter paradise just a few hours drive from us. While we get an average of just 16 inches of snow per year, Canaan Valley is blessed with an average of nearly 180 inches per year!
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| Frost line. |
It's paramount to dress properly for this sport. Saturday was sunny and quite cold with some wind. I wore two baselayers, my windstopper and a shell, glove liners and mittens. Sunday was much warmer, cloudy and still and I peeled off layers as I went.
Don't forget to refuel after burning all those calories. You can warm up with a variety of delicious hot soups at Whitegrass Cafe. We particularly enjoyed the Chorizo, White Bean and Kale Soup and Brazilian Fish Stew.
You can do some serious climbs here. A few hours of snowshoeing netted us 1,264 ft of elevation gain.
We hustled down wide, groomed thoroughfares; we tramped through fresh powder in the woods, ducking beneath snow-laden boughs; we took in expansive views from the aptly named Bald Knob.
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| Whitegrass has 45 trails - over 50 km miles |
When there's snow, it's a magical place indeed.
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| View of the Pipeline from Bald Knob |
Have you ever been snowshoeing? Cross country skiing? What is your favorite way to cross train in winter?
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| Whitegrass, West Virginia |
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| As peaceful and quiet as you'd imagine |
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| Nordic Skiers and Frost Covered Trees |
Last week Snowmageddon approached, threatening to bury our fair nation's capital with 30 inches of snow. Citizens mobbed grocery stores, stocking up with weeks worth of groceries that would likely get crammed in their freezer and forgotten. Meanwhile, I prepared with an impulse buy of my own. Snowshoes!
What would possess someone living in the MidAtlantic region, with an average annual snowfall of just 16.6 inches, to buy snowshoes?
Let's go back about seven years. Once again it was Kerry Owens who got me in over my head. It was my first time showshoeing. I did not yet realize the essential role of gaiters. The snow I kicked up landed in the back of my shoes. When I decided it would be wise to turn back - my fingers getting numb, my socks wet and the familiar tingle of blisters developing on both heels - she convinced me I should go on. She told me we could hop on a bus on the other side of the mountain if necessary.
She lied. When we got to the other side, my blisters were full-blown. I declared I was bailing for the bus. She admitted she had no idea if they were even running or exactly where to catch one. I had no choice but to trek back the entire way, numb, wet, heels on fire.
We snowshoed for nearly four hours. I had blisters on top of blisters. They took weeks to heal. Other than two marathons (on nice flat courses, sans altitude or snow) it was the longest I'd gone on foot. But after it was over I thought, if I could do that, I can suffer through a 50K.
So maybe it wasn't an impulse buy. Snowshoeing had been the 'gateway drug' that led me into the ultramarathon world.
Whatever the reason, Snowmageddon delivered the white stuff and we got our fix, touring the city in our new snowshoes. There were gaggles of Washingtonians out braving the elements: walkers, runners, photographers, sledders, snowball fighters, even a few fellow snowshoers. A big snow turns the whole city friendly and giddy and even an introvert finds it easy to strike up conversations with complete strangers.
I even got in a couple of sledding runs. It was a great day to be out in the snow. I may be addicted.
