A Great Ski in the Sandilands

With our weather hovering just below zero for a few days I decided enough is enough - I gotta get out and ski. So Saturday afternoon I went for a tour on our local ski trails (the fly-in golf course) out my backyard for an hour and did another great ski of about 9kms this Sunday afternoon. I've been working out with my iPod - helps me keep up my pace during fast songs and slow down the pace for slow songs - still working on the ultimate workout mix, any suggestions? New semester starts tomorrow - we'll see if I can squeeze another ski before the deep freeze returns or if I'll be back on the bike trainer indoors.

Saturday Ski!

Another awesome day for a ski in the Sandilands - Pat & I did the yellow loop and I think the temp was around -5 degrees Celsius - pretty much perfect. I had one close encounter with a tree after wiping out after getting caught in some deep tracks during one of my descents. The only casualty though apparently was my ski pole which handle came off the shaft while climbing the next hill. Nothing a glue gun can't fix apparently but it was a pain for the rest of the ski - definitely slowed my pace down and forced us to stop several times as I had to keep putting it back together. Next time we'll have some tape along - my old ski poles always had a bit of electric tape on them just in case!

Night Ski

It was good to get out for an hour on the Sandilands Black trail with Jason & Pat. Still prefer hitting the trails on mtn bike but I admit that it was a lot of fun skiing in the dark. The headlights are definitely a must without a full moon - in our case, our ski started out with falling snow but by the time we got back to our vehicle the stars had come out. Still a bit on the brisk side though - I'm guessing it was around -15 degrees C. Hopefully, I will get another ski in on Saturday! Sure beats working out indoors!

Ski Saturday

I had a great first ski of the season...it was a balmy 1 degree out there and the skis glided well on the groomed trail. I spent sometime off-piste breaking new trails and the snow was a little crispy, breaking off in chunks, so not nearly as efficient as the groomed stuff. After 40 minutes of skiing solo I joined up with Pat, Jason & Dale for a bit and ended up doing a couple laps through the golf course area. I think with my solo stuff & later group ski - I ended up doing around 10-12kms...pretty good workout on the thighs & lungs! Forecast is great for the next week, although we could use a little more snow, some grass was shining through the tracks in places...

Skiing to Stay Fit

So obviously my mountain bike season has "frozen" to the point of no hope for a big thaw...so that leaves me with few exercise options to maintain my fitness. Cross-country skiing definitely isn't as edgy or inspiring as rocketing down a hill on two wheels but it still can be fun. But admittedly, it takes a heck of lot more motivation to actually make the trip to Sandilands to ski. Once I'm there it generally is all good but these temps we've been having have definitely made it tougher to be excited. I admit it - I am more of a -5 to -10 skier - the whole arctic tundra -30 thing just doesn't do it for me. Anyone out there who would care to inspire me to stay fit this winter>>>?

So yeah - I need someone to kick me in my butt to get back into physical exercise!!! The Bowflex routine starts this Monday and I may retake up swimming i guess. We can ski locally at the golf-course that is a mere 1/2 km away from my backyard which is nice but no real hills unfortunately. Oh and I may take up spinning if I can justify buying one of those trainer machines for my bike. Anywhoos - I better get back to exam review & closing lecture prep.

Stress Reliever #34

Back in my graduate school days, I remember one of the best stress relievers was to go for a cross-country ski. In my case, that skiing takes place in the rolling hills of the Sandilands. So to promote some relief from stress in my life today - I went for a nice 8km ski on the Blue Trail. Great to escape work for a few hours!

Exploring Winter

I do not recall experiencing a Christmas without any snow around but there may be a vacation from my childhood where we were wisked away somewhere warm. Although I may not enjoy extreme cold, I actually don't mind snow on the ground as it allows me to explore a whole new environment for play.

Every child loves to see those first flakes of the year hit the ground because it means snowmen, snow forts, and of course snow balls! There is a moment of wonder when you see that light fluffy stuff float like little parachutes from the skies above. I love to ski - I just find it hard to get motivated to drive the 20 minutes to the nearest cross-country ski area. I grew up skiing along the river, along with snowmobiling and occasionally mixing the two together. We brought the downhill skiis & helmets for that - skiing behind a snowmobile and launching over little jumps or the banks of the river!

I've done a few winter backcountry trips as well - sleeping in snow caves or quinzhees, climbing Mt. Jacques Cartier in Quebec, ice-climbing in the Adirondacks, the list continues. I don't get to do winter activities often but when I do it truly is enjoyable. I miss downhill skiing in the mountains - I remember a number of trips to Big Sky or Big Mountain Montana! They blew away our local ski hills like Holiday Mtn or Frostfire! Nothing beats swooshing and zig-zagging through powder!

Back-country Telemark Skiing in Quebec

There is something about playing in such an extreme environment that is thrilling. It isn't normal to climb a frozen waterfall with crampons & ice tools is it? Especially if you are somewhat afraid of heights like myself. But I love it - there is nothing quite like the thunk of the ice axe as you heave it into ice!

Wen & I racing up to the top!

Ice-climbing in NY's Dacks

skiing & marking?

Well - my family and I are off for another weekend at the family cottage. I hope to get some good ski circuits in as I'm feeling a little sluggish as of late. Unfortunately, I'm bringing along the burden of marking papers and exams but we'll see if play beats out work in the end. Beautiful ski weather has been forecasted!

Wake Up!

I heard this quote recently and I thought it was worth exploring, "People don't wake up until they learn they're going to die." So many people on this planet (at least in North America) seem to be in some form of comatose and are blind to the beauty of the world around them. I often feel that part of my job as a professor is to wake people up, to reveal the amazing-ness & intricacies of God's creation. Ironic, perhaps that I feel that way - seeing as I've had a few profs that have come close to putting me to sleep.

There's a song by P.O.D. called Alive that I think would make my Explore soundtrack playlist (hmm another potential blogpost methinks) as it reflects on the joy of living & learning. For myself, this joy comes from interacting with the environment. Whether it is schussing down a powder run on telemark skis or running a waterfall chute in a kayak or sending bubbles upwards from a depth of 60 feet while exploring a coral reef - I love my life and I love living it while exploring!

I've relearned discovery by having children. My daughter Chelsea loves to explore and although her world is much bigger than mine, I find it all very inspiring! For her, a rock boulder is a mountain and climbing to the top results in Everest-type euphoria - how cool is that! Have you climbed your mountain today?

G

BTW - the weather has been amazing and I got away for a short 4.5km cross-country ski loop near West Hawk.

Bike Ski Explore

My parents recently built a cottage on Star Lake (see Whiteshell Provincial Park) which happens to be about 20 minutes away from one of my favorite cross country mtn bike areas in Ingolf, Ontario. With the snow we've accumulated though I'll clearly be cross country skiing this weekend instead. I'm looking forward to exploring the local ski trails and getting some good exercise. I do miss telemark skiing & the mountains but cross country is great for the lungs and keeping my muscles in shape for hill-climbing.

Part One: Adventure Seeker

I cannot remember not being a seeker of adventure, of new experiences, of stories beyond the norms of regular life. Even in Junior High whether it was reading Hardy Boys books, getting to know the opposite sex, or going on my first canoe trip - the goal was exploration of something I did not know and needed to discover. I love the outdoors and grew up alongside a winding river that called my name in whatever the season. It was there I learned to play and to explore in God's creation. Whether it was the construction of tree houses & forts, or stalking small animals or birds, or constructing a mountain bike trail - I knew I was meant to be alive in nature.

I've had many adventures since those early days in Riverside. I've ice-climbed in the Adirondack Mountains in NY, whitewater kayaked many rivers in Manitoba, Ontario, North Carolina & Tennessee, and I've skied in Western Canada's Rockies & in the Chic Chocs of Quebec. I have traveled overseas to Israel and swam in Lake Galilee, the Dead Sea & the Red Sea. I peered into the Devil's Throat of the Iguazu Falls in Brazil & Argentina. I've had the pleasure of scuba-diving with sharks & explored wrecks in the Caribbean. Yet there are so many more places I would love to explore and travel to.

Early on this week, I spent an afternoon cross-country skiing in the Sandilands and I couldn't resist wandering off the groomed trail. I pushed some boundaries, ones I knew better than to push. I came close to spending a night in -20 celsius conditions without a flashlight or a source for fire because of a misjudgment of how much longer it would take in such deep snow. I had food, water and good clothing but it would not have been an easy night. Thankfully, I found my way back (before nightfall) eventually to where I wanted to be.

G