After Thursday’s epic day of discovery, I wanted to get back out to my “office”.
Friday had started mild with temperatures cracking 40*F in the afternoon. I hadn’t ridden with Darrin Jr all winter, so I figured there was no better time than now.
I didn’t unload my sled from the ilsnow command center after Thursday’s ride. So I decided to pick up Darrin Jr. and his snow cruiser and truck it to the Northville/Lake Placid trailhead parking lot to worm our way to C8A/Old 538 Newcomb trail without grinding through heavy traffic on S84 from town. It was today’s cheat code.
Darrin Jr. snapped a few candids of me performing my 24-point trailer checklist before taking off. Even after all of that, I forgot to insert the trailer tilt latch & ramp pin. Thankfully, it didn’t tilt back in the short distance I trucked it. Sometimes, it’s better to be lucky than good.
S84 behind the Ranger Station was aces and Darrin Jr was ready to rip! It was a great ride to its junction with the Newcomb trail.
The fresh inch of snow from Thursday gave the “Ole 538” a great ride from bottom to top. There were some worn spots on Joseph Mountain, but the rest of it was nearly mint riding late Friday morning.
Turned right on C8A and made the run over to Newcomb. As usual, that had more worn spots and the best riding was had east of Goodnow Flow Road. The plowed section for logging had sufficient icy base with enough white grease to slither through, save for the small area of dirt where the logging was taking place.
Once in Newcomb, we dropped down to Lake Harris and ripped across. Road from the Campsite was an absolute race track to rip through. Trail along the Hudson River to the Overlook was the best I’ve ever seen it.
High Peaks were sparkling with snow. Pictures can’t capture the beauty of that! We hung out at the Overlook for a while, soaking in the sun and enjoying the day. It’s too bad snow melts when it gets warm, but it does make for really pleasant rest stops.
From there, we ran over to Newcomb Cafe and Campground for lunch. It was a full house there with a combination of visiting snowmobilers and hard core locals. The Mexican Breakfast Burrito with fries I ordered was no joke! I can destroy a pile of food with the best of them. But this one filled me up.
The way back
It was amazing how quickly the trails turned from mid-winter prime to grits in a short time. The worn spots on C8A back to Newcomb-T were showing much more. Trail was especially snirty in “downtown” Newcomb and west of Goodnow Flow Road.
Darrin Jr. decided this would be a good time to blow a belt.
By the time I had gotten to S84, I was really happy that I could truck it home from Blue Mountain Lake instead of bashing my way home to Indian Lake. I offered Darrin Jr. the choice of riding S84 all the way home or to load his sled back onto the ilsnow mobile command center. He chose…..WISELY!!
Once I unloaded the sleds at the compound, we ripped around town. Bear Trap Swamp was messy. “Saturday Lite” snowmobile traffic and 40*F temperatures had done a number on the main arteries. But the trail base was still intact. I encountered at least 2 dozen oncoming snowmobiles late Friday afternoon in my spin through ilsnow Capitol City.
I ripped across Adirondack Lake, which had expanding slush areas. But I didn’t have any problems when I stayed on the main drag.
S87/42nd and Broadway and S86/Little Canada were smooth and fast for cheap thrill material to round out the ride. Ended up with 65 miles spun off when I returned to the compound. It was a great Father and Son Day at the office to bring my weekly riding total to 555 miles over 4 days – including that solo 212 mega-miler. I’d say that’s not a bad run.
The Weekend?
I don’t have a one-answer-fits-all for that one. At least the rain we’ll get Friday night should total only around a quarter-inch, an amount our present snow pack can absorb without blowing open the streams and creeks to render our trails un-rideable. Rome isn’t gonna burn down in one day.
We’ll get a hard freeze Saturday night to staunch the bleeding and tighten things back up. Unfortunately, no significant snow is in the forecast. And more trouble is looming on the horizon for later next week. I’ll be lazy and just refer to Rich Lupia’s post on Upstate Snow. The moral of the story is to get here and ride sooner, rather than later, even though THIS weekend isn’t ideal.
I don’t think we have many tomorrows left this winter. Just trying to make the most of it.
For the ilsnow nation,
Darrin
This report is brought to you by Chef Darrell’s Mountain Diner on the snowmobile trail in Blue Mountain Lake! A traditional diner serving breakfast all day, as well as lunch and dinner. They use fresh ingredients to handcraft a home-style menu in a casual, family-friendly environment. Open Thursday through Sunday all winter.
