February 17, 2013

Sometimes, when the conditions are just right, we're treated to a variety of fun, low percentage winter Adirondack adventures.

In this case, "low percentage" is a term that my aunt used to label the crazy, overhead-slam-from-the-net tennis shots that I infrequently won. The term came up while we were playing doubles during visits to their place down south when I was a teenager. She insisted that I wouldn't be handed those "low percentage" situations as often if I just stayed in my place and played like the rest of the retirees on the court.

I have been waiting for Lake Champlain water to remain at a higher mark in fall, so that a stand of trees in Bulwagga Bay will allow what we called "tree skating". A couple of years ago, it did freeze that way, allowing us to skate between the trees in a sort of natural amusement park. It hasn't frozen that high since, but given the erratic weather patterns of late, we're optimistic it will again one winter.

This weekend, I took the dog for a morning walk/run on one of our favorite backcountry roads, and after a mile or so of mindless trotting, noticed that the network of trails adjacent to the road were nicely packed by snowmobiles, as usual. Given the up and down temps of late, I decided to test their resilience by walking on them with my running shoes.

The dog ran ahead down the trail, and I followed, realizing that the right amount of packing and freezing after thawing had created a sturdy, yet not icy, surface that allowed me to run normally along what are great running trails in the summer.

Snowmobile trail run
snowmobile trail run

There's something about trail running that changes the activity dramatically in my mind. Suddenly, instead of the mundane, forward movement on foot that I endure in an effort to remain the same size, I was on an adventure.

In warm months, trail running requires great attention to avoid stumps and rocks, making the effort seem akin to mountain biking, and the time go by faster than on a road. Snowmobile trail running, on the other hand, is even MORE fun. Since there are built-in ridges from the machine's tracks, the traction is good, and as the snow covered up all of those rocks and stumps, I could pay more attention to the rolling hills and dips and even look at the surrounding forest as I progressed through the Adirondack winter paradise.

Before long, we arrived at a junction with the road again. I consulted with Katie, my canine running partner, and we agreed that we'd take one more section of trail before heading home.

In this condition, the trails are also navigable on mountain bikes. So we're headed out again to play in the snow today with our knobby tires to embrace another "low percentage" Adirondack adventure - before the next snowstorm, or spring, or bunch of tennis racket-wielding retirees get in our way.

winter mountain biking
winter mountain biking on snowmobile trails

-Kim Rielly is the director of communications for the Lake Placid CVB.

Snowmobile trail run
snowmobile trail run
winter mountain biking
winter mountain biking on snowmobile trails

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