Cross Country Skiing at the Waterville Valley Village Trails
| Date: | 02-5-2023 |
| Location: | Waterville Valley, NH |
| Distance: | 4.3 mi |
| Elevation Gain: | 251′ |
| Total Time: | 2 hr 26 min |
| Parking: | 20+ cars |
| Difficultly Rating: | Green, Blue, Black |
It was a lazy Sunday start after a few days of extreme cold in our area of the county. Temps were in the -20’s and with the wind chill felt like -40’s. In fact, Mt. Washington is just two hours away and they broke the record yesterday for the coldest recorded temperature ever in the United States at -108 degrees fahrenheit. Brrr. So when I woke up this morning I decided to stay in for a bit and enjoy some coffee and snuggles from the dog.
Temperatures had warmed up considerably by 10:30 this morning. I had just purchased some new Fisher OBX 199 XC skis with the spider crown and have been itching to take them out. I decided to try a new course up in Waterville Valley so I grabbed my gear and headed out the door.
Waterville Valley is about an hour and fifteen minutes away. Once I arrived the sun was shining a bit. Temps were in the mid 20’s and felt warm compared to the previous days. Parking is pretty easy. There are a number of spots near the Town Square where the Nordic center is located. This is also where you have to buy a ticket.
A Nordic pass costs about $21 which is a pretty good deal. I started out on some green trails like Pond Loop and Figure 3 that took me on a slow climb. When I reached the end I decided to go back the way I came to practice some downhill control and stopping.
After the slow decent I made my way to Snowsbrook trail and over to Roadside and then circled back into the village. Then hopped on Village Trail over to Inner Mad River. I planned on doing a loop but the Outer Mad River was not groomed and bit knarly So I returned back the way I came. When I arrived back the Town Square I decided to call it a day.
The trails seemed really nice but after such a long cold spell they were icy in a few sections which made be nervous in a few of the descends. There was also quite a bit of debris on some trails. Mostly fallen pine branches and needles that slowed me down.
It was like trying to ski with the brakes on. I’ll have to plan another trip here to explore more of what Waterville Has to offer. Maybe after a snow storm and some fresh grooming.
Overall it was a great day and I love the new skis.
