Skiing at its best!

Spectacular scenery and great conditions keep me coming back to Tyrwhitt

What a fantastic day of skiing! The snow was cold, the sun was bright, the tracks were excellent, glide was superfast, no debris, no wind, and easy waxing.

When I arrived at the top of Whiskey jack, blog readers Ada, Jen and Bill were there to greet me

It was one of those days where you only burn half the normal amount of calories because it all seems effortless. Coming down the gentle, easy part of Elk pass, I had to be diligent to maintain my balance on the turns because it was so fast. At the end of the 18K loop I felt as if I had barely worked. Grip was awesome with VR30(-10 and colder); so good in fact that I barely had to herringbone going up Whiskey jack. It was the perfect day of skiing that you dream of.

Blog reader Perry is the skier on Elk pass near the Blueberry junction

Are you drooling yet? I haven’t even mentioned the scenery. The photos of Tyrwhitt and Elk pass will tell the story without any more gushing from me.

To end the loop, I had more enjoyable skiing through the trees on the beautiful single-track trails of Fox creek and Moraine – with no debris.

The trails which were trackset a few days ago have been well-used but are still in excellent condition thanks to the cold weather and negligible wind.

The air temperature at Boulton creek at 12 noon was -16°C, but it didn’t seem that cold as I started up Whiskey jack. I only made two concessions to the weather conditions; I wore a light vest in addition to my base layer and light shell, and used toe warmers in my boots. The temperature when I finished skiing at 2:15 pm was -8. I didn’t take a snow temperature; I just knew it was cold.

Blog owner trying out some new eye protection

Blog readers Steve and Andy heading up the Blueberry hill trail

Being a bright sunny day, I decided to wear the Julbo Sniper, a visor which is made specifically for xc skiing. It was given to me in order to do a review of its performance, so I’ve described the pros and cons below.

I liked it mostly because there was no fogging. Ever. I took 120 photos, so there was lots of up and down with the lens.

I left the visor on for the entire trip and it was comfortable. I also noticed a difference when descending the steep, fast hills on Elk pass. Normally on such a cold day, my forehead and face would be frozen at the bottom, but it did a good job of mitigating that issue.

Some skiers preferred being OFF the groomed trail along Elk pass

It has a photochromic lens, which means it reacts to differing light conditions. The reaction time is a bit slow. For example, if you’re skiing in bright sunshine along Tyrwhitt, then into dense forest and shade, it takes a second or two to adjust. If the Tyrwhitt moose was standing on the trail in the shade at that instant, you might not see it.

The other problem(which no one else will have) is that it blocks some of the lettering on my toque 🙂 You can read more Julbo Sniper visor. I believe it retails for around $150.00

I’ve updated the Canmore Nordic Centre page with the latest information on the Alberta Winter Games held Feb 7 – 9. Check out the the trail closures if you’re thinking of skiing at the nordic centre.

Redearth creek was trackset yesterday.

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