Introducing: Somewhere North of Boston

It’s late December. I wake up in my apartment and its still dark outside. I go to work and it’s barely light out. I come home and it’s night again. It’s cold, and in a month it’ll be freezing cold. Slowly, I’ll become inured to the conditions. Cowed by the elements, I’ll move from warm location to warm location, never lingering in-between.

By January the prospect of slopping through the streets to attend a wet bar with sandy floors, patrons bundled and un-enthused, has  lost its appeal. By mid-January the prospect of leaving the apartment at all is intimidating. Staying home becomes hibernating, and hibernation turns to cabin fever. Your roommates are tiresome and your activities rehearsed. Stifled by a growing ennui there is only one thing to do - get the F out of Dodge!

And I say, ‘go North young man!’ Go North! where the men grow beards and the beer pours frothy. Go North! and view the vast landscapes, the green stubbled mountain faces, and the long highways to remote locations. Climb to the peaks, breathe in the cold in serenity, shake off your tousled city mindsets and collect your wits and moxie! Go skiing, and go often!

Focus yourself entirely on a moment’s actions. Execute, then repeat. Lose yourself and your weekday thoughts. Reinvent yourself on a mountain of strangers.

Find somewhere north of Boston, among the challenge and enjoyment, some satisfying peace of mind.

What to look for out of Somewhere North of Boston:

As a newly pronounced avid skier, I intend to explore New England’s ample back-country and report back what I find. My perspective is, by definition, my own - that of a 25 year old with an eye for affordability, a taste for good brews, and an urge to travel North.

Last season I put in 18 days on-mountain. My success stories and failures were based, timelessly, on trial and error. I intend to use this blog as a conduit for advice, a review through the lens of a young Bostonian, and a reminiscence of my excursions north. Skiing is a vacation, but the process of preparation, premeditation and execution can kill your ski-hard-relax-by-the-fire-after fun. Think of my blog as a how-to guide for preserving your patience, protecting your wallet, and availing yourself of the great northern landscape above slushy Boston.

Additionally, I hope to offer some novel skiing perspective. I purchased a chest-mounted camera which can take video or still-frame shots. My initial plan is to have the camera take stills every 10 seconds. 6 pics per minute x 60 minutes x 4 hours (or however long I feel like wearing the thing…) should produce about 1,500 pictures. Of that, I imagine less than 30 will meet the vigorous standards worthy of my audience.

Forward Calendar:

I’m beginning what should be a marathon ski season with a serious sprint! Unfortunately for the title and theme of this blog, my first foray to the slopes will not be north but west!

Steamboat Springs, Colorado boasts “champagne” powder and I’ll be joining up with tour guide and host Stuart Drahota of Skidmore College ski team fame. Close on its heels I’ll be headed to Jay Peak, Vermont  then MLK weekend at Sugarloaf Mountain, Maine.

December 29-Jan 4th Steamboat Springs CO.

Jan 7- Jan 10 Jay Peak, VT.

Jan 14- Jan17 Sugarloaf Mountain, Maine

So…

If you’re like me, and nobody gets why you’re wearing Carhartts in the barroom… stay tuned!