19 WINTER 2024 VOL . 05 / ISSUE 02
SNOWGOER . COM 20
some occasions as I guided the weak little sled as high as I could up various inclines before looping out just as it was losing all forward momentum .
Back-and-forth we went , climbing this hill and that hill , cutting around obstacles and trying to let the sled flow at its best , knowing that momentum was a friend almost as important as horsepower in this oxygen-starved situation . Some of the really steep climbs on the horizon were reserved for the power-added sleds , but we still had an absolute blast . This was mountain landscape at its finest .
Soon , Scott led us into the trees for some tighter trail riding and some off-trail exploration . Weaving down through the trees on a course that featured an uneven base covered with feet of powder , snow exploded over the hood often as we picked a path and tried to avoid burying the nose . It was snowmobiling bliss .
Back To Reality
After playing in the trees for quite a while , breaking trail and getting stuck less often than the day before , Scott led us toward some of the vast play hills where the big spenders test their expensive , modified sleds and their own skills .
“ See that hill there ?” Scott asked , and pointed into the incredibly murky haze . I squinted and shrugged . “ That hill and beyond there is epic playground – I know you really can ’ t see it , but it ’ s there … I ’ m sorry .”
As our unofficial guide and partner in crime , Scott was in control of several things , but not the weather . Both days , we actually did make the best we could out of a somewhat uncontrolled situation , with the weather and the sleds . We had an excellent time , yet knowing that we missed out on a lot makes our desire to go back even stronger .
Except next time , we ’ ll bring our own , more powerful sleds . And we won ’ t go on April 1 .