From Maine to the Adirondacks, skiers are finding the backcountry gives them something that is difficult to achieve with a dozen or so other skiers and snowboarders on a crowded groomer.
“They want more solitude,’’ said David Goodman, author of “Best Backcountry Skiing in the Northeast.’’ “They want a communication to nature.
“Part of skiing is trying to figure out how to get through ridiculous conditions and terrain. We don’t expect it to be manicured.’’
Goodman is known as a godfather of sorts in the world of Northeast backcountry skiing. He began cross-country skiing when he was a student at Harvard University in the early ’80s. By 1989, he had written his first ski guide for the Appalachian Mountain Club, which also published his latest last year, encompassing 50 of the best backcountry tours in the Northeast (you can see the complete list on www.backcountryskiing.info). Goodman’s books are often referred to as “the bible’’ in the backcountry world, as they provide great detail about difficulty, location, and length of trail that are pivotal to the experience on the rolling terrain of New England’s mountains.
“I tell people I suffered so you won’t have to,’’ he said.
When Goodman began his backcountry ventures, the equipment consisted of leather boots and skinny skis. Today the alpine experience has been dramatically altered with plastic boots and wider skis, making it a more manageable outing for even intermediate skiers willing to put in the effort. There are a number of introductory clinics in the area, including some AMC and North American Telemark Association offerings. Private companies such as Petra Cliffs Climbing Center and Mountaineering School in Burlington, Vt., also provide different levels of guided tours in Vermont, including an introductory course that requires little more than managing blue square runs at your average resort.
