Nordic Lessons

Two years ago we bought cross country skis, but haven't really used them yet. Corinne went once with Kris and Amy shortly after we bought our gear, but she didn't really know what she was doing. She survived unscathed but didn't leave with any more skills than she started. And I hadn't gone at all and had no idea what I was doing. So when we saw an announcement for a "beginner cross country ski clinic" organized by the Columbia Gorge Chapter of the Oregon Nordic Club (ONC), we figured that it would be a good place to start.

This particular clinic was being held while my parents were in town visiting, so they could watch Anders while we learned. To make things even more convenient for us, it turns out that the clinic was going to be held on Mt Adams (rather than Mt Hood)! A twenty minute drive north of our house and we were at the SnowKing Sno-Park on Mt Adams meeting the rest of the crew.

But the conditions on this particular day were less than ideal. Plenty of snow was still on the ground, but a recent rainy warm spell followed by cold weather again made for some very icy conditions. (In fact, while we were getting our gear together one of the members in our party fell while traversing the parking lot.) After a short survey of the conditions further down the trail, the leaders made a call to move down to a trail at the Trout Lake School. The terrain was relatively flat and the trail had been groomed that morning, so it wasn't particularly icy. (Thanks, Robert!)

We learned a ton from the ONC members before even putting on our skis. We then all spent about an hour and a half doing a loop on the trail with periodic instruction. We both came away with much improved skills (and some sore muscles.) The following day, we spent another 45 minutes or so skiing around our own property. There are no groomed trails, of course, so the conditions were pretty different than the previous day. But I think we had both learned enough of the basics on the previous day that we felt comfortable and had fun.

Here's to more winter snow!

- Mike, Corinne and Anders