Long Overdue Props

I noticed some time ago that maps of ski resorts all tend to look alike. It's not because the mountains are the same, but because the artist is.

James Niehues is a professional resort illustrator and he's done more than 300 illustrations for ski mountains, golf communities and tourist bureaus since the 1980s. That longevity, and the fact that I I get excited about skiing each time I see his work, are enough to earn these long overdue props.

Thanks, James, for letting me know how to get from North Peak to the Jordan Bowl.

Snow pants malfunction

This weekend is the first ski trip of the winter for me. Hopefully I don't end up like this poor dude in Vail.

Apres ski

Mrs. N-B and I went waaaaaaaaaaaay north this weekend for some skiing. We were at Jay Peak. Nice mountain, full of Canadians. That might be because of it's proximity. Check out the official USGS map:

Once more to the mountain

I've whined and complained for about three weeks that it was too cold in Boston. So now that it's going to be near 70 degrees tomorrow, what am I going to do? I'm going to the Sugar Loaf ski area in Maine, which got 55 inches of snow this week.

The key to a successful weekend will be to get through it without being distracted by stupid sexy Flanders.

Off to Attitash

It's another ski weekend, the third in a row.

It dawned on me last week that I like riding a chairlift more than I like sitting on the beach.

Sunday River bound

See you Monday.

Bring it, mother nature

Have you seen how much snow Buffalo, N.Y., got earlier this month? Send some this way, so I can suit up:

Gone skiin'

I could try to describe the great calm that comes with riding a ski lift to the top of a mountain or the clarity that comes with the first ski trip of the year (the reason NaturalBlog took the weekend off), but instead I think I'll complain about the bane of any mountain: Snowboarders.

When not dusting off their designer snow-pattern camouflage jackets and pants, they're shouting DUDE as they cut in front of the NaturalBlog's carefully maintained pizza wedge.

Maybe these transgressions aren't so bad, but riddle me this: Why oh why do they plop down on the mountain in little clumps?

I'm not talking about the sit-down at the top of a ski-lift, when boarders reattach their free leg to their snowboard. I'm talking about mid-mountain respites, usually in the middle of the slope. They're like little pinball bumpers, or small pocks of acne scarring a beautiful mountain face.

Is snowboarding that physically strenuous? Are snowboarders prone to boredom? Are they momentarily overcome by the munchies? Your suggestions are welcome.