Way to go Eddy, you rock!Sgt Eddy Brewers wrote:Two ways to react to this..SkiPutt wrote:Three skiers needed to be rescued a mile off of the juggernaut trail last night.
One is to suppose that these were wise but innocent skiers who happened to read this thread on Killingtonzone and were somehow convinced they should totally alter their behavior and drop off Juggernaut....despite the copious advice given here that doing such would be VERY RISKY and even potentially deadly.
The other theory is that these folks made the dumb choices they did because....that's who they are!
Really doubt they read this thread.
If you enter the woods not knowing the local hydrology/ shape of the watershed...and are not sure what the eventual destination will HAVE TO BE...because of the shape of the landscape...you are a moron.
In any case the weird attitude here that writing about sidecountry skiing is a capital crime...not sure I dial in to that one.
Upcountry there are thousands of skiers using Goodman's Backcountry Skiing guide...mostly without incident. Getting sound written advice of skiing backcountry lines has NOT destroyed backcountry north of us.
I know Killington is a special case with more reckless yahoos and some problematic backcountry lines. The drops to Wheelerville seem to be too confusing for many and so there is not much said about them....to prevent encouraging rookies dropping those lines. Fine. Although sometimes I wonder if giving some VERY helpful and generic advice could reduce the number of skiers requiring rescue. Like the signs posted.
In any case the woods bordered by Juggernaut/ Solitude/ Sassafras ( the lines that were inquired about on this thread) are not the kind woods that you could require rescue from. If you are attempting to ski from Juggernaut to Solitude and you get lost and require rescue...you are a moron that probably shouldn't be leaving the trail ever.
I figured out all the lines I ski by careful research of the topology and summertime hiking. In the winter if I see lines going into some woods that I haven't skied first I make sure I know the boundaries of the woods. If the woods are totally bounded by trails...I drop the line (never alone). Out of countless adventures of that sort there have been probably less than ten that turned out to be horrid (too tight, too many downed trees, ravine issues). I'm sure there are still a lot of lines I haven't found but I'll find them eventually. I only share lines with friends and family...because finding your own lines is even more fun than being shown a line. This advice only applies to lines entirely bordered by trails.
As for the Backcountry that skis out to elsewhere...I think Killington just has: 1) no written advice available about out of bounds lines 2) some very problematic backcountry lines that confuse rookies 3) TOO MANY brave overconfident goofballs. Hence we get an inordinate number of required rescues.
I don't think the last two issues can be changed....should we change the first issue and give some helpful advice to reduce the number of required rescues. I won't be the one to do it... think it might help but not sure....and I don't want someone to kill me for posting that type of info.
For your next trick, you should post directions on how to work on automobile brakes, or maybe how to perform open heart surgery.
Thanks for bringing such valuable content to K-Zone!