Wednesday, February 13, 2008
Praying for Snow
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As a child, I loved snow days. Who didn’t? A day off from school spent sledding with the neighborhood kids and drinking hot chocolate with mom. As an adult, a forecast of snow filled me with dread. I resigned myself to the shoveling, inevitable ice and being indoors. Until I found cross-country skiing at Great Brook Ski Touring Center in Carlisle…
Great Brook Ski Touring Center is located inside Great Brook Farm State Park. Stuart Johnstone, the operator of the park, has been managing the touring center for the past 20 years, having assumed the reigns from his father. While the equipment has been updated and necessary maintenance has been completed, the touring center remains true to the spirit of the sport – affordable family activity – and the season. With a nice snow base this year, it’s a great option for everyone who will be in the area during next week’s February school vacation.
“People like the simplicity of it,” observes Johnstone, “it is unlike anywhere else you might go. The lodge is a converted cow barn heated by wood stoves and it fits the purpose perfectly.”
At any time of day, you can find people sitting at the picnic tables in front of the wood stove. While the touring center has its own snack bar, many families pack winter picnics with thermoses full of hot chocolate and soup.
Johnstone and his team groom the trails daily. On Tuesday and Thursday evenings, they light a one-mile loop with lanterns for the magical experience of night skiing. “It is not electric lighting, but there is enough light for it to be safe. Night skiing under lanterns is not an experience you can find in most places,” he says.
Maintaining the theme of simplicity, they do not make snow. “We live by the weather, which many places no longer do. The last few winters have been sparse. We know that there may be a winter when we cannot open our doors given poor snow conditions. So we prepare for it. We run a lean operation, and are able to weather the (lack of) storms.”
The majority of Great Brook skiers come from the Boston and Lowell area. The center offers rentals and ski lessons. But Johnstone does not recommend that novices start with a lesson. “One of the best things about cross-country skiing is that it is accessible. It is intuitive. I encourage people to slap on the skis and walk out there. You will begin to glide as time goes on and you watch those around you. You can then take a lesson to fine tune your technique or learn how to gain speed.” Whether you are a novice or skilled skier, you are sure to get a great work out – and sweaty one, so don’t wear too much.
Great Brook Ski Touring Center has helped me appreciate winter in New England again. And it has brought back that childhood anticipation of a snow day.
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