With the snip of a scissors, Maine's burgeoning network of community nordic trails grew bigger by 2.5 kilometers yesterday as officials from the town of Cape Elizabeth and the Cape Nordic Ski Club formally opened the new competition course at Gull Crest.

Snipping the ribbon to officially open the Gull Crest nordic ski trail yesterday were (L>R): Dave Moody Roberts, Muzzy Barton, Paul McKenney, Mike McGovern and Peter Dunfey
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About a hundred people gathered for the grand opening, which included a short Bill Koch Youth Ski League race in addition to a bit of speechifying. Muzzy Barton, Dave Moody Roberts and Peter Dunfey represented Cape Nordic, while Paul McKenney and Mike McGovern are Cape Elizabeth town officials.

About 100 people gathered for yesterday's opening of the Gull Crest nordic ski trail
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Melissa Slack and Kristen Kerney, both members of the Cape Elizabeth High School nordic ski team, were among the many who attended yesterday's official opening of the Gull Crest trail
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Metalworking students in Cape Elizabeth High School are constructing this grooming drag for the Gull Crest trails
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Barton, one of the driving forces behind Cape Nordic, noted that the 2.5 km opened yesterday represented Phase I of a two-part effort.

Muzzy Barton (right) speaks about the Gull Crest trail-building project, while Peter Dunfey, chairman of the project committee, looks on
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Two-year-old Keigan Shea tries out skis for the first time yesterday at Gull Crest under the supervision of dad Scott, a teacher at Cape Elizabeth High School
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Barton pegged the cost of Phase I at $45,000, entirely raised by the tax-exempt club, and noted that fund raising would soon begin on Phase II, an estimated $100,000 project that will add another 3.5 km to the system.

The municipally owned land is the site of the town transfer station, a sewage treatment plant plus ballfields and playgrounds.

The nordic ski trail was designed by John Morton, a Vermonter who has been involved in seven Winter Olympics as cross-country athlete and race official.

Like most John Morton trails, Gull Crest is definitely a competition course: a graded sinuous pathway with many hills, curves and technically challenging sections. In the future, Cape Elizabeth High School ski teams will train at Gull Crest.

Nordic skiing is a serious pursuit at the nearby school. Last week the Cape boys took second in the Class B nordic championships and the girls tied for third.

After the BKL race, I skied the trail myself, but didn't find it very appealing. Far too many hills and techical sections.

I'm hoping that Phase II is more friendly to casual recreational skiers.

Much ado has been made about how community nordic trails can help in the national battle against obesity, but if the target population eschews them, fat chance they'll ever be of any help.

A famous ski trail and a famous church supper made the perfect combination yesterday for 13 members of the Maine Outdoor Adventure Club.

After skiing the famous Ellis River Trail, the crown jewel of Jackson Ski Tourng, we capped that nordic adventure by chowing down at 2007's final Famous February Supper at the Bartlett (NH) Union Congregational Church.

Members of the Maine Outdoor Adventure Club pose for the Ski Bum's camera before starting down the Ellis River Trail at Jackson Ski Touring
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I carpooled from Portland with Cliff Krolick, owner of Back Country Excursions, a mountain bike company in Parsonsfield.

Everything was perfect at Jackson Ski Touring: snow, grooming and weather. Jackson is the biggest and busiest nordic center in the East.

After buying our tickets and changing into our boots, we set up a car shuttle and skied a three-mile one-way warmup trip. We began at Black Mountain, then skied south down the Betty Whitney trail, The Wave and the Yodel before returning to the touring center for lunch.

After lunch we set up another shuttle, and skied the famous Ellis River Trail one-way southbound, about six miles from Dana Place to the touring center. The Ellis is perhaps the most popular trail at Jackson, and it's been written up in dozens of guidebooks and newspaper articles, including a few penned by the Ski Bum.

Bonnie Farrand demonstrates her downhill snowplow technique yesterday at Jackson Ski Touring
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Heather Chandler, publisher of The Sunrise Guide, ponders the bountiful sunshine yesterday at Jackson Ski Touring
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Kathy Kinch and Dave Benham pause along the Ellis River Trail
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Nearing the end: Members of the Maine Outdoor Adventure Club pose by the covered bridge over the Ellis River yesterday
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Nadya Pearson pauses before crossing the Ellis River covered bridge
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Doug Malcomb was one of three in our group using old wooden skis
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For most of our group, yesterday was a first visit to Jackson. The MOAC skiers were wowed by Jackson's extensive trail system, which begins in the village and radiates into the surrounding hills and river valleys.

Following our skiing adventure, we motored down the road for a gustatory adventure at the Bartlett Union Congregational Church, which has been putting on its Famous February Suppers for 47 years. Held on the four Saturdays of February, these downhome dinners are very popular with skiers, both downhillers and nordic enthusiasts.

After skiing the famous Ellis River Trail, the MOAC group moved down the road to the Famous February Supper held at the Bartlett Union Congregational Church, a favorite with skiers for 47 years!
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It's all you can eat for the ridiculously low price of $7.

Patti Janums relishes her cheesecake dessert
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It was definitely one of the best trips I've ever led for MOAC, so I think I'll make this famous-trail-plus-Famous-Supper an annual cross-country adventure.

When you go skiing or riding at Mt. Abram, you're always dealing with happy faces. Let's look at a few I met when I skied there on Tuesday.

Ticket manager Robin Nevel has been working at Mt. Abram for 27 years
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When you go in the ski shop, chances are you'll deal with co-owner Susan Burns (on the left), who's also the GM

Need a lesson? Buzz Hollander, who has been teaching since hickory skis and leather thongs were in fashion, wants you to learn from him

Need a lift? Barry Nevel (Robin's husband) has been running Mt. Abram's Hall chairlift since it was built around 1970

Barry, who's Mt. Abram's uphill transport supervisor, gets my vote for the friendliest liftie in ski country!

Of course there were hundreds of happy customers, too.

The Valentine's Day snowstorm had all the hallmarks of a good old-fashioned blizzard, so it was appropriate to meet some good old-fashioned people on the cross-country ski trails in the Bethel area.

I was staying in Bethel -- snug as a bug in a rug at the Sunday River Inn -- for a few days to confer with several leaders of Maine's nordic ski industry.

The best place to start was at Wednesday's monthly networking breakfast of the Bethel Area Chamber of Commerce at the Bethel Inn.

After breakfast I wandered down to the touring center and ran into about 15 people with Always An Adventure, a Concord, NH-based outing club that specializes in organizing group excursions for retired people. They were coming in from a morning of skiing on the trails before settling into one of the inn's cozy meeting rooms for coffee, socializing and bridge.

Skiers with the Always An Adventure outing club return from the trails at the Bethel Nordic Center at the height of the Valentine's Day snowstorm
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I chatted with Barbara Hanchett, a spry lady in her mid-60s who had retired from the Concord YMCA a few years earlier. For 20 years Barbara had led trips like this for the "Y." When she retired she started Always An Adventure, which currently counts about 160 members who range in age from mid-50s to mid-70s.

The Top of the Hill gang poses on Wednesday after returning from a morning on the trails at Sunday River Cross Country Ski Center

Returning to the Sunday River Inn, I met another group of extremely active and energetic seniors returning from an excursion on the cross-country trails (some were snowshoeing). This bunch was the Top of the Hill Gang, mostly from New England.

Leader Rocco Pennacchio explained that the club numbers about 400 and will celebrate its 20th anniversary in April. They ski all over the world, both cross-country and downhill.

Far too many older people simply vegetate after retiring. It's so refreshing to meet people like the Always An Adventure bunch and the Top of the Hill Gang, who represent the gold standard of life in the "golden years."

Both these groups were out having a great time on the cross-country ski trails at the height of the Valentine's Day storm. I venture to speculate that the vast majority of their fellows back in their hometowns were huddled by their televisions sets watching a bunch of talking heads tell them that they SHOULD NOT SHOULD NOT SHOULD NOT venture outdoors on such a day. (One SHOULD NOT watch that much television!)

Hardly a gold-encrusted antique himself, Sunday River cross-country founder/impresario Steve Wight is segueing into semi-retirement. Steve shared some thoughts on the development of nordic skiing in Maine.

Steve Wight, owner of the Sunday River Inn and the developer of its touring center, poses by his Pisten Bully groomer at the height of Wednesday's snowstorm

Sunday River Inn developed its touring center in 1972, making it one of Maine's first. He also co-founded two business organizations that represent touring centers. Cross Country Ski Areas Association is an international group that is based in western New Hampshire, while the Maine Nordic Ski Council worked for 25 years before being absorbed into the Ski Maine Association.

All three of the Bethel-area cross-country centers worry that the proliferation of government-subsidized nordic trails in southern Maine is siphoning off day-trip business and threatening their continued operation.

The two others I spoke with are David Carter and Mike Cooper. David has been involved in the Bethel cross-country scene since 1962. He and wife Anne run Carter's Cross Country, which stretches from the banks of the Androscoggin River to the summit of Farwell Mountain. Find the center on the Intervale Road.

Operating as an independent concessionaire/contractor, Mike Cooper runs the cross-country operation at the Bethel Inn and also grooms the competition trails at nearby Gould Academy. Over the past several years, he's revitalized the Inn's nordic offerings.

Meantime up at Sunday River Resort (the mountain) communications director Alex Kaufman bubbled about Wednesday's storm.

“It’s our largest 24-hour snowfall since the early 1990s, which is when daily snowfall records were first reliably kept at the resort," he reported. "There might have been a bigger one prior to then, but this is the largest 24-hour event even our 20 and 30 year employees can remember."

It bodes well for the big President's Day Weekend and Maine/Massachusetts school vacation week.

And speaking of old-fashioned... You know you're an old-school skier if you can remember back to the days when George Washington's Birthday was celebrated on February 22 -- back in the era of hickory boards and pine tar.

Winter weather can be tough, especially if you're a refugee from a tropical country and you've never seen snow.

So WinterKids, the Portland-based non-profit that promotes healthy outdoor activities for children during the cold-weather months, is extending a helping hand this Saturday via the second of its 2007 "Welcome to Winter" events.

This one will be held in Lewiston from 1-3 p.m. at the Multi-Purpose Center, 145 Birch Street (a slapshot from the Lewiston Maineiacs' arena).

WinterKids' "Welcome to Winter" provides a helping hand to immigrant and refugee families in Maine. Winter challenges these populations. A cold climate, a new culture and unfamiliarity with recreation opportunities may keep people cooped up indoors during Maine's longest season.

A helping hand for Maine's refugee and immigrant populations -- and help for the feet, too -- is the theme of the "Welcome to Winter" event slated for this Saturday in Lewiston
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Many immigrant and refugee families are experiencing winter for the first time and need assistance to help them learn how to properly cope with Maine's cold, snow and ice -- and also how to have winter fun!

WMTW meteorologist Tom Chisholm will serve as emcee.

Snowshoe demonstrations will provide help for the feet too!

Other events include Klondike sled races and a form of Oriental ice-walking. Participants can build snowmen and snow-women and decorate them in multi-cultural styles.

Participating sponsors include Hannaford Supermarkets and L.L. Bean. WinterKids is also helped out mightily by TD Banknorth, Weight Watchers of Maine and Healthy Maine Partnerships.

An immigrant woman shows how to bundle up for Maine's cold weather at January's "Welcome to Winter" event, which was held in Portland

Hannaford Supermarkets will provide snacks and hot chocolate, and the
Catholic Charities SEARCH Program will provide hats and mittens free of
charge on a first-come, first-serve basis. Complimentary winter socks
will also be available.

All local immigrant and refugee families from the Lewiston-Auburn area are invited to attend this free event.

For additional information, residents may contact either the Lewiston
Recreation Department at 782-5951; TTY/TDD: 784-5999 or the Auburn
Recreation Department at 784-0191.

You know that you're in Bode Miller country when you ski at Bretton Woods, the up-and-coming New Hampshire resort that may soon rival the biggest and best in New England.

Cherie Perkins of Windham poses by the sign for Bode's Run, a black-diamond trail named for the 2005 overall World Cup winner
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Bode Miller, the 2005 overall World Cup champion, is "Director of Skiing," a ceremonial title that adds luster to a topnotch resort that already has plenty to brag about: most skiable acres in NH, most high-speed quads in NH, Top Ten ratings in many, many categories of quality and so on.

Signs of Bode are everywhere, including an electronic screen that displays his recent race results and current World Cup standings.

After the World Cup season ends, he comes home -- he has a house less than a mile from the mountain -- and leads a few activities at the Woods.

Bretton Woods boasts four high-speed quadruple chairlifts, the most in New Hampshire

Riding to the top yesterday on the Zephyr Express quad

Cherie Perkins of Windham and I ventured through Crawford Notch yesterday to ski at Bode's abode, and we loved the experience. Snow conditions were outstanding and virtually all the cruising terrain was open. Seven chairs were running, including all four detaches.

The Woods is located on Route 302 about 95 miles from Portland; drive time is a bit over two hours.

Cherie hadn't skied the Woods in years, and she was awed by the high-speed Rosebrook Express Quad and the pod of new trails that it serves -- including black-diamond Bode's Run.

She was also impressed by West Mountain, which opened half a dozen years ago and boasts some really mellow glades.

Despite all the great new developments, Cherie and I especially appreciated a few of the old-fashioned natural snow trails accessed by the new Zephyr Quad, including Coos Caper, Granny's Grit, Herb's Secret and Crawford's Blaze.

Cherie had never skied West Mountain before yesterday

These four classic New England runs get relatively little traffic despite being almost dead-center on the trail map.

As we were leaving, we ran into three skiing friends. Craig and Barbara Whiton are stalwarts of the Portland nordic scene and had come up for the cross-country skiing, which is also topnotch at the Woods. After finishing, Craig and Barbara stopped by the mountain base lodge to hook up with Rik Dow, who was closely associated with two Maine ski mountains before crossing over to the Woods.

Driving back, Cherie and I hit the brakes for the "Famous February Supper" held at the Bartlett Union Congregational Church. These all-you-can eat food feasts, held for decades on the four Saturdays in February, are popular with skiers. One guy who sat near us gave a glowing report of the nearby Bear Notch Ski Touring Center, where he had skied a few hours earlier.

Featuring in-your-face vistas of the Franconia Range, the views from the summit of Cannon Mountain ski area rank among the finest in New England.

The same can be said for the Sunset Hill House, where I stayed a couple of days on a midweek ski getaway.

Cannon Mountain and the Sunset Hill House make a perfect combo: They're only a few minutes apart.

And they complement each other nicely: When you've burned up a few muscles on the mountain, you can restore them in the jacuzzi.

Mine had a picture window overlooking the ski slopes at Cannon! New for this Ski Bum!

Skiing on the Vista Way trail near the summit of Cannon Mountain in New Hampshire's Western Slope region
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Situated at a high point of Sugar Hill, every room at the Sunset Hill House boasts an incredible view. Innkeepers Lon and Nancy Henderson are a personable and energetic couple who own the historic hotel, which dates from 1880.

With the Franconia Range and Cannon Mountain in the background, the Sunset Hill House offers the finest views of any New Hampshire resort
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Socially, culturally and economically, Franconia and Sugar Hill offer a different perspective too.

Life revolves around skiing in these two towns. Skiing dominates the physical landscape and suffuses the local culture and economy.

The first ski school in America was located at Sugar Hill in 1929.

This historical marker recalls the first ski school in America, located at Sugar Hill, New Hampshire
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The New England Ski Museum is located in Franconia at the base of Cannon Mountain.

The New England Ski Museum is located next to the Valley Station on the aerial tramway at Cannon Mountain
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The New England Ski Museum is the finest of its kind in the region
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America's first racing trail -- Taft Slalom -- was opened in 1933 on Cannon. In 1938, the state of New Hampshire built the aerial tramway; the idea was to spur the local economy by creating a mass market for skiing.

Bode Miller hails from here, and every local can relate a Bode story.

Bode Miller, who learned to ski at Cannon Mountain, hoists the World Cup in 2005
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Lon and Nancy, avid skiers themselves, have become pillars of the local social scene. And their inn caters to the schussing crowd with an onsite cross-country touring center, topnotch food, accommodations plus play-and-stay specials.

That's a viewpoint that appeals to this Ski Bum. Expect him to return soon.

Computers, cookies and cowbells are key ingredients for running a successful nordic race, and the Portland Ski Club does very well in all those departments.

A racer double poles to the finish line Saturday in a race hosted by Portland Ski Club
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After attending Saturday's high school meet at Riverside golf course, hosted by PSC, I was impressed by the outstanding organization of the competition. Sure, the racers are the focus of the event, but today let's take a look at some of the officials and race helpers -- the people who make it all possible.

PSC's point people are the husband-wife team of Tim and Sukie Benoit. Tim's a computer guru, who keeps track of the results; Sukie's a bullhorn artist who directs the on-snow action.

Tim Benoit keeps track of results on the computer
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Sukie Benoit directs racers and on-snow officials
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Starting line officials at Saturday's high school ski meet hosted by Portland Ski Club
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Cookie lady Beth Cory is very popular
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The Portland Ski Club (website out of date) was co-founded eight years ago by another husband-wife team, Craig and Barbara Whiton. Barbara was president for quite a while and Craig is coach of the combined team that is drawn from all three of the city's high schools: Portland, Deering and Casco Bay.

Craig and Barbara Whiton are the co-founders of the Portland Ski Club
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Craig Whiton, coach of the combined Portland high school nordic ski team, rings a cowbell to encourage his racers
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The biggest hero of the day was Riverside superintendent Gene Perotti, who started grooming the race course at 2 a.m. and kept at it until the first competitor pushed off. First class all the way!

Gene Perotti, who grooms the race course at Riverside, shares a laugh with Rick Licht, coach of the Gray-New Gloucester nordic team
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Yesterday I went up to Pineland Farms ski center, where the New England Nordic Ski Association held a number of races that ranged from lollipop kiddie races to masters competition.

In conversation with several of the partipants I was reminded of the importance of reliable officiating: In a recent NENSA race (in another state) all the women's times were badly messed up and had to be declared invalid. Now consider the fact that some of these racers train hundreds of hours, travel hundreds of miles and spend hundreds of dollars to compete in the NENSA series. 'Nuff said.

A racer at yesterday's NENSA competition held at Pineland Farms ski center
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NENSA racer double poles to the finish line
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Finish line officials yesterday at Pineland Farms
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Eliza Adams runs the finish line refreshment table at yesterday's NENSA races
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If youthful energy could be converted into electricity, yesterday's middle school nordic races in Cumberland would have lit up a small city.

About 130 boys and girls from Cumberland, Falmouth, Portland and Yarmouth competed in a classical (no skating allowed) race held on the Twin Brook area. The enthusiasm shown by the kids was contagious -- which bodes well for the future of cross-country.

Boys line up for the start of yesterday's classical cross-country race in Cumberland
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Racer out on the course yesterday in Cumberland

Double poling halfway through the race

Two girls from Falmouth await the call to line up

Girls line up for the race

There wasn't much snow on the open fields used for the competition but groomers and snowmakers cobbled together a really fine course with beautifully set tracks.

Twin Brook is an example of a new public-private paradigm in cross-country trails. The land is owned by the Town of Cumberland and Bill Landis, director of parks and recreation, is the chief groomer. Following the races, I skied the course and complimented Bill on his efforts.

But it's not all public money. Coastal Nordic Ski Club (no current website) spearheaded the fund-raising for the snowmaking equipment, a snowmobile-grooming drag combo plus a Pisten Bully large groomer.

This public/private model is becoming more widespread in Maine, and its growing importance is generating considerable discussion within the state's tiny nordic ski industry.

Yesterday's sunny skies and brisk temps seemed to beckon me to Mount Cranmore, the landmark ski hill of North Conway, New Hampshire.

My companion was Judy "Black Diamond" George, the skiing realtor who lives in Windham and works in Portland. Judy's a transplant from deep in the heart of Dixie; she the Ski Bum have been schussing together for about five years.

Judy's a member of the Diamond Society, a recognition of her prowess as a realtor. She got the nickname "Judy Black Diamond" for her prowess in skiing.

Judy "Black Diamond" George, a skiing Scarlett O'Hara who hails from Memphis, TN, poses yesterday near the Meister Hut at the summit of Mount Cranmore
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We often ski at Cranmore, which is closer than several of the most prominent Maine mountains and boasts a friendly, low-key ambience. Of all the trails at Cranmore, Judy likes Kandahar, Rattlesnake and Skimeister the best -- three narrow, twisty runs that reflect the traditional gestalt of New England skiing. Her ever-present lipstick reflects the gestalt of the traditional Southern Belle.

Of all the trails at Cranmore, Judy likes Kandahar, Rattlesnake and Skimeister the best -- three narrow, twisty runs that reflect the traditional gestalt of New England skiing
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We also like the Meister Hut, an old-fashioned log cabin-cum-sundeck located at the summit. There's always a real wood fire going in the Meister Hut and we usually stop by for a bowl -- or boule -- of chili for lunch.

Chili in a bread boule at the Meister Hut at Mount Cranmore
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Judy chases her chili with chocolate at the Meister Hut
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While at Cranmore, we met general manager Ben Wilcox, and we commended him on the great job his snowmakers and groomers have been doing. About 80 percent of the mountain is open and in excellent shape. The Darkside terrain park looked super. Snowguns were blasting all the time we were there, and Ben said that two more trails, North Conway and Arlberg, would be ready for the weekend.

Tom Eastman, snowsports-editor-at-large of the Mountain Ear, a free weekly newspaper that gives great coverage to skiing
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We also met Tom Eastman, the snowsports-editor-at-large of the Mountain Ear, which just might be the world's best free weekly paper.

Judy deals with a lot of skiers in her business. Today she's closing on a condo, representing seller/developer Jay York, Portland's prominent skiing photographer. Their business relationship grew out of another skiing foray a few years ago, hosted by yours truly, The Ski Bum.