Sn's 30 & 31: Hazen's Notch to Canada; Trip Report 9 March 08

[Jill A]

Having postponed this trip one day due to heavy rain the day before, I was determined to ski the plan of Sections 30 & 31. We set off as planned from Hazen’s Notch skiing north. We soon determined that the rain had been heavy enough to change small stream crossings into raging brooks. Our group of 3 successfully crossed two of these before being thwarted by the third. With knowledge from our skier who had done this same section two weeks prior, the streams were likely to get more prevalent had we been able to continue. Alas we aborted the trip after a little less than two miles. Completion of my final two sections of the trail would have to wait.
Otherwise conditions were crusty with a little blown snow on the top. Lighter skiers stayed on top most of the time. There was a line somewhere between our lightest and heaviest skier as one of our party kept breaking through.
On the east side of Jay Pass we had seen fallen trees from freezing rain as we shuttled cars on Route 242. Thus the trail east of the pass might have been blocked by fallen trees. We never found out, but I advise others to be aware of this.
We did shuttle up to North Jay Road, and ski to the border, then back to the Jay store on Section 31. We missed the new rerouted trail so skied the snowmobile trail. Given the crust on unbroken snow we probably had a better surface. Nearing Jay village, we crossed one flooded area, skiing on a narrow frozen strip of trail between wide areas of wet slush. We were lucky there.