In the past three days Loon Mountain in Lincoln, New Hampshire, has received over eighteen inches of fresh snow! Over eighteen! Add that to a base depth between 18-30 inches, and you have got some amazing snow conditions!

With forty-five new trails open, 274 acres open, 21 miles open, 3 parks open, and the weather being not too cold and windy– the conditions are looking good for one of New Hampshire’s biggest resorts.

I have a college pass. At a low $329 for unlimited skiing at Loon, Sunday River, and Sugarloaf, this is probably the best deal you could ever get at mountains like these but not everyone is fortunate enough to be in college. If you are not someone who is looking for an unlimited ski pass because they do get a little pricey, one way to save a lot of money is to invest in a Frequent Skier Pass. You can get them at any time, and they are definitely worth the cost of one. All you have to do is go skiing twice, and you already have made back your money! At around $90, this pass is valid for one free ski or snowboard pass. After that, it becomes a discount card.

What happens is on weekends you can receive a lift ticket for $15 off by presenting a card and a valid form of identification. During the weekdays you can get $25 off. So, just by going skiing on one weekend day and one weekday day, you have made your money back! This, of course, is assuming that the lift ticket you buy is around $75–which it probably will be.

The frequent skier card is perfect for someone who knows that they will go skiing or snowboarding a handful of times. However, if you are a college student like I am, buying that college pass is the best decision you ever could make!

That’s right, ladies and gentlemen, skiing season has started in New England!  I am a skier and thought I should do an article to help start kids’ skiing.

Now, if you are a parent with kids who ski and you need a way to get them skiing, as you are too busy, I would suggest using school ski programs to get kids skiing.  They are really helpful, as they take the kid skiing, let him/her hang out with friends, and teach them new things.  When I started skiing, I started via my school’s ski program.  My program bussed us to Pat’s Peak, a medium mountain (good for beginners), offered lessons, and took us home at 8 o’clock.  Rentals had a reduced price though the program, and there was a similar meal program.  Also, we got one free day there and two free days at other mountains.  We were allowed to travel around the mountain without chaperons, but there were still strict rules preventing unruly behavior.  Most ski programs are similar.

Now if your child does ski, he/she needs gear.  If they belong to a program, it is easy to rent but having your own gear is nice.  In the case of kids, buying used is best, as we tend to outgrow it (less so in the case of helmets, goggles, and coats).  I have my own gear, and when I outgrow it, we can trade it into a swap program, where it is much less.  Many ski stores have a way into the swaps.  Do, remember, don’t go crazy expensive, we are kids.

Traveling in groups is very fun as kids.  We like to roam mountains in herds.  So, when your kids (teens!) want to go skiing, let a friend or two come, especially if you are a parent who doesn’t ski.  That way, your kid can go off with a friend while you stay warm in the lodge, sipping hot chocolate.  Also, going around in groups is safer, and you learn from each other.

Skiing is a fun sport, and there are many cost effective ways for kids to take part.  Let them have fun, especially with friends!

There are a few basic techniques to ice climbing. One thing to note is that you are not going to learn how to ice climb by reading books or articles. You probably should take a class or go on an outdoor trip to learn how to climb. However, these are four techniques that you should be familiar with even before you take an outdoor class.

Tying in: Tying in is what it sounds like it is. When you tie-in, this means that you are attaching your rope to the climbing harness. The typical knot that is used is a figure 8 knot that is extremely easy to do but effective. After attaching yourself to the harness, you then have to create a belay loop. Speaking of belaying…

Belaying: If you know what belaying is in terms of rock climbing, you pretty much know what belaying on ice is. In ice climbing, there are a few methods of belaying. In a fixed belay, there is a belayer, points of protection, and a belay anchor that is attached to the cliff. In a running belay, there is a leader who is in charge of putting in the protection and who takes the safety precautions. The person behind the leader is then in charge of picking up the equipment as the two progress through the climb. There should be a least two points of protection between the two climbers.

Leading: Leading is a technique that was described above. Leading is done in sections, and during each section, the leader is the one who places the protection points. The sections are divided by “pitches” in the sense that the leader places protection points until he/she reaches the next pitch. Once the leader is at the top, he belays the second climber by building a belay anchor. As the second climber climbs, he removes the protection points.

Abseiling: Abseiling deals with going down. It uses a fixed rope to descend down a cliff. Going down can be extremely dangerous, so it is important to be very careful when abseiling.

There are times when I think that my friend is crazy. She is a rock climber–an avid one at that–who also has parents who are very much into climbing. Her parents are so into climbing that they once left her alone in her house for 9 weeks during her senior year of high school to go ice climbing in Russia. There was a point in time when my friend was so incredibly distraught for an entire week because she had lost all sources of communication that she had with her parents. She thought that she had lost them forever, but then she finally received word via someone else that they were okay.

My friend has experienced what it feels like to think that you have lost someone in a freak accident, in this case, ice climbing, but for some reason, she still continues to ice climb. What is it about this sport that makes it so addicting to some people?

Ice climbing is exactly what it sounds like. It is your, or the people you are with, responsibility to drill spikes into the ice, frozen waterfalls, ice covered cliffs, and icy rock slab to make your way up the side of the mountain. Ice climbing requires certain conditions as well. The best time to go is after the the ice has a chance to melt and then re-freeze. That is the safest time to go.

Going ice climbing requires a lot of training and knowledge of the sport. One also has to be a good rock climber first before one attempts ice climbing. Some of the techniques are similar, but overall, ice climbing is its own sport. Some of the skills and knowledge one would need for ice climbing include knowledge of the rope systems and how they work and how to tie in, belay, lead, abseil (using a fixed rope to come down), and lower.

Please do not attempt to ice climb by yourself!

Bass fishing is a very popular sport across the world today. Bass fishing has grown in popularity during the last decade and is a fun hobby to pursue. Lake fishing is a favorite for people who like to bass fish. You can fish from shore or in a boat, troll or fly fish. There is a wide variety of fish found in lakes all around the world.

Fishing is very simple. It is the act of catching fish. Fishing techniques include netting, hand gathering, trapping and angling. These techniques can used to catch many types of bass fish, such as stripped bass, large and small mouth, and spotted bass.

Bass have very unique hiding places, and you have to know where to look for them. They hide in weeds, lily areas, rocks, sunken logs, and against the shoreline. The best times to catch bass are during daylight hours. Bass are very sensitive to noise, and any kind of noise, such as a beaver’s tail smacking the water, will disturb them.

It is really easy to get started fishing, and the best equipment for bass fishing is simple. All you need is a rod, reel, tackle, trolling equipment, live or artificial bait, and a fishing permit. You can get a permit online, over the phone, or any game office around the state where you want to fish. Live bait includes worms, insects, shad, frogs, minnows, insect larvae, and crayfish. Artificial bate includes spinners, spoons, streamers, warms, jigs, crank bait and clousers. Bass don’t like noise, so it is a good idea to use lures that are quiet, like artificial worms or spinners. You have to keep trying different ones until you catch what you are looking for.

Good luck and happy fishing!

Sunday River ski resort in Bethel, Maine, still is rocking out on 100% of their terrain! That is so exciting! For the past few years that I have been out there in February they have had most of the trails open, but never have I seen all of their 8 peaks 100% open!  Last February a huge snow storm had dumped a ton of snow on the mountain while I was visiting and even that wasn’t enough to open every single trail, but conditions this year have been amazing! Another surprise to me is the fact that the Oz lift is open–I think I’ve seen that open maybe 1/3 of the times that I’ve been up to Sunday River. Of course, most of the Oz trails are accessible via the Jordan Bowl lift, but I have not been able to experience the tops of the trails and the trail under the lift called Ruby Palace, in at least five years!

Even more exciting is the fact that the Chondola is now open! A combination of a chairlift and gondola, this lift runs from the  South Ridge base area to the Peak Lodge on North Peak. This new lift has turned what was a 20-minute trip on two separate lifts to a single ride of just under seven minutes. It also brings skiers and riders to a point from where they’ll have direct access to six of Sunday River’s eight peaks in a single run! This lift allow has allowed Sunday River to open 12-hour skiing and riding on the weekends! That’s right, you can ski until 9pm!!

With twelve-hour skiing, you won’t have to worry about getting the most “bang” for your buck. You’ll be able to take that hour long lunch break and not think to yourself that you are paying too much to be sitting in a lodge. Of course, the whole mountain isn’t open, but a decent part of the lower mountain is. Serviced by the Chondola, the South Ridge Express and the Sundance Surface Lift, this lift allows access to a handful of beginner trails. An image of the area open to night skiing is shown in this article.

Congrats on being 100% open Sunday River, I’m so excited to ski there soon!

Here’s a deal that you may not want to miss out on. Sunapee Mountain in New Hampshire offered something along these lines until December 24th, but now it is Vermont’s turn.

Offered by the Vermont Ski Area’s Association, this deal allows you to take one lesson in skiing or snowboarding, get a pair of rental skis and poles or a snowboard (along with the respective boots, of course), and you’ll have a lift ticket valid for the lower beginner mountain. If the lower mountain becomes too easy or boring for you, then you can buy a midday ticket for a semi-low price!

Some of the participating mountains are Mount Snow, Jay Peak, Magic Mountain, Okemo Mountain Resort, Smugglers’ Notch Resort, Stratton, Mad River Glen, and Bromley. I would suggest trying out Mount Snow as a first choice.

If you do not know whether or not you want to learn how to board or ski, I would suggest trying out skiing. Yes, I am a little bit biased because I am a skier, but, as almost every skier/snowboarder will tell you, skiing is easy to learn and hard to master while snowboarding is hard to learn and well “easy” to master. With skiing, you could be flying down the mountain by the end of the day, but with snowboarding, you’ll probably be satisfied with the lower mountain ticket and taking that green circle trail for the 20th time. Both can be frustrating, but I find that snowboarding is much more frustrating to learn, and you get a whole lot wetter. Trust me, you’ll be on your butt a lot.

If you’ve never skied or boarded before, this is your chance to try out, what I think, is the best sport ever! It’s so much fun and it is such a great feeling–that snow rushing below your feet and you just gliding around.  Join the rest of us snow bums, and have some fun! Check out Ski Vermont’s website for more information.

What is backcountry snowboarding?

Backcountry snowboarding is completely different from regular snowboarding, and it comes with its own thrills and challenges. This sport is gaining popularity rapidly among outdoor enthusiasts looking for new sports to try. Probably the best thing about backcountry snowboarding is the adrenalin high it brings. It can only be done in the slopes of the most remote mountains because there are no lifts and no hired personnel who can help a person in trouble.

Some might say that backcountry snowboarding is very dangerous, and they are probably right. But backcountry snowboarders will tell you that the risks are all worth it. This sport combines the best of snowboarding and mountaineering. For many people, the ascent to the top of majestic mountains is equal to the thrill of snowboarding downward.

Having the right snowboard that matches the terrain and the rider’s preference is necessary for a snowboarder. A general guideline you should remember is that the length of the snowboard has a large impact on your performance. Carefully consider on what terrain you will be snowboarding.

· Longer snowboards will help you stay at the top of deep powder because it has a larger surface area. You need to choose a snowboard somewhere in the length of 170 to 200 cm if you plan to snowboard on thick powder.

· Short snowboards are geared for snowboarders aiming for difficult terrains. This board is typically between the lengths of 145 and 160 cm, and it provides great maneuverability. The downside is that its floatation in deep powder is not that great.

· Medium snowboards are probably the most popular type for backcountry snowboarding. It is between the lengths of 160 and 170 cm. This length is a good compromise between long and short snowboards because it can handle deep powder while being flexible for tight technical turns. It can handle most situations, but it does not have the specialized advantage of long or short boards.