Telemark Tuesday Adirondack Outdoor Recreation Report

As regular readers may have guessed, ski conditions are great in the Adirondacks right now. I admit to a scarce presence in the blogosphere lately but sweet ski conditions are only partly to blame. More on that after the report.
At least I've done my ski reconnaissance, and here's my quick run down of ski and outdoor recreation conditions in the Adirondacks in and around the Lake Placid region. First of all, we enjoyed significant fresh snowfall in the last few days. There is at least 20 inches of consolidated snow on the ground at Adirondack Lifestyle (AL) headquarters, at about 2,100 feet elevation, just outside of the Village of Lake Placid.
In alphabetical order - alpine ski conditions at Whiteface, the Olympic Mountain, are excellent and improving every day. Cloud Spin, another great black diamond trail opened over the weekend and provides additional very nice terrain for expert skiers and riders.
Backcountry skiing in the Adirondacks is still a gnarly proposition. I skied the hiking trail to Marcy Dam from the Adirondack Loj yesterday afternoon and it was quite boney with exposed rocks and log stairs. I've heard despite more snow at higher elevations one should be prepared for rock surprises, even past Marcy Dam. The truck roads and the Jackrabbit Trail around Lake Placid are all in good condition.
Nordic ski conditions are excellent at all the local commercially groomed areas.
The truth is, the wonderful skiing currently on offer in the Adirondacks is a big help as I cope with the primary reason for my sloppy blog schedule: internet access issues. This may not sound like a big deal to some of my fellow ski bums who wouldn't recognize their computer this time of year, but it is a huge deal to me, the Mrs. Jetson of the "Jetsons of the Adirondacks" fame. I was hooked on technology when all we had was command driven operating systems and Compuserve. High-speed internet access has been crucial to our family for a long time. I consider it a utility, like electricity. Despite our love for the rural Adirondack Lifestyle, my family and I were early adopters of information technology; you can't raise a rocket scientist relying solely on an abacus for ciphering, although that was his first birthday present from one of his engineer grandfathers.
Since our friends used to call us "the Jetsons of the Adirondacks," I suppose we could call this lack of broadband access ironic in addition to annoying.
Obviously, I'm a little cranked about not having broadband at the headquarters yet, so the skiing is a welcome and therapeutic diversion. It has been one thing after another, like any big project, but this is the week Mama gets her internet back. At least that's what they promise. I remain hopeful and I'd really like my high-speed internet back, but in the meantime, I'll take any excuse to schuss even more!
Today's photo is courtesy of Ed Reed, from yesterday's ski stress management sessions.