Sue Sullivan and Eric Ness led 13 other CONC members up to Bare lake on Wednesday, February 21.  Forecast called for 6 inches of snow to fall during the day, but it did not happen.  We gathered at the Nordic Center and collected our Common Corridor passes, then flew down to the Todd Lake trail.  

That trail was well tracked out, but the snow was still fairly good as the temperature remained just below freezing.  One basket came off a ski pole on the descent, but John Fertig was prepared with a spare basket, so we quickly remedied the situation and arrived at Todd Lake shortly after.  The group split in two; three people decided not to climb but to stay along Todd Lake.  Fortunately, we had radios that allowed us to stay in touch.

Bare Lake sits about 250 feet above Todd on the west side.  John Fertig led us on a gentle climb, which did not require skins.  At the edge of Bare Lake, we ate lunch with most people standing.  Afterwards, we skied around Bare Lake, which is quite small; stopping on the opposite side to warm up with a few turns.  The snow was quite heavy, but telemark turns were possible!

The descent from Bare Lake to Todd was through nicely spaced Hemlocks.  Again, telemark turns were possible if you could find smooth snow void of tree bombs.  I'm pretty sure, however, that everyone took at least one fall!  We met up with the smaller group on Water Tower trail while returning to the Nordic Center.