Make tracks on winter trails

By Marty Basch

There was a time Pete Antos-Ketcham used snowshoes for the commute to work. Though it was just a little more than three miles to the so-called office, the 30 year-old now living in North Starksboro, Vermont had no choice but to huff it in the deep snows of winter to the New Hampshire mountain hut where he served as caretaker.On a ridge in the northern Presidential range, Antos-Ketcham was the man who oversaw Randolph Mountain Clubs Gray Knob cabin and it was during his time there he became quite familiar with the nuances of snowshoeing.I started snowshoeing 10 or 12 years ago, said Antos-Ketcham who now is the education coordinator for Vermonts Green Mountain Club. I always wanted to travel in the snow and never quite got the hang of skiing. Once I was introduced to light aluminum snowshoes I never looked back.Long before aluminum came around, people got around in winter on snowshoes. Archaeologists figure the snowshoes been around for about 6,000 years getting its start in central Asia. It certainly is storied. The shoes long, wooden frame was used by various peoples and cultures like grizzled hunters and trappers in the Americas. Skilled Native Americans are credited with coming up with a bear paw design that was able to handle many varied conditions.Quebec was home to a number of snowshoe clubs with a military history timeline going back over two hundred years. A tradition, which eventually crossed the New England border, was combining competition, pot luck suppers and snowshoeing added to the activities recreational flair.In the 1970s, aluminum snowshoes were introduced and eventually evolved into smaller, lightweight frames with easier step-in bindings, crampons underfoot for grip and swivel-like decking for ease of movement. The sport exploded and now snowshoers are out in backyards, state parks, national forests, school grounds, cityscapes and other places. Hiking trails of summer morph into snowshoe trails of winter with their own personality and obstacles. Rushing creeks freeze. Cool lakes become flat, frozen platforms. Downed trees get covered in snow. Cross-country ski centers have accepted snowshoeing and offer trails to explore. Country inns and B&Bs market it as quaint and quiet while hiking clubs pitch it as means of winter travel to backwoods lodging in the shadows of mountains.They say if you can walk, you can snowshoe. Just dress for it because winter is always cold. Layers are the rule which help regulate the body temperature like a thermostat. And plan ahead. Snowshoe travel takes longer than hiking a trail. Darkness comes earlier in winter than summer. But its also affordable and locations can be close by.Snowshoeing is an easy activity to get started with, said Stephanie Brochu, the Appalachian Mountain Clubs youth program servides director. You can lash them to your pack or put them in your bag.They can fit in the overhead compartment of an airline or be kept in the trunk of a compact car all winter. After about six to eight inches of snow, its off you go.Whether it be weekend workshops or day-long seminars, clubs like the AMC, RMC and GMC have lodges, huts and lean-tos in snow country from the ease of the AMCs Lonesome Lake Hut in Franconia Notch State Park to Vermonts GMC-run Taft Lodge on Mount Mansfield or the wood-heated, rustic Wheeler Pond Camps near Lake Willoughby in Barton. Learn about it January 8 during Winter Trails Day with activities at various outdoor centers.Up in Pinkham Notch, this winter the AMC will host workshops ranging from snowshoeing for families, including building snow shelters and learning animal tracks, to more advanced navigational classes combining snowshoeing with map and compass skills.Cross-country ski centers have gotten into the snowshoe business with nearly unanimous acceptance.It was easy and an inexpensive sport to add on, said Alec Morris of Franconia Village XC Ski Center. At first, it was an experiment to see which trails to designate for snowshoeing.Its not much fun to snowshoe on groomed cross-country ski trails. Besides, skiers get ticked off if you bust up their tracks. So many touring centers have designated snowshoe trails, ungroomed, where snowshoers can plop around either breaking trail or take advantage of something thats been packed down by usage, like by their buddies in front of them. Downhills ski areas have gotten in on the action and offer guided walks, night tours and nature outings to identify animal tracks.Just follow the snow.Marty Basch can be reached at rodeman@aol.com.