Penobscot Valley Ski Club Back-country trip 2026
Dates: March 13-17
Reservation: Ian and Amy attended the Winter reservation lottery and drew #38.
Cabins at Daicey Pond: #5, #9, #10, which sleep 4 in singles, 4 in 2 queens and 6 bunks. We used the larger cabin for the meals.
Participants: Chris Kramer, Steve Ouilette, Peter Millard, Jim Merkle, Ian Ogilvie, Drew Moeller, Clayton Cole, Scott Nelson, Barbara Daigle, Pam Schmidt, Amy DiFrancesco. Kendra Vaznis cancelled at the last minute and Dan Baumert took her place, skiing into the park by himself on Sunday and returning with us on Tuesday.
Weather/trail conditions/method of transport:
Friday - sunny in the high 30's, Foss & Knowlton trail covered in thick ice. We used snowshoes or mini spikes. Each of us pulled a sled.
Saturday: light snow in the low 30's. We snowshoed to Big and Little Niagra, and/or skied to the tote road to Kidney Pond and around Daicey Pond.
Sunday: Sunny in the high 30's. Everyone except Clayton skied to Kidney Pond. From there, everyone except Steve climbed Sentinol Mountain with snowshoes or mini spikes.
Monday: Heavy rain in the morning, then cloudy with temps in the 40's. We hiked around the Daicey Campground with snowshoes and scouted the best route to take when leaving the park the following day.
Tuesday: We snowshoed out of the park on the Foss & Knowlton trail. It was a mostly sunny day in the 40's. There was just enough snow to cover the trail, but some of us had difficulty with our sleds getting stuck on the rocks. We stopped at the Knife Edge Brewery for pizza (which the club purchased) and beer.
Trip Proceeds: $180/per person - total: $2,160
Expenses: Baxter Cabin reservation: $1884.00, Pizza at NEOC: $140.40, Gas at Dysarts: $72.33 (we drove in three vehicles: Chris/Steve's Forester (they did not wish to be reimbursed for gas), Ian in his Forester, and Clayton in his truck. Total expenses: $2,096.73
The Club made some purchases this winter for the back-country trips: A pulk sled, a set of collapsible wash basins, a knife, a two burner griddle, and a collapsible cooking pot. Total: $435.34
Meals:
Dinner: Thai curry with tofu, Chili with rice and tortillas, Pesto with sausage and spinach, Sweet Potato Curry with lentils and kale.
Lunches: cheese, crackers, left-overs from dinner (people brought their own snacks
Breakfasts: Pancakes and bacon, Oatmeal and eggs, Quinoa with fruit and coconut flakes (which was a huge hit and worth doing again), granola and milk made from powder.
Take-aways from the trip:
Waivers: Amy forgot to have people sign trip waivers. I think there should be a way for people to sign trip waivers when they register for the trip (if we set this up through the website), or when they pay their annual dues. This should be done for all trips.
Medical concerns: There were two people with a history of stroke, and one with h/o MI. They were on blood thinners and other medication. I was not informed by two of the people until after or towards the end of the trip. If a person becomes unconscious on a trip like this, and we do not know their history, we are unprepared to handle it. We had two National Ski Patrollers, two medical doctors, a trauma nurse, a nurse practicioner and a physical therapist on this trip. We brought an InReach, medical / first aid kit complete with suture kit, bandages, splints, aspirin.
A Baxter ranger met us when we arrived. Andrew (I believe is his name) is familiar to me because I've met him on other occasions. He said that he was leaving for "camp," and would be away for the remainder of our trip.
Overall impressions of trip participants: I received many compliments on how much fun the trip was. Everyone appreciated how delicious the meals were. They enjoyed each other's company around the evening's wood stove fires, playing games and reading. The weather and trail conditions for early March were unfortunate and unusual. Moving the trip to an earlier time is advisable, but difficult due to other trips.
Trip Report submitted by Amy DiFrancesco
