Part 4: Why are we here?

Sobered but undaunted by our situation, we started off again. We had not skied for more than a few minutes when we came across a set of human footprints in the trail pointed downhill. It appeared that Alanna was not the first person in the recent past to break a ski in the wilderness. Some small comfort was taken in the fact that Alanna could still stand on her skis on top of the snow while the poor soul on foot had been breaking through to his or her waist, with a 10 mile walk to go.

The snow soon cut the duct tape to ribbons. Ed and Alanna stopped again, both of them stone sober this time. Plan B was implemented. This was a simple variation of Plan A, in which duct tape was laid lengthwise along the base of the ski over the duct tape holding the splint in place, in order to keep the duct tape from fraying. We had just enough duct tape for the job. We were back in business. Plan B was a success!
Then Claudia did a face plant. Ed couldn't tell if she was crying hysterically or laughing hysterically. She said she was laughing. Fearing the consequences, he told her not to laugh. Keeping an even keel in difficult situations is important.

By now we realized that skiing down any dips in the trail was too risky, both to our equipment and to ourselves. We had to sidestep down all but the gentlest inclines. Our rate of progress slowed considerably. We had no choice.

The possibility of spending the night in a snow drift crossed Ed's mind. Two people at least could do so, at some level of personal discomfort, while the rest of the party went to Lincoln in search of a fresh pair of rental skis. But the thought was premature. Let's just put one foot in front of the other for as long as possible and see how things go, he decided.

We regrouped at Stillwater Junction. By now the sky had become overcast, and the air felt chillier than before although in reality it had warmed up a little.

The first section of the Wilderness Trail does not follow the old narrow gauge railroad bed. Instead, it crosses Carrigain Brook and then, according to the guidebook, a low piney ridge.  That is not a complete description of what we encountered.

Had we written the guidebook we would have said something like: “On its westerly side the so-called low piney ridge pitches precipitously toward the East Branch. In crusty snow conditions, great care must be taken not to go sliding head first into the drink. Skiing this portion of the trail in such conditions is insanity. The only alternative is to flounder on foot along the sidehill, nurturing one’s sense of humor as long as possible. Readers are forewarned, however, that taking Hamburger Hill was easier than successfully managing the traverse of this short, 150 yard stretch of trail with skis. Be sure to add at least Ω hour to the guidebook times for this stretch in these conditions."