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Now, snowshoeing has entered a whole new phase as trends like ecotourism and adventure tourism are making the sport trendy again. Nature hikes and moonlit tours have become common offerings in Vermont. Snowshoe racing has also started clattering its way through the snowshoe culture with races ranging in length from 3K to full marathons, they’ve become a way for dedicated runners to enjoy the long winter months.
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| Competitors line up for the Pittsfield Snowshoe Race. (click to enlarge) |
You can read more about this new breed of snowshoer in the current issue of Vermont Life. (See A Heck of a Trek.) To watch a fun, energy-filled slideshow of the Pittsfield Snowshoe Race that will no doubt make you want to register for it. (There’s still time: The race isn’t until March 8…)
The race ends, as all snowshoe races should, with a mile-long, downhill sled run followed by a lobster dinner and pecan pie! (Can’t make it? You can get the recipes on VermontLife.com.)
If you’re more of a traditionalist, there are plenty of wonderful, peaceful trails all over Vermont. For a list of the Green Mountain Club’s top 14 choices of trails, divided by range of difficulty, click here.
How about some snowshoeing tips from the experts before you go? Or, watch a Vermonter make snowshoes the old fashioned way, by hand-crafting them out of wood… Watch the video. |
Snowboarders, who were often banned from ski areas, would tote their snowboards on their backs and use their snowshoes to break trail to where the snow ran deep. Soon, snowshoes became a requisite part of the winter sports arsenal. Ski areas blazed trails and led snowshoe tours in order to provide another way for people to have winter fun.
Biking
