If you want snow…its in central!  Had a great day on the Gaff with the Haley group.  Most of the guys work offshore and were ready for a few days out…14 of them in all.  Left 9:30 for the gaff, and had a playful run en route with lots of powder and drifts along the groomed trail.  Mary March Brook had drifts that were in access of 20 feet in height and made for some nice jumps and high-marking.  Liam, who had an on-off switch for a throttle on a crotch rocket had a ball!  You can see a few pics of some good jumps on the website under chalets.  Had an open fire with hot drinks, sandwiches, marinated moose ect.  We followed the brook up to the quarry where it was a white-out from a ground storm so we headed back down to the junction, did some exploring and headed back home.  Great day and a great bunch of guys!  I am sure I had just as much fun as they did…we were all sore, but that didn’t dampen our enthusiasm for the Hodges trip the following day.

Distance traveled-180km

Hello everone,

Had an awesome trip into Hodges Hill yesterday with the Timmons group.  They are a group of nurses and spouses from the Gander hospital.  We left at 10:30, rode to the 2cnd level of Hodges (too difficult to get to the top), down over the shoulder and on to the lodge.  We had a big pot of soup, rolls, cookies cheese ect.  Thanks to Joy for the delicous meal!  An absolutely beautiful day with the sun shining in the front windows.  After a good warm-up we took a quick dart up to 9 mile bog before heading out over the other side of the hill to the chalets.  It was so nice out we decided to continue on the have a look at the Badger Chute.  We got back just after dark.  The night was stunning!  The group was 16 including two guides.  Heading up to the Gaff Topsails on Tuesday with a group.  Hope the high country co-operates! 

Distance travelled-86km

Paul

Hello everyone,

Took a trip into Hodges yesterday.  Perfect going on snowmobile and the Hodges trail was the best I’ve seen it yet.  I never went all the way to the top as we never had time but made it up past the tree-line.  The ride down over the shoulder could use a little more snow but still good going.  Saw four caribou in front of the chalet on Monica Lake.  They didn’t mind me getting a little close for a picture and never did hurry away.  The rise out the other side of Hodges via 10 mile was very nice too.  For the group coming this weekend…you are in for a very nice ride to Hodges and lunch at the camp!  I uploaded a few pictures in the gallery under Chalets, climbing Hodges, the caribou and sunset on Hodges.  Bye for now!

Paul

Hello everyone,

I snowmobiled across the Gaff Topsails two days ago.  What an excellent trip!  Lots of snow up there and very, very cold.  A friend and I took the South Brook-Sandy pond route which sets you up on the plateau between the Main Top and the Fore Top.   It was a difficult climb with so much powder but persistence prevailed.  When we crested the edge the wind was strong and visibility was about 50 feet.  Blue sky above though…just snow blowing around.  We both set our GPS and started the 12 KM crossing to the Trans Canada Trail.  I felt like I was crossing an ocean stretch during a wild storm at night.  We had to stop several times to fix our headgear to prevent frostbite.  If you dropped anything it was as good as gone in the wind.  I had to wipe the snow off my GPS constantly.  I’d say my average speed in the lead was 10 km an hour with the low visibility.  We didn’t bother to visit the tops today as we wouldn’t be able to see anything anyways.  Once we reached the track we decided to make our way back nearer the edge of the Gaff and spend the rest of the day in the Mary March Brook area.  While crossing the quarry stretch we drove upon a bull moose lying down on the track in the most severe winds.  He was almost drifted in!  He stood up, shook a ton of snow off and stared me down with his ears flat against his head.  If I had gotten much closer before he jumped up I’d say he would have charged but as long as I didn’t move closer I don’t think he would have bothered beating through 10 foot deep drifts to get me.  I took a few shots, got some frostbite on my fingertips and drove around him.   When we reached the brook it was calm, clear and a lot warmer and the brook makes for a fantastic trip with huge drifts all along the way.   I love riding that brook! 

The Gaff Topsails is my favorite snowmobiling destination.  I like the sometimes extreme conditions this time of year.  You must have dependable, warm gear and a full-face helmet is pretty much a must.  It would be best if each machine had a GPS if conditions are creating low visibility.  March and April usually offer nice warm days and often t-shirt weather in the high + side temps.   Planning another trip up there next week hoping for better visibility for “top hopping”!  I will post a few pics of the trip in the gallery under chalets over the next couple days.