Hike and Seek: XC Skiing!

Another item off the bucket list! On Sunday, February 7th, I ventured out to the Kensington Metropark Golf Course with one of my paddling partners-in-crime, Christy. I’d always wanted to try cross country (or XC) skiing and was happy to find Kensington is one of our parks that offers rentals.

Driving west on I-96, I get a call from Christy. She is stuck at a gas station not far from home with a flat tire. Of course the air compressor wasn’t working and the gas station attendant wasn’t exactly helpful. She asked if I’d head to the Park and Go lot off of I-96 to meet her mom, who was to ski with us today, but was without a cell phone.

I found her, introduced myself and waited for Christy’s call as she tried to find a portable air compressor. We waited a bit, and after a while, her mom decided to call it and head home. This spunky, elderly lady came to my car window and said, “I’m out of here babe!” Haha.. For sure she was Christy’s mom!  I called the park to push back my ski rental and decided to go find Christy. Perhaps I could drive her back and then we could deal with the flat tire later. I found her at a Marathon gas station just as she heard back from AAA that they’d be there in 20 minutes.

So we sat in my car and enjoyed some hot chocolate I’d brought along in my new thermos. Soon her tire was changed and we made our way back out to the metropark. We parked at the Park and Go, and I drove us in.

In the Park and Go lot, being the sledhead I am, I had to grab a pic of this random truck with a snowmobile. How I wish we had trails in southern Michigan! I wondered where they were coming from or going to.

We made it to Kensington and gathered up our gear in the parking lot before heading to the rental center. I love this shot of Christy hiking up her snow pants in the background.  She is a hoot!

Christy had her own skis but went in with me to find the facilities and get my rentals. The folks there could not have been friendlier. They got me fitted, recommended which trail to take for beginners (me!) and we were on our way.

It was easier than I thought to get my boots snapped in.

We were off! We now only had an hour but it was plenty of time, especially for my first time out and the fact that it was a windy, 15 degrees! My beloved Kawasaki hat and scarf were NOT the right gear for today and the wind bit right through them.

We stopped for a selfie after a bit. When will I learn where to look for the camera lens on my phone?? Duh. I also got to try out the headband for my GoPro. I should have had it on when I approached a downward slope. Christy had showed me how to slow down, but it was too steep and I must have approached it too quickly, because before I knew it, my skis took off and I stayed put. I hit the ground HARD, on my back. Well, my backpack cushioned the blow, containing water bottles and extra socks. And I had JUST turned off my GoPro! That would have been interesting.

I was able to get back up thanks to the approach I had seen from the YouTube video from DNR on how to XC ski. Getting up from my right side was way easier than trying to get up from my left. My GoPro had flown off my head in the process and I had to laugh at they way Christy held it out to me, hanging from the elastic band from her ski pole.

It was BRIGHT and my sunglasses kept fogging, so it was nice to have our back to the sun for a while. And I love how TALL I look in this pic! On our way back, we saw a type of hawk descending from one of the tree branches as it took flight. And also a small family of 3 deer. Here is a short clip of part of our day.

What a great day! I hear XC skis are very hard to find right now as the sport is now popular amongst socially distant activities. So I may just rent this season and see if I can snag my own gear next year.

I look forward to going again!