Pocono “Backcountry”

[liplipliplip]

New to the site, but grew up skiing in NEPA 20 years ago (remember split rock’s ski hill?). I’m a transplant from New England who likes to ski with my dog, have been fortunate enough to have Tuckman’s ravine and the like available for us to hike/skin up and him to run down, but am looking to try the same experience in the local area. 
 

If we get the snow for it, we will be out in state parks/fire roads/utility access/abandoned tracks and the like earning a few turns. If anyone’s got any suggestions, hopefully this becomes the spot for them. Weather willing, I’ll update our trials and failures here as the temp. dips below freezing. 

[poconoceancity]

I grew up skiing at Split Rock, my family owned a place there from 1970-2002. GSS has extensive PA back country experience in the Hazelton area.

[Shadows]

*gsssucks

[GrilledSteezeSandwich]

There’s only snowpack for back country skiing in the poconos like one out of every five seasons.  Maybe @Justo8484 can give you some beta. 

[RidgeRacer]

Back when we used to get snow some of the PASRs (Toast, Justo, GSSucks?) skied the Blue Mountain backcountry. There's a TR somewhere.

[toast21602]

10 minutes ago, RidgeRacer said:

Back when we used to get snow some of the PASRs (Toast, Justo, GSSucks?) skied the Blue Mountain backcountry. There's a TR somewhere.

Pictures don’t come through anymore. 

[RidgeRacer]

Pictures don’t come through anymore. 

I still see them.

[toast21602]

Just now, RidgeRacer said:

I still see them.

Must just be my jitterbug phone. 

[Benm]

looks like they are or were hosted on FB. i'm not seeing the initial ones, but i'm seeing the second set toast posted.

thats amazing though

Edited August 10, 2020 by Benm

[RidgeRacer]

looks like they are or were hosted on FB. i'm not seeing the initial ones, but i'm seeing the second set toast posted.
thats amazing though

My bad. I didn't scroll all the way up. Only seeing the more recent pics too... like Ben said.

[GrilledSteezeSandwich]

I don’t see the pictures.  

[Justo8484]

Round 2






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[liplipliplip]

On 8/10/2020 at 11:28 AM, Justo8484 said:

Round 2






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Are those ON3P skis on the east coast? I’d recognize those green base layers anywhere. 

[Justo8484]

18 hours ago, liplipliplip said:

Are those ON3P skis on the east coast? I’d recognize those green base layers anywhere. 

Yezzir. Those are jeffrey 122s (think they only made production versions of them for one year). I just picked up a new pair of jeffrey 108s at the end of last season to replace my prototype jeffrey 110s from like 8 years ago. Wife just grabbed a pair of jessie 96s, too. I've contemplated getting rid of the k2 shreditor 92s and replacing with a woodsman or jeffrey 96, but i may hold out for the @GSSucks pro model.

[GSSucks]

6 minutes ago, Justo8484 said:

Yezzir. Those are jeffrey 122s (think they only made production versions of them for one year). I just picked up a new pair of jeffrey 108s at the end of last season to replace my prototype jeffrey 110s from like 8 years ago. Wife just grabbed a pair of jessie 96s, too. I've contemplated getting rid of the k2 shreditor 92s and replacing with a woodsman or jeffrey 96, but i may hold out for the @GSSucks pro model.

Ill start working on some custom top sheets for you, Ill make them special. 🚀🚀🚀

[Johnny Law]

Its not the pocs but the gnar in pa is in the pa grand canyon area, it snows a little more there too. The oil and gas pipelines go with like 6 inches if you baby foot it. 

The rest of PA you gotta go when it snows and then just use your peepers. I skied rebel hill which literally goes down to 76, the big power line cut in Amity and Neversink mtn all in one season but we normally don't have that kind of snow. 

I've heard of rednecks sledding on slag piles and apparently its quite good but thats all heavy metals.

[Shadows]

25 minutes ago, Johnny Law said:

I've heard of rednecks sledding on slag piles and apparently its quite good but thats all heavy metals.

thats what I like. Just need 3 inches and all the beater sleds come out.

[liplipliplip]

18 hours ago, Justo8484 said:

Yezzir. Those are jeffrey 122s (think they only made production versions of them for one year). I just picked up a new pair of jeffrey 108s at the end of last season to replace my prototype jeffrey 110s from like 8 years ago. Wife just grabbed a pair of jessie 96s, too. I've contemplated getting rid of the k2 shreditor 92s and replacing with a woodsman or jeffrey 96, but i may hold out for the @GSSucks pro model.

I've been eyeing the woodsman for a bit, regret not picking up a pair in this spring's factory finds sale. I just need someone to tell me they're more playful than my liberty variants and I'll pull the trigger

[PSUFrankenstein]

13 hours ago, Johnny Law said:

Its not the pocs but the gnar in pa is in the pa grand canyon area, it snows a little more there too. The oil and gas pipelines go with like 6 inches if you baby foot it. 

The rest of PA you gotta go when it snows and then just use your peepers. I skied rebel hill which literally goes down to 76, the big power line cut in Amity and Neversink mtn all in one season but we normally don't have that kind of snow. 

I've heard of rednecks sledding on slag piles and apparently its quite good but thats all heavy metals.

I used to snowboard on trails and slag piles and coal hills in Schuylkill county...I had the Reading Anthracite pass for a while and would take the Jeep up there in the winter when it snowed and bring the board.  It was fun, but it's not worth buying a pass just for that (I guess you could probably sneak up there with no pass, but I never did...they do check occasionally)

[Justo8484]

On 8/25/2020 at 9:47 AM, liplipliplip said:

I've been eyeing the woodsman for a bit, regret not picking up a pair in this spring's factory finds sale. I just need someone to tell me they're more playful than my liberty variants and I'll pull the trigger

i'm not very familiar with anything recent of liberty's. some quick research on the variant gives me reviews that are all over the place. liberty describes it as stiff and stable and a more traditional kinda all mountain ski, which some reviews agree with, but there's also some reviews that find it to be soft and not very stable. i can't find anything on the mount point for anything but the 117 (-10cm from center), but the woodsman if i remember correctly is around 6.5-8cm back from center, with a slightly tighter radius and a bit more rocker, so i think they'd probably be more playful, but that's just my speculation. if you're talking side hits, gapping/doubling everything you can, quick slashy turns, spraying your friends, and popping switch from time to time kinda playful, you'd be better off on the jeffrey i think, though.

 

edit: there's still a few demo pairs of jeffreys floating around if you check a certain other popular skiing forum that's not named newschoolers, if you're interested. looks like $450 + shipping with bindings still

Edited August 26, 2020 by Justo8484

[rummy]

On 8/25/2020 at 10:12 AM, PSUFly said:

I used to snowboard on trails and slag piles and coal hills in Schuylkill county...I had the Reading Anthracite pass for a while and would take the Jeep up there in the winter when it snowed and bring the board.  It was fun, but it's not worth buying a pass just for that (I guess you could probably sneak up there with no pass, but I never did...they do check occasionally)

A couple of guys who used to manage a ski shop (now closed) in the Deer Lake area of Schuylkill county, had pictures of them skiing the Culm Banks of Sch Co.

In the Summer, without snow..... On old returned rental skis..... 

[liplipliplip]

21 hours ago, Justo8484 said:

i'm not very familiar with anything recent of liberty's. some quick research on the variant gives me reviews that are all over the place. liberty describes it as stiff and stable and a more traditional kinda all mountain ski, which some reviews agree with, but there's also some reviews that find it to be soft and not very stable. i can't find anything on the mount point for anything but the 117 (-10cm from center), but the woodsman if i remember correctly is around 6.5-8cm back from center, with a slightly tighter radius and a bit more rocker, so i think they'd probably be more playful, but that's just my speculation. if you're talking side hits, gapping/doubling everything you can, quick slashy turns, spraying your friends, and popping switch from time to time kinda playful, you'd be better off on the jeffrey i think, though.

 

edit: there's still a few demo pairs of jeffreys floating around if you check a certain other popular skiing forum that's not named newschoolers, if you're interested. looks like $450 + shipping with bindings still

I think at this point I'm not going to purchase anything without demoing it. That said, think I'll need to be out west at the right time in order try out some sticks from ON3P.

Variants are stiff and stable, almost to a fault, practically had to re-learn how to ski in order to ski them hard. Great on boilerplate but nearly killed myself a few times taking them through trees at Mad River Glen after a 6 inch dump this past winter.

Only thing that's turned me off the jeffreys was their quasi-park focus, I don't need a park ski, but maybe those are the right ski for me.

[Justo8484]

if our paths ever cross this winter and you've got a ~315mm bootsole, you're welcome to give mine a try. I have salomon guardians on my 122s, which are somewhat adjustable, but it's really a totally different ski than any of the others, which is I guess why they don't make them anymore. 108s and 110s will have pivots on them though, so not really any adjustability. 

[rgrwilco]

My grandparents used to live out by tunkhannock and there was always a few inches of base throughout winter. There were even a few old ski areas that we would hike. Maybe a few hundred feet of vert, but it was still awesome. Miller Mountain now has a giant well mowed gas pipeline cut going up, across, and down it. I’ve been eying it up since they cut it a few years back. It’s 1500 vertical feet, not steep but it appears to have the same grade as some blue or green trails with some steeper headwalls.

 

 

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[GrilledSteezeSandwich]

3 hours ago, rgrwilco said:

My grandparents used to live out by tunkhannock and there was always a few inches of base throughout winter. There were even a few old ski areas that we would hike. Maybe a few hundred feet of vert, but it was still awesome. Miller Mountain now has a giant well mowed gas pipeline cut going up, across, and down it. I’ve been eying it up since they cut it a few years back. It’s 1500 vertical feet, not steep but it appears to have the same grade as some blue or green trails with some steeper headwalls.

 

 

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Looks radical...PASR day??