Blue skies and warm temps Sunday left three of us wondering why we hadn’t gone skiing. So around noon we decided to set out for a little fresh air and some good exercise. The plan was to skin up Ira Mountain and poach what we thought was a private ski trail. After loading the van, a brief stop for greasy pizza and some gas, we were on our way..
Now if you don’t know where Ira Mountain is it is just across the first bridge that crosses the Carrabassett after Kingfield on the way to Sugarloaf. If you’re driving back from Sugarloaf, you’ll notice a ski trail on Ira.
So we arrive at the bridge, and decide we’ll drive in and try to find what we thought was someone’s super secret ski trail. Just after crossing the bridge we find a large map which excites us as we think it will make finding the trail easier. Turns out the trail isn’t so secret after all… it’s clearly marked on the map. Ok, so maybe we aren’t complete rebels anymore but we’re still excited for some exercise and hopefully some left over powder.
We pull up to the trail, park the car, and walk over to check things out… what the heck?? The trail is groomed! We had spotted a cat on the way in but assumed it was for sled trails… wrong. Well, with two huge disappointments we start to put our gear on only to find that one member of the group forgot their skins! I won’t say who… but Spencer had fun hiking!
The view from the top made the trip worth it and we did end up getting some great powder off the side of the trail on the way down. You can drive to the top of Ira in the summer, and even spend the night in a cool shack open to all if you want. I would suggest checking it out!