T. Tiger and I Conquer the Big Sledding Hill!

It's something my husband and I had been talking about for a while: making an attempt at a sledding run on a big hill we know of in Sproul State Forest. But it takes a lot to do it, so we often don't make it there. On this day, however, we decided to go for it. By mid-morning, we had our sled in the car and all of our gear packed, and off we went to Sproul.

It was sunny and lovely out, with the day's high temp around 50 degrees F. A great day to be on the slopes. The snow was packed down by snowmobiles, which made it perfect for sledding.

My husband and I took turns with the sled, which he found somewhere in our travels: a black Snowboogie Skeleton, with notches for holding onto with hands, and a place up front to tuck your feet. But no actual steering or brakes to speak of.

The hill looks flat and clear from the top, but just off to the sides to left and right, there are ice ruts and little canyons. It is very easy to get tossed to one side or the other and end up in them. In fact, I did just that on my second ride. I crested a hill, the sled lurched left, and into the ice bank I smacked with a resounding crunch!

"Are you dead down there?" my husband asked. I hollered something back, saying I was OK. "Can't hear you!" he yelled, and went back and sat in his chair. I guess if I were well and truly dead, he'd have sent help. But perhaps not - and there I'd have been, stuck in the ice shelf like some woolly mammoth, preserved forever. *slow, sad head-shake*

I went down the hill a bunch of times myself, but T. Tiger asked to ride along on the final trip. We careened off the left ice shelf! Then the right! We were suddenly flying through the air! It was touch and go, but nobody got hurt, and T. Tiger got a wild ride! Nothing but powder, baby!

I showed the Tiger the spot where I crashed the sled (see the extra photo), and he said we should plant a flag there, to claim the area. I think he thought that because I crashed there, I should now somehow OWN that land. Interesting thought for a very little Tiger. (I only wish I had brought Ruth along; she really would have enjoyed this.)

And then, with the shadows growing longer on our path, we packed up all of our gear and headed for home, after four hours on the slopes. What a great adventure we all had, but it was an especially big day for a very little Tiger!

Our soundtrack song is this one: the Eagles, with Life in the Fast Lane.

*Photo courtesy of my husband.