Students and teachers of the Islesford School traveled to Sugarloaf Mountain Jan. 29-31 for their annual ski trip. After loading and unloading piles of gear and food into the ferry, then into the vans, and with the long drive behind them, the students unwound with a potluck dinner prepared by their parents, then headed out for some ice skating. The students, who ranged from grades one through eight, demonstrated impressive proficiency on their skates, with some of the more adventurous attempting jumps and spins.
The accommodations encouraged interaction, as 22 people found space to sleep in an apartment in Stratton. In the morning, the children in their sleeping bags in the living room resembled a den of giant worms, slumbering those few minutes longer before heading out onto the mountain.
Ski and snowboard lessons occupied the mornings, with roughly half the students opting for each. Following the instructional period, the students took to the slopes, exploring different trails and terrain. Accompanying chaperones took runs with varying collections of students. Christina Blank, a seventh grader and first-time snowboarder, said, “I had so much fun I couldn’t even think of being hungry or tired.”
Following dinner, the school again ventured forth, this time to ride snow tubes. After the hard work of carving turns, the simple ride-up, sled-down attributes of snow tubing proved to be a welcome pastime. Some of the greatest speeds were achieved by pairs of students holding hands and spinning their way down the tracks; from the top of the hill they would disappear behind puffs of snow sprayed from their fast-moving tubes. Adam Wriggins, a second grader, summed up the snow tubing in one word: “Fun!”
On Friday skiing resumed with students applying what they had learned the day before. Danny Wriggins, a fifth grader, found that his most memorable moment came from “going down a chicken pitch backwards.” Danny, for his part, plans to keep on skiing, even though “walking uphill to some of the lifts was pretty tough.” Isaac Philbrook, who will join the school in a few years as a preschooler, was particularly taken with the moose mascot on skis who would periodically zip past. He went out on a few forays in search of moose, almost always returning victorious.
As the tired and exhilarated students climbed into the vans for the return trip to the island, a number expressed excitement for the next trip and the improvement in their skiing and snowboarding that another year would bring. “I’m ready to come back and try it again,” said Gretchen Blank.
The memorable excursion officially ended with a special unscheduled ferry trip, remarkable especially for the phosphorescence boiling in the wake of the boat.