Cross Country Skiing

The Yosemite Winter Club Cross Country section (XC Section) was established about 30 years ago as a component of the Yosemite Winter Club (YWC). The Cross Country Ski Section of the YWC is open to everyone who is a Winter Club member.

The XC Section carries on the long-standing tradition of cross-country outings into the backcountry of Yosemite in an organized fashion. We are brought together by our love of both Yosemite and the cross-country ski experience that together make a truly unique experience. We welcome new skiers wishing to share in that experience with us.

Our ski year begins with a food packing party held annually, generally on the last Saturday in September. We pack food into mouse-proof containers to cache in the high country. These provide for dinners and breakfasts as well as snacks, juices and an assortment of beer and wine. Members going on trips are responsible for bringing their own lunches. Paper plates and bowls are also provided by the club. This helps minimize the weight of your pack for the trips.

January 22-24, we will kick off cross country skiing with our “First Ski” weekend, held at the home of long time members and former club leaders Don and Kay Pitts at their “Falcons’ Nest” in Yosemite West. We usually gather 40-50 members for a great party – pot luck/get together and sleep over and enjoy some semi-organized skiing on Saturday and Sunday, usually out of Badger but we have been known to ski Yosemite West if the conditions are right.

Overnight trips

Our overnight trips are usually held from February through March, with "considerable comfort". Still, it is not exactly The Ritz. In some cabins you may have to sleep on the floor, so come prepared with a sleeping pad. There will be two trips to a small cabin near Glacier Point, two trips to the ski hut at Ostrander Lake, and a trip on a Trans Sierra route over Tioga Pass and Tuolumne Meadows from the eastern Sierra to the Valley.

The Ostrander skit hut and the Trans Sierra trips are strenuous backcountry adventures. The Glacier Point trips are less challenging and are ideal for someone in good shape who wants to try an overnight hut trip. They also serve to introduce new members to our concept of communal skiing and helps us evaluate new members’ respective skills and preparedness for the more arduous Ostrander and Trans Sierra trips. [See “How to apply for trips” below].

The 2010 trip schedule is as follows:

• Glacier Point I (2 nights): February 5-7, 2010
• Glacier Point II (1 night): February 27-28, 2010
• Ostrander Ski Hut I (3 nights): February 11-14, 2010
• Ostrander Ski Hut II (2 nights): March 4-6, 2010
• Trans Sierra (4 nights): March 17-21, 2010

Trip Safety

These are not professionally guided trips. An experienced member is appointed as voluntary trip leader (unpaid) who usually is looked upon to help direct the trip but they are along to have fun like everyone else. Participants are expected to follow the directions of the trip leader; this will help everyone have a better experience together. Although we do not make any warranty as to your safety or enjoyment on these trips, we expect that each member will be responsible enough to evaluate his/her own health, skills and preparedness prior to even signing up for trips. This includes both your fitness level and health, and minimizing the weight taken in your pack. We ask this for each person’s own safety and the safety and enjoyment of the others on the trips. Skiers new to the group are asked to go on a Glacier Point trip as their first experience with XC Section in order to be introduced to our style of communal skiing and to help us evaluate new skiers’ respective skills and preparedness for the more arduous Ostrander and Trans Sierra trips.

On our trips, we have experienced adverse conditions ranging from varying weather to very challenging snow and ice, as well as avalanche conditions. Sometimes we have had to delay a trip by a day or even cancel outright because of adverse weather or due avalanche prone conditions if known in advance. Safety is our number one priority.

How to Apply for Trips Once you have joined the YWC you are eligible to apply for overnight trips; however, space on the trips is limited. The two Glacier Point trips can accept up to 10 participants each; the Ostrander I and II trips can accommodate 15 and 10 participants respectively. The TransSierra trip will accommodate 8 participants.

Contact Terry or Melinda Rivasplata at melrivas@earthlink.net to request a trip application. An application and members letter will be e-mailed to you. You must submit the application and check made out to the Yosemite Winter Club PRIOR TO DECEMBER 31, 2009 to:

Terry and Melinda Rivasplata 4900 Alta Drive Sacramento, CA 95822 .

In making up the trip rosters, priority is given to those members that have been active in arranging the trips or have participated in club activities such as the food packing or other work projects in Yosemite. Skiers new to the group are asked to go on a Glacier Point trip as their first experience with the XC Section as well as coming to the First Ski to meet more of the group. We believe this will enhance your experience as you chose to go on future trips with the group.

If you have further questions, please do not hesitate to email, call or write the XC Section Membership Coordinator, Dave Todd.

How to Contact the Cross Country Ski Section

Our Cross Country Section Co-chairs are Terry and Melinda Rivasplata who will send out the Newsletters, trip applications and email communications which is how we generally correspond. Also, the Trip Applications are sent back to Terry and Melinda as will be noted on that form. Dave coordinates contacts with new members. Brenda Markham is also responsible for the food menus as well as being the treasurer.

Terry and Melinda Rivasplata, Cross Country Club Co-chairs
4900 Alta Drive, Sacramento CA 95822
916 454-5937 melrivas@earthlink.net

Dave Todd - membership
(916)-448-1834 davidto@sysmatrix.net

Brenda Markham – Sec/Tres (559)-434-4509 sailboard@prodigy.net