A Notch Above: Nebraska Notch, Stowe, Vt.

AMC Outdoors, January/February 2006

The Trip: A ski tour into the dramatic and scenic Nebraska Notch

Length and Intensity: Moderate with challenging sections, 4.4-mile round-trip (from Stevensville trailhead to Taylor Lodge)

Best Time To Go: Winter to ski; year-round hiking

Nebraska Notch is a primeval place. Stunted tree trunks stick up out of the white expanse of the beaver ponds. Black rock walls striped with fangs of ice soar overhead. Dull blue ice pours down from the summit of Dewey Mountain, as if the earth has been cleaved open. The valley floor is dotted with glacial erratics that lie as if hurled from the side of the mountain by a giant. On a sunny day, small ice avalanches cascade down the cliff. This is an otherworldly place that is all the more dramatic in its winter guise.

Nebraska Notch is the east-west passage between Mount Clark (2,979 feet) and Dewey Mountain (3,371 feet). At one time a road passed through the notch, allowing passage from Stevensville to Moscow. According to one local inn owner, “In most places, people cut roads up the valleys. But in Vermont, there was always some guy who had a girlfriend over the next ridge, so he cut a road over the top of the mountain.” If that is the case, the labor of a lovelorn Vermonter is now a plum thoroughfare for skiers.

From the trailhead in Stevensville, a sign directs you to the right for the trail to Taylor Lodge. The Overland Trail heads off left, while the Nebraska Notch trail veers right and rises gently through open hardwoods and a long, open birch glade—an irresistible tree-skiing romp on the way down.

Just above the birch glade and at the east end of a beaver pond, you’ll come to a trail junction. The Clara Bow Trail continues straight ahead, while the Long Trail proceeds right to Taylor Lodge. Described as “rough” on the sign, Clara Bow is a drainage strewn with house-sized boulders. Sparsely blazed, it’s among the wildest trails in the state: you scramble among the boulders, and, at one point, climb a short ice-encrusted ladder out of a cave.

Alternatively, follow the well-marked Long Trail to the right. The LT climbs up and over a col for half a mile and drops suddenly to the three-sided wooden shelter maintained by the Green Mountain Club. Taylor Lodge was constructed in 1978 and named for the club’s founder. The picturesque setting and easy access make it a good destination for an overnight ski trip.

Descend to Stevensville on the trail or through the open trees. This sets the tone for the rest of the open-forest ride down: ski it as you see it. This is a delightful, moderate downhill run on which you can link turns at your own pace (almost all the way to the parking lot), and discover for yourself why Vermont skiers are so enamored with “skiing the trees.”

—David Goodman is a Vermont author

DIRECTIONS From Underhill Center: Drive 0.6 mile north and turn right on Stevensville Road. Follow 1.6 miles until the road turns sharply left at a sign for Maple Leaf Farm. Drive directly ahead (east) here, continuing straight on a dirt road for one mile until you reach the parking lot for the Nebraska Notch Trail.

RESOURCES Excerpted from Backcountry Skiing Adventures: Classic Ski and Snowboard Tours in Vermont & New York by David Goodman ($14.95). Available at www.outdoors.org or by calling 800-262-4455. Information on Taylor Lodge available at www.greenmountainclub.org.

LOCAL WISDOM The one-mile road to the trailhead parking lot is very narrow, often icy, and steep. Do not attempt it in bad conditions unless you are confident your vehicle can make it—and keep a shovel with you.