By Bryanna Allen-Rickstad

Plump flakes fall with ease as they blanket the ground in a sea of white. The stunning silence is broken by a sudden SWISH of skis and a wall of powder. 

Eric Nichols, who spends summers on Lake Bomoseen, also finds the time to make trips to the area in the winter to visit the abandoned Birdseye Ski Resort.

Nichols hikes the overgrown slopes; his skis strapped to his back, boots slung over his shoulder. It’s a hefty effort to enjoy a few short minutes of backcountry skiing. 

“I love the tranquility of this old place,” said Nichols, munching on a Clif Bar. “It has a lonely but peaceful atmosphere to it.”

The resort was not always so lonesome. Built in 1961 by Bill Jenkins, it boasted a total of two lifts and six trails. For several years, the business thrived. Although small, it offered night skiing and was one of only three ski resorts in the region to have snowmaking equipment, said Jeremy Davis,  founder of the New England Lost Ski Areas Project.

However, the resort was soon to see a turn of fate. A board of directors insisted on removing the snow making machine and adding another, larger, extremely expensive lift in its place. 

The next two winters brought very little snow and the resort did not generate enough income to pay debt on the new lift, forcing it to close, Davis said. 

For several years following the resort’s demise, there were attempts to keep it an active part of the community through camping and events including ATV and sledding races.

But the place slowly began to dissolve. The people stopped coming and the surrounding woods began to take over. For years the land sat undisturbed, while the trails grew over and the ski equipment rusted. 

Davis feels a connection with the old resort, and hopes that one day it may come back to life. 

“I always love to see lost areas come back in some form or another,” said Davis. “But I’m not expecting it….it should just be appreciated as local history.”

But life did start to return to the old place. 

Several years ago, Castleton State College professor Steve Lulek started taking his Winter Mountaineering class on overnight trips up Birdseye. The students loved it.

“It was great to be in this old, hidden place that no one knows about,” said Henry Wilton, a mountaineering student. “It’s kinda sad that it’s been forgotten about … but also kinda great.”

Even though Birdseye Mountain sees only the annual college class and the occasional hiker, it is still a part of the town’s history and Davis would be willing to bring more light to the “little lost resort.” 

“If anyone wants to see it come alive again, it might be something we could do as a community.” 

By Mike Divis

Winter is one of the longest seasons of the year in Vermont. With all of the snow it can sometimes be difficult to find things to do if you don’t ski or snowboard.

This past summer a pavilion was built next to the Castleton State College baseball field for events and graduation. 
But, for the 2013 winter, it has been transformed into an ice rink that is becoming a hot spot for Castleton residents and students.

“I wanted to make sure we maximized the use of the Pavilion year-round. Since it is impossible to hold most public events outside in the winter months, the next best use was an open skating rink 
under the pavilion,” Castleton State College President Dave Wolk said in an e-mailed response.

People can be seen daily at the rink since it opened up at the beginning of the second semester.

“It’s my first year at CSC and having the ability to skate whenever is great!” Freshmen Emily Tabor said.

With all of skating occurring, however, there needs to be constant maintenance on the rink. “It’s not bad setting up the rink. It can be difficult with the cold,” said Jake Rick, the Physical Plant employee charged with keeping it smooth. “I had some experience flooding with garden hoses before this back in Rochester, N.Y. by flooding behind my house for skating.”

College students say they’re loving the option to skate on campus.

“The rink is awesome!” Junior Matt Trombley said. “I like going out to the pavilion to skate between classes.” 

There are several different uses occurring at the rink with broomball tournaments on a regular basis.
And although it’s on the college campus, Castleton residents have frequently been seen bringing their children for a family skate around.

“Our facilities staff has done an outstanding job to maintain a smooth surface. The rink is open to anyone, free of charge, from 9 a.m. to 11 p.m., under the lights at night. Hope you enjoy it!” President Wolk said.

By Molly DeMellier

Glenbrook Gym was a surge of excitement Sunday afternoon for the annual EDD Memorial basketball clinic that brought disabled youth from the surrounding area to the court.

Hosted by Castleton’s men’s and women’s basketball teams, the event consisted of individual skill work, group drills, scrimmages, and concluded with an awards ceremony. Celebration dances and cheers from participants and coaches alike were an unexpected highlight to the day.

“The kids love it,” said Executive Officer Gretchen Owens. “I think it really makes them feel special.”

The enthusiasm and laughter of the Spartan’s were of equal measure to the kids they were teaching the sport.

“It’s really a win-win,” Owens said.

“It always feels good to give back to the community and it was a great experience,” said senior captain of the womens’ team Tarryn Bolognani.

The EDD Memorial Foundation began in 1997 to commemorate Owens’ brother, Eric Dettenrieder, who tragically lost his life in a skiing accident at the age of 23. Dettenrieder was a ski race coordinator at Hunter Mountain who enjoyed teaching terminally ill children to ski.

The foundation began small and originally honored Dettenrieder by continuing his work on the mountain. According to Owens, the foundation has grown significantly over the past decade as they branched out to other sports and geographic locations.

Today, the foundation has helped more than 1,000 kids throughout Central New York, Eastern Pennsylvania, and Vermont.  It currently holds free basketball, soccer, swimming, and tennis clinics on four college campuses with volunteer varsity athletes.

Each clinic targets youth with physical and mental disabilities and seeks to introduce them to sports they may not have the opportunity to play on their own. Owens fondly recalled a soccer clinic they adapted for children in wheelchairs by teaching them to play the game with yoga balls.

Already present at Hartwick, Castleton, St. Mike’s and Dettenrieder’s alma mater; Muhlenberg College, the foundation hopes to continue to grow and influence more disabled children and young adults through sports.

“We have this great model,” said Owens “We could potentially do it anywhere.”

By Josh Bassett

Matthew Eaton had a great time on Feb.10, though you would not necessarily know it if you saw him
being dragged through the snow by his jeans.

Eaton, a Fair Haven high school student, was a participant in a tug of war match over the weekend as
part of the Lake Bomoseen Association’s second annual Winter Carnival on Lake Bomoseen. This year’s
event had a twist though, incorporating the first annual Bomoseen Bowl competition, which was decided
over the course of events on both days.

The bowl was won by a team led by Eaton.

“It was really cool, nice atmosphere and great music,” he said laughing on Sunday as classic rock played
in the background.

The carnival on Saturday featured ice sculptures, family flag designing, ice soccer, sleigh rides, tug of war
and snowshoeing, among others events.

The carnival was planned by Bob Franzoni, a member of the Lake Bomoseen Association, with help from
the organization’s Executive Director Jason Ahern.

“(Franzoni) Developed all the activities and prizes,” said association member Ellen Oppenheimer.

The ice was a popular attraction with a one-on-one hockey competition, shooting accuracy and capped by
a free skate. Oppenheimer said there were about 60 people at any of the stations on Saturday, except for
snowshoeing. Despite designated trails, no one took advantage of them, she said.

There were six flags designed by teams and families including one designed by the Peterson family with
their names on it and a blue star in the middle and another depicting the classic black and white pirate
flag.

Sunday’s events included tug of war, ice sculpture judging, sleigh rides and the awards ceremony.

The tug of war match turned into a battle of age versus experience as Eaton’s team of four was against a
team of four adults.

The adults won easily on the first round against Eaton’s team.

Then came another match, and this time it was seven against five and again Eaton’s team was
outmatched.

Eaton’s team finally overcame the elder team in the third match, but it took nine of them to beat five and
even then it was still close.

Oppenheimer jokingly offered to give the rope to her dog, Big, a 65-70 pound Newfoundland with a shiny
white coat and black markings, for anyone willing to try to get it back.

The sleigh rides were also a big hit.

The horses belonged to Dave Foley of Florence, Vt., who said he was hired by the association for the two-
day event. He said he does sleigh rides in the winter as a way to make a little extra money.

The sleigh ride began behind the Prospect Point Country Club on Lake Bomoseen, and went for about a
half-mile loop.

With the sun out and snow on the ground, passengers appeared to be loving the ride with one calling it
“awesome.”

Foley was frequently telling his horses Jackson and Cody, “good boy, good boy” multiple times over the
course of the ride.

“It would be nice to do one of these without freezing to death,” said Foley, who appeared less
enthusiastic than the riders as the sleigh would slide around and rock as it alternated between light snow
and patches of grass.

Then the results came in for the ice sculpture judging. There were only three sculptures, all made on the
lake near the Lakehouse Pub and Grille. There was a four-foot-tall wall that was evidently a tiki bar, a
foot-and-a-half-or-so-tall car with the letters LBA on it for the Lake Bomoseen Association and a boat
pulling a skier behind it.

The boat pulling the skier was the winner.

“We made the tiki bar,” said Eaton, with friend Nick Boule adding in the background that they had come
in second.

The Bomoseen Bowl was the prize after all the events.

“This year (the bowl) is a bowl filled with candy,” said Ahern.

Franzoni said there was also a 50/50 raffle, and the prizes were Louisiana Fish Fry gift box, the bowl full
of candy, and a “hearty handshake.”

Oppenheimer said the event was organized with the community in mind to simply have fun.

Eaton certainly had a good time and is already looking forward to the next Winter Carnival.

“We’re gonna repeat next year.”