Lollapalooza. The word doesn’t usually connote adventure, does it? For me, on the last day of 2012, and the last day of my ski trip to Sunday River Maine, it did.
The Lollapalooza trail is at the very edge of the enormous Sunday River ski area and requires two lifts to reach it. I wanted to have seen all the edges of ski area before leaving, so I wanted to take this trail.
However, I’m what you might call a physically timid person. For example, I’ve been downhill skiing since I was a teenager and still am no more than a very slow intermediate skier. I once spent nearly an hour trying to gather the courage to jump off a cliff into Ute Lake in New Mexico. I’m terrified to be more than three feet under water. You get the idea. So, taking an out-of -the-way trail was an unusual decision for me.
But I was pretty sure I could do this trail. So I did.
I was rewarded with views from inside a cloud, looking out at the surrounding mountain ranges, the sky becoming slightly pink, orange, and the green you only see in December. There was also some pretty fabulous snow to ski on.
Even better, the way back to the bottom gave me the choice of following a route marked “not a ski trail.” I took it.
The “not a ski trail” could be skiied…with skills like skating and climbing hills. Fortunately I do possess those skills from years of cross-country skiing. Again, the rewards that came with this decision were also pretty great: real, not man-made snow, perfectly quiet woods, and solitude.
Going to the edge rewarded me with a sense of bravado, some beautiful views, as well as a new route I didn’t expect nor could have planned for.
I think this is a good lesson for making art as the new year begins.
I bought a Lolapalooza trail sign at the gift shop and intend to keep it visible in my studio as a reminder: seek the edges, accept the adventure, and embrace the results.
Happy New year to all!