Ski the ‘Old Link’ Trail Between Huts in Colorado

You must absolutely remember one thing: Bring along a pair of skins. Second, don’t consider this adventure unless you are in pretty good shape . . . or have someone to carry your backpack for you.

Without skins, we may never have made the climb up to McNamara Hut. Skins are thin strips of plastic you attach to the bottom of your cross-country skis. They give you enough traction to ski uphill with a heavy pack on your back.

McNamara is one of five huts on a network of about 10 miles of ski trails that make up what is known as the “old link” of the Tenth Mountain Division Cross-Country Ski Trail and Hut System near Aspen.

A separate “new link,” connecting four new huts on another 100 miles of trails, opened this season near Vail.

Former Defense Secretary Robert McNamara, a part-time Aspen resident, donated money for the hut that bears his name and anoth er, called Margy’s Hut, in honor of his deceased wife, Margaret.

Both links, or trails, wind through the White River National Forest in some of the most beautiful country in Colorado.

The views of craggy, snow-covered peaks are breathtaking. Deep woodlands, where the boughs of big pine trees bend under the weight of snow, offer a sense of solitude and peace.

Some hardy souls spend a week in the mountains, skiing from hut to hut, including a night along the way at a guest ranch called the Diamond J, which is on the old link.

Popularity Growing

I selected a condensed version: a one-nighter to McNamara and back to Aspen the next day with friends who live in Aspen and are veteran back-country skiers.

The popularity of back-country, hut-to-hut skiing is growing, and my trip was a good introduction. Before leaving we spent part of the morning in Aspen debating how much food to carry, trying to keep our packs as light as possible.

My friends warned that while the trip was strenuous, we’d want to eat like bears once we reached the hut.

We started out in a wet snowfall, skiing up the Hunter Creek drainage northeast of town. We followed the trail through stands of aspen trees and on into mountains known as the Williams range.

The distance to the hut was 5.4 miles, including a respectable climb of 1,980 feet, from an elevation of 8,320 feet in Aspen to 10,300 feet at the hut. Most of the trail was narrow and uphill, along steep ridges.

Most of us needed our skins nearly all the way. We crossed two alpine meadows, but most of the trip was through forest.

The tracks left in the snow by earlier skiers brought to mind the tracks of the narrow-gauge railroads that once ran through these mountains during mining booms.

Signs on Trees

The trails on the Tenth Mountain system are marked by blue diamond signs on trees and are easy to follow, although the association recommends that skiers carry maps and compasses in case of bad weather. Guides are not necessary, but can be arranged through the association.

Our group of six skiers quickly spread out on the trail according to individual skiing ability and condition. Bonnie Williams, director of sports medicine at the chic Aspen Club, zipped up to the hut in just 2 1/2 hours. It took me four hours to reach the hut, maintaining what, for me, was a strong, steady pace.

It was a wonderful trip, though I was exhausted at the end. Although I’m a jogger and in pretty good shape, I think the altitude and the 35-pound pack on my back made the difference.

Nevertheless, an intermediate skier should have no trouble on most parts of the Tenth Mountain system.

I sank onto a bunk, gulped orange juice and quickly recovered. But I didn’t feel the urge to join Williams when she led a group out to practice ski turns on a hillside near the hut.

Actually, “hut” is a misnomer. Like the other huts on the Tenth Mountain network, McNamara is a big, beautiful, well-built, two-story log cabin with pine paneling and big picture windows.

McNamara can sleep 15 skiers. There is one private sleeping room and a few bunks by one of the two woodburning stoves downstairs, plus a large dorm room upstairs.

Woodburning Saunas

Some of the newer private huts incorporated into the system this season are more elaborate. Two have woodburning saunas. One has hot and cold running water, and another a gas-fueled cooking stove. But none have on-site staffs.

The bunks have foam mattresses and pillows. So just bring a pillowcase with your sleeping bag. The huts have garage-sale-quality pots, pans, plates and silverware. You don’t even need your Swiss army knife.

At McNamara there is a woodburning cookstove in the kitchen area and a sink for washing dishes with melted snow. There is no running water. Outhouses are out back. McNamara has a solar-powered lighting system that gave us electric light in the evening.

Our meal that night consisted of fruit, cheese, bread and the low-calorie meals that come in plastic pouches. We ate around the hut’s big picnic-style tables.

We were joined by a group of five men and a woman who were on a six-day hut-to-hut tour. They also had reserved bunks at McNamara that night.

After dinner I relaxed on my bunk near one of the stoves. The last thing I remember before dozing off was hearing one member of our group reciting a rendition of “The Cremation of Sam McGee,” by Robert Service.

In the morning we woke to find a clear blue sky and a foot of new powder. Fueled by pancakes and coffee, we zoomed through a winter wonderland of pine trees and deep snow downhill to Aspen. The trip back was exhilarating, and took me only an hour and 45 minutes, sans skins.

The trail and hut system is named after the Tenth Mountain Division ski troops, who trained near Aspen and fought in Europe during World War II.

The Tenth Mountain Trail Assn., a nonprofit organization, was established in Aspen in 1980. It maintains the huts and gathers firewood during the summer.

Six of the nine huts are owned by the association. Three huts are privately owned, but can be reserved through the association. Cost varies from $16 to $25 per person per night.

You will probably share a hut with others who have reserved bunks in that hut the same night. Entire huts may be reserved, however.

The cost for a night at the Diamond J, which has a Jacuzzi, saunas and showers, is $22 per night, or $44.50 with three meals, including a carry-out lunch for the trail, if you prefer.

The Tenth Mountain Assn. is based in Aspen and maintains an office in Vail. Reservations for both links of the trail are made through the Aspen office.

The association’s reservation desk is open from October through April, 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. Monday through Friday, and 8 a.m. to noon on Saturday.

For more information and a brochure, contact the association at 1280 Ute Ave., Aspen, Colo., 81611, (303) 925-5775. Weekend nights should be reserved well in advance. The Aspen office also can provide maps, plus information on the privately owned huts and the various trailhead locations.

The privately owned huts and the Diamond J also take their own reservations. Their telephone numbers are available from the association.

The association, which eventually hopes to expand its trails to connect Aspen and Vail on the two links, accepts memberships and contributions.