The Middle of Nowhere meets the Middle of the Ocean: A Surface 500 Times More Slippery than Any Cooking Oil

So back in January, a friend and I decided that we would hike B Mountain and sled down it before the season ended. April arrived and we still hadn't accomplished our goal. In most parts of the world this would create some problems but since we live in the middle of Snowland, USA this was not an issue (in fact, as I write this snow is gently falling outside - charming in December, annoying in April). We decided we needed to act quick (greatly inspired by the fact that said friend leaves tomorrow) so we gathered our stuff together, layered up and started on our quest. And what a quest it was!
We quickly learned that this would have been a much easier task if undertaken a month or two prior. At the base of the mountain where the temperatures were warmer the snow was like walking in sand, only we were not at a beach and we were walking uphill. Not to worry, we soon found ourselves traversing up icy slopes. Three steps spent moving forward followed by two steps sliding backward. It took a lot of determination to keep going. The rest of the journey to the top included steep inclines intermixed with avoiding the path of the snow CATS (one of the groomers was kind enough to stop and give us a head's up on their plan of action so we could stay out of each other's way). That said, we also got to see gorgeous vistas and, once the sun set, star-filled skies (oh, yeah we had to undertake this adventure after the slopes had closed for the day). We spent a couple of minutes at the top then had to head back. . . on our sleds. Let me amend that: our glorified sheets of plastic.
You know that scene in National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation where Clark, the dad, greases up his snow saucer with the 'new non-caloric, silicon-based kitchen lubricant" that "creates a surface 500 times more slippery than any cooking oil" then goes flying down the sledding hill (click here for a reminder)? Remember those icy slopes I mentioned in the last paragraph? Well, instead of plowing into a donation bin I ended up plowing through my friend halfway down. I tried to warn him but the next thing either of us knew he was flying through the air and it was another 100 feet before I could stop. I wasn't even using the sled at that point either. It was just me, in my ski gear (helmet included - safety first!) trying to dig my feet and hands into the ground to slow myself down. It is hard to dig one's hands and feet very far into a thick layer of ice. Luckily, the battle wounds were kept to a minimum (and to me): a massive bruise and a hole in the seat of my ski pants. We quickly got on our way again and found ourselves at the bottom in about a tenth of the time it took us to make it to the top.

early on in the trek