Category: Backcountry Skiing

Heading South… To The West Elks.

Posted by Frank – March 20, 2012

If there’s one thing I’m looking for more than anything else these days, it’s the feeling of exploration that I’m seeking. No matter how good a slope might be, if I’ve skied it a bunch, I’d rather ski something new, even if the conditions aren’t as good. I’m probably in the minority on that one. I consider the West Elks to be the sub-range of peaks to the South of Kebler Pass that are most clearly seen as one drives into Gunnison from Monarch Pass. While they may be close, access isn’t very easy so my explorations in the area have been limited to riding my bike on the Lowline Trail. I had always thought of accessing the area from the East via Mill Creek, but then a friend of mine mentioned a tour he did in the area from the South, off one of the many drainages that empty into Blue Mesa Reservoir from the West Elks. I was hooked.

Unfortunately, it took until last week until I was finally able to find the time, the weather, and the partner. Danny Spencer and I headed past Gunnison and discovered that… roads in this area had just been gated a few days ago to prevent damage on the muddy roads of springtime. Bummer. Time to formulate a plan B. Carbon Creek wasn’t too far away and it isn’t an area we would normally drive to, so we hoped to find something worthwhile in that area. First we explored the possibilities of accessing the Southwest side of Whetstone. It didn’t look great.

Awesome Axtell… the boring side:

We were left with Carbon Peak, which has a couple of stellar couloirs that I’ll have to put on the list for another year:

There was a nice rib on the North side that looked like it still had some soft snow on it, so that’s where we headed.

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Mount Baldy (WSC and South Bowls) 3.12.12

Posted by Frank – March 18, 2012

After ascertaining that North faces were still holding some decent powder on Redwell the day before, and decent corn on the South faces on Gothic the day before that, Sydney Dickinson and I headed up Washington Gulch with hopes of finding one or the other. We ended up getting both…

The climb from the snowmobile went quick- so quick that it was obvious that we were too early to catch any corn. Western State bowl, on the other hand, was looking pretty good so we dropped in there. Sydney:

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Redwell to Wrong Chute 3.11.12

Posted by Frank – March 13, 2012

After a nice corn skiing session on Gothic’s spoon the day before, I was curious how the North faces were holding up. When Adam called and suggested a tour up to Redwell Basin, I thought it was a great idea. From the top of Mount Emmons, Redwell Basin honestly didn’t look all that great due to some wind affected snow, but we decided to give it a go anyway with the hopes that the snow quality would improve as we descended. There were quite a few slides within the basin from the last storm cycle, although the standard route hadn’t slid. Here’s Adam’s buddy Brae dropping in:

The snow was pretty good- as long as you paid careful attention to the surface texture and stayed on the rippled looking snow. Adam:

Brae:

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TR: Gothic Spoon (10 Mar 2012)

Posted by Brittany – March 11, 2012

This prolonged high pressure has been both a blessing and a curse. The warm sunny days have somewhat stabilized our snowpack and have brought spring cheer to the town. But, at the same time, the snow that has fallen the last few weeks has been quickly, and sadly, melting away at an alarming rate. It seems as though winter came late and spring is coming early. With that being said, now is the time for us to get out and enjoy what little snow we do have, because it might not be here for much longer. In hopes of finding corn, Frank, Sydney, and I decided to check out the south-facing Spoon on Gothic Mountain.

The Spoon in view.
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Sydney and I skinning up Washington Gulch.
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We bootpacked most of the way up the mountain.
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Above It All Once Again In AK 2.28.12

Posted by Frank – March 1, 2012

Alyeska reported over 2′ on the 27th, so I pounded laps until my legs couldn’t take it anymore. The snow quality was incredible, but if you’re looking for things to jump off of at Alyeska, this might not be the season- they’re buried this year. Of course, the snowpack is also pretty amazing, so we went on a nice tour just 24 hours later, with moderate trending towards low conditions. Coastal snowpacks can be pretty amazing.

I found myself in the same vicinity as my first tour up here, this time with new friend Dana and a buddy of his. And once again we found ourselves skinning in the clouds.

Once again, we ended up above it all, and began a short bootpack up a ridge.

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TR: Alaska – Day 7

Posted by Brittany – February 29, 2012

Day 7 was to be my last day in Alaska. Though the forecast wasn’t looking as promising, again the forecasters were wrong. Day 7 was about as blue as Alaska gets :)

We headed out to Turnagain Pass with our friends Colin, Colin, and Emily. The skin up the mountain was cold until we felt the rays of the sun. Emily.
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The blue skies allowed for fantastic views.
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Spectres Inside the Ping Pong Ball: TT43 2.24.12

Posted by Frank – February 27, 2012

Time for a departure in titles from our recent straightforward title names. Spectres? Ping Pong balls? TT43, what is that code for? I’ve gone off my rocker, haven’t I? Read on…

Skiing in places like Alaska is quite the opposite of Colorado in terms of the weather you’re seeking. Here, it’s all about the high pressure letting you get out onto the big lines with blue skies and stable snow. All week long, Friday looked like it would be “The Day”. 0% chance of snow- sunny. Code Blue as they say in Canada. We’d spent enough time on Turnagain to have a few ideas for a big clear day, but in the end our “local consultant” and this Youtube video had us setting our sights on the tallest peak in the Turnagain area, TT43.

We woke up to snowy skies and a forecast which had changed overnight to a 60% chance of snow, but with afternoon clearing. While this would be cause for much celebration back in CO, we were dismayed at the new forecast but still hopeful that the sun would be shining by the time we completed the 4,000′+ climb of TT43. So up we went.

Then it got worse…

We kept climbing through the heavy clouds, hoping that the forecast was right and we would have a perfect afternoon. And indeed, the skies began to lighten as we neared the summit.

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TR: Alaska – Day 4

Posted by Brittany – February 25, 2012

The Turnagain Pass area has a lot to offer. After spending the previous day skiing there, we wanted more – and better. With blue sky peeking through, we were hoping to venture a little farther.
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Brett was able to join us and we began skinning up the ridge, with a brief bootpack when the snow got firm.
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Again, we admired lines.
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Alaska has no shortage of aesthetic ridges.
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For our first run, we dropped in on a short south-facing pitch that was fantastic. Frank, ready to ski.
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Alaska Day 5

Posted by Frank – February 24, 2012

You might notice that “day 4″ has been skipped. That’s because it was a really good day and we’ve got a number of photos to go through. So, I’ll skip to day 5. Brittany woke up and decided she needed a day off- it’s hard to keep doing 4-5,000′ days when we’ve had such a lackluster winter in CO and it’s tough to eke out a 2,000′ day. JP, a former resident of Crested Butte, offered to take me on yet another tour on Turnagain. Despite leaving Girdwood under the seemingly omnipresent cloudy and snowy skies, we found a good window to bang out a nice sunny lap before JP had to get to Anchorage.

Looks good, doesn’t it?

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TR: Alaska Days 2 & 3

Posted by Brittany – February 22, 2012

Day 2 was a storm day. A good storm day though. We headed out for some turns at Alyeska Resort and, though inhibited somewhat by visibility, we enjoyed laps on the North Face and Christmas Chute.

Frank on the tram.
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A storm day’s view out the tram window.
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Frank in Christmas Chute.
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We knew the day’s storm was dumping snow all around us and were hoping for a weather window to open so we could enjoy some freshies in the backcountry. Day 3′s forecast wasn’t looking promising and we woke up to Girdwood valley being socked in. But, we decided to check things out on Turnagain Pass with a friend of a friend, Brett, and his friend Andy. As we made our way around the Turnagain Arm, the mountains began to reveal themselves.
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And we even began to see blue skies on Turnagain.
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