Fravert Basin and Maroon Peak from near Frigid Air Pass:

We considered making an attempt last weekend, but convinced ourselves the face would already be runneled and avalanche-strewn due the sunny exposure and preponderance of dark rocks on the face. So we skied some lines up Rustler’s Gulch instead. Thanks to the internet, we discovered that the face was actually in great shape as of Sunday, so we made plans to ski it while we still could. Safely past Gothic, we made our way up to the Wilderness boundary in Schofield Park and started up the long gradual climb to Frigid Air Pass. Things were looking good:

Sometimes Frigid Air can be a major obstacle to accessing Fravert Basin, as it is guarded be large cornices. The late, great Jack Hannon had to dig a hole through the cornice on a trip to Maroon back in the late 90′s. Thankfully we arrived at a pretty small spot, and it was easy enough to jump in. Pete gives the count-down:

Once safely in Fravert Basin, we traversed as far as we could towards the face and then started booting diagonally up a series of benches to reach the base of the couloir. Brittany:

We were starting to notice that the route appeared to have some slide activity on it in the last two days, but we still hoped for the best. Brittany climbing:

By the time we reached the corner (the couloir is actually a big dogleg), it was pretty obvious that the route was no longer in good condition for skiing. Pete:

None of us were particularly excited about skiing such a fine route in such poor conditions, so we descended, traversed, then re-ascended to a notch that some friends had used to reach Lost Remuda Basin, hoping we could salvage the day via a different route. Brittany on the way up:

From the notch, looking at the ridge connecting Maroon to Snowmass. I don’t know if this ridge traverse has ever been completed, but I know some people have their eye on it. Lost Remuda is down and to the right.

Unfortunately, there was no way we were going to be able to check out the West face without dropping a ton of elevation and heading even farther from home. We made one more foray up Maroon before deciding to call it a day.

Though unsuccessful, our reward was a bunch of good beta for some future trips and some good skiing on the way back home. Bellview Mountain, definitely on the list:

Brittany, heading towards the massive Fravert Basin:

One last, wistful look at Maroon. You can see our tracks if you look closely:

An area we call “Little Jackson”:

Siberia Peak:

Thunder Pyramid. West Faces like this one seem to be holding up the best:

Then it was time to ski back down from Frigid Air. Frank:

Brittany:

Yeah, it’s going to be a while before we ride bikes here:

Brittany crossing Emerald Lake:

Crossing crazy wet avalanche debris on snowmobiles= interesting:

Like I said, we won’t be riding 401 anytime soon:

I thought this little hot spot on the North side of Baldy was interesting. I bet that area would be a nasty trigger point for slides in the winter for an unsuspecting skier..

Nothing left but to roll home. Unbelievably psyched to have ridden my snowmobile in June. Maroon will have to wait for another year.

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Another view:

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Snow conditions this time around warranted a more conservative style of skiing than my last time on this line in 2006. Especially at the top (first quarter), the snow was what I call “magic carpet” snow, which peels off like an onion and tries to keep a skier on top. Given the exposure, taking a magic carpet ride simply wasn’t an option, so there were a lot more jump turns and side hops compared to my last Landry run. The 2nd quarter of the run was incredible sloughy powder, the 3rd was mank and avie debris, and the last quarter was perfect hero corn.

I feel like my video from the first go-around is a little higher quality. The gopro helmet cam in this case got washed out- it’s just too white out there! This is the first time I’ve had that happen, so hopefully this is more of a one-time deal. It’s too bad they don’t offer a polarizing filter (as far as I know). The other problem was condensation within the camera body- this wasn’t an issue at the top, but it became progressively worse until the footage wasn’t even usable by the second half of the 4,000′ line. I’m assuming this had something to do with the temperature change. In any case, here’s the video:

Pyramid Landry Line 5-5-11 from 14erskiers on Vimeo.

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Pyramid Peak Landry Line 4.20.06 from 14erskiers on Vimeo.

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Note: I was recently reminded of this awesome day almost 4 years ago and decided it needed a bump on the blog. I wouldn’t be a bit surprised if Elbert looks snowy in a couple of weeks again soon…

Mt Elbert is the highest peak in CO, the highest peak in the rocky mountains, and the 2nd highest peak in the lower 48. Despite this, the mountain is basically a huge hill, so riding a mountain bike down it isn’t just possible, but enjoyable. When Brittany and I skied Elbert just 2 and a half months before, we discussed a return trip to ride down the thing, so that’s what we did. Ski TR

We awoke on Saturday, the 26th to a downpour. We didn’t even try for Elbert, but instead went to Buena Vista to kill time drinking coffee at Bongo Billy’s, hitting the Cottonwood hot springs, and eventually the drive-in theatre. This is what it looked like most of the day:

Sunday looked a bit more promising, and we began pushing our bikes up (there is approx 1 mile of riding on the way up). As some clouds parted and I got a look at the upper elevations, we realized that quite a bit of snow had fallen. I was pretty excited about it, and only got more excited when the clean, crisp, snowy air reached my nostrils and touched my skin. Not dirty old suncups, mind you, but fresh clean snow.

The 4,000 foot climb took just 2 hours and 45 minutes, despite pushing our bikes. We were feeling strong this day.
Brittany on top, needing some warmer clothes:

The north face of La Plata, almost looking skiable:

Me, on the summit, with my Yeti waiting patiently in almost a foot of windblown:

Some shots from the way down:

Singletrack leads all the way past the shores of Twin lakes, far below in the picture (over 6,000 vert)

A bit of air down low:

The trail remains steep and techy all the way down:

Given the continued threatening nature of the weather and a bit of an endo suffered by Brittany, we called it a day at the 4wd trailhead, rather than continuing down to Twin Lakes. There is at least one more rideable route on Mt Elbert, the NE ridge route. Having hiked it as well, I know that it is more technical, but doable.

Long’s Peak: North Face*
Long’s Peak: Keplinger
Torrey’s: Dead Dog
Democrat: North Face
Holy Cross: Cross Couloir
Huron: East Face
Tabeguache: North Face
Missouri: North Face
La Plata: North Face
Crestone Peak: South Couloir
Crestone Needle: South Couloir
Kit Carson: Cole Couloir*
North Maroon: North Face
Maroon: Southwest Couloir
Pyramid: Landry Line
Castle: East Face
Castle: South Face
Sneffels: Snake Couloir
Handies: Northeast Face
El Diente: Luttrell Line
Wilson Peak: Northeast Face
Mount Wilson: Boxcar Couloir

That’s my list. I’d love to hear what else belongs or what doesn’t. Happy skiing!

I thought about the way standard ski lines develop on these peaks as Brittany and I ascended El Diente last weekend. I call it the Lattrell Line, because it’s got some good alliteration, but I’m sure locals have both climbed and skied the route before. Regardless, we hadn’t heard of or seen this route before Jarrett Luttrell snowboarded it earlier this month (although I had speculated that a line might exist). As we were ascending Jarrett’s descent line on El Diente, and knowing the other popular route on El Diente, the North Face to the hanging traverse, I was struck by how much better Jarrett’s line is. It’s longer, steeper, more hidden, easier to climb, and everything else a classic line might be. It is our hope that this line will soon become the standard line for skiers of El Diente. We will do a full TR of our day on El Diente shortly, but for now here’s the route itself.

The route. Yellow sections are hidden.

The route is just around the corner from the Northwest Buttress, closer to Navajo Lake. If it looks like you’re climbing into a brick wall, you’re on the right track.

Just when you think there is no way the line goes through, a small exit couloir finally appears:

This leads to what we’re calling the “Fox Traverse”, because it vaguely looks like a Fox’ head (you can see our tracks if you look closely enough):

After the Fox Traverse, you enter the second exit couloir that leads nearly to the summit:

From the summit:

There it is. It’s in great shape right now and probably will be for a while, so get it while the getting’s good.

Brittany and I first met Jarrett Luttrell on a trip to Chicago Basin, when we successfully skied and boarded Sunlight, Windom, and Eolus. Jordan and Brittany quickly headed back to the Front Range after we departed the train, while Jarrett and I headed to a Mexican joint to get some food and a well-deserved margarita. With only Harvard left before my fourteener quest would be complete, I suppose I was already contemplating what it would mean for me once that goal was complete. Naturally, our conversation turned towards Jarrett’s goal to snowboard all the fourteeners, and what that would mean to him.

What struck me most about that conversation was Jarrett’s genuine desire not just to be the first to ride the fourteeners, but to also “do it right”. “Doing it right” meant a lot of things for Jarrett, but certainly included sticking to the same standards as the skiers. I think he even said something to the effect of “I hope whoever snowboards them all first doesn’t cut any corners, and make snowboarders look bad.” Don’t worry Jarrett, your accomplishment stands tall, snowboarders and Crested Buttians are all proud of you. Congrats!

The following are some questions 14erskiers asked Jarrett after his final descent, Long’s Peak, on 5-16-10.

1)When did you start?
July 1998 was my first 14,000 ft peak. I took a trip to Lake City to look at the San Juans with a Rodger Edrin book. I got chased off the summit by a storm, waited at camp, and then watched the sunset from Uncompahgre later the same day.

January of 2000 was the first one on a board. Quandary of course! But I didn’t get it from the Summit. Halbakken and I also climbed Elbert that week. We made it to the summit at sunset, but we only rode a little bit of Elbert’s NE ridge, and walked out in the dark. I went back later for both of those. I had a couple other marginal successes that year too. Halbakken and I rode the Bell Cord that year, but not from Maroon’s summit.

I guess Handies, and La PLata later that spring were the first ones from the very very tipy top. I think the standards for this project are higher than most people realize initially, there’s always a bit of a learning curve there. I’m still not satisfied with my status on Sneffels. Then again, a lot of people consider the Snake Couloir a summit descent for Sneffels. I guess I won’t argue with their claim. It holds a pitch for twice the vert, and is undeniably the big line.

2) What was your favorite, if you have one?
The Bells over all. For wilderness, and snowboarding: Snowmass. You can make it a great vacation, and take the time to smell the mold. It also has a quick pitch at the top that snagged my base like a carrot peeler. Chicago Basin was also a fun trip. Taking the train and meeting a great crew. Mt Sherman has a great view of Mt Massive across the upper Arkansas Valley. Great place for a sunset.

3) What was the most challenging peak for you?
Capitol. It always stood there waiting at the end of the line. I was lucky enough to get it on-site by going with the only one to go back and ski it again, Jordan. He’s put his time in on that one. On many of the other peaks, the risks were more manageable than I expected. On Capitol, my fears were mostly validated. That thing is pretty nasty for riding. It wasn’t the only nemesis though. I got shut down by the Wilsons several times, and there was never much snow in the Southern Sangres. I failed on Little Bear a few times during the drought years. Quitting for a while. Hard to justify the slog into the Blancas again when there are nice lines right in the backyard.

4) Why did you start snowboarding fourteeners?
It was an attempt to make getting down more fun. I liked applying one skill set to the other. I was probably a better rider then, but I think I have grown in terms of a more objective approach to the mountaineering aspect.

5) What did you enjoy most?
The solitude was nice sometimes, but I really enjoyed meeting the other people out there getting after it.

6) What’s next?
Next is mini-golf!

The South Couloir on Maroon is one of the Crested Butte area’s most striking and visible lines from nearly any high peak.

For several years I had been wanting to ski it, but it wasn’t until 2003 that I finally got the chance. Dawson’s book describes the ascent via an approach from Lead King Basin outside Marble, but the approach from Crested Butte over Frigidaire Pass makes just as much sense. The crux of the approach is to time it so that Gothic road is at least partially open, otherwise the approach will be pretty huge, at least 25 miles round trip, all the way from the Snodgrass trailhead in Mount Crested Butte.

I scoped out Gothic Road before we headed out and discovered that the road had been plowed, but was still gated and closed to motor vehicles. So, the plan was to load up the bikes and ride them the 5 or so miles out to Rustler’s Gulch. Jeremy Wegner, Alison Gannett and I headed out the next morning with loaded overnight packs and clumsily rode our bikes out the frozen road. While we could have continued up the road all the way to the turnoff for Rustler’s Gulch, we ditched the bikes right before the road crossed the East river. Had we gone over the bridge and continued up the road, we would have needed to wade across the river, which we obviously didn’t want to do.

Now on our skis, our next goal was to reach the low point between Mount Bellview and Pt 12,445. From the col, we were able to traverse around and reach the highest group of trees below West Maroon Pass, where we made a snowcave for the night.

We got up early the following morning and made our way towards Frigidaire Pass in the dark. We ran into a major problem at the pass, however, which was that we couldn’t see whether or not the ridge was corniced or not. After a lot of wandering around looking for a way through, we finally decided the only way to be sure was to summit Belleview Mountain and ski into Fravert Basin that way. As it turned out the Frigidaire Pass ridge was completely cornice and we made a good choice. This added almost a thousand feet, and we started to get concerned that our timing would be off. On the other hand, we got to ski a great couloir down Bellview into Fravert Basin:

Fravert Basin is one of the most spectacular places I’ve ever been, and I can’t recommend it highly enough. We now had a good view of our objective of the day: (photo taken in the pm)

This face looks a lot less intimidating from up close than it does from the far away peaks of the Crested Butte area. The snow was still solidly frozen and we made excellent time cramponing up the couloir:

It got a little more technical as we finished the climb up the ridge, but it certainly wasn’t the 70degree slope mentioned in Dawson’s book.

Ideally, we would have waited for the snow to soften, but we still needed to ascend Bellview Mountain, pack up camp, and make it over Mount Bellview. Down we went, despite the still frozen conditions:

We reascended Bellview Mountain, and had great turns down its’ south face to our campsite. After packing up, we traversed towards PT 12,445′, where several great couloirs drop down into Rustler’s Gulch. Unfortunately these East facing couloirs were too wet by the time we reached them so we descended some nearby slopes that were a bit less committing. We made it back to the bikes and I was happy to finally get out of my Tecnicas (no AT boots for me back in those days). A few miles of biking down the road brought us back the the car and the stashed cervezas. I wish I could do this tour every year, it’s nearly perfect.

After our ski descent of Wilson Peak the previous week, we knew the Wilson group was holding better snow than most years, and the chance of getting summit ski descents was better than average. At the time, I had no plans of skiing all the 14ers, but Mount Wilson and El Diente both offered sufficiently aesthetic and challenging lines to motivate me for a return trip.

We made good time, mostly on foot, up the Silver Pick approach on our way to the Rock of Ages saddle. Our running shoes were stashed near treeline and the view from the saddle looked good:

We chose to ski El Diente first, since that route faces slightly East (but mostly North) and would be the first to soften up. The climb up the face was mostly straightforward until the end, when we were faced with either climbing the difficult ridge or following the exposed snow ramp that leads to the summit. With Chris Davenport’s group’s tracks from 2 weeks ago still quite visible, we chose the snow ramp.

While easy climbing, the exposure was still tremendous. I called my mom from the summit, since it was Mother’s Day, but I didn’t tell her I was about to ski a steep and exposed line. We were easily able to ski off the summit, something which hadn’t become the accepted norm at the time. The skiing was excellent corn that had already baked to perfection and we regrouped at the bottom of the valley to survey the scene on Mount Wilson.

Our plan was working well as we started back up, with the slightly less sun exposed slopes of Mount Wilson remaining mostly frozen and bootable. Once again, the going was quite easy until we got within 100′ or so of the summit, at which point the climbing got quite difficult. While short and less exposed than others, these last few moves were harder than any other 14er except Pyramid and Capitol.

Like El Diente, Lou Dawson had not skied off the exact summit of Mount Wilson during his 14er project, but Davenport had been able to ski off the exact summit just a couple of weeks ago. We could see his tracks, which appeared to be straightline for about 40′ into a big sweeping turn, but that option was no longer available since much of the East facing snow had melted out there. We were left to either billygoat a short section with our skis on, or do a difficult downclimb of the terrain we had just ascended. I chose to put the skis on, simply because I’m more comfortable with them on. About 10′ of this:

Got me into a position where I was able to pivot off my tails and do my own straightline into more snowy and open terrain. That was a fun move! We made our way through a mini-col to the north face and once again skied near perfect corn to the valley floor. A quick snow shower blew in while we reascended the Rock of Ages saddle, where more quality corn skiing awaited us. Mount Wilson and El Diente make for a great two-fer of skiing with some pretty good access, and are a great tune-up for the toughest peaks like Pyramid and Capitol.