TR: Birthday Chute Ski (29 March 2016)
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The Gore Range is a bit of a mystery. Not only is this range difficult to find information on, access for skiing is typically long, and peaks aren’t well labeled on USGS Maps. So, skiing in this area takes a bit of research, or going along with someone who knows the area.
After storms earlier in the week and with a new storm brewing, Larry and I decided to tackle the Birthday Chute which is considered one of the easier Gore Range lines.
We began at the Pitkin Creek trailhead, hiking at first on largely dry trail.
It wasn’t long before we switched to skins, and admired the valley views.
East Partner, Mount Solitude, and West Skier’s Point in the distance.
We caught a glimpse of the Birthday Chute from below but decided to skin up through the trees on the left side of it, eventually entering the chute about 2/3 of the way up.
The views as we skinned were spectacular. I believe these east facing lines across the way are called Little Skier’s Peak.
A view of West Partner (Peak U) on the left and East Partner (Peak V) on the right.
Skinning up the Birthday Chute.
The snow looked mighty tasty for the way down!
Outpost Peak looking grand across the way.
Looking over toward Skier’s Point, a goal for another day…
But, this view is the best of all – Outpost Peak, West and East Partner Peaks, among others.
Big eyes for Big Horn.
Larry, ready to go.
Though a storm was moving in, a little bit of sun shined down on us as we began our descent of the Birthday Chute. Larry.
Overall, it was a long, fun line to ski all the way to the valley floor. We followed our skin track back to the trailhead.
The Birthday Chute is one of the easier lines in the area, but is a great gateway into the Gore Range. So, get out there, and get exploring.
One more thing I wanted to note – I forgot my Canon G16 camera this day. So, all my pictures were taken using my Samsung S5 cell phone. Not too shabby for a cell phone, eh?
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