TR: Skiing from Uncle Bud’s hut (4 & 5 Dec 2010)
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Last weekend, Frank and I joined 12 other people on a hut trip to Uncle Bud’s hut. The occasion? Our friend Matt, whom we met on Little Bear last year and has been a reliable ski partner since, was turning 50!
This hut is part of the 10th Mountain Division system and is located outside of Leadville. I will post another blog on the great features of the Uncle Bud’s hut as well as our elaborate birthday celebration. But, today’s blog will focus on the skiing.
Our mouths drooled over lines like this.
But the snowpack was shallow (2-3 feet deep) and fairly rotten. Lines like that would have to wait for later. Instead, we focused on more mellow terrain such as this.
On Saturday, we joined Matt for a late afternoon ski with some beautiful scenery along the way. Frank and Matt.
The Gore Range in the distance.
The sky was fantastic.
Leadville below, surrounded by mountains.
The Arkansas Valley below with the Sangres in the distance.
Frank and Matt.
Matt making turns.
Frank lets it loose as darkness approaches.
The next morning, everyone headed back to civilization fairly early. But, Frank and I stuck around for a few more turns. We found some better snow on a northeast facing slope. But, there were signs of instability so we didn’t linger long.
Me.
Frank.
If Frank looks like he’s skiing uphill, he is!
While the skiing out of Uncle Bud’s was certainly not prime, it certainly has potential, especially for bigger lines normally skied in a more stable spring snow pack. It was a fun area to check out!
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Nice pics Brittany! Thanks for joining us, it was great having you and Frank there.