Our next stop was the archipelago of Bocas Del Toro in northern Panama, near the Costa Rica border. We kept seeing pictures of these islands while we investigated Panama, and since I’m a huge Survivor fan, I probably remember the islands from a few seasons ago. Bocas can be reached from Costa Rica, or from Panama City via plane,
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The Petzl Leopard LLF crampon clocks in at 330 grams, whereas my steel ‘pons are a whopping 900 grams. Not only does the lighter weight make for a lighter pack and lighter feet when they’re on, but it also makes the trailhead game of “Should I take ____?” a whole lot easier.
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Pete tossed out the idea of skiing what he has been calling “Steep Face”- one of about 18 things with the same name. But I knew exactly which one he meant, which is the one up the Oh Be Joyful valley that I’ve looked at for years.
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One of the nice things about a multi-lap day is that you can keep scoping out the aspects and conditions. Lap #3 had the best conditions of the day, when we found just the right aspect and then skied a couloir that Ben likes to call the Buttcrack. Maybe that needs another pen or pencil name, though. While I’ve skied 4th bowl a few times,
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The idea behind the G3 Scala skin is that most of the grip is centered under the foot, while the tip and tail section of the skins don’t do much for grip, and mostly reduce glide. G3’s solution was to add a urethane fishscale section at the tip to increase glide, while (hopefully) keeping the traction characteristics of a full nylon skin.
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The ski sensation that you feel in your feet is one of extreme feedback- these are not damp skis in any sense of the word. But they are amazingly powerful. I was loading this ski up and catching air as I came out of carves- something I never do in this type of ski. That said, would I want to harness that kind of energy on a steep slope?
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The turns from the top down to my first safe zone were pretty incredible- soft recycled pow. Once I stopped, I had time to get situated and get my camera out before I heard a rumble. My tracks had slowly released a sluff that had increased in size and intensity by the time it rushed past me.
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Choosing a ski helmet for ski mountaineering presents an interesting challenge. On the one hand, you can go with your standard ski helmet. This choice leaves quite a bit to be desired.
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If you’re into backcountry skiing, mountain biking, and all the other outdoor sports that we’re into, chances are you love staring at maps just as much as we do. Old maps, new maps, topo maps, road maps- I love them all and can stare at them for hours. How can I connect these two trails? That’s where Placemark Designs comes in.
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