Inspiration hit, as Chollaball mentioned, for Christmas Eve, he was heading down to Tuscon to pedal.
I thought to myself, heck I wanna ride down in Tuscon, but I also wanna ski. But wait, Ski Valley, the dinky resort at the top of Mt. Lemmon was up and running. A plan formulated that I would ride the lower trails in the Catalina Mountains (the trails not covered in snow), and then following the ride, I could head up to Ski Valley for an afternoon session of skiing. So I posted up a Tuscon MTB, that I wanted to find somebody who wanted to do a quick shuttle run on La Milagrosa. Luck would have it, Miracle (Chris) replied that he was in. Stoke was high, and I knew my plan would now come to fruition.
I met up with Chris at Le Buzz at 8:00. We then dropped my car off at the end of the Millie, and then we took his truck up to Prison Camp. We hit the trail at about 8:45 and man was it cold, but I had the perfect amount of layers for the whole ride. I didn't freeze in the shadows and didn't roast by the we time we finished up at 11:15. We the shuttled back up to his truck, and the lap was completed in 3 hours. Just as planned.
From there I head up the highway to Mt. Lemmon, got my ski boots on and grabbed my skis, and paid for my lift ticket just as they were discounting them at 12:30 (afternoon skiing is 32 clams).
The mountain biking was pure awesomness, and the skiing conditions were ...
...well, just okay, but hey it was still a day on the slopes (day 5 for the season).
Here's a Vid of the Day:
Showing posts with label Skiing. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Skiing. Show all posts
Dec 18, 2011
Skiing White Pass - Cascades
Here is a little video of my weekend up at White Pass with the old krew.
Man, I miss that place.
I just wish they had some freshies.
When I get a chance, I will fill in a few more details of my trip. In the meantime, here is a video I put together:
Man, I miss that place.
I just wish they had some freshies.
When I get a chance, I will fill in a few more details of my trip. In the meantime, here is a video I put together:
Dec 4, 2011
Snowbowl - Preseason
I did a little preseason skiing up at Snowbowl, as I work on getting 'the sickness' back.
Actually it was pretty good day.
Pretty good snow on the groomers, but beware the off piste stuff has NO BASE.
It was really cold up there. Shoot, my camelback (with insulated hose) froze within 5 minutes of leaving my car. I had to tuck it into my shirt in order for it to thaw out.
I moved pretty slowly, as I started at the Sunset Chair and topped out at Agassiz Chair (11,500 vf). Both laps took about 2 hours.
The first lap, I came down Upper Ridge, and the second I came down the Spur Catwalk.
There were plenty of people up there doing what I was doing, and there was plenty of talk up on top of hitting the ungroomed stuff on the new runs. I didn't interject, but I did object, cuz I knew there was nothing in between the fluff and the rocks under it. I pretty much stuck to the groomers, and when I did flow threw the freshies on the side, I hit rocks. I actually hit ate it kinda hard when my ski hit a rock, smashing my knuckle on a boulder. That smarts. At the bottom, I heard over and over how the off piste skiing the utters had done was so not worth it.
I fear for the fools who try to get good turns in backcountry on terrain that has no base.
Feb 20, 2011
Pinal Mt. Ski
With the storm that passed through AZ yestaday, I need to see some snow, but I didn't want to battle crowds or the roads around Flagstaff. So I loaded up to XC skis to see if I could get a little repeat of last years most excellent short ski adventure on Pinal Mt.
I split from my house at 5:30 and was heading up the the FR 651 two hours later. Although I could see patches of snow up high I certainly couldn't see much. This kind of concerned me. The top of the hill was also socked in with clouds.
Last year, do to the low snow level, I parked really low. Not the case this time around, as continued up and up. I saw few patches of snow near the Sulphide Del Rey picnic area, but then as I head up the portion of FR651 that runs West to East (south facing exposure) for a few miles it was absolutely bare. I didn't count on snow being here, but I couldn't see any snow up higher, so the trip was looking like a complete bust. I continued on anyways, but about 1/2 mile below the Kellner Canyon TH, I the snow line just appeared, and once I got up the the TH there was several inches of coverage. Suhweet. Not only did I find snow, but it was nearing the top of the ridge, so no steep hills to negotiate with my XC skis.
The road was covered, and in primo condition for XC skiing. I was the first person up there, so no 4x4 tracks. It is actually pretty hard to ski with XC skis on a road that has been tracked by cars, cuz you need to use the whole road to kill speed and make turns. Double suhweet.
It was cold up on top, the winds were honking, and I was in the clouds the whole time, but it was all good.
My basic round was only to head up the road to Pinal Peak, which I did, but I ended up doing the Ferndell Loop up on top.
I'll need to calculate the full mileage, but I can just say now that it wasn't much. Prolly on only 5 or 6 miles, but it was nice to be in a snow setting again.
Here is a dorky vid, and please excuse my overload of ego shots, cuz there really wasn't much interesting to take pictures of
I split from my house at 5:30 and was heading up the the FR 651 two hours later. Although I could see patches of snow up high I certainly couldn't see much. This kind of concerned me. The top of the hill was also socked in with clouds.
Last year, do to the low snow level, I parked really low. Not the case this time around, as continued up and up. I saw few patches of snow near the Sulphide Del Rey picnic area, but then as I head up the portion of FR651 that runs West to East (south facing exposure) for a few miles it was absolutely bare. I didn't count on snow being here, but I couldn't see any snow up higher, so the trip was looking like a complete bust. I continued on anyways, but about 1/2 mile below the Kellner Canyon TH, I the snow line just appeared, and once I got up the the TH there was several inches of coverage. Suhweet. Not only did I find snow, but it was nearing the top of the ridge, so no steep hills to negotiate with my XC skis.
The road was covered, and in primo condition for XC skiing. I was the first person up there, so no 4x4 tracks. It is actually pretty hard to ski with XC skis on a road that has been tracked by cars, cuz you need to use the whole road to kill speed and make turns. Double suhweet.
It was cold up on top, the winds were honking, and I was in the clouds the whole time, but it was all good.
My basic round was only to head up the road to Pinal Peak, which I did, but I ended up doing the Ferndell Loop up on top.
I'll need to calculate the full mileage, but I can just say now that it wasn't much. Prolly on only 5 or 6 miles, but it was nice to be in a snow setting again.
Here is a dorky vid, and please excuse my overload of ego shots, cuz there really wasn't much interesting to take pictures of
Dec 4, 2010
Snowbowl PreSeason
I sauntered up to Snowbowl for a couple of preseason laps on the groomers.
My plan was to skin up from the bottom of Sunrise Chair which sits at 9,200 vf to the top of Agassiz Chair which tops out at 11,500. Heading up the groomers was easy except a couple the steeper slopes hadn't been groomed on my first trip up.
I ended up doing 2 laps, for a total of 4,600 vf. Turning around for the second lap was a test of will power. Ya see the snow was pretty horrid, it was nice that the cats had mashed down the snow on most of the runs, but it was far from groomed. Not that this what I was looking for, but early season conditions anywhere in the Kachina Peaks were gonna be pretty awful. Fresh snow on no base aint fun skiing.
Anycow, I had driving had I drive a ways to get to this snow, so I was gonna get some fitness in even if the turns kinda sucked. Not that I really do tele turns anyways, but today was strictly p-turning survival skiing.
Here is a little vid of the day:
And here is an interactive Google Earth Tour of the route (just click the play button and let it run out):
My plan was to skin up from the bottom of Sunrise Chair which sits at 9,200 vf to the top of Agassiz Chair which tops out at 11,500. Heading up the groomers was easy except a couple the steeper slopes hadn't been groomed on my first trip up.
I ended up doing 2 laps, for a total of 4,600 vf. Turning around for the second lap was a test of will power. Ya see the snow was pretty horrid, it was nice that the cats had mashed down the snow on most of the runs, but it was far from groomed. Not that this what I was looking for, but early season conditions anywhere in the Kachina Peaks were gonna be pretty awful. Fresh snow on no base aint fun skiing.
Anycow, I had driving had I drive a ways to get to this snow, so I was gonna get some fitness in even if the turns kinda sucked. Not that I really do tele turns anyways, but today was strictly p-turning survival skiing.
Here is a little vid of the day:
And here is an interactive Google Earth Tour of the route (just click the play button and let it run out):
Aug 15, 2010
Goat Cirque - Mt Rainier
Big Brotha Steve and I split from his house near Olympia, around 5:30 and ended up to the Summerland Trailhead inside Mt. Rainier National Park a little after 7:00. We also picked up our backcountry overnight permits at the park entrance. Parking is at a premium, hence an early start.
There we met up with Kurt and Matt. Eric joined us around dinner time up at our bivy spot.
Our beginning elevation was about 3,600 vf, and I think the approach to Summerland was about 4.5 miles. The elevation at Summerland was about 5,800 vf, and the snowfield we marched up into Goat Cirque was about half mile up the trail from Summerland.
We marched up to the top of Goat Cirque, but avoided the steep headwalls. We had a primo bivy site, that sat around 7,000 vf. We arrived at our bivy site around 1:30, and it was pretty comfy and sunny. Here, we drank some beers, and just enjoyed the scenery.
Itching to get some turns I strapped on the skis for couple before dinner runs on the short patch of snow near out site.
From here we just waited for the sun to go down, and have the meteors rain down on us. I woke up several times during the night and each time I fixed my gaze on the shooting stars ripping across the clear and star speckled sky.
I'd say that I packed exactly the right amount of food and clothing for this trip, but still my pack remained light. And even when I woke up in the morning I wasn't cold.
We all pretty much rolled out of bivy sacks around 7:00 were marching up the Frying Pan Glacier at around 8:30. The 2,100 vf climb up the glacier to Whitman Crest (9,100 vf) was easy, and only took about an hour and a half.
The five us kicked it on the prow for about an hour, while we gazed the massiveness of Mt. Rainier and all the points of interest. Lil Tahoma sat immediately in front of us, and across the glacier (miles away), we could see climbers returning from summit climbs back to camp muir, Sherman Camp wasn't far away either. The panoramic view was one off the most terrific sights ever scene.
We strapped the skis on, and ripped down the Frying Pan Glacier, and then back to our camp to grab our overnight gear for the our return back down the mountain.
What an amazing trip, and I truly miss this mountain.
Here's a vid of the weekend:
And here is a high res version:
If you happen to have Google Earth, here is a link to interactive tour of our trip (once the link is open, hit the "Play Tour" button on the upper right hand side):
Here are a few pics:
Big Brotha Steve at Summerland with Rainier in the background:
Kurt at Summerland with Rainier in the background:
Me at Summerland with Rainier in the background:
Climbing Goat Cirque:
Chilling at the bivouac:
Panaromic view at dusk:
Perched at Whitman Crest:
There we met up with Kurt and Matt. Eric joined us around dinner time up at our bivy spot.
Our beginning elevation was about 3,600 vf, and I think the approach to Summerland was about 4.5 miles. The elevation at Summerland was about 5,800 vf, and the snowfield we marched up into Goat Cirque was about half mile up the trail from Summerland.
We marched up to the top of Goat Cirque, but avoided the steep headwalls. We had a primo bivy site, that sat around 7,000 vf. We arrived at our bivy site around 1:30, and it was pretty comfy and sunny. Here, we drank some beers, and just enjoyed the scenery.
Itching to get some turns I strapped on the skis for couple before dinner runs on the short patch of snow near out site.
From here we just waited for the sun to go down, and have the meteors rain down on us. I woke up several times during the night and each time I fixed my gaze on the shooting stars ripping across the clear and star speckled sky.
I'd say that I packed exactly the right amount of food and clothing for this trip, but still my pack remained light. And even when I woke up in the morning I wasn't cold.
We all pretty much rolled out of bivy sacks around 7:00 were marching up the Frying Pan Glacier at around 8:30. The 2,100 vf climb up the glacier to Whitman Crest (9,100 vf) was easy, and only took about an hour and a half.
The five us kicked it on the prow for about an hour, while we gazed the massiveness of Mt. Rainier and all the points of interest. Lil Tahoma sat immediately in front of us, and across the glacier (miles away), we could see climbers returning from summit climbs back to camp muir, Sherman Camp wasn't far away either. The panoramic view was one off the most terrific sights ever scene.
We strapped the skis on, and ripped down the Frying Pan Glacier, and then back to our camp to grab our overnight gear for the our return back down the mountain.
What an amazing trip, and I truly miss this mountain.
Here's a vid of the weekend:
And here is a high res version:
If you happen to have Google Earth, here is a link to interactive tour of our trip (once the link is open, hit the "Play Tour" button on the upper right hand side):
Here are a few pics:
Big Brotha Steve at Summerland with Rainier in the background:
Kurt at Summerland with Rainier in the background:
Me at Summerland with Rainier in the background:
Climbing Goat Cirque:
Chilling at the bivouac:
Panaromic view at dusk:
Perched at Whitman Crest:
Jun 19, 2010
Telemark Chute - Kachina Peaks (near Flagstaff, AZ)
Maad likes to celebrate his birthday this time of year. I don't know why??? But he does, so he organized a little trip into the Kachina Peaks (near Flagstaff) via Lockett Meadow. We started off our approach on our mountain bikes around 8:30. We had our skis and boots attached to our packs. Well Maad had it easy, as he stashed his skis in the Inner Basin beforehand.
I believe it was 10:00 by the time we got to point on the Inner Basin Trail where we had to abandon our two-wheelers and start hoofing it up the hill. And it was 11:00 by the time picked our way up to Weatherford trail, at the base of Telemark Chute.
We then boot packed up about 500 vf to top of the strip of snow, and then strapped on the skis for the slide down the way we came. There weren't to many options for coming down, as the strip of snow was no wider than 40'. It was actually a fun little slip down. Once we got back on to Weatherford Trail, we walk up the trail about 100 yards and found the another gully with a strip of snow to ride back down on. After I filmed Maad and Jmoney heading down I slipped on my fourth turn and went into an uncontrolled slide and couldn't arrest. Well not until sliding about 20 feet and bowling over Maad who was positioned right in my path. He worked as a pretty good break.
We then pick out islands of snow back down the hill, and then it came to pulling off our skis. The walk back to the bikes was took about 15 minutes, and then another 30 minutes of biking back down road, we were back at the car.
Yeah, it was pretty boney, but we still skied in June in the beautiful state of Arizona.
Here's a vid of the day:
And here is a higher quality (Quicktime) version (note: it will take a few minutes to download):
If you have the Google Earth on your computer, here is an interactive map of our tour route.
I believe it was 10:00 by the time we got to point on the Inner Basin Trail where we had to abandon our two-wheelers and start hoofing it up the hill. And it was 11:00 by the time picked our way up to Weatherford trail, at the base of Telemark Chute.
We then boot packed up about 500 vf to top of the strip of snow, and then strapped on the skis for the slide down the way we came. There weren't to many options for coming down, as the strip of snow was no wider than 40'. It was actually a fun little slip down. Once we got back on to Weatherford Trail, we walk up the trail about 100 yards and found the another gully with a strip of snow to ride back down on. After I filmed Maad and Jmoney heading down I slipped on my fourth turn and went into an uncontrolled slide and couldn't arrest. Well not until sliding about 20 feet and bowling over Maad who was positioned right in my path. He worked as a pretty good break.
We then pick out islands of snow back down the hill, and then it came to pulling off our skis. The walk back to the bikes was took about 15 minutes, and then another 30 minutes of biking back down road, we were back at the car.
Yeah, it was pretty boney, but we still skied in June in the beautiful state of Arizona.
Here's a vid of the day:
And here is a higher quality (Quicktime) version (note: it will take a few minutes to download):
If you have the Google Earth on your computer, here is an interactive map of our tour route.
Mar 6, 2010
Lockett Meadow
Everyday in the BC is a good day. The road up was total snow; well except prolly a 50 yard section about half mile from the car.
I would started outta Snowblow, but the forecast looked like the weather was posta bonk with super high winds. I made an audible when I saw a huge cloud sitting on Humphries to be on the leeward side of the hill.
My skins glopped really bad today, so I didn't make it all the way up to base of Snowslide. It didn't help seeing two parties ripping down doing an IB traverse, while I struggled up the trail. It was pretty clear to the east of the peaks, but the clouds were ripping over the ridge, and when the black clouds moved over, I called it a day.
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I figured out how to get to the Pumic Mine gully, that made the exit really nice.
Feb 6, 2010
Daily Double: Mtn Biking and Skiing the same day
I rolled outta bed this morning and decided to take a light easy ride out the helipad, but this time I thought I'd bring the heavy bike.
Rolling on Desert Classic wasn't as mundane as I thought it was gonna be, but after all this Giant Reign X pedals really well. I was mostly interested in hitting the little jumps and drops that have started to appear recently on the Helipad DH.
During the climb up the helipad, the thought dawned on me that if I get home early enough from this ride, I could feasibly split from town and be down to Mt. Lemmon (near Tucson, AZ) to catch a afternoon ski session. So I picked up the pace, and railed the downhill. It was mighty fun having big travel and big rotors on this little bit of downhill. Woot!
I got back to the house about 9:15 am, and was out the door about 20 minutes later on my quest for a my second adventure for the day. I was nearing Tucson an hour and fifteeen minutes later, but then I spent nearly an hour crawling my way through to to the Catalina Highway, and then a little less than an hour going up the highway up to Ski Valley. Mental Note #73: Never follow Google.Maps route suggestion of getting off on Miracle Mile/Grant. Instead take the route I took a route home that seemed a lot faster and easier. Next time, I'll be rolling down Ina Rd/Skyline/Sunset/Kolb/Sabino Canyon. My return route even with heavy traffic on I-10 was 2.5 hours.
Ever since the big snow a few weeks ago, I've been wanting to cash in on the small window of skiing Ski Valley on Mt. Lemmon, which happens to be the southern most ski resort in the U.S.. I had an idea this place was going to be pretty dinky, and a half day is all it would take for me to entirely way to bored, hence the reason heading down for an afternoon session. Once I got there, it had exceeded my expectations big time. It was pretty small, only two double lifts, and just a handful of groomers. What really surpised me was the coverage was actually pretty good, the hill was actually pretty steep, the trees were spaced out really well, and pretty much everything 10' off the groomers were untouched. I mean really untouched. I don't know when the last snow was, but it had been a while yet nobody found the snow inviting.
On my first run down, I met up with another teledood, and showed me a number of really nice glades and gullies. The stuff over by the observatory was just a short 3 minute trek to get to and Powerline run to the south left us with just a 5 minute boot pack out.
Not to make this place way better than it is, I was pleasantly surprised what a neato excursion this place can be. The lines were nothing, and crowd control was a non issue. If the conditions are always like this, I could easily spend a whole day here.
I pretty much skied in a t-shirt and mtn bike gloves, until the last couple of runs when the wind kinda picked up and my gloves got wet. I dawned a jacket and heavy gloves, but the whole day I was pretty dang comfy.
I did get a little footage of my a.m. mountain bike ride, but I didn't realize I was having battery issues during my ski adventure. So I won't bother you with some boring footage, cuz even the mtn biking scenes weren't that entertaining.
Two passions in a day, what could be better. Well, hopefully one day I can link some Snowbowl and Sedona riding together. Shoot I think I might even throw some kayaking in the mix too.
Rolling on Desert Classic wasn't as mundane as I thought it was gonna be, but after all this Giant Reign X pedals really well. I was mostly interested in hitting the little jumps and drops that have started to appear recently on the Helipad DH.
During the climb up the helipad, the thought dawned on me that if I get home early enough from this ride, I could feasibly split from town and be down to Mt. Lemmon (near Tucson, AZ) to catch a afternoon ski session. So I picked up the pace, and railed the downhill. It was mighty fun having big travel and big rotors on this little bit of downhill. Woot!
I got back to the house about 9:15 am, and was out the door about 20 minutes later on my quest for a my second adventure for the day. I was nearing Tucson an hour and fifteeen minutes later, but then I spent nearly an hour crawling my way through to to the Catalina Highway, and then a little less than an hour going up the highway up to Ski Valley. Mental Note #73: Never follow Google.Maps route suggestion of getting off on Miracle Mile/Grant. Instead take the route I took a route home that seemed a lot faster and easier. Next time, I'll be rolling down Ina Rd/Skyline/Sunset/Kolb/Sabino Canyon. My return route even with heavy traffic on I-10 was 2.5 hours.
Ever since the big snow a few weeks ago, I've been wanting to cash in on the small window of skiing Ski Valley on Mt. Lemmon, which happens to be the southern most ski resort in the U.S.. I had an idea this place was going to be pretty dinky, and a half day is all it would take for me to entirely way to bored, hence the reason heading down for an afternoon session. Once I got there, it had exceeded my expectations big time. It was pretty small, only two double lifts, and just a handful of groomers. What really surpised me was the coverage was actually pretty good, the hill was actually pretty steep, the trees were spaced out really well, and pretty much everything 10' off the groomers were untouched. I mean really untouched. I don't know when the last snow was, but it had been a while yet nobody found the snow inviting.
On my first run down, I met up with another teledood, and showed me a number of really nice glades and gullies. The stuff over by the observatory was just a short 3 minute trek to get to and Powerline run to the south left us with just a 5 minute boot pack out.
Not to make this place way better than it is, I was pleasantly surprised what a neato excursion this place can be. The lines were nothing, and crowd control was a non issue. If the conditions are always like this, I could easily spend a whole day here.
I pretty much skied in a t-shirt and mtn bike gloves, until the last couple of runs when the wind kinda picked up and my gloves got wet. I dawned a jacket and heavy gloves, but the whole day I was pretty dang comfy.
I did get a little footage of my a.m. mountain bike ride, but I didn't realize I was having battery issues during my ski adventure. So I won't bother you with some boring footage, cuz even the mtn biking scenes weren't that entertaining.
Two passions in a day, what could be better. Well, hopefully one day I can link some Snowbowl and Sedona riding together. Shoot I think I might even throw some kayaking in the mix too.
Jan 24, 2010
Cross Country Skiing On Pinal Mt. - Globe AZ
Over the past year, the thought had crossed my mind that I could feasible ski on Pinal Mt. With the big snow that blanketed pretty much everything over 4,500 feet, I knew this was just the window I had to make some tracks.
Being I live only 1.5 hours from Globe, I didn't split from town till about 7:00 a.m., and I was kicking by 9:00. I parked my car here, which is just past the left hand turn from FR 55 onto FR 651. Where I parked, the elevation was about 4,500 vf. This is as far up I as dared to take my car, since there was about 4" of snow at this level. I wasn't there first car up to drive on this snow, so the driving was pretty easy.
My plan was to cross country ski up the road as far I as I can get in 4 hours, then turn around. The snow on road had been mashed down pretty good by 4x4's and ATV's, but although fresh snow looks nice, I was moving up pretty good. I also knew that once I got to the tree line, that I would probably be the only human tracks on the road. And I was right, because there was tree after tree down across the road. I had to go over or under about a dozen trees that were knocked down due to the last storm.
As I got higher, so did the accumulated snow. It didn't long before I wash tracking through 18" of powder. Luckily it was a blue bird day, and other than the first 15 minutes I was in a t-shirt all day.
Once I got to the deeper snow, my pace slowed down. The downed trees didn't help, but certainly added to the landscape. I was hoping to have kicked up more miles than I did, but my 4 hour mark came at the when I was passing the Sulphide Del Ray Camp/Picnic Site. I continued just a little farther to the saddle where the road Madera Peak splits from FR 651. This is at 6,000 vf feet, so my the total climb up was 1,500 feet and 5.25 miles up.
The view from here was terrific. A small amount of clouds added to the contrast of the hyper blue sky, while the snow line on the south aspect of the hill was wasn't far below me.
It had been years since I had strapped on the cross country skis, and I had forgot how light and easy going they were. Heading down was nice, as I clung to the track I put in during my ascent. Things got kinda sketchy below when I got back down to where the trucks and ATV's had created an ice rink. I ate it several times over the last two miles back to the car. The lack of boot rigidity, no edges on my skis, standing on a 2" wide plank and skidding down the ice makes for a very clumsy ride. The tire tracks left me with very few options of killing my speed as I swished down the hill. I landed pretty dang hard a number of times.
My 10.5 mile/7 hour tour wrapped up at 3:00, with me walking down the last 100 yards to my car, since the snow had melted out while I was out having the time of my life.
Heading up to Six Shooter Trail, I've pedaled up this miserable road road several times before, but today was a nice change to do something that doesn't get done very often this close to Phoenix. The next time I pedal up this beast I will remember what a great day this was.
Here's a vid of the day:
Being I live only 1.5 hours from Globe, I didn't split from town till about 7:00 a.m., and I was kicking by 9:00. I parked my car here, which is just past the left hand turn from FR 55 onto FR 651. Where I parked, the elevation was about 4,500 vf. This is as far up I as dared to take my car, since there was about 4" of snow at this level. I wasn't there first car up to drive on this snow, so the driving was pretty easy.
My plan was to cross country ski up the road as far I as I can get in 4 hours, then turn around. The snow on road had been mashed down pretty good by 4x4's and ATV's, but although fresh snow looks nice, I was moving up pretty good. I also knew that once I got to the tree line, that I would probably be the only human tracks on the road. And I was right, because there was tree after tree down across the road. I had to go over or under about a dozen trees that were knocked down due to the last storm.
As I got higher, so did the accumulated snow. It didn't long before I wash tracking through 18" of powder. Luckily it was a blue bird day, and other than the first 15 minutes I was in a t-shirt all day.
Once I got to the deeper snow, my pace slowed down. The downed trees didn't help, but certainly added to the landscape. I was hoping to have kicked up more miles than I did, but my 4 hour mark came at the when I was passing the Sulphide Del Ray Camp/Picnic Site. I continued just a little farther to the saddle where the road Madera Peak splits from FR 651. This is at 6,000 vf feet, so my the total climb up was 1,500 feet and 5.25 miles up.
The view from here was terrific. A small amount of clouds added to the contrast of the hyper blue sky, while the snow line on the south aspect of the hill was wasn't far below me.
It had been years since I had strapped on the cross country skis, and I had forgot how light and easy going they were. Heading down was nice, as I clung to the track I put in during my ascent. Things got kinda sketchy below when I got back down to where the trucks and ATV's had created an ice rink. I ate it several times over the last two miles back to the car. The lack of boot rigidity, no edges on my skis, standing on a 2" wide plank and skidding down the ice makes for a very clumsy ride. The tire tracks left me with very few options of killing my speed as I swished down the hill. I landed pretty dang hard a number of times.
My 10.5 mile/7 hour tour wrapped up at 3:00, with me walking down the last 100 yards to my car, since the snow had melted out while I was out having the time of my life.
Heading up to Six Shooter Trail, I've pedaled up this miserable road road several times before, but today was a nice change to do something that doesn't get done very often this close to Phoenix. The next time I pedal up this beast I will remember what a great day this was.
Here's a vid of the day:
Jan 17, 2010
Allison Clay Drainage - Kachina Peaks (Flagstaff, AZ)
Maadjurguer and I split from his place at about 5:30 am, and en route we made plans to meet up with a buddy of his in downtown Flagstaff, for a little tour over to the Allison Clay gully in the Kachina Peaks.
We split from the parking lot at 9:30, where we cut across Harts Prairie to Humprhey Trail. We then jumped on an established skin track and headed due north through the forest to Dutchman path. The we skinned up this clearing to the bomber crash site. Once we got to the bomber we traversed north around the mountain to Allison Clay.
When we got to the vast slope I could tell surface of the snow was gonna be horrid. It was ripped and rippled wind blown crust. The avi conditions were stable, but Maad wanted to get some snow analysis done before the next cycle storms were ready to hit during the next week. So he dug a pit and noted the stats. The weak layer on top appears it might be a problem once the next dump sits on it.
Maad and his buddy traversed across the bowl to the other side to take a look at the next gully on the other side of the next ridge. Myself I was pretty content staying right where I was at. I could see that although the other side of gully had seen some sun, it still look pretty nasty. Once I hit the bowl, my expectations were justified because the crust was terrrible, and no improvement in the conditions were found once I skied down and across the the other side of the gully. I'm glad I didn't spend anymore effort on this gully.
Once I met up with my colleagues, it wasn't easy for us to decide to leave Allison Clay and exit stage left to the trees where the snow was protected. And that was where the fun was at. The fresh snow that fell the past week was in excellent condition. We had traversed a little closer to the resorts direction, but we kept our eyes pealed for the ideal glade to rip down. Once we found some good tree spacing we tore it up. That was some really fun skiing.
I tried a new helmetcam mounting, but unfortunately I had it aimed at my ski tips. I ended up using this footage sparingly in the vid of the day. I also made a special vid of Maadjurguer doing his snow pit analysis.
Ski tour Vid:
Snow Analysis vid with Google Earth Route (Red line is the path up, Purple Line is Maad's path to the otherside, Yellow Line is Maad's descent, and the Blue line is the rest of the descent.)
Here's a little discussion over at Kachina Peaks Avalanche Center about Maad's analysis.
We split from the parking lot at 9:30, where we cut across Harts Prairie to Humprhey Trail. We then jumped on an established skin track and headed due north through the forest to Dutchman path. The we skinned up this clearing to the bomber crash site. Once we got to the bomber we traversed north around the mountain to Allison Clay.
When we got to the vast slope I could tell surface of the snow was gonna be horrid. It was ripped and rippled wind blown crust. The avi conditions were stable, but Maad wanted to get some snow analysis done before the next cycle storms were ready to hit during the next week. So he dug a pit and noted the stats. The weak layer on top appears it might be a problem once the next dump sits on it.
Maad and his buddy traversed across the bowl to the other side to take a look at the next gully on the other side of the next ridge. Myself I was pretty content staying right where I was at. I could see that although the other side of gully had seen some sun, it still look pretty nasty. Once I hit the bowl, my expectations were justified because the crust was terrrible, and no improvement in the conditions were found once I skied down and across the the other side of the gully. I'm glad I didn't spend anymore effort on this gully.
Once I met up with my colleagues, it wasn't easy for us to decide to leave Allison Clay and exit stage left to the trees where the snow was protected. And that was where the fun was at. The fresh snow that fell the past week was in excellent condition. We had traversed a little closer to the resorts direction, but we kept our eyes pealed for the ideal glade to rip down. Once we found some good tree spacing we tore it up. That was some really fun skiing.
I tried a new helmetcam mounting, but unfortunately I had it aimed at my ski tips. I ended up using this footage sparingly in the vid of the day. I also made a special vid of Maadjurguer doing his snow pit analysis.
Ski tour Vid:
Snow Analysis vid with Google Earth Route (Red line is the path up, Purple Line is Maad's path to the otherside, Yellow Line is Maad's descent, and the Blue line is the rest of the descent.)
Here's a little discussion over at Kachina Peaks Avalanche Center about Maad's analysis.
Dec 19, 2009
Snowbowl Lift Day 12/18/09 (Flagstaff, AZ)
Yesterday, I had the day off and met up with Maadjurguer, and Chollaball, and then we drove up to Snowbowl in Flagstaff, where we met up with Jrock and B. for a little lift area skiing. We finally made to lift area season. Woot.
It was a bluebird day, and my upper layer consisted of a shell and t-shirt. We pretty much stuck to the groomers, and focused on the sunny spots where the snow had loosened up.
We did find a pretty fun tree run that led us down a gully that actually had good coverage.
I'm still trying to get my boots dialed in, as my tele-turns really suffered. Time to get my boots fitted, cuz the blistering and shin bang were pretty bad.
Everybody ripped it up. Pretty fun day, and other than my feet, I felt pretty good; not to much anaerobic burn in my legs. I need a few more days like this.
My go to video camera was acting up, so I was limited on the footage I got. I did piece together a video. It features Chollaball letting his freak flag fly, and is accompanied by fine suggestion from Maad using of Wide Spread Panic's 'Going West'. Along with the soundtrack, Maad also provided the super pic of CB.
Great day.
Here's the vid:
It was a bluebird day, and my upper layer consisted of a shell and t-shirt. We pretty much stuck to the groomers, and focused on the sunny spots where the snow had loosened up.
We did find a pretty fun tree run that led us down a gully that actually had good coverage.
I'm still trying to get my boots dialed in, as my tele-turns really suffered. Time to get my boots fitted, cuz the blistering and shin bang were pretty bad.
Everybody ripped it up. Pretty fun day, and other than my feet, I felt pretty good; not to much anaerobic burn in my legs. I need a few more days like this.
My go to video camera was acting up, so I was limited on the footage I got. I did piece together a video. It features Chollaball letting his freak flag fly, and is accompanied by fine suggestion from Maad using of Wide Spread Panic's 'Going West'. Along with the soundtrack, Maad also provided the super pic of CB.
Great day.
Here's the vid:
Dec 12, 2009
Snowbowl Preseason
The big snow finally fell in Flagstaff, but just not quite enough to open the lifts. I couldn't wait, so I decided to head up anyways and skin up the groomers. The road to Snowbowl was open, so the only other obstacle was making sure they wouldn't mind if I did a couple of laps. I asked a couple of staff up there, and they said it was okay, but just stay outta the cats way who were laying had lines up for dragging snow.
My plan was to skin up from the bottom of Sunrise Chair which sits at 9,200 vf to the top of Agassiz Chair which tops out at 11,500. Heading up the groomers was easy except a couple the steeper slopes hadn't been groomed on my first trip up. Can't complain at all.
It was rather cool up there,spitting snow and low visibility. I had some new Scarpa T-2 tele boots to try out. They were much lighter than my old T-1 bumble bees, and they made the trip up a little more pleasurable. Despite a similar buckle system, they just didn't have the same rigidity, because the don't come up as one my calf. Despite this, I think once a get a few days of running them on the lifts, I get them dialed it. I might also opt the have the liners form fitted, so the fit a little more comfortable.
This was my first trip on the snow since Camp Muir trip the end of June, so I wasn't expecting much in my performance. I did end up doing two laps, for a total of 4,600 feet of ascending. I gotta admit, that I was pretty fatigued at the end of lap number two, but it was a good start to getting my fitness back.
Not much video footage, but here is short vid of what I got:
My plan was to skin up from the bottom of Sunrise Chair which sits at 9,200 vf to the top of Agassiz Chair which tops out at 11,500. Heading up the groomers was easy except a couple the steeper slopes hadn't been groomed on my first trip up. Can't complain at all.
It was rather cool up there,spitting snow and low visibility. I had some new Scarpa T-2 tele boots to try out. They were much lighter than my old T-1 bumble bees, and they made the trip up a little more pleasurable. Despite a similar buckle system, they just didn't have the same rigidity, because the don't come up as one my calf. Despite this, I think once a get a few days of running them on the lifts, I get them dialed it. I might also opt the have the liners form fitted, so the fit a little more comfortable.
This was my first trip on the snow since Camp Muir trip the end of June, so I wasn't expecting much in my performance. I did end up doing two laps, for a total of 4,600 feet of ascending. I gotta admit, that I was pretty fatigued at the end of lap number two, but it was a good start to getting my fitness back.
Not much video footage, but here is short vid of what I got:
Jun 27, 2009
6/26/09 Camp Muir - Mount Rainier: Washington
A visit to the northwest wouldn't be complete without a little skiing, and luckily have pair of skis here. What I was missing where poles, so I had to come up with set and I was relegated to buying some treking poles from Walmart in Yelm. Crickees they sucked, but I was able to get couple strips of duct tape from the ranger and that helped out. Since I was traveling solo today, I kept my plans pretty conservative, so I opted to follow the hoards of summit climbers up to Camp Muir (10,188 vf). Nothing technical about this hike up or ski down, just kind of a slog up.
I had gray skies for my drive from Olympia to Paradise, and the fog was really soupy in the parking lot. The parking lot at Paradise sits at about 5,400 vf, and I broke through the cloud layer around 6,500 vf. I split from the car about 8:45, and took my time getting up to Camp Muir. My walk up took 4 hours, but I swear I've done this in around 2.5 hours back in the day. There was snow right from Paradise, with only a few patches of rocks to cross over at Panorama Point and Pebble Creek.
It was a perfect day up there, sunny skies above the cloud layer, no wind, and not cold. I had my skins, but I just opted to walk up in my tennis shoes.
I pretty much skied down the Muir Snowfield the way I had come up, but when I got back to Pebble Creek, I headed towards the Paradise Glacier and strung together the strips of snow back to the parking lot.
The entrance fee into Mount Rainier National Park was $15.
Here's a vid of the day:
A high-res quicktime version can be found here: Camp Muir 6/26/09
I had gray skies for my drive from Olympia to Paradise, and the fog was really soupy in the parking lot. The parking lot at Paradise sits at about 5,400 vf, and I broke through the cloud layer around 6,500 vf. I split from the car about 8:45, and took my time getting up to Camp Muir. My walk up took 4 hours, but I swear I've done this in around 2.5 hours back in the day. There was snow right from Paradise, with only a few patches of rocks to cross over at Panorama Point and Pebble Creek.
It was a perfect day up there, sunny skies above the cloud layer, no wind, and not cold. I had my skins, but I just opted to walk up in my tennis shoes.
I pretty much skied down the Muir Snowfield the way I had come up, but when I got back to Pebble Creek, I headed towards the Paradise Glacier and strung together the strips of snow back to the parking lot.
The entrance fee into Mount Rainier National Park was $15.
Here's a vid of the day:
A high-res quicktime version can be found here: Camp Muir 6/26/09
May 3, 2009
Abineau Canyon - Crossfire Chutes - Flagstaff, AZ
When I left Phoenix at 4:30 am, it was 77 degrees, when I came back it was 95, and yes I did ski. The snow pack on the north facing slopes in Flag are in great shape.
The FS Road (418) just opened up for the season, so I thought I get some turns in. The parking lot is at about 8,500 vf. Actually there was a big tree that recently feel across the road about 100 yards before the parking lot - no biggy.
At 8:00 I started the hike up. The approach is about 3.5 miles to the base of the chutes, and consistent snow started at about 9,000 vf. Nobody was available to join me, but just as I was pulling into the parking are, I ran into a Flagstaff local who had the same plan in mind. I chatted with him up until we came to the avi debris from 2005(9,500 foot level). He was skinning up and I was boot-packing, but I started punching through here, so I had to put my skis on here. He continued on at a blistering pace, so I wasn't able to catch up.
He actually made it to the top of the ridge (about 12,000 vf). He boot-packed up the last 1,000 feet, but once I got to his steps the snow was to soft to follow. I ended up skinning up the face, and I hung to the skiers right of the chute, in the trees. The snow here was in better condition, and the pitch was a little more tame. As with most hills in the San Francisco peaks, the pitch gets stepper as you near the top, and by 11:30 I made it to the 11,500 foot level. I wasn't making much headway, so I ripped off my skins and skied the nice heavenly corn down.
The Flag local did a much better job on route finding through the avi debris, as I struggled to picking my way there all the down trees. I think the next time I will aim for a much higher line to avoid this section.
I was happy to be able to string together the strips of snow for, so I could ski most of the way out.
Here's a vid of the day:
A high res Quicktime version can be found here: Abineau Canyon - Crossfire Chutes
The FS Road (418) just opened up for the season, so I thought I get some turns in. The parking lot is at about 8,500 vf. Actually there was a big tree that recently feel across the road about 100 yards before the parking lot - no biggy.
At 8:00 I started the hike up. The approach is about 3.5 miles to the base of the chutes, and consistent snow started at about 9,000 vf. Nobody was available to join me, but just as I was pulling into the parking are, I ran into a Flagstaff local who had the same plan in mind. I chatted with him up until we came to the avi debris from 2005(9,500 foot level). He was skinning up and I was boot-packing, but I started punching through here, so I had to put my skis on here. He continued on at a blistering pace, so I wasn't able to catch up.
He actually made it to the top of the ridge (about 12,000 vf). He boot-packed up the last 1,000 feet, but once I got to his steps the snow was to soft to follow. I ended up skinning up the face, and I hung to the skiers right of the chute, in the trees. The snow here was in better condition, and the pitch was a little more tame. As with most hills in the San Francisco peaks, the pitch gets stepper as you near the top, and by 11:30 I made it to the 11,500 foot level. I wasn't making much headway, so I ripped off my skins and skied the nice heavenly corn down.
The Flag local did a much better job on route finding through the avi debris, as I struggled to picking my way there all the down trees. I think the next time I will aim for a much higher line to avoid this section.
I was happy to be able to string together the strips of snow for, so I could ski most of the way out.
Here's a vid of the day:
A high res Quicktime version can be found here: Abineau Canyon - Crossfire Chutes
Mar 8, 2009
Skiing Lockett Meadow - Flagstaff, AZ
My buddy, Jrock, came down from the bay area for some backcountry skiing in Lockett Meadow - Inner Basin. We met up in Flagstaff, and drove up the Forest Service road to gate about 3 miles short of Lockett Meadow campground. We split from the car at about 9:00 and walked up the road, and I was happy to see a consistent strip of snow on the road for the last mile on the approach to Lockett Meadow. From here, Jrock put his skins on his splitboard and I continued up in my shoes to the Inner Basin trailhead. Around 9,500 vf, I started punching through the snow as it began to thaw, so I strapped my skis on and kicked up the path. This is a really long approach, and usually isn't recommended by the locals, but it was way easier than I thought it was gonna be. It was a pretty gentle climb up with really no steeps to ascend. We pretty much took our time and at around 2:30 we topped out at about 11,000' vf just below the Headwall of Agassiz. We bagged no peaks or ridges today, and the skiing wasn't super duper treacherous, but it was actually pretty fun stuff. Our decent started with 500 vf dropped down a luge type gully with super fun swoopy curves. We cruised through the pines at mach speeds, and back to the snow covered prairie the we came up. We then blasted threw the aspen and before we knew it, we were back to Lockett Meadow. I continued with my skis on down the road until the snow ran out. Then I was left with two mile walk back down the road back to the car. Jrock and I finished this little trip at about 4:30 very satisfied, but I couldn't wait to take my boots off.
BTW, my boots, skis and skins are weighing at 22-23 lbs total. Dry!
Here's a vid of the day:
And here's a Google Earth Tour of Lockett Meadow:
A high res Quicktime version can be found here: Lockett Meadow
BTW, my boots, skis and skins are weighing at 22-23 lbs total. Dry!
Here's a vid of the day:
And here's a Google Earth Tour of Lockett Meadow:
A high res Quicktime version can be found here: Lockett Meadow
Feb 1, 2009
Inner Basin - Kachina Peaks: Flagstaff, AZ
I did the other Super Bowl today; skiing the Inner Basin in the Kachina Peaks. My neck was all outa whack last weekend, so I couldn't get any playtime in. So that now that I was feeling all good again, I decided to find some snow. I hadn't been on my skis all season, and thought I better take this opportunity get some. I also wanted a good fitness day, so I decided to hike out of the Snowbowl Resort up to the top of the ridge, and ski off the back side into the Inner Basin.
I walked up the groomers and continued up the drainage above Snowbowls 'Log Jam' run. My legs weren't all that fresh, as I had been mountain biking the past three days, but the climb up was a lot less painful than I thought it was gonna be. I split from the parking lot at 8:15, and was on top of the ridge by 11:15. Of course, I only went to the lowest part of the ridge, but I also took my time while putting some video shots together.
I set up a few staged vanity video shots of me climbing up in a tribute to Survivorman's, Les Stroud. No actual skiing int the vid, cuz that would be just too difficult.
It was a bluebird day, with only a little wind. I spent the whole day in tights, and left my ski pants and big gloves in my pack.
Since I was solo and these were my first turns of the year, I didn't want to get too ambitious and get too high up on the ridge. I'm really glad I choose the easiest and shortest line on the whole basin, because my turns were terrible. I had some really bad form going on. Not falls, but just really sloppy. The snow was packed powder with a little crust, which definitely added to the challenge. I was going to continue on down into the glades, but my triceps were kinda cramping, so I decided to head out.
I noticed a skin track heading back up to the ridge, so I put stuck my skins on and tied into it. I shoulda just boot packed it out, cuz the last little 100 feet of elevation was white knuckle terror. It looked like the people before me had some struggles getting out, and now the conditions for me where even worse. I actually lost my traction and backslid down the hill a few feet, luckily there were a couple of trees I could hang onto, on this very, very steep slope, while I pulled off my skis and boot packed up this slope. Being very nervous at this point, I couldn't get off this slope fast enough. I actually scrambled up and over a higher point than I wanted, because traversing over to the lower point was not an option. Phew, I made it.
Now it was time to ski the as always sketchy, icy, thin, and nasty snow back into the resort. The challenge is double, because the lack of oxygen, really gets me into anaerobic mode super fast, so cranking turns is really hard. This is what I hate about this route. Getting back to the groomers felt really good, except I was pretty exhausted. The first day back always hurts, but I survived.
Here's a vid of day with numerous vanity shots of myself:
Here's Google Earth Tour of the Route:
I walked up the groomers and continued up the drainage above Snowbowls 'Log Jam' run. My legs weren't all that fresh, as I had been mountain biking the past three days, but the climb up was a lot less painful than I thought it was gonna be. I split from the parking lot at 8:15, and was on top of the ridge by 11:15. Of course, I only went to the lowest part of the ridge, but I also took my time while putting some video shots together.
I set up a few staged vanity video shots of me climbing up in a tribute to Survivorman's, Les Stroud. No actual skiing int the vid, cuz that would be just too difficult.
It was a bluebird day, with only a little wind. I spent the whole day in tights, and left my ski pants and big gloves in my pack.
Since I was solo and these were my first turns of the year, I didn't want to get too ambitious and get too high up on the ridge. I'm really glad I choose the easiest and shortest line on the whole basin, because my turns were terrible. I had some really bad form going on. Not falls, but just really sloppy. The snow was packed powder with a little crust, which definitely added to the challenge. I was going to continue on down into the glades, but my triceps were kinda cramping, so I decided to head out.
I noticed a skin track heading back up to the ridge, so I put stuck my skins on and tied into it. I shoulda just boot packed it out, cuz the last little 100 feet of elevation was white knuckle terror. It looked like the people before me had some struggles getting out, and now the conditions for me where even worse. I actually lost my traction and backslid down the hill a few feet, luckily there were a couple of trees I could hang onto, on this very, very steep slope, while I pulled off my skis and boot packed up this slope. Being very nervous at this point, I couldn't get off this slope fast enough. I actually scrambled up and over a higher point than I wanted, because traversing over to the lower point was not an option. Phew, I made it.
Now it was time to ski the as always sketchy, icy, thin, and nasty snow back into the resort. The challenge is double, because the lack of oxygen, really gets me into anaerobic mode super fast, so cranking turns is really hard. This is what I hate about this route. Getting back to the groomers felt really good, except I was pretty exhausted. The first day back always hurts, but I survived.
Here's a vid of day with numerous vanity shots of myself:
Here's Google Earth Tour of the Route:
Mar 31, 2008
Snowbowl & Kachina Peaks - Flagstaff, AZ
No corn harvest yesterday, when Jrock and I braved the elements to ski the excrements.
It was nice to be up on the hill again. After watching a great season of snow fly on bye, I finally got an opportunity to head up Snowbowl – Kachina Peaks for some late season turns. Thanks to Jrock we had a couple lift tickets, so we got a few runs in on the groomers. This allowed me to check my systems to make sure I could still crank a turn or two.
It was tad bit breezy in the resort, and we could the poofy white clouds quickly moving over the ridge above the resort. Even though we knew the wind was honking up there, we could see lotsa blue sky. We also figured that the sun would be loosening up the frozen slopes in the Inner-Basin.
We grabbed our packs, transceivers, shovels and skins from the car, and proceeded to do a little lift assisted accent to the top of the ridge. We did a direct line up the snow filled gully above Snowbowl’s “Logjam Run”. The avi crud on this slope left us with some nice steps and ramps to walk up on. The slope was also super-duper frozen, so we took our time boot packing up; in hopes that temperatures would rise to loosen up this slopes we wanted to rip. It took us about an hour to get up to a major scree path we needed to traverse near the top (low point) of the ridge. The scramble across the rocks left us pretty exposed to the wind, and when we were within about 10 minutes of sitting on top of the ridge (12,000’ level), a major cloud layer moved in. This left us with pretty much no visibility, and the wind was blasting us with a constant 50 to 60 mph winds. I did walk over to the very edge of the ridge to see what the Inner Basin looked like, but the white-out conditions left me a little weary that I might actually be standing on a cornice. So I took a few steps back and said, not today. Jrock and I hid behind a rock from the elements, and I nibbled on my nearly frozen Sonic Burger. The wind sounded like a freight train, so we shouted out our plans for our descent. Directly below us, and between us and the resort was a major rock garden. And I certainly wasn’t into skiing down the frozen mess we walked up. At the time I couldn’t see the snow covered slopes to the north of us on; just below Humphreys.
We ended up scrambling down and to the north a couple of hundred yards to the thin strips of snow, to make our way down. With the cloud layer above us, we strapped on the boards for the crusty ride down. We descended about 1,000 vf on an open slope, before getting into the glades. Now the snow was marginally smoother, but still dangerously frozen. Skiing in survival mode, we clumsily made our way through the trees down to Harts Prairie. I was really relieved to be outta that mess; however, I still had a smile on my face knowing that even rough day on the mountain is still better than the best day on the golf course.
Here's a vid of the day:
And here are some pics taken by Jrock:
It was nice to be up on the hill again. After watching a great season of snow fly on bye, I finally got an opportunity to head up Snowbowl – Kachina Peaks for some late season turns. Thanks to Jrock we had a couple lift tickets, so we got a few runs in on the groomers. This allowed me to check my systems to make sure I could still crank a turn or two.
It was tad bit breezy in the resort, and we could the poofy white clouds quickly moving over the ridge above the resort. Even though we knew the wind was honking up there, we could see lotsa blue sky. We also figured that the sun would be loosening up the frozen slopes in the Inner-Basin.
We grabbed our packs, transceivers, shovels and skins from the car, and proceeded to do a little lift assisted accent to the top of the ridge. We did a direct line up the snow filled gully above Snowbowl’s “Logjam Run”. The avi crud on this slope left us with some nice steps and ramps to walk up on. The slope was also super-duper frozen, so we took our time boot packing up; in hopes that temperatures would rise to loosen up this slopes we wanted to rip. It took us about an hour to get up to a major scree path we needed to traverse near the top (low point) of the ridge. The scramble across the rocks left us pretty exposed to the wind, and when we were within about 10 minutes of sitting on top of the ridge (12,000’ level), a major cloud layer moved in. This left us with pretty much no visibility, and the wind was blasting us with a constant 50 to 60 mph winds. I did walk over to the very edge of the ridge to see what the Inner Basin looked like, but the white-out conditions left me a little weary that I might actually be standing on a cornice. So I took a few steps back and said, not today. Jrock and I hid behind a rock from the elements, and I nibbled on my nearly frozen Sonic Burger. The wind sounded like a freight train, so we shouted out our plans for our descent. Directly below us, and between us and the resort was a major rock garden. And I certainly wasn’t into skiing down the frozen mess we walked up. At the time I couldn’t see the snow covered slopes to the north of us on; just below Humphreys.
We ended up scrambling down and to the north a couple of hundred yards to the thin strips of snow, to make our way down. With the cloud layer above us, we strapped on the boards for the crusty ride down. We descended about 1,000 vf on an open slope, before getting into the glades. Now the snow was marginally smoother, but still dangerously frozen. Skiing in survival mode, we clumsily made our way through the trees down to Harts Prairie. I was really relieved to be outta that mess; however, I still had a smile on my face knowing that even rough day on the mountain is still better than the best day on the golf course.
Here's a vid of the day:
And here are some pics taken by Jrock:
Jan 22, 2008
Snowbowl - Flagstaff, AZ
My original plan heading up was to just skin around the resort and ski the corduroy, but once I got up there I was beckoned to see if I could find another route up to the ridge.
I had a couple of way points set in my gps, and one of ‘em was the Bomber crash site. To get there I went in the general direction of the Humphreys trail. Once I got to the trees I could tell the snow was in pretty crappy shape and I couldn’t find my way thru the glades to the Dutchman slope (I think I was just south of the slope). There were a couple of descending tracks, but nothing heading up. I thought I was on the right path cuz the trees had been tapped. But my bread crumb trail disappeared, so once I got to the 10,500 foot level I ripped off my skins and headed back down. Besides I didn’t really have anything to eat other than a measly Cliff Bar.
From there I dropped off my shovel and stuff off at the car and skinned back up to the top of Agassiz chair. I was kinda hurting once I got up there. My boots were killing me, I was outta gas, and my head was rocking from the altitude. But all in all the groomers were kinda fun, and it was a good fitness day.
The little bit of vid I took was pretty bad.
I had a couple of way points set in my gps, and one of ‘em was the Bomber crash site. To get there I went in the general direction of the Humphreys trail. Once I got to the trees I could tell the snow was in pretty crappy shape and I couldn’t find my way thru the glades to the Dutchman slope (I think I was just south of the slope). There were a couple of descending tracks, but nothing heading up. I thought I was on the right path cuz the trees had been tapped. But my bread crumb trail disappeared, so once I got to the 10,500 foot level I ripped off my skins and headed back down. Besides I didn’t really have anything to eat other than a measly Cliff Bar.
From there I dropped off my shovel and stuff off at the car and skinned back up to the top of Agassiz chair. I was kinda hurting once I got up there. My boots were killing me, I was outta gas, and my head was rocking from the altitude. But all in all the groomers were kinda fun, and it was a good fitness day.
The little bit of vid I took was pretty bad.
May 26, 2007
Abineau Canyon - Crossfire Chutes: May 2007
Abineau Canyon - Crossfire Chutes: May 2007
My thermoregulatory system is getting a little confused. When temperatures hit 101, weekend before last, JrockFeltaz and I got thoroughly cooked while riding on Dixie Mine. And then this last weekend (5/5/07) JrockFeltaz suggested we headed up to Flagstaff to cool off. I should’ve take a closer look the first time around at his PM, cuz he was talking about hitting the slopes for a little boarding/skiing.
I didn’t realize that the peaks up there would still have stashes of snow, but the chutes off the Abineau Canyon trail had plenty of white stuff. In fact there was 1-2 inches of fresh snow at the trailhead. Neither Jrock or I were familiar with the Abineau Canyon trail, and it took us a while to pick our way around the debris from a gi-huge-o avalanche from 2005(?). We topped out at around 10,000’, before we had to turnaround due to some other time constraints. We didn’t achieve our goal of getting to the top of the ridge, figuring we better save it for another day.
Today (5/7/07) was that day for me. Under bluebird skies, the climb up went fast. And the decent was heavenly corn.
My thermoregulatory system is getting a little confused. When temperatures hit 101, weekend before last, JrockFeltaz and I got thoroughly cooked while riding on Dixie Mine. And then this last weekend (5/5/07) JrockFeltaz suggested we headed up to Flagstaff to cool off. I should’ve take a closer look the first time around at his PM, cuz he was talking about hitting the slopes for a little boarding/skiing.
I didn’t realize that the peaks up there would still have stashes of snow, but the chutes off the Abineau Canyon trail had plenty of white stuff. In fact there was 1-2 inches of fresh snow at the trailhead. Neither Jrock or I were familiar with the Abineau Canyon trail, and it took us a while to pick our way around the debris from a gi-huge-o avalanche from 2005(?). We topped out at around 10,000’, before we had to turnaround due to some other time constraints. We didn’t achieve our goal of getting to the top of the ridge, figuring we better save it for another day.
Today (5/7/07) was that day for me. Under bluebird skies, the climb up went fast. And the decent was heavenly corn.
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