TR Replies
Did I mention the last day was deep?
dudes, nice job.
Way to make freeride out of lemons.
Way to make freeride out of lemons.
author=elliotts link=topic=28309.msg119041#msg119041 date=1366231291]
....and thank gawd we Josh's pocket stereo to blast out some rock'n tunes while we skied and bush wacked our way through Vietnam. :)
Yes, I did miss this crucial gear note. The Alpine Boombox ($9.99 at Fred Meyer) is an invaluable piece of gear that should never be left at home. Forgot the GPS? No worries, keep going. Forgot the stereo? Time to head ba...
....and thank gawd we Josh's pocket stereo to blast out some rock'n tunes while we skied and bush wacked our way through Vietnam. :)
How far can you drive up the North Fork road?
We talked to your friends, and watched your progress climbing up , then did forgot to watch until too late. Saw your down track over the cliff band, but missed the actual event. Nice!
yeah man! you had fat conditions on the headwall, that looked really fun. how was skiing the HG exit chute after your experience last spring, I'd expect that was pretty exciting.
We were out there a little later in the afternoon... great day to be out. I was glad that as soon as I saw your skintrack up towards the cliffy parts of Catherine, I also noted a downtrack :)
Ooops, nearly started a nationalist pissing fight online. ... Ha, I am chuckling, funny Victor. Great graphic.
Thanks for all the positive comments. I'm intrigued by the Stuart lake approach vs the mountaineers creek shwachfest. I do love it up in the Enchantments when conditions west are grizzly. Shwack and all!
Thanks for all the positive comments. I'm intrigued by the Stuart lake approach vs the mountaineers creek shwachfest. I do love it up in the Enchantments when conditions west are grizzly. Shwack and all!
In the esteemed words of Macklemore: "this is fucking aweeeesome..." I love the bike shot!
author=Jake the Brit link=topic=28297.msg119010#msg119010 date=1366152646]
The Entente Cordiale, signed in 1905 marks the formal end to hostilities, but I still don't see any good use for the French flag, except as a table cloth............
...Entente Cordiale was signed in 1904... I guess British approximation... or just bankrupted education... As far as table cloth, not too concerned as le savoir vivre et la pol...
The thing about the exit is..................................I didn't know you could slide down to Stuart Lake & the trail. Doh! Professor of...naught!
But that besides, since a spring trip to the Cirque of the Towers, I've developed a taste for skiing past big rock lines, and belting past the Ice Cliff, which looks really fierce right now was probably one of the highlights of my winter.
It also makes a neat loop, and it's all really fun if you are lobotomized...
But that besides, since a spring trip to the Cirque of the Towers, I've developed a taste for skiing past big rock lines, and belting past the Ice Cliff, which looks really fierce right now was probably one of the highlights of my winter.
It also makes a neat loop, and it's all really fun if you are lobotomized...
author=jwplotz link=topic=28297.msg118991#msg118991 date=1366134241]
I echo Kevin's question...why not ski that nice fall line down to the swamps and Stuart Lake then out? It's a very easy exit with a little added vertical as a bonus. Still, cool tour dudes. I didn't even realize there was snow left up there.
Kevin/John - Simple answer...we forgot the tent at the base of Sherpa glacier :)
That bicycle photo is an instant classic! Great trip and photos.
I love this shot. Nutty Professor Evans on his way to teach his English Lit. Class at Cambridge.
And this photo is just breathtaking:
And this photo is just breathtaking:
Really nice looking pictures. Not often impressed with a snowboard turn...
We found variable conditions on sunday as well. Skinned up to the top of tom,dick, and, harry found thin conditions (rocks slightly buried) and a reactive layer. Bailed to Newton which yielded more stable conditions and deeper pow. Heather didn't spin, there was a rather sizable crown in A-zone as well as other slide debris scattered throughout the canyon. They were blasting pretty late into the morning.
Encore quelques photos :)
Toute la serie : https://picasaweb.google.com/104952785231857279993/StuartCircumNav
Toute la serie : https://picasaweb.google.com/104952785231857279993/StuartCircumNav
Telle une ballade au pays de Merlin l’Enchanteur, sa forêt de Broceliande remplacée par les pentes neigeuses de Stuart, Jake et moi sommes partis à la rencontre du magicien et de sa fée Viviane. Résultats? Intenses! Nous avons utilisé tous les moyens possibles: VTT, skis, crampons, marche,… Nous avons rencontré toutes les conditions météo possibles (chaleur et soleil d’été, froid et neige d’hiver, ciel bleu et ciel gris) ainsi que tous les types de neige inimaginable.
Une belle aventure...
Une belle aventure...
Nicely done Victor and Jake! Did you plant the Union Jack or the Tricolour (or both) on the false summit?
I echo Kevin's question...why not ski that nice fall line down to the swamps and Stuart Lake then out? It's a very easy exit with a little added vertical as a bonus. Still, cool tour dudes. I didn't even realize there was snow left up there.
I echo Kevin's question...why not ski that nice fall line down to the swamps and Stuart Lake then out? It's a very easy exit with a little added vertical as a bonus. Still, cool tour dudes. I didn't even realize there was snow left up there.
Great trip Jake. On a weekend when most of us stayed home, hid in the trees, or skied inbounds (me) - you put tracks all around Mount Stuart. I guess only a Brit would complain that he didn't make the final 200'. :) It was a ski trip not a climb right? Nice job.
Great looking trip. Just curious, any reason you choose to return past ice cliff and sherpa vs dropping down the couloir/gully to stuart lake?
Wow, no need to traverse for solitude when the gates closed! Pretty sweet to have that all to yourselves
Nice TR. one of my favorite tours was up the milieu. Very scenic, kind of secret valley. Definitely apprehensive turns above the choke.
Before starting the traverse I did a risk asses,net and knew a fall with a long life was a definite possibility but the consequences were minimimal because there were no rocks or trees In the likely slide path. Still, came as a shock!
I've always been weary of ski crampons. When I was a begginer tired it just seems uncomfortable to be ale to transition from touring to downhill mode on a slope where you cannot get stable without the crampons. I also remember reading on Sierra Desc...
I've always been weary of ski crampons. When I was a begginer tired it just seems uncomfortable to be ale to transition from touring to downhill mode on a slope where you cannot get stable without the crampons. I also remember reading on Sierra Desc...
It should be noted, also, that though conditions were relatively stable on the S/SE slope we were skiing on, we could hear blasting on the Heather canyon side just over Vista Ridge, so these stability conditions are highly variable.
This was a great Trip. For Grad-school dudes, this powder was quite a treat after an abusive semester. I think we'll be making more trips out this way in the future. This should be an enticing gem to coax Nick to return for after he moves away for his Spokane internship next year. Great TR Nick. Awesome ski day. . . And Taylor. . . nice kicks.
I was up at Paul's place a week after their first attempt at doing this in April of 2010. I don't think they had much time to get the word out before that first attempt and thus attendance was low, but it's nice to see this taking off. If you can manage the cost, and the conditions are right, this trip would seemingly be at the top of many ski mountaineer's lists. What I saw of the range on a flight to Mt. Bona and throughout our climbing/skiing efforts there was breath ta...
I think that looks like what living the dream looks like! Beautiful!! Thanks for the great pictures.
Easily some of the raddest video I have seen from the US. True ski mountaineering. Thanks man!!!
Jim, Great to see your post. As your dear sis has probably shared, I'm not doing much skiing these days. Really sorry I couldn't get out to be your "action model". Please keep posting your beautiful photos to give me the stoke to see my "kneehab" through to functional success. And by success I meanskiing powder with you again one day. Keep getting after it and smiling. Make turns for me. I'm counting on you!
Bruce
Bruce
Way to stay safe and still get good free skiing and pictures!
author=mikeb link=topic=28271.msg118913#msg118913 date=1366043793]
Conditions are better south. Skied mt St. Helens with Kevin yesterday. No instabilities noted. Only a few inches of new down low and wind blown up higher.
Nice!! Sorry I missed it - hopefully this baby will come soon and I can still catch some early Spring snow :)
really enjoyed your wriiting style. you should submit to some mags. good pics, too ! * *
Conditions are better south. Skied mt St. Helens with Kevin yesterday. No instabilities noted. Only a few inches of new down low and wind blown up higher.
Scary!! Thanks for sharing, glad everyone in your party is ok. Bad day for accidents! I wonder if things are any more stable in other areas? Pretty negative note for NWAC to end its forecasting on :(
Snowpack Discussion
Storm total snowfall from late Friday through early Sunday along most west slope areas and volcanoes has mostly been 1.5-3 ft. Rapid loading and some daytime warming Saturday produced a significant increase in avalanche danger...
Thanks to hipstergram I was able to get the photo to show the crown much more clearly. This was taken at the trigger point, crown extendeds beyond the tree in photo and runs behind me about an equal distance.
That sounds like a scary fall, especially with noone around back there. Glad you were OK!
Lookin good! We could see all of your tracks on Sunday, when the sun came out.
Those are some great shots! Nice work!
Scary indeed considering I usually opt for Catherine as a safer, well anchored alternative when the danger is higher. Then again, it sounds like yesterday was a model day for instability across the region.
I went up to Kendall Lake today with skinny skis. I set off a couple of small, slow moving slab avalanches. One was on part of the road and another was above it. Neither was very big and the runout on both was good, but it was still enough to make me nervous and stick to the trees.
I could barely see my tracks when I went down (the snow was coming down hard all day).
I could barely see my tracks when I went down (the snow was coming down hard all day).
looks like you're an expert skier, nice steep turns/ steep powder. I might have to get one of those cams for the steeps.
A combination of Matt's iphone shots and my dslr.
