TR Replies
LUCKIES!!
drink it up toe & company; both the champagne and the pow. ;)
drink it up toe & company; both the champagne and the pow. ;)
That section is not USFS, unless there was some recent trade. I am unsure of the ownership, but remember hearing it was the City of Seattle at one time. Stevens Pass LLC does not control that property.
I have snowmobiled that road for skiing about 12 yrs ago, it is not really worth it. I have not known of prohibition of access by snowmobiles, nor do I know if such use is intended by the landowner- there is no signing against snowmobiles. There have seen rescues up that road with snowmobi...
I have snowmobiled that road for skiing about 12 yrs ago, it is not really worth it. I have not known of prohibition of access by snowmobiles, nor do I know if such use is intended by the landowner- there is no signing against snowmobiles. There have seen rescues up that road with snowmobi...
"Visibility was typical of the Northwest too -- overcast and low valley clouds. "
I thought those pictures looked familiar ! Campell basin chair for sure ! :)
cut and paste (ctrl-x, ctrl-v)! ;)
"Visibility was typical of the Northwest too -- overcast and low valley clouds. "
I thought those pictures looked familiar ! Campell basin chair for sure ! :)
I thought those pictures looked familiar ! Campell basin chair for sure ! :)
Well , How did it hold ? looks like a few new to boot!
We made a wet and foggy choice to Snoqualomie darn it !
We made a wet and foggy choice to Snoqualomie darn it !
friends. apologies for the few words. Net connection is difficult in Tyrol (or Tirol) and the Euro keyboard drives me nuts...
here is a trip report with photos. do enjoy.
Greg and i are now in Switzerland for a short visit with his brother and sister inlaw. we're on our way to Grenoble tomorrow, then to Chamonix. Austria was wonderful. the Niederthai water still treats me well ;D.
Paul: it was g...
here is a trip report with photos. do enjoy.
Greg and i are now in Switzerland for a short visit with his brother and sister inlaw. we're on our way to Grenoble tomorrow, then to Chamonix. Austria was wonderful. the Niederthai water still treats me well ;D.
Paul: it was g...
...do Austrians have similar facial expressions when they see someone Telemark (I'm assuming you brought tele gear) ;)
it's as if they were staring at a Chinese martian. ;D
Hey Kam - Re your non-alcohol facial expression, do Austrians have similar facial expressions when they see someone Telemark (I'm assuming you brought tele gear) ;)
Kam didn't mention that the temperature was -22 C. that day; the snow was really cold smoke and delightful to ski. The guy in the top picture is Florian, a neighbor of Michael's and a mountain rescue guy for the valley; a complete animal going both up and down. It's really an inspirational experience to be in a place where whole families ski the backcountry and the tradition is centuries old (maybe older, Niederthai is just around the corner from where they found the frozen remains of the 8,000...
Sounds like you had a great time, thanks for sharing your adventure.
I also ran into the sled on my way up to ski some fantastic snow. We had a brief discussion about how I thought mo's were not allowed there and how he vehemently disagreed. He claims that the front side is in limits, but not the backside or moonlight. I've skied many days up there and never seen a sled, thus my assumption that it was not allowed. Anyone know the real deal on this?
And yeah, the skiing was good. Close to 10" of new atop a firm base. ...
And yeah, the skiing was good. Close to 10" of new atop a firm base. ...
We didn't see any snomobiles up there yesterday, and only about six other people. Maybe all the folks who can't muster the 1200 foot climb to the ridge were too hungover to get out in the fine New Year's Day snow. ;) Or maybe they don't like snow flurries. I did see a snowmo-snowboard group there in November. I agree that Skyline ridge is an inappropriate place for motorized access - due to tradition and, more importantly, safety for all the human-powered traffic o...
I had to do my Christmas shopping 8)(belated celebration @ Dads). Sounds like fun I missed....Jerry
Jeanette, you've gotta stop with this "geezer" talk ???. I know some geezers and you and Ron aren't them...not even close 8).
I can't plow if you don't make contact...
Sounds like a nice trip. Where was JW?
OK, off to Paradise with the Scotsman and another McSomeone. Wish us luck.
I can't plow if you don't make contact...
Sounds like a nice trip. Where was JW?
OK, off to Paradise with the Scotsman and another McSomeone. Wish us luck.
Thanks for the report Robie. We're heading to Paradise this morning and will look for some of the powder you're predicting.
No slides?.....that's good. Sounds like there was a lot of activity that way over the weekend. I'm sure we'll be digging and cutting all day.
No slides?.....that's good. Sounds like there was a lot of activity that way over the weekend. I'm sure we'll be digging and cutting all day.
Breaking trail in the new snow was somewhat tedious at times with ski depth of 18 inches. Where were all those "youngsters" we hang around with for trailbreaking??
I knew there was a reason you let me come out with you so much ;)
I knew there was a reason you let me come out with you so much ;)
Great to hear you set a nice track back to the "Gap". I've been training some of my East Coast grandsons for the Grandpa Zap Sherpa school. Hope to join you this weekend with some of your trailbreakers.
Zap
Zap
Man...can you believe we got that stack of blocks up to 36 levels high.
Oh yea it was a good ski day to.
Aaron
Oh yea it was a good ski day to.
Aaron
Snomos, hmm. Today we saw a beautiful cherry red 1986 LMC 1500 snowcat on Heather Ridge road in perfect shape! It was not transporting snow sliders, only headed up to do work on the cell towers. Sure made breaking trail easy after it passed. ;-)
As for what should and should not be allowed in my back yard, I dunno what to say. The back side of Stevens was really great when it was the domain of liftless hard work, but somehow we have survived the remov...
As for what should and should not be allowed in my back yard, I dunno what to say. The back side of Stevens was really great when it was the domain of liftless hard work, but somehow we have survived the remov...
all i can say is tear it up--but don't die in an avalanche.
I was too tired when I wrote that to remember to mention how beautiful it can be to be in the clear air sandwiched between upper clouds and the fog layer that pours like milk through the valleys and passes, with lots of peaks to see between. I love amazing range of greys you see in this sort of weather, with just bits of blue and purple to accent the sky a bit. Rainier was particularly cool to look at - it seemed to be bringing some extra light down from above, so the visible portion of it ...
Schneebers that don't look to good. :)
MW88888888, there is no prize other than simply the warm fuzzy feeling which I'm sure is radiating through you as you realize that, yes, you started what has turned out to likely be the most active thread ever on TAY. Congratulations? I personally hope that you will continue posting as you have been doing, adding to your established record of providing good snow information and beyond.
"Oh no, not another Snoqualmie Mountain thread," I thought. But then I saw who the author was and I knew that everything would be OK. ;)
Great report Silas - full both of snow info and your own subjective experiences. That's my kind of report!
Great report Silas - full both of snow info and your own subjective experiences. That's my kind of report!
Nice TR Silas, glad you could keep your cool with us.
I think Tony took an easier route through the little cliffs at the bottom there, but when in Rome. . .
I think Tony took an easier route through the little cliffs at the bottom there, but when in Rome. . .
Me and two other guys summited gunsight and the snow was way deep and sticking.
Woohoo!! Very nice, have a great time ;D.
Very nice...glad your trip's off to a good start in that fine Alp pow! (hmm, moment of nostalgia there...) I presume you were able to find some extra epoxy to complete your newest pair of homemade skis before you left?...
filbo thanks for breaking trail. Did you ski from the summitt. Everything sticking good ?
Some of us had to stay inbounds and skier groom the trees.
Some of us had to stay inbounds and skier groom the trees.
Wow! I didn't see this one coming 8), Nice move boys!
Keep the photos flowing......Jerry
Keep the photos flowing......Jerry
very nice Kam, looks a little better than that bald knob in Virginia ;)
kam.
nice to see your great shots and the blue bird skies. it was puking here all day; deep in the north side of skyline ridge, lovely. keep us all posted on your travels. enjoy.
nice to see your great shots and the blue bird skies. it was puking here all day; deep in the north side of skyline ridge, lovely. keep us all posted on your travels. enjoy.
Good God Man.......!
I believe epic has be redefined.... ;D
I believe epic has be redefined.... ;D
MW8 and Jim: Thanks for your thoughtful posts. You've shown that you're willing to risk some exposure, not to gravity but to your peers. I respect that.
TeleRoss: If it's a race to the bottom, you're winning. ;)
TeleRoss: If it's a race to the bottom, you're winning. ;)
Is there a prize for the most responses and views to a post? If so, lucky me. Couple points I'd like to make, as it seems the issues raised here touched a nerve.
1) Ron_l had it right, this post was a direct copy of an e-mail I sent to friends around the country. Friends with whom I ski every year, around the globe and in all conditions; they know me, they know my style and my skill levels, so there was no need to expound on the details of why I did the things I did. It was simply a d...
1) Ron_l had it right, this post was a direct copy of an e-mail I sent to friends around the country. Friends with whom I ski every year, around the globe and in all conditions; they know me, they know my style and my skill levels, so there was no need to expound on the details of why I did the things I did. It was simply a d...
Overall, driving would seem to be one of the most hazardous activities that the average person does, and driving while tired would seem likely to increase the hazard. But I wonder how this compares to the hazards of injury/death from avalanches, encounters with flora (including tree wells), encounters with fauna (eg allergic reaction to stings - not a big worry in winter but different in summer?), equipment failure, etc.
I've thought about this...
Wow! Who knew that Columbia Golf Course was such a nexus for great skiers? Next you're going to tell me that Bill Koch learned to ski there or something. ;)
When the snow is good (which it hasn't been for several years running) the skiing at Columbia is really fine. It's only about a mile from my in-laws' house. The smokestacks on the horizon are easy enough to ignore and pretty soon your mind wanders to Scandihoovia...
Since my training table in Minneapolis consists mostly of Ch...
When the snow is good (which it hasn't been for several years running) the skiing at Columbia is really fine. It's only about a mile from my in-laws' house. The smokestacks on the horizon are easy enough to ignore and pretty soon your mind wanders to Scandihoovia...
Since my training table in Minneapolis consists mostly of Ch...
...PS - if you two don't receive the bottles of JJ within a few days, we'll have to assume that Homeland Security intercepted them. ;)
"bottles of JJ"??
Um.. ah, Charles I thought we agreed...
after that last "incident", we were ONLY going to ship JJ in the more explosively stable Gel form, shipped only in the padded and insulated, hermetically sealed, bomb proof shipping boxes?? ???
Hey Lowell!
I used to ski at Columbia Golf Course, too. Our high school skiing league used to have meets there.
Good to see you're making good use of your time in MN. I usually end up in pubs when I go back to visit. ;-)
Happy New Year!
Tim
I used to ski at Columbia Golf Course, too. Our high school skiing league used to have meets there.
Good to see you're making good use of your time in MN. I usually end up in pubs when I go back to visit. ;-)
Happy New Year!
Tim
It certainly does seem that on the internet it is easy for one person's discussion to be another person's criticism. I guess it takes a certain skill to contribute to an internet "discussion" in a way that minimizes the chances that it will be seen instead as "criticism". The culture of the specific forum must also come into play, and in this regard, given the "discussion" oriented nature of this forum, it would help if readers would generally give the "discuss...
Joking aside, I think it is an interesting question about what the relative dangers are when skiing. There probably aren't very good stats for this overall. Skiing at a lift area seems to introduce a significant hazard of collision, with other skiers and with hard objects. Overall, driving would seem to be one of the most hazardous activities that the average person does, and driving while tired would seem likely to increase the hazard. But I wonder how this compares to the hazards of injury/dea...
Thanks, Lowell. I realized (after all my posts above) that:
a) Samminator was right, I needed a nap. Decaf helped. :)
but
b) I'm re-learning something I found out when moving from Boston to the PNW - that I grew up working things out by sharing thoughts and debating and the culture was that this is just a way to help each other think by pushing each other a bit, but out here I've found many folks take that approach as criticism or otherwise as a negative. Lowell, username,...
a) Samminator was right, I needed a nap. Decaf helped. :)
but
b) I'm re-learning something I found out when moving from Boston to the PNW - that I grew up working things out by sharing thoughts and debating and the culture was that this is just a way to help each other think by pushing each other a bit, but out here I've found many folks take that approach as criticism or otherwise as a negative. Lowell, username,...
I applaud Jim for raising the questions that were in my head as well, because it may not seem like it from my TR, but the decision to go on was a challenging one.
I think the people taking pot shots from various sides of this discussion should note that MW88888888, the original poster, has consistently expressed his appreciation of Jim Oker's safety questions. Seems like a non-issue to me.
Now I know why I've stopped posting trips - a nice report, some humorous adds followed by a flurry of uninvited criticisms. (unless the purpose of a post is to provide a target)
While Jim may have some good reasons for making a different decision if he were there - he wasn't there and the decision wasn't his to make.
Jim, when you report your future trips, I'm sure we'll be happy to hear the basis for decisions you made. We might not even tell you that you were wrong!
While Jim may have some good reasons for making a different decision if he were there - he wasn't there and the decision wasn't his to make.
Jim, when you report your future trips, I'm sure we'll be happy to hear the basis for decisions you made. We might not even tell you that you were wrong!
Are you sure it's kosher to send that through the mail?
I eagerly await its arrival. With a name like Jarvis, it's got to be good.
I eagerly await its arrival. With a name like Jarvis, it's got to be good.
Jim and Sky: Jarvis Jelly
A little known fact is that JJ is not just an awesome skiing aid, but an all around multipurpose backcountry solution for just about any problem which might present itself. It's nanotube technology ensures that these common concerns you have expressed (with the exception of the serious hazard relating to the drive home) become just figments of an overconcerned mind. Vince and I took the precauti...
A little known fact is that JJ is not just an awesome skiing aid, but an all around multipurpose backcountry solution for just about any problem which might present itself. It's nanotube technology ensures that these common concerns you have expressed (with the exception of the serious hazard relating to the drive home) become just figments of an overconcerned mind. Vince and I took the precauti...