April 30, Blackcomb backcountry powder tour
4/15/11
Canada BC
2733
0
Coming off of the effects of a nasty cold I was not up for a long tour on Saturday but Skylar had an attractive idea, ride the lifts up at Blackcomb and ski north facing shots in the slackcountry. Gib was game so the two fifty somethings joined the two hard charging twenty somethings at the top of the Glacier Chair at 9:30 to wait....ski frozen corderoy...wait .....and finally drop into the Blackcomb Glacier at 11:30. All the friendly Aussie lifties have gone home. Management had a hard time staffing the T-bars on the upper mountain.
At the top of the Blackcomb skin Skyler points to Mt. Tremor, a peak shrouded in cloud away in the distance and announces it as our first objective. Hmmm....seems a little out there to qualify for slackcountry. However, the snow is quite good, (a foot of settled powder) and the broken clouds are displaying the usual spring mish mash of isolated snow squalls and sun. I am not hacking away too badly so I drop in with the overnighters and the shredded cuff crowd and flail down breakable crust towards the north side of Decker.
It is a lovely skin out to the top of a socked in Mt. Tremor. Hordes of people crossed over into the backcountry earlier but out on the Spearhead highway only two people peel off of the head down crowd and hit the late season powder bounty on the north slopes. After a nice lunch in the clouds we only have to wait 20 minutes for our clearing to hit the barely tracked north side of Tremor. Face shots, sluff management and the longed for rhythm of bounce and fall begins down the long run to the upper Neve.
That is how it went until the furtive sun made its first impression well into the evening on the long run home down perfect, freshly groomed corn on the slopes of Blackcomb. Tremor was followed by an unnamed mound between Tremor and Patterson. A short skin up Patterson's north ridge led to a gulley holding untracked lines that provided for this grateful skier the run of the day. Back over the high shoulder of Decker for the final shot of 2011 powder on exhausted legs. Cliff shots, hammer gel and powder buzz motivating tired legs up every climb. I plug into the shuffle and slog up to the col above the Blackcomb, pausing frequently to hack loudly into the frozen tracks below my new lovelies.
Four summits, great companions, preserved powder and beer at the truck with the youth. Another memorable day in the epic that was April 2011.
Amar Andalkar inspired list of objective data:
First day on Rockered skiis. (Coomback 2010/2011) OH MY FREAKING GOD!!!! What a difference. Is it legal to ski something so pleasurable???
First time using inserts as binding mounts. Brand: Quiver Killers. Straight forward using the drill press for a straight bore. Going to be great to be able to use my Vertical ST's on my other skiis.
First day using Dynafit crampon locks. Great piece of equipment. Locked out the pons, put the heels on high lift and stomped up Tremors steep east ridge like a girl entering her first prom. Sorry...got carried away. My objective measurements showed average penetration of 2.4 inches per step.
Time to Blackcomb from Bellingham. 2 hours 11 minutes going the Annisis Highway Bridge Route. The improvements to the sea to ski makes the drive painless. Especially if your buddy is driving and you get to sleep.
I can catagorically state emphatically that ski touring with enthusiastic youth does not improve the recovery from colds and bad coughs. Far better to stay at home and watch ski videos. Unless you lay awake at night in November dreaming of making turns in powder, skinning up snow and ice covered peaks and high fiveing your friends gloved hands after another mind blower...Screw it just go.
(Amar, are we still friends???)
1. Gib, Henry and Skyer. Mt. Tremor on the left. Second run. Old guys tracks left, young'ins right.
2. Top of Patterson. Run #3.
3. Home James. The boys on the Blackcomb after 8 pm. Powder to corn to valley bottom. Beer was waiting.
At the top of the Blackcomb skin Skyler points to Mt. Tremor, a peak shrouded in cloud away in the distance and announces it as our first objective. Hmmm....seems a little out there to qualify for slackcountry. However, the snow is quite good, (a foot of settled powder) and the broken clouds are displaying the usual spring mish mash of isolated snow squalls and sun. I am not hacking away too badly so I drop in with the overnighters and the shredded cuff crowd and flail down breakable crust towards the north side of Decker.
It is a lovely skin out to the top of a socked in Mt. Tremor. Hordes of people crossed over into the backcountry earlier but out on the Spearhead highway only two people peel off of the head down crowd and hit the late season powder bounty on the north slopes. After a nice lunch in the clouds we only have to wait 20 minutes for our clearing to hit the barely tracked north side of Tremor. Face shots, sluff management and the longed for rhythm of bounce and fall begins down the long run to the upper Neve.
That is how it went until the furtive sun made its first impression well into the evening on the long run home down perfect, freshly groomed corn on the slopes of Blackcomb. Tremor was followed by an unnamed mound between Tremor and Patterson. A short skin up Patterson's north ridge led to a gulley holding untracked lines that provided for this grateful skier the run of the day. Back over the high shoulder of Decker for the final shot of 2011 powder on exhausted legs. Cliff shots, hammer gel and powder buzz motivating tired legs up every climb. I plug into the shuffle and slog up to the col above the Blackcomb, pausing frequently to hack loudly into the frozen tracks below my new lovelies.
Four summits, great companions, preserved powder and beer at the truck with the youth. Another memorable day in the epic that was April 2011.
Amar Andalkar inspired list of objective data:
First day on Rockered skiis. (Coomback 2010/2011) OH MY FREAKING GOD!!!! What a difference. Is it legal to ski something so pleasurable???
First time using inserts as binding mounts. Brand: Quiver Killers. Straight forward using the drill press for a straight bore. Going to be great to be able to use my Vertical ST's on my other skiis.
First day using Dynafit crampon locks. Great piece of equipment. Locked out the pons, put the heels on high lift and stomped up Tremors steep east ridge like a girl entering her first prom. Sorry...got carried away. My objective measurements showed average penetration of 2.4 inches per step.
Time to Blackcomb from Bellingham. 2 hours 11 minutes going the Annisis Highway Bridge Route. The improvements to the sea to ski makes the drive painless. Especially if your buddy is driving and you get to sleep.
I can catagorically state emphatically that ski touring with enthusiastic youth does not improve the recovery from colds and bad coughs. Far better to stay at home and watch ski videos. Unless you lay awake at night in November dreaming of making turns in powder, skinning up snow and ice covered peaks and high fiveing your friends gloved hands after another mind blower...Screw it just go.
(Amar, are we still friends???)
1. Gib, Henry and Skyer. Mt. Tremor on the left. Second run. Old guys tracks left, young'ins right.
2. Top of Patterson. Run #3.
3. Home James. The boys on the Blackcomb after 8 pm. Powder to corn to valley bottom. Beer was waiting.
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