Aug 3, 11, Adams SW Chutes, Kansas in Aug=Type1Fun
8/3/11
WA Cascades West Slopes South (Mt Rainier)
3078
3
Whodathunkit. Corny as Kansas in August., which BTW is a great song to sing as you ski down thousands of feet of near-perfect smooth corn (but I'll spare you the video on that and other fine songs from the musical South Pacific).
We left the car at 5:15 and walked about 1 hour before hitting skinable snow. Major cups, and we took our skis off 5 short times for dirt crossings-only a minor annoyance. With ski crampons (why don't more people wear those more?) I was able to easily skin all the way to the top. A brisk wind kept the top slopes a bit too frozen for great turns, but we hit the chute right next to the false summit and it was fabulous-smooth and corned to perfection. Minor runnels on the lower third. We had never skied this before and can see why it is considered a classic. Getting back included ski removal and dirt walking maybe 5 or 6 times and then the long walk on the (mostly) dirt trail back to the junction with the main trail. One can not ski all the way to the trail, sorry, but hey, it's August. Return to cars about 6.
Other than some of the dirt and the long drive, this trip was a solid 1 on the Fun Scale, which I read about in a very funny and educational new book just out (full disclosure, I work for the publisher, The Mountaineers). In his book, Climbing Dictionary, the author, Matt Samet defines the Fun Scale apparently developed by some scientist climbers with time on their hands. Check it out.
Type 1 Fun: True fun that is actually enjoyable while it is happening (that is key). The author gives examples of 5.8 hand cracks, sport climbing and powder skiing. I would definitely add corn snow sking.
Type 2 Fun: Fun only in retrospect, hateful while it is happening. The author mentions working out until you puke and most ice and alpine climbing. Good example yesterday. Skinning up to the false summit for me was type 1, but had I been booting it straight up gasping for air, that is solid type 2. Backcountry skiing probably has more type 1 than alpine climbing does.
Type 3 Fun: Not fun at all, even after a lot of retrospection. For me, something like going alpine climbing in the rain, or skiing ice.
We left the car at 5:15 and walked about 1 hour before hitting skinable snow. Major cups, and we took our skis off 5 short times for dirt crossings-only a minor annoyance. With ski crampons (why don't more people wear those more?) I was able to easily skin all the way to the top. A brisk wind kept the top slopes a bit too frozen for great turns, but we hit the chute right next to the false summit and it was fabulous-smooth and corned to perfection. Minor runnels on the lower third. We had never skied this before and can see why it is considered a classic. Getting back included ski removal and dirt walking maybe 5 or 6 times and then the long walk on the (mostly) dirt trail back to the junction with the main trail. One can not ski all the way to the trail, sorry, but hey, it's August. Return to cars about 6.
Other than some of the dirt and the long drive, this trip was a solid 1 on the Fun Scale, which I read about in a very funny and educational new book just out (full disclosure, I work for the publisher, The Mountaineers). In his book, Climbing Dictionary, the author, Matt Samet defines the Fun Scale apparently developed by some scientist climbers with time on their hands. Check it out.
Type 1 Fun: True fun that is actually enjoyable while it is happening (that is key). The author gives examples of 5.8 hand cracks, sport climbing and powder skiing. I would definitely add corn snow sking.
Type 2 Fun: Fun only in retrospect, hateful while it is happening. The author mentions working out until you puke and most ice and alpine climbing. Good example yesterday. Skinning up to the false summit for me was type 1, but had I been booting it straight up gasping for air, that is solid type 2. Backcountry skiing probably has more type 1 than alpine climbing does.
Type 3 Fun: Not fun at all, even after a lot of retrospection. For me, something like going alpine climbing in the rain, or skiing ice.
Great to see that you had a wonderful day for your first SW Chute descent. Did you say walk on "dirt" 5 or 6 times. ;)
Well, I didn't count exactly how many actual steps on dirt it was, Zap. Perhaps I've developed some kind of selective amnesia in order to better turn Type 2 into Type 1 fun.
To keep the Type 1 fun of skiing the SW chutes Type 1 including with the use of the retrospectoscope, my good friend Mike Cohen likes to repeat the mantra "I love skiing" as we suffer out the Round the Mountain dirttrudgefest and the drive back to Bellingham. Adds the Type 2 permanence to the type 1 fun.
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