TR: Dec 20, 21, 23, 24, and 25â¦
12/15/07
4462
8
The last 5 out of 6 days has been a real daze. After 4 hours of sleep I'm still buzzing like a bum after a bottle(s) of Thunderbird or Night Train. I take my place among the cubicle farms to find a black monitor starring back at me. The reflection reveals one of complacency, exhaustion and what appears to be the start of a few wrinkles. Well gravity always gets things done.
Gravity hard at work¦
The backcountry had a very special feeling these two days. Not one other group touring around the area that normally sees its fair share of traffic. Was it because of work, family holiday, avalanche conditions? Whatever the reason it resembled a momentary lapse in time. No time was wasted as we slayed until my legs felt like they were going to fall off.
People in their happy places¦
There was a weather window in the am during both days. The sun came out but eventually the clouds moved in and it started to snow. Thursday, while Stugie and Rapskallion were doing some (snow analysis) I kept doing laps, only to find that my skin track and tracks were erased by the shifting winds. I was on west to southwest facing slopes between 5,800ft and 6,800ft. I only noted a couple inches of surface slab but no major settling, whoomfing or propagating cracks. There was a feeling of snow gradually settling beneath each step, which is normal after a big dump anyways.
What I found¦I dug a pit on a w/sw facing roller ~30 degrees at 6,500ft. I was able to dig 5½ft down before I hit the early December crust layer. The 5½ft of snow was sitting on top of a 3-4'' layer of faceted snow that would brush out easily with you hand. Compressions and shears were not successful in getting it to release that deep from the top. Maybe an R-block might have? There were a couple of other layers worth noting. The top 4'' or so was freshly falling that would sluff off easily. Temps were cold and flakes were small. Beneath, 18-24'' of layered, consolidating snow that sat on top of 24-36'' of consolidated snow. Compressions and shears yielded the 18-24'' of layered, consolidating snow bonding well to the 24-36''. However the 24-36'' of consolidated snow bonded poorly to the crust layer. As I was isolating columns that alone was enough to pop/shear that layer
off the crust.
Instead of dropping the frontside again we skin cut the back bowls, and to our amazement this lee slope appeared stable. Our first run was cautious, especially in the chute. When we all got to the bottom there were no words, just smiles and eyes wide open. I was amazed at the stability, especially after what was found the day before. The rest of the day can be summed up in the pictures below or
With snow conditions being so good and bomber I couldn't resist going till dark. Apparently I wasn't the only one either. Minutes after I returned to camp, Zenom and Pam showed up. I haven't seen them since TAY-Fest back in 2005. I was stoked to see someone else from Washington so far north and inland. How random and what are the chances I thought. Monday night was spent getting reacquainted.
Tuesday came early and Zenom, Eli3 and myself found ourselves skinning at dark o'clock. A near full moon and clearer skies made travel easier. Pam was smart and slept in a bit. Zenom had a pretty good lay of the land from a previous trip so he led Eli3 and I through bonk, wind scoured powder to the land of deep powder gullies. Slopes were lee and the terrain sheltered us from the winds and spitting snow a ridge and valley over. Once again I was amazed at how stable avalanche conditions were. After 3 laps a king and queen could hang their crown on, Eli3 and I were spent and crawled back to camp to pack up. I was amazed at how big the lines are back here. I will return. I now have restless leg syndrome to complement the joint aches in my knees.
Gravity hard at work¦
The backcountry had a very special feeling these two days. Not one other group touring around the area that normally sees its fair share of traffic. Was it because of work, family holiday, avalanche conditions? Whatever the reason it resembled a momentary lapse in time. No time was wasted as we slayed until my legs felt like they were going to fall off.
People in their happy places¦
There was a weather window in the am during both days. The sun came out but eventually the clouds moved in and it started to snow. Thursday, while Stugie and Rapskallion were doing some (snow analysis) I kept doing laps, only to find that my skin track and tracks were erased by the shifting winds. I was on west to southwest facing slopes between 5,800ft and 6,800ft. I only noted a couple inches of surface slab but no major settling, whoomfing or propagating cracks. There was a feeling of snow gradually settling beneath each step, which is normal after a big dump anyways.
What I found¦I dug a pit on a w/sw facing roller ~30 degrees at 6,500ft. I was able to dig 5½ft down before I hit the early December crust layer. The 5½ft of snow was sitting on top of a 3-4'' layer of faceted snow that would brush out easily with you hand. Compressions and shears were not successful in getting it to release that deep from the top. Maybe an R-block might have? There were a couple of other layers worth noting. The top 4'' or so was freshly falling that would sluff off easily. Temps were cold and flakes were small. Beneath, 18-24'' of layered, consolidating snow that sat on top of 24-36'' of consolidated snow. Compressions and shears yielded the 18-24'' of layered, consolidating snow bonding well to the 24-36''. However the 24-36'' of consolidated snow bonded poorly to the crust layer. As I was isolating columns that alone was enough to pop/shear that layer
off the crust.
Instead of dropping the frontside again we skin cut the back bowls, and to our amazement this lee slope appeared stable. Our first run was cautious, especially in the chute. When we all got to the bottom there were no words, just smiles and eyes wide open. I was amazed at the stability, especially after what was found the day before. The rest of the day can be summed up in the pictures below or
</a><br /><br />I needed a break on Saturday to gather my thoughts. Next thing I knew Eli3 had kidnapped me and when I pulled the duct tape from my eyes I was somewhere deep in the British Columbia coastal range in the province of Canuckistan, Canadia. Even though weather prevented us from clear views on our skin in, we knew that we were surrounded by gigantic chutes. After getting properly situated, a 400ft evening run in 40 degree trees was had. The minutes we gain in the days after the winter solstice didn't help too much in getting further up the ridge. Damn breaking trail in deep powder, damn! Later on that night a storm dumped an average of 6-12'' but it was hard to tell because of the blusterous winds.<br /><br />When Eli3 and I woke on Monday we were treated to this scenery.<br /><br /><a href=){kind=link}
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With snow conditions being so good and bomber I couldn't resist going till dark. Apparently I wasn't the only one either. Minutes after I returned to camp, Zenom and Pam showed up. I haven't seen them since TAY-Fest back in 2005. I was stoked to see someone else from Washington so far north and inland. How random and what are the chances I thought. Monday night was spent getting reacquainted.
Tuesday came early and Zenom, Eli3 and myself found ourselves skinning at dark o'clock. A near full moon and clearer skies made travel easier. Pam was smart and slept in a bit. Zenom had a pretty good lay of the land from a previous trip so he led Eli3 and I through bonk, wind scoured powder to the land of deep powder gullies. Slopes were lee and the terrain sheltered us from the winds and spitting snow a ridge and valley over. Once again I was amazed at how stable avalanche conditions were. After 3 laps a king and queen could hang their crown on, Eli3 and I were spent and crawled back to camp to pack up. I was amazed at how big the lines are back here. I will return. I now have restless leg syndrome to complement the joint aches in my knees.
nice tr, dude!
Here are some more photos from Crystal on 12/21.
Another Snoslut sequence:
Snoslut and Robyn
Snoslut
Snoslut
OK, enough Snoslut shots.
Another Snoslut sequence:
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Snoslut and Robyn
Snoslut
Snoslut
OK, enough Snoslut shots.
no respect....just my opinion...Jerry
I don't know what I was thinking. I copied this tr and forgot to edit the image tags. I goofed. Guess I just wanted to bend the rules for one day. Thanks for the reminder Jerry. Charles my apologies. You know me, I meant no disrespect.
The series of the slut putting his hands UP for powder embodies the spirit of the season!
Slut: I want to get a copy of some of the photos, is there a place you have stored the trip pictures for download?
Slut: I want to get a copy of some of the photos, is there a place you have stored the trip pictures for download?
Hey Eric ...It appears I may have been hasty in my judgment....if you are storing your photos on another server, as I now see you are ...Biglines.com...then I don't think the photo limit applies...Charles ??? verdict please....my deepest apologies there buddy 8) your photos are great BTW
nice pics!
Nice bro. Yeah that day you lapped me at least 20 times...;)
Kyle and I rocked the Gun Barrel yesterday. Nothing but sweetness above the knees. White was crazy good too.
Nice pics too.
Kyle and I rocked the Gun Barrel yesterday. Nothing but sweetness above the knees. White was crazy good too.
Nice pics too.
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