havecarryonwilltravel

One last day. High overcast, no sun, no new snow. The wind is howling. A little cool in the house. 6 am is my time. Everybody else sleeps, I do not hear a stirring until at least 7. No plan today. I am bagged but it is the last day and I cannot possibly sit this one out.

One by one people arise and the hubbub of the cabin begins anew. I’m sitting here wondering if the chopper will be able to make the trip tomorrow. The weather has been socked in for 3 days and it does not look like a change today. J and A have a plane to catch so life should be interesting for them.

More recon is the order of the day. We have not been past Posthumous Bowl. We travel on a wind drifted uptrack that we have passed over several times. A few hundred meters beyond our usual de-skin point we encounter a short steep pitch. The light is poor and we cannot determine if it would be safe to ski so we back off and find another route down. Around the bowl there are some scattered trees to help vision. 20 turns, good turns and we are at the bottom.

More exploration is on tap. We choose a high line and over the ridge is the sight we have been searching out. Glade after glade of open slope with smooth untracked snow facing north. None of us are sure but we think we have found the mother lode.  Skins on and up the slope. We stand at the top and survey the landscape. We think there are numerous lanes to ski and we are won’t be able to ski all the available terrain in one day. Our first run is confirmation we have chosen the right area. It is our first recon that has paid big dividends. Every run ends in 5 ear to ear grins. The skiing is soooo good, the uptrack is relatively easy and we figure it is a perfect day to end our week. Salvation Bowl and Redemption Ridge. If we come back we will spend a good amount of time in this direction.

It’s been a good week and the last day is definitely the best. 

There is snow on them thar trees. Yesterday it was snowing when I got up but today the snow adheres to the branches of the evergreens trees and it is colder in the cabin. Clouds in the valley but I look forward to a good day.

After yesterday’s walk, today is a ski day. Start the day with no skins. The run starts at the lodge. Drop into the cutblock a few hundred meters below. J, A, J and I get to the bottom with smiles and the day starts out good. I break trail to the top of the ridge. It is not too far but it takes a lot out of me. We take two more runs to the valley and each up takes a little more.

At the end of the third trip we decide to stay in the alpine. J and A go back to the lodge. They want to go back to Posthumous Bowl. Our snow is good, two runs there and we head back to the lodge. It is early, we arrive back about 3. I’m bagged, J is bagged, we had a good day and put a lot of skiing in our legs. Time to relax.

The morning is dull. When the light comes up it’s snowing. Good vision for a skier. Today we’re headed south to a massive granite wall. There is an area where the forest is burned out. We were told the slope at the base of the wall faces north and we think the snow will be drier and could be some really good skiing.

When we arrive there is a very deep drainage between us and the slope we want to ski. It doesn’t look like we are going to get to the slope. We head down, but the route from where we are is straight down. Cliff like. The snow is poor. We traverse the slope upstream and end on the creek. Man that is a long walk for not what we wanted. This circuit was my idea. B, J, J, and A came along and we all have to accept the fact that it was only a nice walk.

After we reach the meadow at the bottom, we turn up the opposite side of the valley. We know the skiing is good and we do need to make at least a few turns in a day. That’s why I’m here. The uptrack is good and we are at the top in no time. The run down is a gas. Most of the terrain is flat but there are a ton of rollers, the snow is great, very sugary and skiing is so much fun.

To get back to the lodge we use the downtrack we made two days ago. Most of it is a long traverse and it is probably the easiest home run uptrack we have used in the last 4 days. Another epic day, not an epic ski but an epic day none the less.

The mornings are getting warmer. Not so good for skiing. Good for morning stability but the snow is getting crustier and crustier. (I haven’t been skiing yet, this is just speculation.) The routine has been set. I’m up first, the others filter down and breakfast prep begins. Today at noon that is all about to change as 5 more are to arrive by helicopter and the cabin will seem crowded to us. CHANGE; oh no!

B and I start the day with a climb to one of the peaks. Don’t know the name but we get to the top. On the way up we plan the route down gambling on the quality of snow. The view from the top is long. I have no idea what I am looking at but B tries to ident as many peaks as he can. He says he isn’t 100% on the ident but I can’t possibly refute his thoughts.

The ski down is on and off. The top is very weird,  hard as a table top, not so smooth and grabby. I haven’t used edges all year and skiing it is a test.  The little basin we eyed on the way up is smooth and boot top. The rest of the run is sun soaked or wind affected with the occasional bit of perfect snow.

The crew arrives at noon – 5 more. B and I are on top of the mountain and watching the chopper land, can’t see who but we know there are 5. When we arrive everybody is settled, we want lunch and they want to go skiing. OK,OK our destination is Posthumous Bowl. The snow is excellent. The folks like it and we do it again. Our home run is through the glades to the valley. YAHOO! The snow is absolutely outstanding. The uptrack back to lodge is steep and mean as it was set by the “locals” that come up to orient us on the use of the cabin gear.

Dinner is prepared by J and is gourmet. Sunny, clear, mild wind, great skiing, delicious food, a banner day.

Today is a day to tour. B spent last night studying the maps and planning a route to what looks like skiable terrain. Earlier start today – 10:30! No skins, as the first part of the trip is downhill. Over the edge and into the trees. Traversing the slope on a slightly downhill trajectory we end up at a meadow that is the high point on the transition from one side of the valley to the other. The meadow is not that big and it is amazing we hit it right in the middle.

The uptrack on the west side of the valley is again a shallow traverse. After not long we are at treeline and lunch in a sheltered sunny spot with a view. A million dollar view. We travel a long way in a reasonably short time. Here we split. B, M and J headed back to the lodge, J and I see a ridge farther on that looks like it needs some ski tracks.

We go up. The climb is steep. We keep our senses on alert and there are no signs of instability. We reach the top and the view on the other side is more than worth the hike. As we edge our way along the ridge we keep looking north over the edge to see where we are going to ski down. We cannot really see the slope but we figure out where we are going to enter. There are 20 or 25 turns to the bottom varying in quality but none bad. It is steep but completely skiable. Life is good.

The run through the glades to the creek below is north facing, the snow is dry and the skiing is great, then all of a sudden it looks steep, so steep in fact I’m quite sure it is straight down. In fact it is a cliff. J and I survey the situation and find there is a route but we find it by sliding down each drop 3M at a time. This way and that until we reach a spot that has a clear run to the bottom and it is 15 more great turns.

It is an adventure for sure. I’m quite sure the risk we are taking is minimal and the skiing is good. The touring today is good and as enjoyable as the skiing. I don’t think we had to walk as far as we did but there is always that sense of adventure. The serenity and the surroundings are what coaxes you on and on.

I’m up. It’s 6 am and everyone else is still in the sack. It’s spring and the outside temperatures are not that extreme but the fire in the stove died and when I get up the digs are cold. I try to start a fire without success and give up; I do not want to waste paper so I sit quietly in the cold. Cold of course is relative and I am not in danger of expiring, just slightly uncomfortable.

B, the fire man, gets it going and the place starts to warm up. Our two local hosts cut out today and leave the valley with its five occupants. It is a leisurely morning and we don’t even get on the road until 11 but we can’t climb and ski for more than 5 hours anyway.

We start on a new uptrack headed due north and into a bowl the local guys told us about yesterday. Posthumous Bowl, I believe. After walking across the top we try to determine what aspect will have ideal snow. Some discussion, remove the skins and off we go. 4 or 5 hundred meters vertical, all 5 of us have smiles on our faces by the bottom. Big smiles. The snow is mildly inconsistent but very skiable and about boot top deep. Heaven.

J and I make 4 long runs today. Yesterday it seemed quite hard but it is amazing how fast I get into the rhythm and the day is not hard until the last uptrack to home base. B tells us that it is about 200M vertical but quite steep. Steep it is and it is quite a slog for the last one of the day. Tired yes but the last run to the bottom of the valley was worth every step up. That Coke upon arrival goes down easy, very easy. I have to conserve my stash as the closest 7/11 is a long ways away.  The cabin is warm when J and I arrive and we relax after a great day.

Sauna time.

It’s quiet here. The ride is noisy but as soon as the chopper leaves the silence becomes one of the first things I notice. The wind blows but even that is not noisy. We make noise, it is hard to be quiet but it is only our voices and a bit of bumping and banging and it is easily absorbed into the valley.

There are 5 in the Amiskwi Backcountry Lodge, near Golden, BC and two others in the adjacent cabin. I’m quite sure we are the only ones in the entire valley.

We settle in, skin up and are off to see how the skiing is. There is tons of snow; 45 cm in the last couple of days and the last group in was 10 days ago. The terrain is trackless but our hosts tell us that last evening was quite warm and it had an adverse effect on the snow. The prevailing winds are from the south west and the sun this time of year affects the south and west facing exposure the most so by a simple process of elimination our best bet is going to be the north and east exposure.

The uptrack is fast, it maybe takes 30 minutes. The run down is good. The snow is not deep but it is generally consistent and very good skiing. It is our first view of the available terrain and I do not think we will run out of ski options in the week we are here. I am still hoping it snows.

Standing high on a ridge the two ‘locals’ point out the highlights and give us an idea where the snow might be good. I think we will follow up on some of their suggestions. There is one full day tour that sounds good, where most of the skiing is on slopes with a north aspect so the snow should be good, but it is a 6.5 hour trek. I think that will be a later in the week thing.

A good start to my week of backcountry skiing.