"Yesterday's 7 a.m. wake-up was nice. The plan was to sleep in and show up late, as the line I had chosen lives in the shade. When the afternoon light hits the opposite wall, it bounces back and lights up my target zone a bit. The line I'd chosen is just upvalley from "Eeny Meeny Miny Moe" in the Mill B drainage of the Wasatch Mountains, UT."
"I'd been eyeing this line for a couple of days as I'd hiked past it. The other nice thing about this line is that it's only a 3,400 vertical foot climb and there was a skinner already in. Unfortunately, when the time came, I chose the wrong skin track and added an hour to my day... Frustrating. I followed a random skin track that bushwhacked, bootpacked, and didn't even go to the top of the ridge. Who are these people!?"
Woke at 7 a.m. and planned to sleep in and arrive late because the chosen line sat in shade until afternoon light reflected onto the target zone. The climb was 3,400 vertical feet; a skinner existed but I accidentally followed a wrong skin track that added an hour and forced a bushwhack and fresh skin to the ridge. A NW wind had transformed creamy recrystallized snow into louder, crunchier "loud pow." I dropped into a mellow upper funnel with hit-or-miss snow, then into a steeper middle gully with features, navigating wind-affected smooth sections and orange-peel speed checks while skipping risky pillows. I found a better lower route through the bushwhack, crossed the creek, and returned satisfied.
Read at SnowBrains
Unable to calculate read time
Collection
[
|
...
]