April 30, 2012

Sunday Skiday - Always an Adventure!

Andrea skiing Catherine's Pass

After the Thanksgiving Point Half Marathon on Saturday, we decided to take advantage of the perfect weather and head back up into the mountains for some more spring skiing. The weather has been a little cooler over the past couple days, which actually made for better ski conditions (ie. no bottomless slush). We had a really fun day, as the "ski legs" are coming back for both of us... we actually feel confident in our ability to ski well again.

We started at Brighton, skinned up to Catherine's Pass, then skied a pair of fantastic laps off the ridge between the pass and Sunset Peak. From there it was back up to the pass, a bootpack to the summit of Mt Tuscarora, and then the decision was made to tag Mt Wolverine since we were already to close. We ended end up skiing Wolverine Bowl twice, and in-between attempted to ski Stupid Chute... but it was too icy/sketchy. I entered the chute, then had to climb back out because I didn't think it would be safe for us to ski without whippets. Eventually we meandered our way back to Brighton (which ended up being a comedy of errors), and made it to the car in just enough time to get home, take a shower, and meet some friends for dinner. What a day. Its always an adventure!

Andrea's brief description of the day from her training blog sums it up best...

It was a very typical "Jake and Andrea Adventure Day" with Jake triggering a couple wet avalanches, us both making things way more difficult than they needed to be (the bootpack up steep terrain), me chickening out on a sketchy ice couloir, skiing with our skins on because we were too lazy to take them off, and a crazy trail fiasco back out to the car. Good times :)

Skiing up from Brighton with Tuscarora's Seagull Couloir looking tasty


Springtime is the best time for solitude in the Wasatch
We skied our first couple laps from this ridgeline
Ready to drop in
Andrea off the top


Some wet avalanche activity. I triggered a pair of these :-0


Timp


A little bootpacking never hurt anyone
Hiking the ridge to Tuscarora



The sketchy climb out of Stupid Chute
Andrea ripping
Some nice 8s!

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