Dawn patrol gave way to copper and smokey-azure hues showcasing the coming system. More than once, split and I mused aloud if we were better off buying a bottle of Wild Turkey and entertaining ourselves for the day (or was that just me, twice?)....but we knew better. We're both sick of bikes at the moment and looking for refreshing methods of self-flagellation.
Warming up with the sun at our backs, I paused to shed some layers and noticed I was standing in a hallway of photons, framed by ponderosa.....
As the sailors warning colors waned, the baby peaks began to show themselves....looking pretty chapped from the wind event during the last storm....
Skinning up waterline, glimpses of Cliffband and it's SE protected main couloir looked promising....
...yet closer inspection of other protected areas revealed hints of pickup stix snags just below the surface...
Split remarked that the aspen looked good to go, but we both agreed that the nice 2' of snow out of the last storm was consistently soft...so much so that it gave way to the landmines below our skis far to easily.
Resisting temptation, we continued on to the IB where vaporous clouds seeded with snow and wind obscured the cirque and snowslide canyon....
Windows of sunlight gave clear views of Cliffband...
And crunchy views of Fremont proper with a wind-stripped upper Telemark falling from it's summit.....
At this point, my IT band issue started cropping up especially after breaking trail in the 1-2' of snow. After some silent battles...I confessed to the injury and fell to the rear to let Split take over break duties for the rest of the day. Resting at a lunch spot, we dug a wind break and played with crumbly slabs.
The trip back was a slog with waterline seemingly uphill both ways. Too shallow to ride out, too steep to skin down....we were left to cursing and second guessing. For my first day out; the recon was educational, the first major coverage was impressive and the suffering was elevated. In honor of the first day out, I'll be calling this one "Pancho"....
.......and this one "Lefty"....
Welcome to the 2010 season!
2 comments:
I got one dem blisters yesterday too. Freaking new boots.
Nice post. And yeah Waterline road seems kinda discouraging unless you are on a bike.
In the lift area, the unmashed down stuff is rather deceiving too. Where it looks tasty, but just not enough base to keep you form hitting the rocks and branches under the surface. The ungroomed slope I skied was done with the utmost caution.
woot woot woot!
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