Tincan: 10/18/12

Work gave me the day off and the Amoral Hippy gave the motivation with tales of excellent skiing at Turnagain Pass. I had planned to ski in the Girdwood area, but the allure of a much shorter approach to decent snow drew me towards the pass. There is a nice hiking trail that goes from the road to above treeline at the Tincan pullout. So even if there is no snow at the road, it is easy to get to the alpine.

Sunrise

I was surprised to see 6ish inches at the pullout - it would be possible to skin from the meadow. Skinning was interesting: minor creek crossings, not so frozen mud, steep sections not deep enough to put in a wide enough track, but it beat bushwhacking or hiking with skis and boots on my back. 


Muddy Underneath - Cold On Top

There was 4-8" below tree line and 12-18" above. It was nice to be in the sun and skinning. Summer was short and rainy; any break from the gloom is welcome. 

Thin

Tincan Ridge

In my mind, the Tincan Bowl would be deep and there would be hours of gleefully schussing lap after lap.  But reality was quite different.  This time last year, multiple storms had laid down great empire-building snow up high by mid-October.  Yesterday on Tincan there was only snow from the most recent storm and the high pressure has sucked out most of moisture needed for effective base building.

The first high pressure in months is ill timed.  The entire (albeit thin) snow pack is rapidly going to sugar with a healthy dose of hoar frost on top for good measure.  It makes a cool noise while skiing through it, but the that noise could be harbinger of problems down the road.  Hopefully the wind forecast for the weekend gives the snowpack a Romney-esque Etch-A-Sketch reset opportunity. 

The skiing right now is tricky to say the least. It would be easy to get injured with not-quite-enough low density snow on tundra, scree, brush.  If you do decide to head out, take it slow up high - there'll be plenty of opportunities to send it this winter.  And don't be too proud to walk out the bottom bit, it's a long season.  You'll get your opportunity to ride it switch into the road soon enough.

 - U.K.

Mountain Penguin Peak: May 4, 2012

Work had sent me out of town for the second week in a row depriving me of the excellent early May skiing Anchorage has been blessed with.  I knew my flight would be landing around 1:30 PM, so I loaded the truck with the requisite ski gear before going to the airport.  

The flight back took me over the heart of the Chugach: huge peaks, tidewater glaciers, infinity ski runs.  I was amped and ran from the terminal to long term parking and headed South down the Seward Highway.  I wanted mine.  

The Noodler had been keen on Penguin Peak for the last week or so.  Penguin is often overlooked but highly visible from the highway.

Penguin and the Turnagain Arm

Anchorage had a record snow year, so I there has been no need to drive very far to get the schuss.   This has meant mostly skiing the Chugach State Park.  The park is huge extending roughly 40 miles North, South, and East from Anchorage.  There are dozens of trailheads.  Some are official, most are not.  The route up Penguin happens to start at one of the official entrances.

The run climbs a 3,000' slide-path that averages in the low 30s.  Evidence of large slides are everywhere.  The slides originate from the climbers right hand side from a large steep ridge. Fortunately today is a corn mission and the snow is still very firm. Eventually the main run rolls over to reveal a mellow bowl towards the summit.  The approach is super mellow; maybe 3 switchbacks.  

The Upper Bowl

From the head of the drainage, there is 3,900' of excellent continuous skiing with the cold grey Pacific in your lap.  But the head is a false summit of Mountain Penguin Peak.  The schuss will have to wait.

The Summit Ridge from the False Summit

The ridge is straight forward but firm.  I didn't have a self arrest device, so I opted to boot the 200 yards to the top.  After the short detour, it was time to ski.  

4,100' to the Turnagain Arm looking towards Anchor Town

The top hadn't softened, but that was OK.  A recent squall had placed 2" of new on the top half. The frozen corn underneath was super smooth, so this made for some super fun, high speed turning. The recent snow transformed seamlessly into perfect 2" deep corn around 2,500'  The snow lost the bright white appearance around 1,000' and got a bit punchy and considerably slower, but it was continuous to the parking lot.

It's good, I will return.

 - U.K.

P.S.  Hit it again on 5/8 - still skiable to the lot

Late February Update: AK

The February storm finally let up for a few days. Since there hasn't been a break in the action, there aren't any persistent weak layers. The snow has been quick to heal after storms this year.

Alas, I was tethered to the cubey! The photos and stories were coming in; folk were getting it and I had a serious case of FOMO. It was too much; I needed out. On Wednesday I made for the door at 3:15. Turnagain was too far for this late start, but Hiland Road in Eagle River would fit the bill. ER hadn't received the massive dumps that had buried Turnagain; my expectations were low but skiing is skiing is awesome even if it sucks.

The sky was cloudy with patches of blue, and I hoped to luck into some decent light. But throughout the drive the weather continued to worsen. It was snowing hard at the trailhead with 3" fresh. Poor vis and heavy snow convinced me to hit up the low angle bowl just West of Mountain Harp. As I climbed it got deeper and deeper and it became obvious that I had lucked into some deep powder. Who needs light when you have 18" of blower? Probably someone, but not me.

Oh, that was a rhetorical question?

Yes.

Oh, was rhetorical too?

Enough already! Time to schuss! It was still pounding . The sky, air, ground were all grey. Nothing to focus on except the the faint hint of skinner trailing off into the sky? It would have to be enough. Effortless turns complemented the powder that billowed over my waist with each turn. I was shocked. Hoots and giggles rang out throughout the blind descent until I hit the road. Stunning!

I had to return on Thursday. I put out the word out but no one believed me and again I had it to myself. The plan was to follow my skinner, but that was buried by another un-forecast storm. Usually I bring the rock skis for ER, but today I had the 194s and it was just as deep as the day before. More giggles and squeals and yawps. Their loss.

Turnagain had got 9' in the 2 weeks since my last visit and the CNFAIC proclaimed: Low! Hubert has a penchant for the South Facing shots on Eddies. 1,500', steep, and plenty of room. No more willows, rocks, cliffs, or anything.

We ran into Paul and Anthony at the top of Run #1. It was #3 for them but it was bliss for all. Still no vis, but with conditions like this, seeing is not really that necessary. So you go and trust in the slope, the equipment, and muscle memory. And the super hero snow let's you get away with it time and time again.

Nothing to See Here

The light was so poor, we failed to notice that dusk had arrived. But being the the last car in the lot is not necessarily a bad thing.

Saturday morning was forecast to be sunny, but there was a weather advisory for the afternoon. Get the morning sun and then get an afternoon nap. Mountain Harp was calling again. Harp is the easiest 5er in the CSP, and draped with a dozen high quality lines. It was calm and sunny in the car-park, but by the time Chris W. and summited the wind was ripping. The extra layers were going on. Something was brewing out there. The sun was still shining as we dropped into a sheltered slope just East of the peak.

The wind was howling but the prodigal sun had returned! The glorious sun! The rare sun out for a short tryst in the mountains! The blessed sun! Hello, friend! Oh, and the snow was excellent, but that sun, that wonderful sun. ER continues to deliver.

Looking Up 2,000' of Goodness

We climbed West back towards the summit ridge. It took about an hour but, in those 60 minutes the sky went from blue to a menacing gray.

Climbing Out with Hanging Valley in the Background

It was time to go, but we still had another 2,000' of powder sprawled out under our tips. The light was garbage but we were used to that. Nothing but smiles as we dropped back into the ping-pong ball, but I was secretly cursing that fickle, shy bastard in the sky.

- U.K.

Tincan North

I busted out of work early on Friday intent on getting into something steep. The last few weeks have been tough and I haven't been motivated to get on anything interesting.

Hubert provided the necessary kick in the pants to get me out of that rut. This short line heads North off of Tincan Common and runs into lower Todd's. Even though it wasn't the rowdiest or longest line out there, it felt good to get back on that horse.

2 minutes of tentative turning

Hope everyone is doing well.

-U.K.

Mid-December Update: Alaska

Storm has been the word of the month for better or for worse. But big wind has accompanied the snow setting up for a sensitive snowpack. The snow has been locked into a cycle of self-loathing:

1. Snow pack gets feelings hurt
2. Snow pack starts to get over the insult
3. Snow pack gets feelings hurt again

This pattern has made for a bi-polar snowpack. Unfortunately, the snow has been most sensitive on Saturdays and Sundays. Not good for this ex-Sugarhouser, weekend warrior. So the dilemma has been whether to ski or wait another week.

I have expanded my horizon to other outdoor activities. Such as Avi Education

Level 3 Prep Class at Turnagain Pass

Mens Paired Lift Serviced Ski Ballet with GB6K

And the infrequent nordic ski. On rare occasions, I have been known to succumb to the more popular activities that dominate Alaska this time of year: alcohol, sleep, and the arts. Well, 2 out of 3 ain't bad.

I checked the weekend forecast on Friday and it looked daunting again. It predicted (correctly) that we would have a third consecutive Sunday with 100+mph wind in the mountains. But it looked like there would be a nice weather window at Hatcher on Saturday morning.

There was 8-10" of fresh low density snow a the upper lot. We elected to head up Skyscraper Peak to ski El Dorado Bowl. P9 led the charge and picked a nice route into the lower bowl. A quick test pit revealed 103" base and the new low density snow was quite reactive (CT3).

Looking Back Towards the Chugach from the Talkeetnas

We eventually gained the ridge and topped out on the summit. Winds had picked loading the top of the bowl. Visibility was getting poor.

P9 Sussing an Entrance

The 4 of us skied a nice 900' shot back into the lower bowl under flat light. A squall had kicked up when we started up for run 2. We were nervous about retracing our skinner so we aimed to gain the ridge much lower by traversing a couple 100 feet below our original route.

This seemingly conservative decision was actually our biggest mistake of the day. In hindsight, we had effectively isolated the slope above us. The original skinner ski cut the top and the right hand side of the slope. The second skinner cut the bottom. The low density surface layer that we had previously ID's let loose swiftly and silently. P9 (75' ahead of me) got carried down slope and I put eyes on. Then the slide got me too. I struggled and swam and came to stop and then got hit by a second wave. Both waves were relatively minor (as far as slides go). P9 and I ended up on top of the snow. The loose snow avalanche had carried us about 100'. , Fe2O3 held his ground on the skinner. Our poles were gone and we were ready to get out of there.

There is a lesson to be learned from every incident (SAR, avalanche, drowning, car wreck). Those who dismiss the the participants as idiots will miss the opportunity to learn from their mistakes. Even if the participants were idiots, there is still a takeaway.

So you can shake your head, make the predictable Darwin comment, and shit talk me if you want, but I'd rather you draw from this experience.

• We correctly ID'd the potential threat (good)
• Our 2 skin tracks isolated the slope above us (bad)
• Managing a 10" slough while skiing downhill is one thing: you have momentum that can be used to move to a safe zone, traverse out, or point it.
• Standing still with a loose heal and skins leaves you powerless to react

We were aware of the terrain and consequences. If there were more snow, a hard slab, more complicated terrain, then our decision making process would have been different. Still, I didn't expect to be caught and was surprised by how helpless I was in uphill mode.

- Idiot

Goat Rodeo at the Pass

The blizzard was supposed to hit Saturday afternoon, but the storm was late. The Sunday AM inter-tubes weather station check had confirmed this. The stars were out in Anchorage and only 0.1" SWE had accumulated overnight at Turnagain Pass.

Sunday had been penciled in as "Glacier Training" for an April trip. We had planned to get on actual glaciers, but the visibility was not great and the wind was kicking up. We opted to practice at our fall-back location: Center Ridge. At the parking lot there was 2" of fresh and it was snowing at 0.5"/hour (S2-ing for you nerds). We roped up and marched into the low angle trees.

At 1,600', I sussed out an exposed ridge and the winds were howling. Going higher would not be prudent. We retreated a few 100 vert to a nice roll-over to practice haul systems. Even this sheltered location was catching some gusts. And it was snowing. Hard. 2,000' above us the wind was gusting up to 121 mph. Exhausted and wet, we returned to the cars after 4 hours of training. Our feelings of victory were short lived, as it became obvious that our rides were snowed in and we were 150 yards from the plowed highway. The shit show was underway.

Hubris convinced us that we could rally out to the road no problem. This was not to be. After nearly crashing the cars into each other and getting them high-centered; it was time to reassess. Fortunately we had 6 shovels and 6 motivated, thirsty shovelers. After about an hour we had the vehicles pointed towards the road and a launching pad shoveled out. Rusty accelerated down the ramp and momentum allowed him to surf out to the road. Heather followed in his wake and we were ready for a beer, but first we had to free a stuck traveler that had augured his Hyundai into a snow bank.

The wind was howling and snow was still coming in thick. The highway is divided at this point and visibility was so low that confused motorists were driving on the wrong side. After 10 minutes of Hyundai work, there were 3 more cars stuck: 2 traveling in the wrong direction and one in the middle. Junk show. No one in these four stuck vehicles had a shovel or boots, and Team Hyundai was in shorts. And the weather was not going to let up.

No one wants "Donner Party 2: AK Edition" on their conscience. I could envision the shadowy interview with voice disguise technology on the TLC or NatGeo.

Interviewer: "So you left them to die?"
U.K.: sounding like Ned from South Park "Yep"

Amusing as that sounds, it really was not an option, so we dug. We pushed and we dug some more. In front, underneath, next to, and behind. More motorist got stuck. Motorist number 2 got out and borrowed a shovel. Finally some help. But this doooooosh, tried to blend in and kept pointing as his own car and saying, "We should probably get those guys out first." Nice....

We did finally get the dooosh and his family unstuck and on the correct side of the highway based on their direction of travel. But then they stopped and the back door opened and a barefoot 8-year boy got out and proceeded to take a piss in the middle of the highway. As they drove off the lil' bastard starting snapping cell phone pics of us as we continued to shovel.

We freed a Neon and sent them on their way South. Heather yelled, "You're never gonna make it!!" as they fish-tailed down the highway towards more mountains and higher passes. Team Hyundai was the last to be set free and they required the use of Rusty's moose-blood stained tow strap. They yelled thanks out the window as they tried to maintain momentum.

Time for some beer, but as a final insult another 2-wheel drive, bald-ass tired POS, mother-f'ing shitbox augured in. We had already shoveled this stretch of highway down to pavement and were operating with the efficiency of a NASCAR pit crew; so we freed them quickly and headed for Gird.

Conditions did not improve as we descended but with gravity on our side traffic moved slowly and surely. Those travelling up towards the pass were not fairing as well. Especially since a tractor trailer abandoned his load in the middle of the only south bound lane.

We finally made to Girdwood to quench the thirst that had been rapidly building. It was definitely a mess, but I was glad we went. And so was the inept, ill-equipped, road-whizzing, 2-wheel driving, shorts wearing, bald tire spinning slice of humanity that we met along the way.

- U.K.

Cornbiscuit & Hatcher Pass: November 12 & 13

Clear skies and tales of stability and aggressive skiing dominated the week. As Friday approached, I grew restless. It was my turn to get after it. The pieces were all falling into place on Saturday morning: The Noodler was in, the avi forecast was encouraging, and there was snow aplenty. But it was not to be sender-fest; it was a weekend of tiptoeing through storms.

We headed south to Turnagain. The roads were snow covered and spirits were high as we parked at the Cornbiscuit trail head. It was a Class V skinner through the alders and forest, but who doesn't love a being slapped in the face for 60 minutes? We finally were through the worst of it and began to climb in earnest.

The Noodler on the Prowl

There was evidence of about 6 large glide avalanches. We opted to pull a move from my Utah bag of tricks: CTR (choose the ridge). As we climbed, the storm intensified: wind and plenty of snow available for transport. Today would not be the day for going after big objectives. New snow slabs were building and were extremely sensitive: whoomphs and cracking, but only on the new snow. We kept the angles low. The Noodler did pop out a small slab on a steep rollover whilst performing a ski cut. The low angle love was low density powder and definitely more fun than the sketchiness higher up.

Time to Back Off

There were big winds forecast for Sunday in the Turnagain area. The nice thing about Anchorage, is it's proximity to several different snow packs and weather patterns. Instead of South, we went North to Hatcher Pass. Unfortunately, it was more of the same. Wind with snow available for transport creating sensitive slabs. Sigh....

I didn't feel comfortable exposing the large group to questionable terrain. So we had an avalanche safety refresher day. Pits were dug and analyzed. Beacons were buried and located. Talk focused on looking for signs of instability, other quick tests that can be done on the skinner, picking pit locations, and so on.

Hatch Peak Getting Blasted

The instability this weekend seemed limited to recent wind loading. There weren't any problems in the meat of the snow pack. So hopefully the wind slabs heal quick. And in other good news, there is more snow at Hatcher right now then at any point last year.

Alpenglow and the Pinnacle

I didn't get the big line I was hoping for, but it was a super productive weekend and I will never complain about spending the day outdoors with fun people.

- Martha Macy Mae Marlene

Kenai Ski Weekend - November 5 and 6

Well, I ditched day 2 on the Alaska Snow Safety Conference to go backcountry skiing by myself. It was just too blue and there was plenty of low density fresh. I tore out of Rage City in cloud. I didn't bother to get the snow off my car; that's what highways are for. I had a Plan A, B, and C. Plan A was a long shot, but even with steeps odds, that horse came in.

I espied a skinner heading up Sunny Side at Turnagain Pass. It was an aggressive skinner but it was efficient. I ran into the group that set the skinner, and they were more than happy to share what conditions to expect up higher. They had kicked off a small wind slab off the SW aspect of Pt. 3340. I promised to keep my angles low.

Pt. 3340

About the time that I gained the ridge, the light went to shit. Oh well. I dropped into the low angle Triangle Bowl at the head of Seattle Creek. Even though the angle was low, the exposure from above was high. Avalanches had released in the prior 24 hours from either side leaving a mess of debris in the gut. I didn't linger.

While I was doing the mess around in Seattle Creek there was some action on the front side. A glide crack had fully released above the skinner taking out about 150' off switchbacks. Other than the nervous bile creeping up into to my mouth leaving an awful acrid taste, the skiing was excellent.

Dang ole' glide!

On Sunday morn, I responded to a flash mob request to Occupy Tenderfoot. Our caravan of 99%ers arrived well caffeinated and anxious to participate in a well thought out movement that is sure to bring about real change.

H★ Claiming Her Spot

KAZ and H★ formed our own mini group and sussed out some alternative areas to occupy. This led us to the north side of Tenderfoot Ridge. A+ snow accompanied our descent towards Butcher Creek. We returned back to Tenderfoot Ridge to reclaim our area, but by this point other protesters were congregating in our zone, but there was plenty of room for all.

The ground still hasn't frozen (3,500') and there was evidence off recent glide fractures in the area. A small wind slab had released on a micro feature (NW facing, 8", 10' wide, ran about 20').

H★ Occupyin'

- U.K.

Todd's: July 3

On a recent trip to Seward, I noticed Todd's on Tincan Ridge was looking surprisingly good. Sunday would be judgment day and at the crack of noon, I was off.

Todd's from the Highway

Roadside snow is long gone, so I had mentally prepared for a punishing bushwhack. But lo, what light through yonder window breaks? A trail. ¡No mierda!

Caution!

The summer trail avoids all bushwhacking and generally follows the winter skinner until reaching the tundra. I was able to skirt the snow fields until the final ridge to Tincan Common. Even then, the snow hiking was short lived. After a leisurely 2-hour walk, I was looking down Todd's. My feet were shocked when they were shoved unceremoniously into their dark plastic dungeons. But that was their problem, not mine.

Still Plenty of Snow Up High

The snow was soft and tempted me to let 'em run. I attempted to oblige, but large sun-cups dictated a more conservative strategy. The snow was fun and super carvy when speeds were in the reasonable range. After a quick 1,700' vert, the Atomics lunged into a trademarked high-speed tundra docking. Now was the time for leniency for the poor feet. Your sentence is hereby commuted to time served.

Arty Black & White Photos Mean Crap Weather

The snow is good and may hang on for worthwhile turns for another week or two. The trail is in great shape and Todd's provides to perfect redemption to being skunked on the Russian.

- Sylvain Chomet

3 Ranges, 3 Days: May 6-8, 2011

Kenai:

I busted out of my cube at 3:30 and headed straight for Turnagain. Typically the West side of the pass is snow-machine central, but the last day for motorized access was April 30th. Objectives on "Sunny Side" had become much more appealing since silence returned to dominate the soundscape.

Sunny Side Parking Area

Big Chief has haunted me for years and I thought today could finally be the day. I started up a SE aspect at 5:00 PM. There had been some wet slide activity earlier in the day, but the sun was off the route and a stiff wind would provide some evaporative cooling. My route crossed a couple of creeks and ascended a steep gully with consolidated slide debris.

Despite my bullet-proof theories regarding snow safety, slow moving wet slides were laboring down the gully on the regular. Spooky. I traversed out of the gully onto a dry ridge and continued up. The dry ridge eventually ended. A short 50' traverse would get me to another dry sub-ridge but it would be through waste deep slush across a 40° slope. The right decision was obvious but it held no appeal. Shit!

From the tundra, I leaned over and with one hand pushed the top foot of snow down the hill to see what would happen. It started slow, but it got a good head a steam on a roll-over. It was fanning out creating a larger and larger slice of pie. And then it stepped to the ground. Other large pieces pulled out joining the party. The river of snow was now a couple 100 yards wide and wiping out small trees. It ran the full length of the slide path and the sound of moving slush continued for about 10 minutes. I decided beer was now more important than glory. Conservative skiing and driving segued nicely into aggressive drinking.

Talkeetna:

Touring with a large fun group seemed like a better idea for Saturday. I theorized that high, north-facing aspects would provide the best snow, but having completely botched my snow prediction the day before, I kept my mouth shut. As fate would have it, the group decided to ski April Bowl: high and North facing.

The sun was in and out all morning and clouds began to thicken. From the summit, sucker holes gave us hope for a well lit descent. A cold wind was trying our patience and Dean dropped in under flat light. Kelley, then Heather, then Selene, and then the sun made an brief appearance. Bill and I lucked into some great visibility. The snow was fantastic: 6" of wintery, creamy sender! A second lap was a no brainer, and another sucker hole illuminated the descent. Tonight's aggressive drinking would be the inspired by great snow and great people.

The Team

April Bowl

Chugach:

Sunday dawned sunny, but the urge to hibernate in a deep dark cave surrounded by gatorade, soft music, and pizza was powerful. But, I knew Hiland would be great so I worked myself into a frenzy with a series of air punches and self-affirming thoughts. The South Fork Trail is about 50% melted out and didn't really lend itself to either hiking or skiing. After 1.5 miles, I angled West towards the "2nd Notch." From the summit just South of the notch, I "sent the shit" out of a mellow face towards Ship Creek. Excellent corn made for effortless skiing. Run 2 began from the same summit, but this time the NW face called. Again, smooth corn in the sun is tough to beat. I wanted a third, but dehydration was dominating my skull. The only wise option at this point was to locate the mythical electrolyte cave.

- James Dalton

Mid Winter Alaska Update

I dream of the desert. Long warm days with a powerful sun. Friends and short sleeves and flip flops and desert whiskey and no suspenders because there are plenty of belts for all. I awake long before the cold pointless dawn. Warm up the truck, make some coffee. Should I put my sunglasses in my pack? No. Micro-puff or down jacket? Both and a fleece vest to be safe. This time of year every aspect skis like its North facing. The sun can't make a crust, the sun can't warm you, but on a clear day it can light the way through some epic South facing pow.

Conditions at Turnagain are touchy? Interesting? What's the word that means dangerous, but you're going to ski it anyway? Well, whatever the word, that's what we have going on up here. There is a 1/4" rain crust 4-8' down that has no porosity with facets above and below. You could actually use the crust as a window for a snow cave. Perfect for a deep slab. Trouble ahead, trouble behind, and you know that notion just crossed my mind.

Pits reveal that the ice crust is actually one of the stronger interfaces. There are several weak interfaces in the top foot. (Note lack of metric units; this is the USA godamit!) CT2, CT4, CT6, CT bullshit! Sloughs were running on a density change 2" deep, but they ran far and fast. It won't slough at all until you hit that critical angle in the high 30s. It not an issue if you are aware of it, but it could suck if it snuck up on you. At least the cold snow makes for impressive powder clouds. The slough can and did step down at Silvertip: 4" and 8". Where did all these layers come from? Where is our maritime snowpack? I like 80" storms with no slabs; seven feet of consistent pudding that sticks to everything.

The front range is much safer. But without risk, there can not be reward. Above Anchor Town the standard shots are filled in, but wind hammered. They are carvy and fun and close enough to hit up after work. Peak 3, 4, and Ptarmigan are all skiing nicely on the South and West aspects, but it might be a good idea to bring some points (ax, clamp-ons).

- Frank Moolin, Jr.

Sunset over Cook Inlet from Peak 3

The Noodler Searching for Something to Noodle

I Hate it when a Slough Ruins my Squiggles!

Silvertip Twins and High Trees

Some Sheep Descended to Road Side / Rail Road Side / Ocean Side

North Bowl and Peak 4940: November 20

"Do the Right Thing" had just finished up. Mookie obviously didn't do the right thing, but can his actions be justified? The MLK quote says no but the Malcolm X quote leaves room for interpretation. Obviously Mookie could have prevented the shit-show, but does yelling "hate" absolve him? White people get to ski on Dr. King's B-day so I'm going with his theories. Oh, I get it; the movie is spoda make you think. 2 stars. I hope Netflix doesn't start recommending racist movies. Ring, ring.


It's Bass. Parental obligations have limited his free time and at 10:30 PM he has a small window between feedings. The moon was full, the night was clear, and it was his B-day. "I'll pick you up in 20, Dave." We headed to Hiland Road in Eagle River and parked at the State Park trailhead and were skinning by 11:30 PM. It brought back memories of Alfie's. Where were the cats? Oh, that's right; shift change at midnight.



We topped out around 12:30 AM and Anchorage was twinkling below. Dave dropped in and I followed. The snow was excellent, but the base was lacking. The moon was bright, but not bright enough to pick out the rocks. Another foot or so, and Eagle River will be much more fun.

Anchorage

When you wake up in AK in November and it's light, you screwed up: daylight is extremely limited. Darn! Shoot! Dag! After a quick RBGC I was speeding South to Turnagain Pass. Fog on the inlet, bluebird up high. The Turnagain Pass user area is split in two: east is non-motorized, west is snow-machine friendly. Currently, there is not enough snow at road level to accommodate our motorized friends. This would be a good opportunity to check out the west.


I parked at the gated entrance to Granite Creek just South of the Johnson Pass trail head. I espied a skinner heading up the non-motorized side. Perfect. I was expecting 2,500' vert. Why? Don't know. Ignorance, stupidity, callousness, fever? Probably some sort of combo. 4,300' later I topped out. Holy moly! I compared my elevation to other peaks in the area that I was familiar with. How had I missed Peak 4940? This is the highest peak at Turnagain and it has 3 sides of 4,000'+ continuous skiing. The west side brings you into a massive bowl and chute system that goes straight down to the road, but I couldn't see the middle section. East would get you back down into the Turnagain Pass area near Bertha Creek. Heading south would keep me in the light and retrace the ascent. I wanted the west side, but I was alone and daylight could end up being a factor. So I choose south.

The Bottom 2/3 (Ascent via the Gully on the Right)

Looking Down the Pass towards the Turnagain Arm

Entering the Couloir

The snow was variable. The top was carvy styrofoam, great for carrying speed and arcing turns. Eventually it was time to enter the couloir. There were still some pockets of recycled powder hiding in the nooks, but mostly it was supportable crust and frozen roller balls. The runout was pretty good too. I came across this area by accident and really had a fun day of exploring, but when I return it will be no mistake. I want the west!


- Gerald "Coop" Cooperberg

Naming Update:
I was skiing the TT43 (Terrain Trap 43) area. The State refers to the South gully that I ascended as "Slide Path 4.3." See Plate 3.

http://dggs.alaska.gov/pubs/id/2255

Avalanche Mapping refers to this as "62 Mile".
http://www.avalanchemapping.org/Avatlas.htm

There is some confusion as to what exactly TT43 refers to. It may refer to the South Face that I ascended/descended (Slide Path 4.3 / 62 Mile). It could refer to the West bowl /couloir system that starts at the summit of Peak 4940. The West Bowl area is definitely the most aesthetic ski run off of Peak 4940, and since this slide path does not impact the road, the state hasn't given it a name (a far as I can tell).

It anyone can clear this up, please leave a comment.

Thanks.

Turnagain: November 6-7

Just a quick update on snow conditions at Turnagain.

As of Sunday afternoon. there was 24" in the meadow near the Tincan pull-out. I dug 3 pits on Tincan at 2,000', 2,200', and 2,900'. Depth ranged from 60" to 65". Snow was generally heavy and wet with conditions improving dramatically above 2,500'.

On Saturday I got a CT20-Q3 at 2' down. I couldn't get this (or any other) layer to fail on Sunday. Despite varying densities in the snowpack, the snow from last week appears to be acting as a cohesive slab. There is 3-5" of old snow at ground level. This snow has gone through some melt / freeze and is cohesive. The new snow bonded well to this layer.

There were some sloughs on steeper rollovers from snow that fell early Saturday. Terrain features such as roll overs and small drops that will be buried later in the season exist everywhere.

It looks like full on winter up high, but beware of numerous shark fins lurking just below the surface.

Pastoral: June 4

I had big plans for the weekend, big plans. Part I would be a night assault on Patoral (4,764') in the Turnagain area. I was on the road by 5 PM and skinning at 6:30. Not the best start, but the skies went from grey to blue. There was about 30 minutes of bush-whacking on the approach from the Sunburst trailhead. I took careful note of alternative routes for the way back. I felt strong and was moving quickly. Taylor Pass at 8 o'clock and Pastoral was looking good. There was a bit of a downclimb, and then right back to skinning. Shadows had enveloped me, but the goal was well lit. The summit approach looked straight-forward and with a route chosen, off I went.

Pastoral (9 PM)

Looking Down on the Grand Daddy Chute

View off the Back at Spencer Glacier (10 PM)

The snow was nice creamed corn for most of the approach, but the higher elevations gave way to death crust and eventually frozen bullet-pack. The wind was whipping on top, so it was time to descend. Rolling solo in a remote location with crap snow tends to lead to conservative decisions. No skiing like the Boyz tonight.

As I descended the snow improved and I was having a blast. But it was decision time: retrace my route or ski a patch lower.  Retracing my route would have taken me over the creek via a snow bridge and back through the heinous bushwhack.  I decided to take my chances and ski lower.  Reflecting back on it, I choose poorly. Granted I skied quite a bit lower and much closer to the vehicle, but I regretted this decision.

I fought my way through dense alders along the creek and was getting close to the highway.  I expected the creek to cross under the highway and I'd just have a bit of a pavement walk.  I was close and could see the occasional vehicle speed past. But then the creek turned sharply to the left and began to parallel the road.  Shit!

It was clear that I had to cross the creek . There was a spot with the willows were thick and the branches extended over the rushing water. I figured that if I clicked in to the Big Daddies I should be able to walk over the willows and make across nice and dry. Failure. I was up to my waist in cold-ass water and tangled in willow branches. Good call. At least this is over. I'll just release my skis and walk to shore. This was also a bad idea; the skis caught the current and whoosh. Awesome. It took a while but I recovered the skis and made to the road just before midnight. Time for rest and fuel.

-Zhou Yu

Tincan: May 31

Does Tincan really deserve a post? Really? It's the most skied line at Turnagain. Come off it!

Typically I would agree with that, but this was my 72nd day of backcountry of the season besting my previous high of 71. We've all put big numbers riding chairs, but never have I hiked so much in one season. Well, I'm sure you care more about the skiing than numbers.

Good Afternoon Skiers and Riders
This is your early June snow report for Turnagain Pass. Come on up and send it. It's full on! There is still snow down to the road at the Pass. Our recent strech strech of awesome weather has allowed the snow to cook down and is just about neve. Turnagain is still buried and the snow is fast and very white. And where the hell is everyone? The skiing right now crushes the thin, sketchy snowpack we had up until Turkey day. It's a ghost town up here, but why did all the miner 49er's leave all the goods behind? The lines are all filled in and the skiing and riding is excellent.

Snow Down to Road Level

Tincan Common

Despite the great conditions, I expect to be talking to imaginery birds and singing to myself again this weekend.

- Frank Machin