Of course you can always go higher or deeper into the park, but decent turns can still be found close to town.
Blue skies and a late start on Saturday meant the Glen Alps trailhead would be packed. A chance encounter with the Noodler provided for fine conversation until a legal spot opened up. With ski gear, ax, and clamp-ons loaded onto to my back, the goat rodeo was underway.
Chugach State Park Style Bike Rack
Ptarmigan Couloir lies in wait roughly 3 miles up the Power Line trail. As of Saturday AM, the continuous snow began 300-400' off the deck with 2,000' of skiing pushing towards the ridge. 2-4" of soft summer goodness sat atop a firm base throughout the entire run. A good slide slip push was enough to motivate the surface mank to ooze down several pre-existing runnels. The bottom 1/3 is melting quick; however, the top 2/3 is in it for the long haul.
Opted for the Hanging Dog Leg Off the Ridge
(click here for scale - climber 90% to the ridge)
Sunday did not look promising but the OCD man that lives in my head demanded that the quest for 100 end today. Wild Bill and I decided to go for the forbidden fruit of McVeigh Creek. Again 2-3" of summer soft on carvable firm. Nike #1 was good for 1,000 vert while Nike #2 yielded a continuous 800 if you include the half-dozen tundra jump turns. We contemplated hitting #2 again, but there were a couple Passenger 57 Black Ale home brews stashed in the creek eagerly awaiting our return.
Wild Bill on the Lookout for Skiable Snow
Surfing the "Wave" in Nike #2
- John Cutter
Thank you OCD man for keeping track!
Days: 100
Back Country Days: 94
Solo Days: 45
Vert: 52 miles
P.S.: Foraker from 23,000': June 17, 2011
