I’ve skied the Boyscout Couloir two… or three… or four times over the years – I forget – because every time has been in marginal snow that should’ve been excellent. Today was my first time nailing this quirky 2,200 foot line in soft conditions, and today the snow was downright heroic.
The Boyscout Couloir is probably the most popular ski line on Treasure Mountain, which isn’t saying much, because in all my years skiing on the southern wall of Teton Canyon I’ve never once encountered another party. My popularity assessment is based on old windblown tracks I’ve seen a handful of times headed the Boyscout’s direction. The couloir itself is about 800 feet and just above the canyon bottom, cleaving a massive closeout cliff that underpins the entire north face. In fact, the Boyscout is the only line on Treasure’s roughly one mile wide north face that reliably skis without a rope. Some folks ski only the couloir, booting the line directly from the Eagle Scout cirque above the Treasure Mountain Boyscout Camp, but unless you have a snowmobile to eliminate the long and flat 2.5 road miles between the winter parking area and wilderness boundary, the approach isn’t justified. Instead, I’ve always skied the Boyscout from the summit of Treasure Mountain, which makes for a truly classic 2,200 foot ski descent.
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Finding good conditions in the couloir has proved remarkably elusive. The north face above almost always skis well, with mildly spaced 30-40 degree north facing trees that never see sun. But the couloir faces ENE and begins at the relatively low elevation of 8,300 feet, with multi hundred foot walls just low angle enough to hold snow, but release said snow with little resistance. I’ve skied into the Boyscout expecting powder many times, only to find compacted lumpy snow spiked with frozen debris. The experience of other skiers confirms this phenomena. At this point I think the only strategy for courting a powdery Boyscout is before the first shed of a heavy storm cycle.
On Janurary 10th, 2026, Bobbi Clemmer and I cut potentially the first skin track of 2025/26 winter into Eddington Canyon. The always mandatory bushwhacking scored a 7/10 on the Teton bushwhacking scale – nothing overly egregious, but ski edge and outerwear threatening. At the base of the Eddington Chutes we encountered a deeper snowpack and broke my proffered “stable avalanche conditions” track to the broad north ridge of Treasure Mountain, using the first half of the first chute encountered and moving into the adjacent trees when matters steepen. Our trail breaking could be broadly characterized as heinous wallowing. From the summit ridge we skied the first ~1,200 feet of Lost Boys. The powder was among the best I’ve ever surfed in the Tetons, rivaled only by other descents in this area. The entrance to the couloir is not obvious, and if you haven’t been here before a GPS mapping application is useful. While the meat of the couloir oscillates at a civilized 30-40 degrees, the entry is an exposed, thin and unsupported ramp pushing 50 degrees that often loads with fresh and heavy snow. Because Bobbi is a fifth year skier still polishing her steep technique we brought a small rope to belay the traverse, but didn’t use it. A few tight jump turns gave way to a wider belly that allowed for fast skiing in a very unique feature. Most Teton couloirs are walled with splitter alpine granite. This couloir sports rugged limestone glazed with tannin stained yellow ice and boldly rooted pine trees, promoting a jungle feel unknown to east slope skiers. Donning new Dynafit Radical boots and renewed fitness, Bobbi ripped the beast in commendable style. The egress was predictably bushy with all the quintessential elements of a west slope escape – rocks, dodgy creek crossings, log hurdles and more. In all my years of skiing in Teton Canyon, this day stands as one of the finest. The snow was all time from top to bottom, and the vibes were high.
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Ski mountaineering, rock climbing, ice climbing and all other forms of mountain recreation are inherently dangerous. Should you decide to attempt anything you read about in this article, you are doing so at your own risk! This article is written to the best possible level of accuracy and detail, but I am only human – information could be presented wrong. Furthermore, conditions in the mountains are subject to change at any time. Ten Thousand Too Far and Brandon Wanthal are not liable for any actions or repercussions acted upon or suffered from the result of this article’s reading.
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