Rock Climbing – Ice Climbing – Ski Mountaineering
On April 20th I skied the "McGown Triple", linking the Little McGown Couloir, "50 Classic" North Couloir, and KLB Chute for a 4,500 foot day of excellent steep spring skiing on McGown Peak. If I wasn't a McDonald's hater, I would call it the McTriple. Perhaps it has an official name.
On Saturday April 13th I had the pleasure of skiing the classic East Face of The Jaw with Bobbi Clemmer, Bailey Haus and Carl Osterburg. That's right, Carl's back on the blog. Upon exiting we tagged the North Couloir of Symmetry Spire, a really neat, relatively tight and seldom skied hallway funneling into Hanging Canyon.
I've stared at this couloir nearing a decade - a beautiful winding dance down the improbable North Face of Peak 10,696. I naively kept skiing lower hoping the snow would get better... an exercise in edge control.
On Sunday April 16th I reconnected with Reed Finlay for an interesting powder redemption tick in Colter Canyon, the surprisingly exciting North Couloir of Leek's Peak.
During a high pressure cycle in late February 2020, Sam Johnson and I set our sights to Mount Wister, the criminally overlooked 11,455 foot giant lurking deep in the heart of Avalanche Canyon, Grand Teton National Park. The East Face is the peak's test-piece descent, requiring a long (for the Tetons) approach and several hundred... Continue Reading →
June 11th was likely my last ski day of the 2021 season. Andrew Grasso and I teamed up for a traverse of Cloudveil Dome, the South Teton and a few couloirs/peaks in between - savoring the last scraps of winter.
Our first look at the North Face of Mount Baird (unfortunately thrashed by snowmobile-skier traffic) with the "test-piece" of the face, the North Couloir, coming directly off the summit. The West Ridge, our first ascent route, to the right. The North Ridge, our second and third ascent route, to the left. At 10,025 feet, Mount... Continue Reading →
Ten Thousand Too Far 