The taste of fresh and deep snow lingers on the palate. The opening day on the Heaven’s Gate chair was a flavorful burst of steep terroir. It is a gourmet experience: untracked snow. It is a tasty delight to the senses, but rarely is there enough to satiate the appetite of a powder hound. So, we went skinning into the backwoods.
The path was well lit on this sunny day. We had not been here since last season and our landmarks are fallible. Skin the path for about a mile and a half, then, turn uphill at a particular tree. What if the tree has fallen? Luckily, we spotted it.
The approach seems more effortful this year, but the terrain is the same. You can’t step into the same river — or apparently skin the same mountain — twice. Last year we skied epic snow here, this year; it was more like a training trip.
BETTER DAYS TO COME
Early season training is in service of bigger and better days to come. The legs and lungs need to get stronger. The techniques, the equipment, the rituals need to be second nature: this goes here; this goes there. All of it needs constant improvement. Another day under the belt — improving and better, each time.
After an enjoyable climb, we found the goods but decided to turn back, without skiing the backside. There were reasons: it was late in the day, a lean snowpack, and cold beer waited at the car. A lean snowpack was probably the overriding factor. The skiing was not epic. Better conditions would have probably swayed our decision making. In sub-optimal snow conditions, there is a greater potential for the unexpected. A delay of a half an hour could easily be imagined. And that meant darkness.
The snow was funky. It was good cold powder in the morning when the temperature was single digits. This aspect gets direct sun all day, and by late afternoon, it had settled with a crust beginning to form. Even with a decent pitch, rhythm was hard to establish. I stopped and tried to think of an advantage that might make the turns more accessible. I unlocked my AT boots and skied in “walk mode” to get a softer touch on the shovels. My touring partner questioned the idea but allowed that each of us has to make our own choices. It worked just fine.
‘GPS DISABLED’
Where were we? I would call this stash: “GPS disabled.” Some things we don’t talk about. Was it a safe excursion? Naturally, a couch is a safer place to be than up on this ridge. We exercised…. caution, for a change of pace. In December, the days are short, and we started the day late, because of a cold morning, which for some reason sounded like a good idea. A late start is almost always a bad idea. There is no economy in shaving parts of the day away from an excursion. An excursion requires, demands, is entitled to the day. The whole day. Why cut anything away from it?
Skiing is so simple, it’s just left and right, right? There is a point where it becomes not two, but one, non-duality is what I have heard it called. But even that seems to have limitations. It really is about relationship: this to that, ski edge to snow, turn shape to contours, skier attitude to fall line; to the snow, wind, and lighting.
It’s not just me. There are people who appreciate these experiences far beyond my ability to describe in this column, in this paper. To many, these are life-affirming relationships to the mountain, the snows, the skies in their various moods, the weathers. All these dynamics, all these circumstances coalesce into an elevated point of view. Some days, you just have to climb uphill for it.
If you want inspiration to seek backcountry adventure, check out the latest issues of Backcountry Magazine which is published in Jeffersonville, Vermont. The Wild issue includes locally-raised ripper Mya Akins and the photo annual includes the author of this column.
https://backcountrymagazine.com/
