the scalding cold.

Just back from a week in the Qua range near Nelson, BC - Immersed, sans technology at one of the lightly equipped and quite rustic, Ymir Yurts. We had 3 days in the Yurt, touring around, laughing, eating and enjoying the stark beauty of this oh so unique area.

Two days ago, things changed.

Jon, Guillermo, Ryan, Zach and myself were enjoying a great day, touring up the benched and wonderfully rimed terrain of Seaman peak - eventually arriving at the summit and taking it all in, at one point G made his way to the shoulder of the summit and looked off towards mecca. I snapped a photo, a perfect moment.

We clicked in and discussed the descent. We would need to ski conservatively and avoid the convexities in the terrain - a very weak surface hoar layer was below 50-60 cm of storm snow and had the set the stage for our week - safe terrain, low angles and low consequence skiing was in order from day 1. At the second regroup zone I stopped and waited for my friends. G was first and I could see his trademark red cloudveil softshell sailing through the trees. At speed he came through a gap and slammed into a tree.

I yelled out and got nothing, yelled again and nothing still. Shuffling over I saw nothing but bad. A seemingly major head wound, an unconscious Guillermo and lots of blood. I looked a the tree, an old fir with no remorse, a pale grey branch covered in blood. I thought the worst, cranial fracture and a good friend with minutes to live. I love this man in front of me like a second father. His wife, his step son, the people in his life - all I could say was 'oh fuck'.

Ryan came down and started to organize the first aid treatment, the tree branch did not make it through the scull and G's breathing started to become more consistent. I tripped my SPOT unit to SOS and got back to helping, giving gauze to Ryan and starting to build a bed for G to spend hours...days?

In 15 min G had regained consciousness and was starting to show signs of focused thought, my relief was almost overwhelming. A likely shoulder dislocation, spinal/neck injuries and of course the massive head wound started to make their way into G's vocabulary as we tried to keep him warm - taking turns laying beside him. I radioed the cat ski operation nearby and asked for assistance, "full stretcher case, head wound, need heli support".

Zach and I straight-lined the 550 m run in 8 min to the hut, grabbed two sleeping bags, clothes and kept moving - getting back to the group as fast as we could just as the chopper arrived to drop off a very capable team to assist and take over the operation. At 230pm, G was stable, in a stretcher and aboard the chopper, Nelson Hospital bound.

We packed up and started the process of getting ourselves out of the area and back to the cat that was inbound to get us so that we could visit our friend that night. G is seemingly going to be ok and is actually en route to home today through the very snowy BC roads of the moment.

I am left with a feeling of admiration towards my friends for being so stoic during the ordeal.

Jons thoughts : http://jonsonitechronicles.blogspot.com/2012/02/love-of-friends.html

off the grid.

Tomorrow I go off the grid for a week. No phone. No computer. lots of skiing with best friends.

!!

doing lines before work

In case you haven't had the chance to get outside over the last few days, let me tell you the conditions are all time right now in these beloved Rockies of ours. I had a chance to get a few nice days in lately, ski great lines and enjoy good company of friends before a full day of work. This usually involves 4:30 wake ups, 2-4 espresso shots and a 12m/p min up-track pace will leave us sweating in our baggie pants and going through liquids while trying hard to beat the sunshine, fast approaching.

Observation Peak - Backside
Craig, Ivo and Zach after skiing a nice E facing line on the back of Observation. We regrouped at the bottom, looked across valley and saw another tasty-tasty shot we needed to visit. A quick bootpack, some easy ridge climbing and so stellar views brought us to our next shot - a nice mini-couloir.

Ridge and the magic of the alpine.

Getting ready to drop into it..
3-2-1 dropping! There were some Wolverine tracks coming across valley and down this couloir which Craig felt was a very solid indicator of stability. We have followed Wolverine tracks in whiteouts, over 10,000 foot passes and over tricky forested terrain - they ALWAYS pick the best place to go..those smart wolverines.

After this wonderful thing, we shot NE and up a 450m S facing bowl to reveal a 1000m shot down to the forest and soon after, the highway. Nice to log about 1460 M in the alpine and enjoy the truly exceptional conditions right now.

Bow Peak Couloir - AKA Granddaddy AKA Mostly Hidden Chute AKA ER 8

Had a great morning hiking to the top (cornice) of this local classic 'couly' with friends. We found it to be in good shape with a slough track all the way to the top making for good travel. We found an excellent supportive and progressive mid-pack, we also found rugged ski conditions due to the choppy debris. As usual, skiing the fan was a dreamy affair.
Zach and Ivo coming across the fan, amazing to feel comfortable on this slope in Feb.

Nearing the top..
Looking down, some nice turns here before things got choppy and one had to impose decisive action in the form of jump turns.




Nothing can be done without partners and I have some great ones. Thanks to Zach, Ivo and Craig.

Enjoy, ski friends!

Nibloc

Vermillion 1 and 2

Had a nice tour with Jeff and John yesterday in the Vermillion 1 and 2 slidepaths, west of Vemillion peak logging about 1900 meters. This is big country.
Met some friends along the up-track.
2nd run, dreamy tree shot reminiscent of Japan.
Whats wrong with this picture?
On the way home.
You might notice an above average amount of the usually under represented colour of 'mango' in this picture. These gents had a very good attire day and showed me up with the lightest and fastest of the today's rando gear. I had to take this picture when the skis were upright to reveal, yet more mango.

Thanks for the great day fella's.

observation peak u - turn

Sunday was spent in the great company of good friends Zach and Guillermo in the alpine environs of Cirque Peak, chasing shadows, dodging storms and taking it all in step by step. Sunday was day twenty for me on the skis, I am hoping to beat my 50 some day personal best this year and aiming for 60 days of touring in these wonderful mountains of ours. If I am this stoked by mid-season it should not be a problem ;-).


On the up and up above Helen Lake.
One must remove skis and walk through the faceted steps to the summit ridge and soon after, the summit. It is amazing the lengths skiers will go to to avoid removing the ski and strapping on back, I am guilty of this and after a few rugged maneuvers, it was time to get smart and strap 'em on.

We turned around a few hundred meters from the summit it may have been because of night before: G made the trip from Red Deer, arriving for dinner, a bottle of wine and enormous talk at the Flatbread Company . This theme continued at home with a half bottle of Johny Blacks until Erin arrived home and reminded us it was very late and we should likely get to bed. 6 am came a little abruptly and with a staggering headache accompanied by friend, nausea. We rallied on but we didn't have the Jam for our assumed plan of rappelling the N side of Observation peak and continuing the walk-fest. I guess we needed a good night of drinking over a big day of skiing, sometimes these things have a way of working out naturally..
Thanks Zach for the picture, this is one of few on this blog of mine to show my readers (Hi Mom) what I look like.
Mystery surrounds..

Thanks to Zach and G, days like this remind you that the journey is nothing without brothers to accompany you.

carlyle

Our little town was rocked pretty hard today with the news of a fellow mountain lovers death in patagonia.

I met Carlyle a few years ago at a house party of all unlikely places and was instantly drawn in by her warm demeanor and calm, seemingly pragmatic approach to life. Over the years we never got out climbing or skiing but I always enjoyed our chats at different social gatherings. Within a few seconds we would be talking philosophy and going through some of the tough questions, shooting the breeze and laughing at the same time.

The last time we spoke she was getting ready for her expedition, reticent and modest about the scope of the trip and in receiving the Mugs Stump award for Alpinism - She told me how happy she was about the people involved and mostly that it was focused on having a good time above all else. She was a valued part of the community and will be missed by many.

Godspeed Carlyle.

youngs peak traverse

I have been wanting to do this traverse for a few years and just 'never got 'round to it'. Had a great time the other day with Yuji climbing and skiing this super classic of the Pass. The forecast was for snow and limited visibility so we waited until the last possible minute, meeting of the waters turnoff, to make the decision to go via the Illeciliwaet or the Asulkan. After basically flipping the metaphorical coin, we opted for the high country and the youngs peak traverse - oh so glad that we did, turned out to be a dreamy day.

The visibility was almost unlimited on the 'Illy'

Yuji kicking the final steps to Young's summit, first one of 2012.
Yuji shropping the Young-a-rama, putting on a clinic for breakable crust technique.
The trip was not complete without a night at the Asulkan hut where a good group had assembled. Scotch tasting, fireball, great chow and warmth was had in the alpine environs. The next day we had over the head powder during a storm cycle session, we had to time our breathing so that we could ski a run without choking on the pow. Hope you all are getting some of that stuff!

sleeping bear

Today Rob and I ventured into the upper reaches of a zone which can only be described as fantastical.

We put a track through the old growth forest and marveled in delight as it kept getting snowier and snowier as we neared our destination. We decided to leave the trusty guidebook at home and with the help of google earth, map studies and a bit of nose following, plot a course for the day into an unfamiliar place. It was not without the help of a fogged memory however, in the fabled 2006 season I was part of the 'bamzu powder posse' who had made a couple of pilgrimages to this most holiest of powder destinations...The posse gave the peak the title of 'preacher' and it has stuck, however for this trip a new working name surfaced; 'sleeping bear'. For more on that, please read on...


Rob in the upper "zone" during the sunset.
Great knee cap deep blower, great fall line and over all just a stunner of a day! Rob is putting on a clinic here in the white room.


A highlight of the day was skiing about 2 mind altering feet away from a curious black bear sticking its head out of a tree well as if to say - WTF? - I was busy blabbing about something (likely coffee) when Rob casually pointed out the evolving situation. We continued on at a slightly hurried pace, periodically checking back to make sure he hadn't picked up on our trail of left behind cashews and tea splashes. Exciting.

After a great day of professional development we were quite satisfied and ready for the Laggan's portion of the day, thanks sleeping bear for letting us pass and godspeed.

Enjoy ski friends.

pulpit zone and getting up early.

Another adventure in that fantastic pulpit zone today. This place has been sort of in the quiet for the last few years but that doesnt seem the case now, and for good reason! Today there were 20 or so people enjoying the fruits, fine by me - always good to run into mountain kin and besides, getting up early pretty much always ensures first turns ;-). I have just shared the only trick I have!

On the approach through 40 cm of storm snow..
Ty and Zach, great friends and partners in crime. Taking repose after a valiant trail breaking effort.
Uh huh...
Yup...


Well maybe we will have another 'Canadian Rockies Selkirks" kind of year as it is sure shaping up that way...warm storms, minimal PWL's and no -30!

Enjoy ski friends!

raven speaks, tells us to shred.

storm skiing

I love storm skiing. There is simply something magical about it. The static quiet of the storm, the childhood wonder of a snow filled night and maybe most important - the deep powder turns.

Last winter the best of such trips was with Craig, 'stuck' in Rogers Pass for a few days while we skied our brains out. Always the first out and usually the last back we would string together big days of glorious powder skiing, trail breaking and synapse firing.


Criag at the top of 8812, Bruins Pass. We decided to go high the first day..we could feel the coming storm and knew it would be good..if we were lucky the highway might just close..
The RAV after 3 days..we stayed for 5 and logged about 30000 feet of vertical...man oh man its good. Godspeed and happy storm skiing to all!

Happy Holidays!

going coastal

I have been pleasantly immersed in a very focused work effort on the coast lately. All night drives, emailing till 1 am and back to back meetings has been 'de rigour'. This trip has seen me in kelowna, Nanaimo, Victoria, Squamish and now Vancouver to the fantastical Granville Island Hotel. All has not been work however, I have made an effort to clear the weekends to connect with friends for some great ski touring. The ski quality can only be described as 'marginal' but the views, travel and company has been all time. Here is a small taste of the last while..
glacier markings - Spearhead Glacier en route to Phalanx Mtn

Husume on right, Corona bowl on left.
All's well that ends well.

Cori breaking over the top of the blackcomb glacier en route to the classic pitch, Husume.
The eyes have it..
Julian and Martin during the final bootpack to the top of the little diamondhead, Garibaldi Park.
Same..

the powder and the glory

Yesterday I was not planning to go skiing at all, in fact I was planning on a focused driving session to Vernon to setup for a couple of days of work. I actually made a mental note "don't go skiing" the night before. For no other reason than I was booked into an unfamiliar space in Vernon and so with that, uncertainty weighed in as to the set up time involved. I have definitely been pummeled by this feature in the past. Going skiing meant a potential all nighter of set up followed by very energetic presentations the following day - doable but approaching full-on. Not skiing meant no skiing and well....no skiing..


Long story short, I went skiing.

When I turned the bend at the pass I pretty much had my mind made up. I sped into the visitors center, grabbed a permit for the Griz, changed out of my Levi's and into my ski gear and soldiered up at a rugged pace.

I reached the alpine and could hardly believe my eyes, 500M of un tracked POW lay before me...did I say U N T R A C K E D? Yup.

I wasn't expecting much but man o' man Ullr was there to help me wit this mission..





I shroped the main path like Han Solo, hooting and hollering past others on the up track, others skiing down and who knows what else. I was too busy tapping into my power animal's leg strength and enjoying the moment, laughing and giggling all the way down.

At the Modern Cafe in Revelstoke I enjoyed a great espresso/panini combination and settled into the idea of driving once again..

preparedness

Over the past few years I have had the fortune or miss-fortune of being at a few semi-major accident scenes. Both times an immobilized skier/climber needed to be secured, comforted for up to 1 hour and supported while waiting for the cavalry to appear. I've been lucky in that others on the scene had a radio or sat phone, guides tarp or other essential tools to get the ball rolling, even if I didn't....

My "FA kit/emergency kit" ready for the pack. A lightweight first aid kit, bivi bag and a 12'' ski strap keeping it all together...

Since then I have put a lot of thought into the minimum "SOL" kit to have on all outings....

The emergency bivi bag from adventure medical kits is a good piece. Super light, reflective, waterproof and a decently effective in keeping one person semi-comfortable while waiting for the sound of the rotor blades. I know people (Rob Owens ;-) that have used it as a full service bivi bag on alpine climbs.

www.adventuremedicalkits.com/product.php?product=144&catname=Shelter&prodname=SOL%20Emergency%20Bivvy

I always bring a light and somewhat minimalist first aid kit with me into the mountains. This with the idea that all we need to do is stabilize the victim and wait for the big help to arrive with more sophisticated tools and means. For long trips I will beef it up (extra gauze, tape to change dressings, more pain killers, antihistamines and maybe wound irrigation) to be more self reliant. I don't typically bring a splint as ski poles, branches, etc are usually available, not ideal but works in a pinch. The below is a list of whats inside, a blend between emergency and FA tools.

1) SPOT transceiver/ELB - There were two uses of this product last year in the Rockies resulting in rescues. It is light and more reliable than radios which rely on line of sight repeater towers for use. It needs a reasonably clear line of sky though..
2) lighter
3) Gauze and tape
4) gloves
5) Moleskin
6) Pain killers (ibuprofen here but I also bring some heavy hitters for major pain management)

Whats not shown here:

7) G3 Bone Saw - This thing is awesome, a great snow saw for pit use and also amazing at wood cutting. last February, I used the bone saw to cut about 7, 10-30 cm diameter trees down to open up a landing space for a 407 which was en route for an evacuation. Great purchase.

8) Voile ski strap, you can use this for binding repairs, splinting and so much more. Last week a boot buckle failed in the field and we were able to use the mighty orange strap as a quick fix. Ivo felt solid enough to keep skiing all day on it!

Jurry rigged boot buckle saves the day!


Happy trails!