Just a little winter

A small helping of winter finally hit the Sierras. Leaving us with clear blue sky and about six inches of pure sugary snow above 8000ft of elevation.  We started out early, the tree branches laden and heavy, ice crystals sparkling in the early sunlight and the cold air catching with every breath.  We were all thirsty for winter, a real winter, and we spun laps with great effort to savor every last moment.  It went fast though. Late that afternoon as we skinned back to the truck, the snow had already begun to deteriorate, sticking to our skins and falling in big wet clumps on the trail. 

 

Terminal Cancer Couloir

Skiing the Ruby Mountains has been on our to-do list for quite some time. We have talked wishfully of doing some heli-skiing in the area but our budget, the snow conditions and time-off from work have never quite aligned.  Once the Terminal Cancer Couloir came to our attention, no heli needed, we decided that a trip to the Ruby Mountains needed to happen sooner rather the later. 

Honestly, I wasn't sure that the couloir would be able to live up to all it's hype and recommendation, but some how it did.  Not because of the skiing, but because it's an incredible aesthetically cool line that left us feeling like kings, fortunate in experience and lucky to be alive.  

skiing the north peak couloir

"no need to bring food" we say, "it's basically a walk in the park"

those are the famous last you're-going-to-be-hungry words

perhaps the members of the donner party had a similar exchange

worth the effort and hunger pains though, just to see the landscape

the sierras always leave us wanting more

 north peak

 we skied the couloir on the right

Lassen Peak

 gaining elevation

 at the summit

 the descent....look for the little skier

the view of Mt Lassen on our drive home

A ski ascent of Lassen has become a favorite of ours. It was so much fun for the last two years that we've decided to make it a yearly late spring tradition...so here's to the second annual ski Lassen pilgrimage!

Mammoth Lakes

While waiting for the house to close we loaded up our skis and headed south for a few days. It was a good decision.

mt bachelor ski trip

The annual Little family ski trip happened last weekend. This year's excursion was low-key compared to other years but low-key is sometime the best. We are continually blessed by my parents generosity. We forgot our nice camera at home but I happily documented the holiday with some iphone photos.

Castle Peak, approach from Donner Summit Rest Area

 

We skied Castle Peak on Super Bowl Sunday. I'm not proud of this, like "I'm so cool 'cause I didn't watch the game", it's just that I don't follow football the rest of the year, so why start when its over? Anyway, I was expecting the mountain to be empty, but I guess that a lot of backcountry skiers felt the same way, since we came across a party of people up there, including a couple of guided groups. Ourselves and about thirty others at the summit...so much for solitude. I wonder if the guide services tout those as Super Bowl alternatives or if they just had the bad luck not to check the calender.

Happy New Year!

Something tells me that 2013 is going to be a good one! We look back at 2012 feeling so blessed and so thankful that our Savior, Jesus Christ, does indeed save, making good out of bad and giving us hope for a perfect future.

Relay Peak

Ski touring and gun shooting

Sierra snow

 The Sierra crest is expected to get upwards of four feet of snow by Monday morning, which is a lot considering it didn't start snowing until last night. We went out for a little ski and enjoyed making comments about the numerous ill-fated drivers flailing in the ditches. It was snowing so hard that visibility was difficult, and by the time we skied out for an hour and came back to the truck, our skin track was completely covered. Storms like this always serve to put me in mind of the Donner Party, and I kept sizing up Denver's tasty loins in case we became stranded. Still trying to decide if this was a good idea.

Jake's Peak

 

Red Lake Peak

 

Castle Peak

Castle Peak is becoming our favorite choice for an icy but sunny backcountry ski day. The south facing slopes and gullies warm up just perfectly in the mid afternoon sun. Softening the ice and making for a fantastic ski descent.

 

In other news, these three and some of my favorite cousins came to visit over the weekend. It was good. As in, we woke up to our houseguests making us breakfast kind of good.

Dawn Patrol

Turned out to be far more enjoyable then we ever suspected. Best tracks on the mountain!

Garfield Peak

Old Man Winter

Hoping he's here to stay! We've had some of our best ski days the last two weeks, spinning laps on better snow then we experienced in the Sierras all last year. So thankful for skis and snow and face-shots. Did I just say face-shots?

Surf & Turf

Three days off

Two perfect days at the beach, sunny sky and decent swell
One perfect day in the backcountry, sunny sky and fresh fluffy snow

Zero complaints

Birthday skis

Denver really hooked me up this year! I'm a proud owner of these beautiful fatties. Or as Denver says "I'm a proud fatty on these beauties."

Spring Skiing