2009.02.13-15 President's Day Weekend

With snow finally falling again in the mountains and a holiday on Monday, I was excited to get back to skiing in winter conditions this last weekend. Devon, Caleb and I started the weekend off right with a quick trip to Berthoud Pass on Friday afternoon. While the rest of the pass was crowded with cars and backcountry users, Caleb led us to some untracked snow in the Middle 1o1s. While an icy sun-crust lurked underneath, we found enough powder to celebrate Caleb's birthday in proper fashion. (Much thanks to Caleb for his camera and photography, both of which far exceed my capabilities).

Myself:

Despite a broken hand, Devon makes one-poled tele turns at dusk:

After a long-awaited powder day at Beaver Creek on Saturday, I headed south to the Northern San Juan range. Jordan invited me along to attempt a winter climb/ski of Uncompaghre Peak in his quest to ski all the Colorado 14ers. Joe and Prakash joined us for an overnight in Jordan's family cabin in Lake City and a few hours of sleep. I previously climbed Uncompaghre Peak last summer, but I was anxious at the opportunity to approach this aesthetic peak in the winter. We started from the Nellie Creek road closure at 3:45 am with 4 miles to skin before reaching the normal summer trailhead. We made quick progress under clear, starry skies despite temperatures below zero degrees and perfectly timed our first views of the peak at sunrise.

Jordan had the strength to lead the majority of the way, while I struggled to keep up with his pace, feeling the effects of the cold and fatigue. (I even fell asleep standing up while taking a short break at one point).

Jordan skins west across the huge basin towards Uncompaghre:

Eventually, we all reached the summit at 14,309 feet around 11 am and enjoyed a few minutes to relax away from the fierce winds that pummelled us during the ascent up the south ridge.

Team "Red jacket, black pants" on the summit (l to r: Prakash, myself, Jordan, and Joe):

While Prakash and I downclimbed to the saddle before starting our ski descent, Jordan and Joe made their best attempts at a continuous descent from the summit by linking together small snow patches and walking over rocks. We eventually found a rocky route down the southeast slopes before skiing through the valley on a gorgeous afternoon.

Joe navigates down the southeast slopes:

Jordan takes a break on the descent:

Although the ski conditions left much to be desired, it was another great day in mountains. Stats: 16 miles roundtrip, 5,500 vertical feet gained, 10 hours car-to-car. I ended the day with a hearty dinner at my favorite Mexican restaurant in Glenwood Springs (Taqueria el Nopal) to cap off a long, exhausting day.