The "R" word

     So skiing conditions, I mean, what skiing conditions?  Things are grim folks, so grim that something I never thought would happen up here in AK has happened.  Someone, and I don't know who, but someone suggested that running might be the best option yesterday.  That's right, using the "R" word in January.  Something that is to be done during the several months not in the dead of winter. 
     We found that a run/hike was indeed the way to go.  We busted out the kahtoolas and met at Prospect for an AM outing up Wolverine.  The trail was icy and the kahtoolas were much needed.  The weather was beautifully warm, breezy, mostly clear and affording great views of the city.  Once at the top we were able to see the damage on the majority of the front range.  There was no obvious line of snow up either valley to ski on.  Backcountry lines consisted of partial-length corniced/drifted gullies. 

January running in the Chugach front range. from chugach ress on Vimeo.

spring cream in January

     So this weekend I managed to not be working, got a cabin at Hatcher Pass, the sun was out and there was enough snow to ski out there.  Despite the grim and depressing snow conditions around Anchorage, Girdwood and Turnagain, the Hatcher Pass area had some decent snow on low-angle terrain that caught my attention. 
    We struck out for Hatcher pass and rented a cabin for the evening.  I arrived early Friday for some turns and found that the late afternoon sun and warmer temps yielded some creamy turns reminiscent of spring: awefully odd considering it is JANUARY.  It was straight up balmy and I was sweating like it was April or May.  I couldn't complain about the sun, but I have been complaining about the almost absent snow on the front range. 



The Hatcher cabins offer prime location and views for the winter mountain recreationist.

     A good evening dinner at the Noisy Goose, some much needed chill-time at the cabin and we hit the hay.  We woke to sunny skies and again, warm temps, although it had reached freezing temps overnight so the XC ski trails were a bit crusty.....not for long.  A relaxed start to the morning and we XC skied up the Archangel road.  I witnessed my first naturally occurring avalanche which I was pretty excited to see from a safe distance.   The road was only groomed out 3.5k so it was short lived but the views were amazing and the weather was perfect.

 

     We packed it up and headed over to the mine for some more XC skiing and then called it a day......nope, just kidding  With a few hours of daylight I headed up the low-angle slopes of Microdot.  Surprisingly they were untracked, basking in the sun, calling out to be smeared with the sexy lines of backcountry skiers/boarders.  I made my marks and by then the legs had enough and the stomach reminded me I skipped lunch.  I felt guilty not putting in one more line in such good conditions, but I would have bonked and caught the frozen crust that was soon to appear as the sun sank below the mountains and cast a cold shadow on the slope. 
     For being so low on my list of places to ski last year, Hatcher Pass is certainly redeeming itself this year.  We are lucky to have so many microclimates within day-trip distance of Anchorage.  On another note, the clouds have been spectacular the past few days. 


All the brown in the right 2/3 of the photo is a large slide the broke to the ground

note all the lines, called runnels, from surface snow melting to water and running beneath the surface of the snow

The Hatcher nap followed by sun up high.

     So I headed to Hatcher to play at night with my new stove that supports winter conditions.  I headed up from the Mint TH to a possible low-angle ski run and parked it in the valley.  I was fortunate to get an early start and had camp set up by around 3pm.  I took Lucy with.  The primary objective was camping with skiing being a bonus.  I headed up, but it was too deep for Lucy on a fresh skin track and visibility was poor with the heavy snowfall so I turned it shortly after, not willing to gamble in unfamiliar terrain.  Nope.  No skiing.
     After a quick dinner I found myself falling asleep so I hopped in my bag and went to bed early thinking I would sleep until morning like last time (~15hrs), wake up and ski with better lighting, it was already getting dark and snowing pretty good.  Nope.  I woke up wide awake at 9:30PM, my body thinking I had just napped and would be up working a night shift.  The snow had stopped but clouds had not cleared enough for the full moon to light up the night. 
     I wasn't up for trying to sleep for another 12hrs, no skiing to be had in darkness, I packed up and skied it out which was the most pleasant ski-out yet:  a warm gentle breeze, downhill all the way, a fresh dusting, a pink city-lit sky and the only sound was the swish of me travelling on the snow.

     I had to get out and ski since I didn't last night.  I headed up early to Arctic Valley with the pleasant surprise of untracked road and sun up high.  I honestly chuckled as I was basking in it and looking down at socked-in Anchorage.  Conditions were still thin with tundra and rock poking through, or where it was deep enough it was dust-on-windboard.  Tally another core shot for me.  Never the less I skied a few good laps and called it a day after bonking from lack of food and water.  I might return tomorrow before work.

     I was at the peak of Gordon Lyon before the wind picked up, and skiing solo I thought I had picked a safe run with a low slope angle.  Nope. I pointed the planks one notch too soon.  Four turns in things went soft below me.  I saw a white-lightning crack split out to my left and I put it all together and immediately realized the gravity of the situation.  I tried to stop, that didn't work, I fell back and was riding the mass like I fell out of a white-water raft.  I knew I was screwed and it was all on me.  I could feel the bed and tried to dig in but the flow was too strong and was pushing me down and deeper.  I knew I had to get out or get buried at the gully bottom.   I saw I was somewhat close to the edge and could sort of steer with the flow so I tried, and successfully rode the back-seat of my skis out to the edge.  I watched the avalanche complete itself and sat in silence for a few minutes thinking about how close I just came.  Lucy was lagging on the ridge so she wasn't in it.  A few minutes before starting the run I had decided I best go a few notches lower for whatever reason, and glad I did as it was less of a terrain trap than my initial plan. 





Sun and wind rid the sky of clouds and fog. 

The end result: sun up high and clouds down low.

A raindbow, in JANUARY!

sled-doggin'

     So Sarah's 3rd of 6 surprises was a trip out to a genuine mushing operation near Knik.  Charlie Bejna, who will be running the Iditarod this year, allowed us to come out and socialize with his dogs as well as take a ride or two on the sled and even mush.  In my opinion mushing is as much apart of AK as anything else like salmon, snow, Toyotas, snowmachines, extratuffs, guns, etc. 
     It was a great opportunity to see what it's like without all the hype and commotion of seeing it downtown or during the race itself; an up-close and interactive experience.  The dogs were beautiful and their athleticism was impressive, it was obvious they were running machines.  I could see myself doing this someday on a smaller scale if things were different.  The dogs, winter, nature and the elements are all attractive. 
     It was also tempting to take some of the dogs home who were retiring or didn't make the cut for the race.  Also, I thought it was cool how, despite having 30ish dogs, Charlie knew them all by name and their behaviors/habits and they all knew his voice and responded to his commands.

sled dogging from chugach ress on Vimeo.

best eyes award, no doubt.

small, but I bet he holds his own.

one of my favorites

These people trusted me with their kids and Charlie with his team.



Indian investigation

     So I wanted to explore some less popular terrain, specifically the western slopes of bird ridge or south-east slopes of avalanche. Given the shorter days I planned an overnighter to allow for more time and options. After a night shift and a short nap, Lucy and I headed to the TH and took the Indian Pass trail.

     Conditions were skin-able, crusty and thin down low with slightly more snow as I gained elevation. It appeared someone had already made the traverse to/from arctic. I was looking for access to the western bird ridge slopes without going up the traditional bird ridge route. No-go for now, too many alders and insufficient snow.

     Not to be discouraged I whipped out backup plan #1 and continued up toward the pass to have a look at the Avalanche slopes. They seemed thin but I picked out a possible line as night was approaching and set up camp nearby. The solitude was nice, it was calm with a thin layer of clouds have he moon a hazy look but there was enough light to cast faint shadows. I busted out my new stove and made a light dinner and filled my water bottles. To bed I went....6pm, but I was running on 4 hrs. 

     The next morning I ate a small breakfast and packed up, skinned to the base and headed up. After about 500ft I ran into hard avy debris. With alders boxing me into the slide path, whoompfing, and the slope angle increasing I turned it. The ski down was pleasant.  

     On to backup plan #2....I would investigate a route up to power line pass and check out other Avalance aspects, but after spotting for awhile I could see no route through the alders.  I decided to call it and head out. I didn't see the need to force it or investigate more until more snow would allow.

     The ski out was relatively smooth as a dusting of snow eased the harsh crusty-ness and lubricated the skins for a good slide down. 

Things I forgot that would have been nice:

Spare pair if dry socks

Pee bag
Thermos

While sitting in a parking lot I watched a raven bury some food item for later. I continue to find these birds more and more interesting, I assumed they were the eat-it-now type.  Another thing I love about them is their congregating near the peaks.  I often witness unique flying behavior such as flips an spirals here.  One place to witness this is mentioned in Alaska Jack's blog.

 

Happy Birthday to me.

 



Looking up past the alders and low clouds to Avalanche peak.  I would have loved to be up there.

the elusive lucy



Driving along The Arm never fails with stunning views.