2/3 Bomber-T

    
     So the Bomber Traverse has been on my list of things to do and a few of us coordinated time off.  We elected to start at the Mint trailhead with the goal of spending one night at each hut and skiing the short days between huts.  We rounded up the dogs and started around 1pm and made it to the Mint hut in 6hrs.  With daylight being bountiful an spring conditions full-on it made for a warm, but pleasant skin in under mostly clear skies.  Our feet were not use to the warmth and flat skinning, blisters began here.
     We met a crew on a powder pilgrimage and shared the hut, 7 people was okay but this would not have been cozy at the bomber hut.  A beautiful evening perched at the mint was not restful, nobody slept well for whatever reason.  The next day we were gifted with clear spring weather, unlike the overcast skies forecasted.  Stoke was high as we skinned up the Mint glacier, but a few hours and 2 failed attempts to navigate our way into the next drainage (using a more unique route) we were too tired to go up back door gap.  We skied what the pilgrims had said was good the night before.  It was enough to satisfy.  We returned for another evening at the mint, though a much more roomy hut as the pilgrims had moved on to Bomber hut. 
     Then we woke to more clear skies and up the back door gap it was for us.  We skied what I believe is the Penny Royal glacier down to the Bomber hut to drop our gear, eat lunch, and head out to ski what's good.  The whole area was thankfully void of snowmachines and their tracks.  It was the icing on the cake for me: fields of untouched snow with magnificent and dramatic peaks unlike those in the Chugach were entrancing.  We found a good north facing line and skied it until both we and the dogs needed food and rest.  Skiing down to the hut in warm spring sun was great, food was good.  Some super-mellow, short laps in the evening sun capped it off.  Living the dream.
     A full day behind, we elected to go up the Bomber glacier and over the pass and out Reed lakes to Archangel instead of passing by the Snowbird hut on the traditional route.  This was quite enjoyable.  More sunshine, more untracked powder up on the Bomber glacier.  We started early and did some low-angle laps in the sun up high, still soft and fluffy.  Then we were able to ski 95% of the way from Bomber pass back to the Mint lot.  I'll take low-angle and side-hilling over flat skinning any day. 
     This winter continues to grow an amazement with the Talkeetnas for me.  This trip was no exception.  Though the Snowbird will have to wait for another day, it was beautiful and rugged terrain to be in and I would gladly do it again: likely an annual thing now.
    
The Video on Vimeo: https://vimeo.com/92488686

Leaving Bomber to........

Ahhhh

 

Friesen Skien



Spring is here

Mint Hut

 

 

Skinning up Mint Glacier

 

 

Skinning up Backdoor

View of Penny Royal and Backdoor Gap

 

 

Bomber Pass Powder

Ski Prince William Sound

     So a backcountry ski outing from a boat has been on my list of dream-outings, and quoting The Uptrack, "If you've never skied in the Sound, make it a future destination on your backcountry bucket list.  You won't be disappointed."  The opportunity came knocking so we opened the door.  A few of us had off for almost a week, Cap'n Pete had a boat, and the weather was looking good.  We had several windows and options for ski trips so we went with a boat-based one to ski areas of Prince William Sound.
     We left out of Whittier and had a pretty open itinerary, just be back in 6 days.  I could go over each day, but just like any wilderness/backcountry outing, the words and pictures won't do it justice and your best bet is to try it for yourself.  I'll provide a summary and a few pics/videos for the sake of stoke spreading and inspiration.  For those of you up here in AK, this is our backyard and is closer and more affordable than you think.
     Weather was perfect: bluebird skies, winds 5 to 10 at peaks or coming off glaciers and otherwise calm, temps were cool in shade and warm in the sun, and the seas were flat.
     Snow: a low year so perhaps even more lines are open other years(but still too many to ski), northern aspects were consistently 4-6" of stale powder on carve-able crust with mild-moderate wind and sun affect up high.  Other aspects were crusty or corny depending on how much sun got it and elevation.  We were finding corn on southern aspects by 3pm on mid-elevations. 
     Our typical day meant getting up when the sun hit the boat, usually 9-10am.  We usually anchored in the bay we'd be skiing from that day, having scoped our lines the evening before.  We'd eat breakfast, take care of business, prep gear and lunch, then ferry our ski stuff from the boat to shore and start the skin up.  Upon reaching the summit or goal we ate lunch and enjoyed more of the phenomenal views, then skied until 6-7pm, returning to the boat for dinner, beer, sunset vistas and rest. 
     We did the majority of the main summits on Culross Island and stayed in a different location each night.  We also skied out of Deep Water Cove and Three Fingers Cove.  The terrain in this area is unique.  The mountains as a whole have a convex shape to them.  The glaciers left gullies and ravines running perpendicular to the fall line, ranging from steep cliff-like drop-offs to fun rollers and playful terrain. This made route finding a bit challenging at times, but overall we skied some really nice runs. I would also dare say this area offers some of the best tree skiing in Alaska.

     We didn't rack up huge vertical or ski sick lines, but the experience as a whole was incredible. The views from 500 feet and up were breathtaking: a backdrop of ocean, mountains, glaciers, forest, and plenty of good skiing terrain. We saw a fair amount of wildlife as well, including otters, seals, eagles, porpoises, and abundant waterfowl.

 

 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jKNjEqDQVjA&feature=youtu.be