Mellow vibes on the pass with plenty of parking.
Is it the snowpack…or the turtles?
I was on a mission to do some laps on nature’s stairmaster…aka, the Glory bootpack on Teton Pass. It’s probably been over a month since I’ve skied on the Pass, but bootpacking is a great way to strengthen the legs, so I opted to hang up the skins today and hike Glory with a small and light pack.
I’m testing a new Black Diamond AvaLung pack, the Bandit. It is pretty small and forced me to only carry the essentials like a shovel and probe, goggles, extra hat and balaclava, water, a lightweight bivy sack and an extra layer. I arrived at the parking lot around 8 and had no trouble finding a parking spot. Gotta love the weekday crowd.
The mood was mellow on the Pass and I ended up doing 5 laps in about 6 hours. I did three laps on First Turn and 2 on Twin Slides, stopping in the van for a break after laps 2 and 4, for a total of about 8500′. I was humbled when I got an email from rando racer Bryan Wickenhauser stating he just had a day with over 12,000′ of vert down in Crested Butte. Damn adventure racers! Anyway, I think bootpacking is a bit more strenuous than skinning and I still got a good workout in none the less.
The skiing was phenomenal and the snow was like velvety butter. I was feeling tired after the fifth lap and wondered how on earth those guys did 12 laps (or was it 13) last year. I’ve often thought about seeing how many I can do, but it is obvious that I would want to lighten up the load even more to have a chance at coming close.
I wrapped up the day with a little night avalanche training for TCSAR at the King. Practice makes perfect!!!
Yeah i was up there also, didn’t see any turtling, just awesome snow. And a sketchy lookin snow pack. Check it out here: http://www.skiingthebackcountry.com
I snowboard on the pass (and ski occasionally)-I haven’t ridden a chairlift yet this year. I don’t have a competitive attitude (although I used to- I am a much happier person now)- because I don’t give a shit about being the fastest- I just like riding untracked powder. Anywho, lots of people talk about doing multi laps on the pass- but, IF you are counting- i personally don’t think you’ve done “a lap” unless you hike to the very top of glory- dropping into twinslides at the green screen doesn’t count as a full lap as far as I’m concerned- Not that I am concerned, and not that I am counting- just my two cents. -See you on the pass- It just won’t stop snowing this year will it?
WARNING!!!! Gore alert!!!!! Blood!!!
Another reason to wear a helmet! This guy lived!!
I thought it was better skiing from the screen and I would count it as a lap!
I was up there too..the skiing sucked, the parking lot was full, and I got turtled serveral times. Its definately not good up there right now and it is recommended to stay home or go to the village instead.
Yes…a true lap is skiing from the summit.