Full Immersion

Dan Howell opts for the full immersion.

Fall became winter in three glorious days of Ullr’s blessings nuking the landscape with blankets of white. Early season powder was upon us, and with it the decision of picking the right terrain. Our plan was to get out early, polish off a good tour, and ski sick pow. Quality over quantity. Knowing what lies under the snow enabled us to quickly agree on a tour that not only offered great lines, but a tour that might offer great lines even in early season. However, nothing could have prepared us for en”lighten”ment.

Snow lay at elevations far below normal for this time of year. Smiles crept across our faces. We continued to discuss the variables all the way into the parking lot. Once there, we donned our gear and traded greetings with two other skiers kind enough to begin breaking trail. We followed, but soon began a detour that would take us to the terrain we thought might be most promising. An ambitious tour for early season, repetition of this particular trip throughout past years allowed our confidence to expand. However, already the odds of us getting the goods were good, and the goods on this tour were usually well worth getting.

Kyle Miller sprays the vegetation.

At the ridge-line the winds howled. Snow swirled and danced across the treetops, looking for gaps in the rocks to hide in. Moving just below the ridge and into a slightly more sheltered area, we scouted our first of three lines. Covered in summer in arrays of brilliant wildflowers, our first line was a slope that slowly steepens into two avalanche chutes which pour into the basin below. After digging a pit and noticing the fireweed still emerging from the snow, we began to ride. Knee deep bliss, coupled every so often with the deeper sensation of good powder underfoot had us licking our chops at the basin bottom. Quickly refueling we exchanged thoughts and jokes. Our first run was promising, but the wind had us feeling that our upcoming north facing run would be much, much sweeter.

Sweet as Georgia sweet tea. From the ridge we could tell the strong winds were picking up and depositing snow into the many north facing couloirs we had to choose from. All debate ended when a lull in the wind produced a clear view of a beautiful, double dog-legged couloir. Steepening and choking between two cliffs in the center leg, this couloir was an active avalanche chute later in the season. The second dogleg exited into the main bowl which poured into the basin and was littered with tiny saplings struggling for their chance to struggle against nature.

I threw myself in like a groupie at a pool party. Knee to thigh deep powder made it easy to grant my mouth permission to grin. Throttling into the choke I dived deep and felt the weightlessness of sifting in bottomless powder. The surreal explosion of my chest effortlessly breaking through the snow pack left me speechless. My beard was caked in snow from being blinded in each and every turn. Right as I was wishing for a snorkel, I eased into knee deep contemplation the rest of the way down. As Kyle and Dan joined me, our sighs and laughter spoke loudest for our feelings of joy.

Gazing longingly at our tracks, we pined for another lap.  Hell, we wanted another twenty of those! The downside of touring long to get the goods, is that you only get one chance. Luckily, we gambled and won the lottery. No more gambling was necessary. Approaching the final ridge, we traversed just below it to escape the wind. Reaching the familiar “back to the car” run, we prepared for sun affected crusts for the next two thousand feet. Fortunately, our luck was still with us. The last run of the day couldn’t have been better as bluebird skies gave way to the fading light, there were powder induced smiles yet again.