Winter-Spring Alps Perspective

Posted on | March 20, 2010 | No Comments

What a cold winter it has been! Our wood stove hase consumed twice as much wood as last year. We certainly can’t complain about conditions though. There has been enough snow. But the cold temps have not been good for the stability. The deep, buried facets have not gone away. This means that on every descent, I have been cautious, avoiding the weak spots on every slope and staying where the snow is deepest. (In general, while skiing a suspect slope, one should always stay where the snow pack is deepest. Trigger points are usually where a rock or other terrain feature sticks up out of the surface. This area will probably be the weakest link on the slope.)

Spring snow has finally developed on the southern aspects. It is the first time I have really skied corn all year! We had a few good runs this week, first in powder, then corn. We have been traveling to neighboring valleys and countries to get the good stuff. Skinning 2+ hours has helped us get to some truly memorable runs. Enjoy the following photos here and on Facebook…