It took me a full 10 days to recover from the 10 day backcountry adventure. Got back to Nj and hosted an ice skating birthday party for Nina at the Ice House in Hackensack last Saturday. It was really fantastic too. Had to miss the 5 foot dump in JH and it was worth it. At 8% water content that stuff was heavy. I'm sure everyone enjoyed it and packed it out for a great base. Back to coaching and instructing at Campgaw. This little hill has sucked me and Nina in. A great crew and lot's of slalom turns on ice. Perfect training for Nina to negotiate an icy entrance to a powder filled couloir in her future. Or how about the only woman at the Asulkan hut who showed up with her husband (of course) and... her dad. They toured up and over the glacier on Young's Peak dropping the 50 degree first step of Paradise onto a windslab. They continued over the next six steps of windblownpow. How old was dad? probably about 65!!! Will any of our daughters become backcountry skiers and invite us on this kind of trip? - we all hope so.
We had a super group. The Magnificent Seven. Four canadiens and three Americans. We skied really well together. Our US contingent really took to the newly named "American Tree Triangle" Popping over pillow lines. Landing ten footers on some tight western steep lines with big pines that funneled into the top of the moustrap. We even hit it on our way out of the hut. Each day we farmed a new area rarely crossing our own tacks. By the time we were finished, the whole place looked tracked out. Yeah, we did that. And it was time to leave it all behind... until the next one. But thie next one won't include the 13-15hour car trips from JH. Thanks to satellite radio and Dave's obsession with classic rock, the radio sustained us and we did great out on the open road.
Crossing back into the US, the border guard asked "Where you guys been?" Response, "Touring on Roger's Pass." She hands us our passports back immediatley, "Oh you guys are Hardcore." That sounded so sweet! Keep skinning, and...
"May your turns be deep and ever so sweet"
great stuff Richard! Excellent documenting. That was fun.
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