After agonizing over the Baldy vs Taterman decision for a few days, I decided the following: 1) I'd enjoy a change of scenery, 2) I was sure I could easily find untracked in the sidecountry, 3) I'd enjoy a traffic-free drive up a route I hadn't been on before, and would enjoy seeing the Station Fire burn area up close, and 4) I felt like getting a little exercise.
So I set out, with the plan to spend most of the day out-of-bounds.
The drive up was easier than I expected- the route really isn't all that much longer than the usual way, and I got there (and back later) from Brentwood in 1:15, the same amount of time it takes me to get to Baldy from here. Seeing the burn area was as harrowing as I thought it'd be, but I was happy to see the north face of Strawberry Peak and the Strawberry Potrero areas still looking verdant- once they reopen the forest, tackling Strawberry the long way from Colby Camp is high on my list of hikes to do again.
Anyway, got to the hill and rode up, and yeah, all the inbounds was chopped up and frozen. I tried a run down the trees to skier's right of the liftline, and other than little pockets here and there, it wasn't worth it.
So it was time to start the adventure portion of the day's itinerary. I started with the three gullies skier's left of the warming hut, with the farthest over having the most untracked, and even the occasional patch of legitimate winter powder worth 2-3 turns. A lot of the snow was crusty but no problem on a board, with some spots of hardpack here and there. Fun, but not spectacular.
I heard Chair 3 was running, and I decided to step things up a notch. I hadn't done Buckhorn East in years, and now would be a perfect time for it. Indeed, there were only a couple other tracks in the area, and it was mostly soft and smooth. I had to navigate a tricky river crossing near the bottom, but otherwise it was about 1300' of fun. The hike back to the ski area on the 2 wasn't bad, so I decided to make for Avalanche.
My first run through there was just phenomenal- I chose a well-exposed gully that was soft down to the apron, and found more winter snow on the more east-facing aspects in some places. I think I read on here once that someone described Avalanche as "South Bowl on Steroids," and that's absolutely true. It's just so ridiculously great in there.
I was solo and had planned on hiking it back up the ski area if need be, but got a ride after walking up a bit without a problem. I grabbed a bite, talked for a bit with Brian Metcalf at the warming hut, and took a few more runs in the western gullies down to the 2. When I was ready to call it a day, I just had to end with another run down Avalanche, down a different entry point this time. So, so fun. It had firmed up just a touch by this point but nothing too harsh, turns were still easy and the smile still ear-to-ear. For exercise's sake, I hiked up to the parking lot this time, turning down a couple offers for rides.
All in all a great day, though I wouldn't have had anywhere near as much fun staying in bounds, where choppy, firm snow was the norm. There was a ton of snow up there, and it should be a great spring for them this year as things soften.
I intended on bringing my camera but my wife needed it, so all I took were some low-res cell phone pics. I'll upload them and post them if they're any good, otherwise sorry again for a picless report.
So I set out, with the plan to spend most of the day out-of-bounds.
The drive up was easier than I expected- the route really isn't all that much longer than the usual way, and I got there (and back later) from Brentwood in 1:15, the same amount of time it takes me to get to Baldy from here. Seeing the burn area was as harrowing as I thought it'd be, but I was happy to see the north face of Strawberry Peak and the Strawberry Potrero areas still looking verdant- once they reopen the forest, tackling Strawberry the long way from Colby Camp is high on my list of hikes to do again.
Anyway, got to the hill and rode up, and yeah, all the inbounds was chopped up and frozen. I tried a run down the trees to skier's right of the liftline, and other than little pockets here and there, it wasn't worth it.
So it was time to start the adventure portion of the day's itinerary. I started with the three gullies skier's left of the warming hut, with the farthest over having the most untracked, and even the occasional patch of legitimate winter powder worth 2-3 turns. A lot of the snow was crusty but no problem on a board, with some spots of hardpack here and there. Fun, but not spectacular.
I heard Chair 3 was running, and I decided to step things up a notch. I hadn't done Buckhorn East in years, and now would be a perfect time for it. Indeed, there were only a couple other tracks in the area, and it was mostly soft and smooth. I had to navigate a tricky river crossing near the bottom, but otherwise it was about 1300' of fun. The hike back to the ski area on the 2 wasn't bad, so I decided to make for Avalanche.
My first run through there was just phenomenal- I chose a well-exposed gully that was soft down to the apron, and found more winter snow on the more east-facing aspects in some places. I think I read on here once that someone described Avalanche as "South Bowl on Steroids," and that's absolutely true. It's just so ridiculously great in there.
I was solo and had planned on hiking it back up the ski area if need be, but got a ride after walking up a bit without a problem. I grabbed a bite, talked for a bit with Brian Metcalf at the warming hut, and took a few more runs in the western gullies down to the 2. When I was ready to call it a day, I just had to end with another run down Avalanche, down a different entry point this time. So, so fun. It had firmed up just a touch by this point but nothing too harsh, turns were still easy and the smile still ear-to-ear. For exercise's sake, I hiked up to the parking lot this time, turning down a couple offers for rides.
All in all a great day, though I wouldn't have had anywhere near as much fun staying in bounds, where choppy, firm snow was the norm. There was a ton of snow up there, and it should be a great spring for them this year as things soften.
I intended on bringing my camera but my wife needed it, so all I took were some low-res cell phone pics. I'll upload them and post them if they're any good, otherwise sorry again for a picless report.
