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MEGA TR: Adventures in the Ansel Adams & Yosemite Wildernesses

Posted in Backcountry Skiing, Eastern Sierra, Yosemite National Park on May 15, 2018| 1 Comment »

Dates: Monday, May 7th – Friday, May 11th

Locations: Ansel Adams & Yosemite Wildernesses, including Donahue Pass (11,056 ft.), Mount Lyell (13,120 ft.), Simmons Peak (12,497 ft.), Kuna Crest South (11,812 ft.), Koip Peak (12,968 ft.) and Mount Wood (12,657 ft.).

Skiers: Jon & Nick

Photos: As noted

Synopsis: Towards the end of April each year, Jon and I start pouring over topo maps to piece together potential multi-day tours into the High Sierra. It is one of my favorite activities of the year, as there is so much potential for exploration deeper into the range. This year, the High Sierra had a pretty weak winter, so snowpack depth was of paramount concern. Colin was nice enough to link us to some NOAA snow coverage and SWE models that over layed on maps. Using this enabled us to quickly scrap some ideas we had been thinking about in the more Southern Sierra, as the snow coverage looked really thin.

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Mega TR: Mt. Gould & Palisade Crest Tour

Posted in Backcountry Skiing, Eastern Sierra on June 3, 2017| Leave a Comment »

Dates: Monday, May 22 – Friday, May 26, 2017

Locations: Mt. Gould & West of Palisade Crest, Eastern Sierra

Skiers: Jon & Nick

Photos: As noted

Synopsis: With a great winter and a huge spring snowpack in the Eastern Sierra, Jon and I spent the early part of map pouring over topo maps and deciding where to plan a five day ski tour. We had originally intended to cross the range over a variation of the Monarch Divide tour, but ultimately the hassle of car logistics turned us towards a loop style tour starting and ending on the Eastside. With no shortage of terrain, it was simply identifying a zone we wanted to stay in for five days. As is the case, sometimes planning only takes you so far, as we had set out originally on a tour leaving out of Onion Valley, but a broken ski boot on the first day quickly changed our plans. Fortunately, some quick MacGyvering ultimately kept the train on the rails, albeit on an entirely different track!

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TR: Matterhorn Peak

Posted in Backcountry Skiing, Eastern Sierra on March 16, 2015| Leave a Comment »

Date: Saturday, March 14, 2015

Location: Matterhorn Peak, Eastern Sierra

Skiers: Jon & Nick

Photos: Jon & Nick (as noted)

Synopsis: As the “winter” has progressed here in California, I have been doing a lot of road biking… Long periods of high pressure, sunny skies and warm temps have largely dictated February and March. California was treated to a much needed storm about a week ago, which provided some moisture for the state and a blanket of low-density snow at high elevation. While not the base-building, heavy cement we really needed, no one was in a position to complain.

However, as quickly as the storm came, high pressure and warming temps generally returned. On Wednesday, another storm came across the Sierra that provided several more inches of snow, followed by a warming trend and high pressure. The weekend called for great weather for a mission down to the Eastern Sierra, in search of remaining “wintery” snow at high elevation, north-aspects.

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RR: 2014 Mammoth Fall Century

Posted in Cycling, Eastern Sierra on September 20, 2014| 1 Comment »

Date: Saturday, September 6, 2014/

Location: Mammoth Lakes, CA

Photos: Nick (unless otherwise noted).

Synopsis: On Saturday, September 6th, I participated in the Mammoth Fall Century Ride, a 102.6 mile ride in the Eastern Sierra with a total of 6,643 feet of elevation gain. I had actually signed up for this ride last year with my friend Pat, but I was unable to attend on account of a work conflict. Fortunately, this year I was able to make it and I had an amazing time.

The Mammoth Fall Century Ride is a loop style course that starts at the Village at Mammoth Mountain with an escorted mass start through the town of Mammoth down to highway 395. After that, the course heads out east and includes some great climbs on super desolate roads. There is only one stop sign on the entire course once you get out of the town of Mammoth Lakes! The ride is entirely supported with six aid stations, a lunch stop and full SAG vehicle support. Similar to most areas of the Eastern Sierra, you are in the Sierra Nevada rain shadow so the topography has a high-desert feel, with huge peaks to the West and rolling hills to the East into Nevada. The entire ride takes place between approximately 8,000 feet and 6,400 feet of elevation – meaning the lowest point of the ride is still 200 feet higher than our condo in Tahoe!

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TR: 2013 High Sierra Week – Part IV– Bear Creek Spire – N.E. Ridge & Tuolumne Meadows

Posted in Climbing, Eastern Sierra on June 8, 2013| 2 Comments »

Climbers: Jon & Nick

Dates: Friday, May 17 – Sunday, May 19, 2013

Photos: Jon & Nick (as noted)

Synopsis: We awoke Friday morning to clearing skies and what looked like a dusting of snow up on the high peaks. The clouds were still engulfed on the Sierra Crest, but weather forecasts called for a general clearing trend. Our plan was to hike in from Mosquito Flat trailhead towards the Rock Creek area to camp at a lake near the base of Bear Creek Spire, and get an early alpine start Saturday morning.

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TR: 2013 High Sierra Week – Part III – Temple Crag – Moon Goddess Arête

Posted in Climbing, Eastern Sierra on June 8, 2013| Leave a Comment »

Climbers: Jon & Nick

Dates: Wednesday, May 15 – Thursday, May 16, 2013

Photos: Jon & Nick (as noted)

Synopsis: Upon returning to our camp at Third Lake after climbing Venusian Blind Arête, we settled in for yet another 4 AM wake-up to go climb Moon Goddess Arête the following day. That night the winds were picking up pretty strongly, clouds were increasing and the temperature dropped pretty significantly.

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TR: 2013 High Sierra Week – Part II – Temple Crag – Venusian Blind Arête

Posted in Climbing, Eastern Sierra on June 6, 2013| Leave a Comment »

Climbers: Jon & Nick

Dates: Monday, May 13 – Tuesday, May 14, 2013

Photos: Jon & Nick (as noted)

Synopsis: After climbing the Direct South Face of Lone Pine Peak, Jon and I headed back the next morning to try and get permits for the North Fork of Big Pine Creek. Our initial soft plans going in were to hike in that Monday and set up a camp by Second or Third Lake, and climb Venusian Blind Arête on Tuesday, followed by Moon Goddess Arête on Wednesday (both of which we ended up doing). We then tentatively planned to move camp up beyond Sam Mack Meadows to the Palisade Glacier, with a potential objective of climbing Starlight Buttress on Starlight Peak. More on that later.

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TR: 2013 High Sierra Week – Part I – Direct South Face of Lone Pine Peak

Posted in Climbing, Eastern Sierra on June 6, 2013| Leave a Comment »

Climbers: Jon & Nick

Dates: Saturday, May 11 – Sunday, May 12, 2013

Photos: Jon & Nick (as noted)

Synopsis: Similar to the winter of 2012, this Winter was a pretty low snow-year throughout the Sierra Nevada. Throughout the Winter, Jon and I had been tentatively planning a week-long ski-tour in the Eastern Sierra. As the months passed along, days grew longer and the weather warmed, we realized that once again the Winter would not provide optimal Spring ski-touring conditions.

On the other hand, the low-snow year lent itself to great, early season alpine climbing opportunities throughout the High Sierra. With that in mind, Jon and I headed with a loaded car down Highway 395 to the high peaks of the Eastern Sierra to try and take advantage of a good weather forecast and climb some classic, big routes.

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TR: Northwest Ridge of Four Gables

Posted in Climbing, Eastern Sierra on January 19, 2012| 5 Comments »

Dates: Saturday, January 14 – Sunday, January 15, 2012

Locations: Peak 12,542 and the Northwest Ridge of Four Gables

Climbers: Jon & Nick

Photos: As noted (with some processing edits on a couple of Jon’s shots from Nick)

Synopsis: With Tioga Pass continuing to remain open, the lack of snowfall this year continued offered a unique opportunity to those so inclined: access to long, granite alpine rock routes with minimal amounts of snow in otherwise “Winter” conditions. By “Winter” conditions I mean (i) very short days, (ii) very cold temperatures and (iii) very strong winds.

Jon and I were itching the entire week to undertake a true winter alpine route that would involve a bivy at a high altitude. We combed through the High Sierra Secor Guide looking for route descriptions. Our search had a couple of parameters. First, since we were coming from the Bay Area on Friday, altitude was a key factor. We were hesitant to bivy up around 13,000 ft. + on Saturday night for fear of getting absolutely worked by the altitude. Second, the weather report was not looking promising. While Saturday day and night called for great conditions, Sunday was anticipated to deteriorate rapidly with a very strong wind event moving in (with Sunday night expecting sustained 100+ mph winds along the High Sierra Crest).

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TR: North Couloir, North Peak

Posted in Climbing, Eastern Sierra, Yosemite National Park on January 9, 2012| 2 Comments »

Date: Saturday, January 7, 2012

Location: North Couloir of North Peak

Climbers: Brandon & Nick

Photos: Nick (unless otherwise noted as Brandon, with some processing edits from Nick)

Synopsis: While the lack of snow in the Sierra has delayed the start of ski season, it has also offered a historical statistic of sorts – namely, Tioga Pass is currently open in January. According to data compiled by the Mono Lake Committee, since 1933 Tioga Pass has only been open six times post-December, with the former record being January 1 in 2000. Being an optimist of sorts, I was excited as this offers easy access to the High Sierra for one approaching from the West side of the range.

Brandon and I had our eyes set on the classic alpine climb of the North Couloir of North Peak (12,242 ft). With the lack of snow and constant cold temps at that elevation, we were hoping that the North Couloir would possibly continue to hold ice conditions – although we were actually expecting hard neve. In either case, the chance to climb the North Couloir in January with a mostly snowless approach in winter weather conditions (think (i) cold and (ii) very windy) sounded too good to be true.

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TR: Matthes Crest

Posted in Climbing, Eastern Sierra, Yosemite National Park on September 23, 2011| 1 Comment »

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Date: Sunday, September 18, 2011

Location: Matthes Crest, Yosemite National Park

Climbers: Jon & Nick

Photos: Jon & Nick (as noted)

Synopsis: After a successful trip on the Northeast Couloir of Mount Gilbert the day prior, Jon and I headed on yet another early alpine start for some ultra-classic climbing on Matthes Crest. Matthes Crest is one of the most unique climbs I have ever done. Approaching from the Cathedral Lakes trailhead, Matthes Crest is a very unique granite knife-ridge that was glacially formed. Although it is only about 500 vertical feet from the ground, the knife-ridge itself runs for over a mile long. Similar to most parties, we climbed to the North Tower and rapped from the dedicated rap rings.

Ultimately, it rightly deserves its recognition for its classic status, offering awesome climbing, great exposure and unbelievable views.

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TR: Mt. Gilbert – Northeast Couloir

Posted in Climbing, Eastern Sierra on September 23, 2011| 3 Comments »

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Date: Saturday, September 17, 2011

Location: Mt. Gilbert, Northeast Couloir

Climbers: Jon & Nick

Photos: Jon & Nick (as noted)

Synopsis: After arriving back from Europe the prior day (and Jon separately also arriving from Spain the prior day), Jon and I headed down to Bishop to once again give a go at the North Couloir on Mt. Gilbert (13,106 ft.). Last year we headed down much latter in the alpine ice season, and after a foot of snow fell, avalanche conditions were unsafe and lead to the Triple Skunk on each of the North Couloir on North Peak, the North Couloir on Mt. Gilbert and the Harrington Couloir on Mt. Thompson.

Fortunately, this year we headed back earlier in the season without snow on the approach and the weather was great. We ended up climbing the Northeast Couloir as it was more sustained without a burnt-out middle section, but now we both want to go back and climb the North Couloir proper. I guess we still have time this season!

Unlike the Triple Skunk , the approach was entirely dry well up onto the glacier just below Mt. Gilbert. Therefore, the approach was much faster (by several hours) and we made good time.

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TR: Stately Pleasure Dome, Dozier Dome & Pywiack Dome – Tuolumne Meadows, Yosemite Natl. Park

Posted in Climbing, Eastern Sierra, Yosemite National Park on August 29, 2011| 6 Comments »

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Dates: Saturday, August 27 – Sunday, August 28, 2011

Locations: Stately Pleasure Dome, Pywiack Dome & Dozier Dome, Tuolumne Meadows, Yosemite National Park

Climbers: Brandon & Nick

Photos: Nick (unless otherwise noted as Brandon)

Synopsis: Brandon and I headed up to Tuolumne Meadows for a great weekend of climbing on some classic multi-pitch dome routes: (i) Great White Book on Stately Pleasure Dome, (ii) Holdless Horror on Dozier Dome, (iii) Zee Tree on Pywiack Dome and (iv) Errett Out on Dozier Dome. The weather was great and the scenery spectacular.

I also got to try out my new camera for shots from the ground (as I would never climb with this thing): a Canon 60D with a Canon 15-85mm F/3.5-5.6 IS USM lens. All climbing shots (and shots from the summits) are with my much smaller Panasonic LX-3.

On the drive in Saturday morning, the skies were very overcast and there was some very sporadic rain (in quantity, location and time-lapse). We got a little worried, as rain + granite slab = no fun. However, the rain didn’t seem to impact the Tuolumne area (other than about 2 minutes of very light rain over Tenaya Lake) and the skies eventually cleared up during the day.

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TR: Sonora Pass

Posted in Backcountry Skiing, Eastern Sierra on June 15, 2011| Leave a Comment »

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Date: Saturday, June 11, 2011

Location: Sonora Pass

Skiers: Rachel, Andrew, Brandon & Nick

Photos: Andrew, Brandon & Nick (as noted)

Synopsis: May in the Sierra is my favorite month. Typically, the days are long, the snow is consolidated and predictable corn, the weather is stable and the mountain passes are open making for easier trips to the Eastern Sierra. After such a big snow year this winter, we continued to get “plagued” by additional late season snow and low-pressure windows. It didn’t feel right to complain about snow and low pressure, but frankly, I was internally grumbling most of May. With work obligations and the like, I found myself trying to squeeze in weekend trips that would get shut down by weather.

Fortunately, Enginerd and I were able to pull off a quick stealth mission into the Evolution Range in between weather cycles in early May. Unfortunately, that was the only skiing I did the entire month.

After that, I would read reports of 100 mph winds on the High Sierra, mountain passes being shut down due to new snow or rock fall, and the like. Honestly, I was just ready to move on to climbing season and packed the ski stuff up.

All week I was debating with Brandon whether to just go climbing on Saturday or give Sonora Pass a chance. The weather looked hit or miss with the potential for clouds and no re-freeze the night before. With the ski stuff packed, it was a hard decision at the time to pull it out. Fortunately, we made the right call.

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Mega TR: Evolution Loop (inc. Goddard & N. Couloir on Lamarck)

Posted in Backcountry Skiing, Eastern Sierra on May 15, 2011| 6 Comments »

Dates: Tuesday, May 10 – Friday, May 13, 2011

Skiers: Jon & Nick

Photos: Jon & Nick (as noted)

Synopsis: Over a four day period in between weather windows, Jon and I completed the classic High Sierra ski tour, the Evolution Loop. In addition to the classic tour plan, we added in side trips to Mt. Goddard and the North couloirs on Mt. Lamarck. The Evolution sub-range of the Eastern Sierra is considered by many to be one of the most beautiful areas of the entire Sierra. During our four days on the tour, I would consider this belief to stand true.

Note that this TR is four pages long, with each page dedicated to each day.

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TR: Eastern Sierra Ice Climbing – Lee Vining Main Wall & Horsetail Falls

Posted in Climbing, Eastern Sierra on January 25, 2011| 2 Comments »

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Dates: January 22-23, 2011

Climbers: Jon, Rachel, Tony & Nick

Locations: Lee Vining Caynon, Main Wall & June Lake, Horsetail Falls

Video & Photos: Nick (unless otherwise noted)

Synopsis: We headed down to the Eastside over the weekend to take in some Sierra ice climbing in Lee Vining Canyon and Horsetail falls. Lee Vining Canyon Main Wall was in good shape with thick ice and cold temperatures on Saturday. On Sunday, we headed down to Horsetail Falls in the June Lake area. Unfortunately, recent warm weather and sun exposure from the prior week had melted out many of the flows and the ice was fairly hollow. Alternatively, we hiked around to a North-aspect, mini-flow and worked on ice screw placements, anchoring, etc…

All in all, a great weekend of climbing with a good group!

This TR contains both a Video TR and Photo TR.

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TR: North Peak, Mt. Gilbert and Mt. Thompson – The “Triple Skunk”

Posted in Climbing, Eastern Sierra on November 3, 2010| 1 Comment »

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Locations: Plan “A” locations included the North Couloir on North Peak (12,242 ft.) and the North Couloir on Mt. Gilbert (13,106 ft.). Plan “B” locations included either the North Couloir on Mt. Gilbert or the Harrington Couloir on Mt. Thompson (13,494 ft.). Actual locations were the basin of Mt. Gilbert and Mt. Thompson.

Dates: Friday Night, October 29 – Sunday, October 31, 2010

Climbers: Nick & Jon (and Brandon for the first hour of Friday night!)

Photos: Nick (unless otherwise noted as Jon)

Synopsis: When travelling in the alpine zone, one’s plans are largely dictated by weather and conditions. Flexibility is the key in my mind. Set forth below is a chain of events that started with a plan developed over the course of the work week, weather monitoring, a change of plans and then further plan changes up through the entire weekend.

Ultimately, this TR is mostly an account of our plan changes and a bunch of scenic pictures – as alas, nothing was actually climbed. Would I depict it as a “failure” of weekend, absolutely not. Any weekend spent in the High Sierra after a beautiful coating of snow is amazing, regardless of what is accomplished. Therefore, this TR is an account of a great weekend, in cool area I had not been, and depicts some mountain decisions that I am proud of. It always feels good to know that you recognized unfavorable conditions and made the decision to back down.

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Guest TR: Memorial de Mayo en la Gran Sierra Nevada! 5/29 – 5/30/2010

Posted in Backcountry Skiing, Eastern Sierra on June 4, 2010| Leave a Comment »

Nota Especial: This Guest TR is written by Alex, one of the Lunaticos Dementes listed below – his words with the pics provided by the Fotografos listed below.

Fechas: Mayuary 29 & 30, 2010

Localidads: Las Pasadas de Sonora y Tioga, California

Note: This Guest TR is several pages long – just click at the end of each page to continue.

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TR: Mt. Williamson (14,375 ft / 4,382 m)

Posted in Backcountry Skiing, Eastern Sierra on May 11, 2010| 10 Comments »

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Location: Mt. Williamson (14,375 ft / 4,382 m), Eastern Sierra

Dates: Friday, May 7 – Saturday, May 8, 2010

Skiers: Jon & Nick

Photos & Video: Nick (unless otherwise noted as Jon)

Weather: Both days were bluebird, with warm temperatures and no wind on Friday, but a 20-30 mph wind up high on Saturday.

Avalanche Conditions: We did not encounter any instabilities in the snow pack on the ascent or descent. The snow is undergoing a strong freeze/thaw cycle (although cold winds on Saturday kept much of the snow from significantly thawing).

Synopsis: After finishing the Sierra High Route, my plan was to meet Jon and ski both Mt. Tyndall and Mt. Williamson. However, after skiing along the Tyndall Plateau on Day 5 of the SHR, I did not think the North Couloir on Tyndall was worth the massive approach to get back there. While it is an aesthetic line, Jon and I would rather save Tyndall for summer climbing on the East face.

Therefore, our plans were changed to only ski Mt. Williamson, the 2nd tallest peak in the Sierra.

Note: There are several pages to this TR.

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Mega TR: Sierra High Route (West to East)

Posted in Backcountry Skiing, Eastern Sierra on May 11, 2010| 4 Comments »

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Locations: Sierra High Route

Dates: Saturday, May 1 – Thursday, May 6, 2010

Skiers: Geoff, Barry, Mike & Nick

Photographers: All photos in this TR were taken with my camera. Most were taken my me, but the pictures of me were taken by other members of the team.

Synopsis: We were embarking on the Alpine Skills International (“ASI”) 2009 6-day Sierra High Route, from West to East. The trip would be lead by Geoff Clarke, an ASI Guide and former Chief Telemark Examiner for the PSIA.

The planned route crosses the Sierra Nevada over 9 high cols and passes, beginning at old Wolverton Ski Resort on the edge of Sequoia National Park and ending at the valley floor outside Independence (off 395). The planned route starts at approximately 7,200ft., climbs to around 10,000ft. and holds the line between 10,500ft. and 13,000ft., until dropping down on the Eastern side of the Sierra.

I attempted the same route last year with Geoff, but we turned around near Copper Mine Pass due to High avalanche conditions.

Based on Geoff’s running GPS, we traveled approximately 47 miles and climbed over 17,000 of vert over the course of the 6 days.

Note: Each Day is on a separate page, and the bottom of each page has a link to the next day.

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