2013 Captain's Log (AKA Rider's Log)

haha that's our friend carlton.  he destroyed the saucer on impact.. so rad.

Nice little day 42 yesterday, closing day for Mt. Rose.  Seemed like summer, great spring conditions combined with the best slide parking lot tailgate I've ever seen -- kinda sunburned today.  Here's erin in the bottom part of el cap, the chutes corned up real nice

^^Not sure if riding Pow or hiking up mountain...  But damn that is awesome. Does season usually go for that long in AK?

Day 43: Quick overnight trip down to tioga pass this weekend with a few bros, camped off the side of the road on 395 just past mono lake (I'm bringing a tent next time, I couldn't get my sleeping bag's face hole small enough to keep out the mosquitoes -- that and an almost-full moon made it kinda hard to sleep) and then hit up a popular area below Mt. Dana on Sunday morning.  This was my first snow trip up there and the terrain is big and aesthetic.  In these conditions the climbing was also perhaps a little beyond my level, but we didn't push it too hard.  (Boot crampons and ice axes are my next purchase, would have been helpful in a few places yesterday).  This is the very bottom of Ellery Bowl on the run out to the parking lot:

Day 35 and 36.  Rode up at Mammoth with the EL crew.  Nice day out with the snow all slushy.  First day back since I broke myself in mid December.  It felt good to be back...a little too good.

Originally posted by spenser day 89 yesterday.  split up eaglecrest by myself, mostly for the exercise.  it's been snowing at sea level all week and it's deep up in the mountains.  stormy, windy, dumping snow.... it was like mid january up there. snow was deep and not super wet or anything.  good run down.  it was a little weird riding legit powder again after not riding at all for two weeks, and not having a deep pow run day like that since probably the last time I went splitting a while ago.. or maybe I just didn't have my legs fully under me from sitting around for two weeks.

Originally posted by | | | bryman | | | Day 43: Quick overnight trip down to tioga pass this weekend with a few bros, camped off the side of the road on 395 just past mono lake (I'm bringing a tent next time, I couldn't get my sleeping bag's face hole small enough to keep out the mosquitoes -- that and an almost-full moon made it kinda hard to sleep) and then hit up a popular area below Mt. Dana on Sunday morning.  This was my first snow trip up there and the terrain is big and aesthetic.  In these conditions the climbing was also perhaps a little beyond my level, but we didn't push it too hard.  (Boot crampons and ice axes are my next purchase, would have been helpful in a few places yesterday).  This is the very bottom of Ellery Bowl on the run out to the parking lot: We hiked up Ellery Bowl, to the Dana plateau area.  It's the "easiest" way up according to the guidebook but the top of the bowl was real steep, I was happy that my skier-friends kicked in steps to scramble up.  Here's a fb shot of me "climbing": Screwed around up there and looked into some chutes.  This is the top of Cocaine Chute, which is purportedly the easiest way down this area.  Some solo skiier ripped down there, but his dog wouldn't follow him because it was too steep or something.  The dude was down there for like two and a half hours (he said he only wanted to shred part way down but he dropped his ski when he was strapping up and had to retrieve it).  The dog just ran back and forth on the top of the cooley (including a terrible cornice that looked like it was about to go) the entire time.  But it was all cool, we saw them both again at the parking lot: The stuff off dana plateau was visible from where we camped, it's rad.  From the top they looked like a lot of fun (but scary) and we didn't think we were committed enough for the mandatory hike back out.  We also watched a couple groups shred Solistice couloir.  The picture below is Mt. Dana, with Dana couloir on the left.  You can't see any of this stuff until you get back there a bit.  Solistice is just on the right, not visible here, and looks great.   There is an-apparently easy way to hike up to solistice from another parking area, then shred down to the bottom of Ellery either leaving a car or bumming a ride.  I'd probably opt for that next time.     This was one of the bigger mountaineering-like trips I've done, the visuals out there are so cool.  I was mostly gripped and puckered the whole time but it was worthwhile.   -b

Brent, I want to come out the next huge spring out there.  California Spring riding, there is none better.