We went up into RMNP yesterday (Feb 18) and skinned to the top of the “Otis Redding Couloir“, at the base of Otis Peak on the south side of Chaos Canyon. I am not an avalanche expert, but we are definitely wary and keep an eye on things. It wasn’t pretty, and we bailed. Here’s the report I sent to CAIC.

We approached from the south (Loch Vale) and emerged just below the top of the gully. Decided to skin up and check out the steeper slopes. We noticed significant fracturing and set off a few small slides (~6-10″ deep) especially when cutting switchbacks near the top of the gully, north and northeast aspects. Dug a pit and found about four inches of powder with a 6″ thick soft slab below it. There were some crusty layers below, and then the rest of the snowpack below (4′?) was facets. The slab layer on top failed easily and cleanly after three or four thumps on an isolated column, AND we observed a natural slide (more of a slough) on a steep slope west of the couloir, and a big crown on a south-east aspect across Chaos Canyon.

We didn’t ski the gully due to conditions, but rather descended through trees and set off sloughs on most steeper slopes. Throughout much of the descent there was an obvious slab layer just below the recent snow with facets below.

It’s been snowing on and off since in Estes, and we’ve gotten 3-5 inches here in town since we got down…and it’s still coming down hard. Things are looking up for the early spring backcountry ski season!

Took advantage of a warm afternoon to swing tools at Hidden Falls. There was a party of two pulling their rope and packing when we arrived around 2pm; we had the ice to ourselves as the sun sank into the Divide. We each took a half-dozen laps, hooking wherever possible to preserve this super popular ice crag. Feels good to get out!

The Estes Park Winter Festival is coming to town January 15 through 18. In a nutshell, here’s what to expect: local wine and beer tastings, a chili cook-off, live music, the EarthFest celebration with guest speakers and vendors, demoing snowshoes for free at Winter Trails Day on Saturday, tours at the Estes Park Observatory, a snowman making contest, a scavenger hunt for the prize elk, horse and carriage rides, private photo tours and special swimming pool fun and spa promotions. All in all a fun weekend in the mountains!

A few years ago, Apryle and I volunteered with the Chamber of Commerce to help promote Winter Trails Day in Estes Park, which is an annual event aimed at helping people learn about and experience snowshoeing. This year, I’ll be working at Winter Trails as an employee from REI Boulder. Apryle, who designed the nifty event website, will be volunteering at the registration booth as well. Come up around 10am on Saturday to the Glacier Basin trailhead and we’ll set you up with a pair of snowshoes to explore the National Park.

See you this weekend!

I love the warm, dazed afterglow of a day spent climbing cold, windy mountains. Matt, Apryle and I just got back from an impeccable day afield in the northern Indian Peaks. In search of early winter turns, we have been skiing around Rock Creek over the past week. Today we headed further up, to Saint Vrain Mountain. The ascent was bony, not much snow left on the south facing hillsides. Just below treeline, the fragile snowpack spoke to us in deep booming “whumpfs!” as we skinned higher and higher. We stayed off the steeper slopes and nothing cut loose on us. Had to carry the gear on the tundra trail with impressive views into Wild Basin and up to the Divide, while beating up into the wind. We skied about halfway up Saint Vrain and decided to get on with the down!

The descent was phenomenal. Windpacked powder up high and knee-deep fluff in the trees below. The road back to the car was packed and fast. The story of the day was written on our faces; as we passed a cross-country skier she noted “you guys sure look happy!” Six of the best hours I’ve spent outside in a while, to be certain.

The summery weather we had over the last couple of weeks seems to be gone for good. The temps lately here in Estes have been in the single digits, and it’s finally snowing! The forecast for around 12,000′ in RMNP is calling for a total of 9″-15″ by the end of tomorrow. We might just get enough for a couple of backcountry ski runs, finally!

A headcold has laid me low for the last week, so I haven’t gotten out into the Park to check things out lately, but Eli has a great new conditions update on ClimbingLife.com, dated December 4th.

On August 21, 2009, Apryle Craig and Phil Magistro paddled the last few strokes into Glacier Bay National Park, completing their 111 day journey on the Inside Passage. The “Go Wild Expedition” began on May 2, 2009 in Gig Harbor, WA and covered 1,251 miles through Washington, up the wild coast of British Columbia, and along the panhandle of Alaska.

One of the primary goals of the expedition was to examine the issues that are thought by the scientific community to be contributing to the localized extinction of pink and chum salmon along the British Columbia coast, specifically the open-net farming of non-native Atlantic salmon. To meet this goal, the pair began with background reading on salmon history, life cycle, and modern challenges. The couple also had dialogue with various involved parties, including discussion of closed containment with a representative from the BC Salmon Farmers Association, correspondence with a Norwegian citizen about awareness in Norway (where most of the BC salmon farms are based) regarding the issues surrounding salmon farming, analysis of information provided by a manufacturer of closed containment systems, and recommendations from the staff of the Living Oceans Society.

Actually paddling the Inside Passage proved more difficult than either partner had imagined. “At 2 miles per hour, the world goes by very slowly,” says Magistro. Strong headwinds in the Johnstone Strait slowed progress, and communication with the outside world tapered off as the pair made their way into the wilder parts of British Columbia. Muir said it best, however, that wilderness can “heal and cheer and give strength to body and soul alike.” The Go Wild team hit their stride in central British Columbia, as they began to increase their mileage and take fewer rest days. Hearty, delicious meals fueled the duo, and paddling big storm swells around Cape Caution in the Queen Charlotte Sound inspired confidence. Blue skies for much of the summer made sunburn a greater concern than hypothermia. When bad weather, rough conditions, and fatigue set in, the team was thankful for their Kokatat drysuits, Current Designs kayaks, and Werner paddles. Furthermore, Magistro and Craig took heart in the exceptional kindness and hospitality offered by locals and fellow travelers all along the route.

Salmon are ubiquitous on the Inside Passage, and their presence pervaded the entire expedition. As such, Magistro and Craig enjoyed plentiful opportunities for salmon study, beginning with a stop at a wild salmon smokehouse in Washington. They enjoyed copious discussion with local residents, fisherman, and paddlers along the route, as well as a study session at the Living Oceans Society office in Sointula. The pair hoped to tour a working salmon farm near Campbell River, however, they passed through the region before the start of organized tours and a representative of the BC Salmon Farmers Association was unable to return their calls in time. However, they did have the opportunity to paddle near a host of working fish farms near Quadra Island and discuss farm density, fish habits, and health with a staff person at one of the farms. Magistro and Craig did not personally witness any problematic behavior on the part of the salmon farms, nor did they observe trash that could be linked directly to a farm. However, they were struck by the presence of what appeared to be abandoned fish farms as well as the amount of detritus, abandoned machinery, plastic, and rope found on the beaches in southern British Columbia, likely resulting from a combination of logging, passing ships, commercial fishing, and salmon farming.

Further north, the team became intimate with wild salmon. Traveling by kayak through massive schools of returning adult salmon, the “whump-splash” of piscine missiles launching out of the water and crash landing mere feet from their kayaks became a daily occurrence as the spawning season started in earnest. They observed salmon traveling upstream to spawn all along the coast from central British Columbia to Glacier Bay. On Admiralty Island, they explored on foot a salmon stream thick with pink salmon, strewn with dead and dying fish, and liberally peppered with grizzly tracks and scat.

Never far from the wild salmon were the host of fisherman pursuing them, with gillnets, trollers, and purse seines. Encounters with sport and commercial fishermen provided frequent opportunities to discuss opinions on salmon farming and its apparent effects on wild salmon. That salmon farming is almost universally opposed by fisherman, their families, and residents of fishing towns was not entirely surprising, though it seemed that these adverse opinions stem equally from competition for market share from farmed salmon and from their environmental impacts on wild salmon.

Wild and domestic salmon were not the only creatures keeping the Go Wild team company; frequent wildlife encounters also provided inspiration on the long paddle north. Some of the wildlife highlights were watching throngs of humpback whales migrating through the Fitz Hugh Sound near Bella Bella, BC, losing count of bald eagles on a daily basis, witnessing a humpback breach eighteen times in a row near Wrangell, warily avoiding close grizzly bear encounters on Admiralty Island, dodging a playful sea otter in Icy Strait, and enjoying daily visits by curious harbor seals and Stellar sea lions.

While there are arguments on both sides of the salmon farming issue, by August both paddlers agreed that salmon farming has significant negative impacts. Juvenile mortality possibly resulting from parasitic infections originating in open-net salmon farms is just the most recent of two centuries of abuse: logging impacts from “splash dams” and improper waste disposal, gold dredges reworking entire streambeds, tremendous commercial fishing pressure, and massive dam projects. However, this issue may be the proverbial straw on their humped backs.

Since the end of the expedition, research has implicated the salmon farms Magistro and Craig paddled by in the Okisollo region in the recent (and massive) collapse of the Fraser River sockeye. However, awareness of these issues outside of a very narrow geographic band along the Pacific Coast appears to be almost nil. It seems that the problems could be largely mitigated through scientific analysis, informed governance, common sense, and educated consumerism. The team hopes that in writing about the journey, performing slideshows, and discussing these issues they can continue to raise funds for the preservation of wild salmon through the Living Ocean Society and awareness of the issues among the general population. Says Craig, “I hope that after hearing our story, people will consider what types of salmon to put on their table with a greater understanding of where that fish came from and how it lived in or interacted with the natural environment.”

Traveling the Inside Passage by kayak is an intriguing experience, difficult beyond belief but at the same time incredibly rewarding. The expedition could never have come together and would not have meant as much without the support of friends, family, sponsors, and all the amazing folks who lent a helpful hand and kind words along the way. Kayaking to Alaska was an accomplishment for the pair, and provided both with greater respect for the natural world, time for reflection and personal growth, and the chance to become very intimate with a fascinating and beautiful part of the world. They are proud of their achievement and are looking forward to carrying the lessons learned on the Inside Passage into “civilized” life, and hopefully the next adventure.

So, a few months ago, my best friend Kate puts up a photography website.  I knew she dabbled in photography and I looked forward to seeing her get the site up and running with some of her stuff.  Today, I checked back at the site and was downright floored – she is spectacular!  This is not the stuff of dabblers.  If you are looking for portrait photography in the Colorado Springs area, please check her out at www.katedensmore.com.  An experienced hiker and skier, Kate is likely to take your portrait session outside for results that are anything but average.  She has experience photographing with man’s best friend and is sure to capture the connection between you and your pooch.  Her ability to take your interests and express them through photography is fantastic.  Whether buying a Christmas tree or dropping into some backcountry powder, I highly recommend you invite Kate on your next adventure to capture those rare moments.

I can’t wait to see her other work.  Kate, please post a comment here when it is up and running!

One of Kate Densmore's Expressive Outdoor Portrait Sessions

Took a hike today up into Glacier Gorge to swing tools and check out the Black Lake Area.  Super glad we didn’t take skis….would have been a scrape-fest.  And was, for the folks who tried.  All Mixed Up looks quite thin.  We climbed a sweet one pitch WI2-3 just below Black Lake, sticking to the left side.  I think the climb is named “Reflections” but it wasn’t the WI3-4 that Mountain Project claims.  Afterwards we checked out the Black Lake Slabs which appear to be in but thin, especially at the top.  West Gully looks pretty good.  We’ll definitely head back up there for some more winter fun.  Can’t hope for too many days with weather like today, though!

We made it!

On Friday, August 21, 2009 we paddled the last few miles into Glacier Bay, Alaska, ending a enormous 111 day and 1,200 mile journey!  The trip was an extraordinary physical accomplishment for both of us and was replete with unique experiences both good and bad.  We’ve spent the last few two weeks in transit from Alaska to visit with family in Pennsylvania and are now decompressing from the trip and working on reintegration into “civilization”.

We took approximately 3,600 photos and a gigabyte of videos, of which we’ve posted about 330.  We’ll be doing slideshows, dates and locations to be announced.  It will take us some time to sort through the thousands of emails and piles of mail we “missed” while we were paddling, so please excuse any delay in communication over the next few weeks.

Finally, thank you to all the people who made this trip possible and kept us going along the way.  Our sponsors, our friends, our families, the post offices who held our packages, the kind folks who filled our water bottles, shared their dinners, or even opened their homes and cars and land to us along the way; we appreciated every gesture.  We are looking forward to paying it forward.

We’ve reached Sointula and are getting ourselves back on track after figuratively losing ourselves in the wild upper reaches of Vancouver Island for a week. Lost track of days and camps are blurring together in our minds. Port Hardy seems like an apparation that will never draw nearer, but we are finally narrowing the gap.

We’re moving slower than we had hoped. My shoulder, the weather, our own issues all have contributed. We’ve both realized that we may have bitten off a bit more than we can chew on this trip and are just doing the best we can. Paddling towards Alaska, day by day.

We are about to launch into the really wild part. From here to Prince Rupert we’ll be paddling through some remote stretches with little or no communication with the outside world. We’ll continue hitting the “OK” button on our SPOT unit, so you will be able to see our location using the “Track Our Location” link on the left.

Other than SPOT updates, we won’t be doing much blog posting from here on out. We’ve uploaded a bunch of photos from the last section of the trip. We haven’t the time to write day by day recaps, so we’ll look forward to sharing a cup of tea with you all down the road and retelling our stories in person.

We have been learning a lot about our capabilities and limitations. I don’t know if we’ll paddle our last strokes to Glacier Bay in August or if it will be all we can do to fight the wind and tides to Bella Bella. In many ways we are letting go of old expectations and accepting where we are and where we can go from here. Lots of time for introspection and discussion these last few weeks.

Thank you all for the love and support you have shown. From casual advice along the day’s paddle to grilled salmon offered at a campsite to opening up your homes to us, the people we have met along the way have helped to make this trip possible. To all our friends and family reading from home, thank you for the comments, emails, and kind thoughts! We both wish we could share more with you all every day, so please accept our apologies.

I am looking forward to the next section being a grand adventure, the “real” wilderness experience we have both set out for. I feel like we are more prepared physically, mentally, in terms of equipment, and as expedition partners to handle what lies ahead. We are doing well and are eager to catch up when we can, a few weeks hence in Bella Bella.