It’s hard to believe this weekend marked my first backcountry hut trip since moving to Colorado in 1998. And after this trip, I can’t believe I waited so long.
Ten of us skinned into Fowler-Hilliard from Camp Hale/Pando on Thursday morning. The 5-mile, 2,000ft climb in sub-zero conditions was a challenge, particularly in the last exposed mile where visibility was poor and the winds picked up. Thankfully, there was a warm fire to greet us on arrival.
The next morning, while cold, was beautifully sunny and despite the temperatures felt considerably warmer than the day before. To warm up, we skied the trees to the North of the cabin but quickly realized we needed to make the most of the sunny weather and turned our attention to the South.
Because it had been cloudy since the last snowfall, slopes that would normally turn to crust were instead covered in light powder. Jumping in from the Ptarmigan Pass access road, we connected several glades into one long run to the valley floor beneath Resolution Peak. A steep skin up, followed by another run and one final climb back to the road and we had definitely earned our dinner.
On the way out, a few of us opted to skin up over Resolution Peak itself, careful to skirt the wind-loaded slopes below that would surely generate an avalanche if permitted. After a few runs off the back of the peak, we skied over to the trail junction, ducked into the trees along the ridge and picked up several more glades before returning to McAllister Gulch for the ski out.
Thanks to everyone for a great trip… This definitely won’t be my last! Be sure to check out the photos over on my photography site.