Ski mountaineering – Page 2 – Sun Valley Trekking

Pioneer Yurt Ski Mountaineering

Apr 022015

Stoked to be getting high

It’s ski mountaineering season here in the high peaks of Idaho! SVT guide, Joe St.Onge, and a group of intrepid Montanans are just back from 4 days of peak skiing based out of the Pioneer Yurt. While the snow has been rapidly melting this spring, we are still finding good to excellent ski conditions in the alpine, and the Pioneer Yurt is a great place to visit if you want to go alpine! The approach to the Pioneer Yurt is largely snow free at this point (don’t even think about snowmobile access!), but we can drive to the summer trailhead. Once at the Yurt, conditions are a bit bony for another 800′, but there is reliable coverage and good ski conditions in the alpine basins above. It may not last long, so get it while you can! Enjoy the pics!

Ah, in the high country!

Climbing into the Duncan’s Bowl

Stoked to be at 11,000′

Ripping corn in formation

Bob, laying it out

Cranking the peel-away

Bush Hawk, flying

It’s a bit bony getting into the high country from the yurt

Apprentice guides, Dynamite and Snowflake

Mikey, the man

Mark, loving the mountains

Climbing Goat Peak

The Higher You Get…

Mikey on the summit of Goat

The Heart of the Pioneers

Perfect corn on the summit snow fields

yehaw

soft and carvy

spring fun in the alpine

Scotty, stoked

Climbing back to the yurt

Bob, checking out the 3000′ bowl of Duncans

Couldn’t pass this corn slope up on the way back to the yurt

Climbing toward Hyndamn

The ascent of Hyndman in firm conditions

Approaching the summit of Hyndman

The last steps to the summit

Stoked to be on top of the highest Peak in the Pioneers

Skiing the summit snowfields of Hyndman

Cranking turns down the face of Hyndman

Rest break mid-descent

Snowflake coming down the lower crux

Arcing down the Hyndman Basin back to the Yurt

Climbing toward the Dorsal Fin

The crew, in the Throne Room of the Mountain Guides

The crew, in the Throne Room of the Mountain Gods

Climbing the Dorsal Fin Couloir

Steep

Stoked to be getting high

The final steps at the top of the Dorsal Fin Couloir

Mikey

Lunch with a view

Top of Dorsal Fin

Getting ready for the steeps

Oh, yeah

sweet!

Carvable

Mikey cranking

Hop turns on the steeps

After the couloir, comes the apron

Carving the apron

Cold beer after a great ski

making the descent on snow-ribbons off the Peanut back toward the trailhead

Yep, it’s pretty bony down low.

The last few steps to the car

Going Deep into the Sawtooth

Bench Hut, Sawtooth Monolith 1 Response »

Jan 292015

Welcome the heart of the Sawtooth

We have just returned back to the village after a few days exploring deep into the Sawtooth. When local skier/mountaineer (Chris) invited an old childhood friend (Matt) out from New York City to Idaho for a backcountry ski trip, Matt pictured fields of mellow powder and easy hikes. The journey Matt embarked on was something a bit different. Good thing Matt had years of experience in the inner city punk scene…

Beach break at Redfish Lake on the way to Bench Hut

Approaching the Bench Hut

Arriving at the Bench Hut

Early starts mean beautiful sunrises

approaching the land of the Grendel

Climbing above the 5th Bench Lake

atop the 1st pass of the day (a couple more to go!)

beneath the west summit of Heyburn

The first descent of the day into the Monolith Basin

ripping turns down into the Monolith Basin

welcome to the deep Sawtooth

Joe, happy to be back

climbing

gap toothed buddy

granite backdrop

the sneak onto Braxon Peak

now where are we going?

Chris, at home in the mountains

There is a lot of trust here…

rappel into the Bird Cage

Just a couple more steps and then skis on…

and now we are skiers

and now the skiing

Upper Bowl#2

The upper bowl of the Bird Cage

Stoked to be off a rope and on skis!

Chris ripping the Bird Cage

the lower bowl of the Bird Cage

Matt ripping under the Monolith

Niels dropping

Chris keeping strong form

Matt, skiing out under the Monolith after a descent of the Bird Cage

the final traverse back toward home

after 10 hours on the go

Chris in space

beauty

Stretching the legs as the clouds break

Enjoying a sunny beer with a view of our ski tour from Stanley

The mighty Sawtooth rising above the clouds

The Sawtooth Huts are Open and the Skiing is Fantastic!

Bench Hut, Fishhook Yurts, Huts and Yurts, SVT Scene 1 Response »

Dec 082014

We are just returning from the Sawtooth Huts: Bench and Fishhook where we were conducting the annual intern/apprentice training and orientation as well as opening the huts for the season. We found excellent early season coverage and snow depths in the Sawtooth, ranging form 50+cm in the valley bottom to over 190cm in the alpine. The snowpack itself is relatively dense providing a great early season base for both skiing and stability. Both the Sawtooth Huts are in excellent condition heading into the season and the skiing is great (see pics). Bench is booked pretty solid starting around the Christmas holiday, but there are still many free nights available in December and the skiing is on. So if you want to experience the awesome ski terrain and cozy accommodations at Bench, now is the time to sneak in before it is too late!

190cm at 88OO’-top of Surprise!

Winter beauty on the way to Fishhook Yurt

Fishhook Huts look great and are ready for your enjoyment

Heyburn looms above the approach to Bench Hut

Dumping above Bench Hut

Love it when it snows!

The crew above the Gun Barrel

mmmm…..

New intern, James, testing the powder above 3rd lake

Returning apprentice, Alisa, stoked to be back in the Sawtooth

Coverage into the alpine is good, on the way to Yo Yo Ma

A goat in his home

Returning apprentice, Niels, stoked to be high in the Sawtooth

New intern James, discovering the beauty of his new office.

Alisa squeezing the waning light out of the day.

hard to beat…

Full moon rising above the Bench Hut

Still Skiing in the Pioneers!

Huts and Yurts, Pioneer Yurts Comments Off

May 262014

The ski season continues here in Idaho, where an intrepid crew spent a fun couple of days skiing the peaks, bowls and basins above the Pioneer Yurt. It definitely takes some effort right now to reach the good skiing, but it is there if you work for it. Endeavor and Enjoy!

Climbing through the green valley to find the snow

Hitting snow right at Pioneer Yurt

Ahh, back on skis climbing Duncan’s Ridge

From sea level to 11,000′ in 2 days!

Creamy corn

stoked!

yehaw!

slashing wet corn

pure mountain water

The creeks are running full

north couloir on Cobb is enticing…

our objective: Hyndman Peak

Climbing

up with Old Hyndman as backdrop

carving down Hyndman South Face

hard to not smile!

whoohoo!

the crew

the siblings, a long way from NH!

saying goodbye to winter

the final steps down into the valley

Kent Peak Ski

Daily Powder Tours, Guides Day Off, Uncategorized Comments Off

May 212014

We are just back from skiing another beautiful Idaho mountain, Kent Peak. Viewed frequently from the Valley of the Big Wood, Kent Peak requires a bit of an approach to reach the classic ski lines. As the snow lines march up the mountains with the rising temperatures, the dirt roads are opening up and allowing access deeper into the hills. Even with the open roads, Kent requires a bit of dirt walking to reach snow. But once on snow, a classic 3,000′ ski descent off the 2nd highest peak in the Boulder Mountains awaits. Good corn conditions were found. Enjoy!

It is taking some effort to reach the snow these days

Summer is beginning to show

A smile will go a long way when bushwacking with skis!

Where the snow turns to water…

Where skiers become skiers

ahhh, back in the alpine!

The summit ridge of Ryan is rather sharp...

The summit ridge of Kent is rather sharp…

Looking north into the Boulder Mountains

Looking south into the Pioneers

The 1st jump turn onto the face of Kent

perfect edging

fun ski

making our way home

Devil’s Bedstead Ski

Daily Powder Tours, Uncategorized Comments Off

May 152014

The Devils Bedstead in all its majesty

May showers bring Powder to the high peaks and we were able to experience some of this magic the other day here in the Pioneer Mountains, Idaho. A surprise visit from our old avalanche forecaster, a pro skier and a local doc coincided with Joe returning from the Hawaiian Islands and the Trail creek road having just opened. Recent cold temps and new snow led to great conditions on one of the most iconic ski peaks in Idaho. Thanks to Dylan Crossman for some of the great shots here, enjoy!

Clearing “the bush” on the approach

Trying to get a view through the white-out

Great booting conditions

Climbing in the white-out

Feeling the exposure high on the face

taking it all in

Climbing on the moon on the summit pitch

Nothing like being perched high on an alpine face

Terry topping out on the summit

loving the Coombacks and the view down the ski line

Whoohoo!

Powda!

Can’t beat the conditions

Dylan Crossman showing how its done

the lower face

and back to boots for the walk out, stoked.

May Ski Days-Peaks and Babies

Daily Powder Tours, Guides Day Off 1 Response »

May 092014

SVT Guide, Joe St.Onge, remembers a May ski day on his child’s 2nd birthday:

Patrick Graham approaches the summit of Ryan Peak

It was May, locals had hung up their skis and our busy ski guiding season was coming to a close. It was time to ski for ourselves.

My wife was pregnant with our second child and do to deliver within the week. We had a check-up with our doctor and she said that it did not look imminent. I took that diagnoses as: I could go ski the next day. My wife is a skier and guide and she gets it. She encouraged me to get one last ski in before the snow melted and another baby entered our lives.

It was a last minute tour plan. I wanted to ski something “new”. Ryan Peak is the tallest in the Boulder Mountains of Central Idaho. It’s been skied, but not regularly as the approach is big. I had a concept that it could be approached from the “other side” and had found out that the dirt road that crosses a high pass had just been plowed, allowing access to the “other side”. A quick call to two of our guides and the plan was hatched for the next morning, early. Conditions were perfect spring corn: firm for the climb and silky for the decent. The approach was fast and fluid. We followed wolf tracks up the remote canyon and later heard the howls from a den echo while on the peak. We spied amazing future lines, one of which we skied later in the week when the doctor said it may be a couple more days before the baby came. It was awesome.

Internship Final Exam

Daily Powder Tours, SVT Scene, Tricks of the Trade Comments Off

Apr 302014

Celebratory toast

For over 12 years, Sun Valley Trekking has run an internship program during the winter season. The goal of the program is to provide training and mentorship to aspiring ski guides. The “job description” is to : Ski from hut to hut throughout the winter, maintain hut supplies, gather snow and stability information, develop personal backcountry ski technique and experience, assist on guided trips as porters and tail guides and seek mentorship and skill development with the SVT Guide Team. Over the years, many interns have returned for a second year to continue this progression and many graduates of the program are working as professional ski and mountain guides today. We often finish the season with an “Intern Final Exam” designed to test the skill and experience developed over the season. There are two styles of exam open to the interns: to guide the guides or to be guided by the guides. Both styles can help push the learning envelope and provide a rewarding experience. This years team: Trudy, Toby, Niels and Alisa chose to guide SVT guides: Joe St.Onge and Chris Marshall on a particularly snowy late April tour in the alpine Smokey Mountains. Powder, white-out navigation, steep skiing and a Chinese Downhill tested the interns’ skill and grit and was followed by the end of the season Guide Games back in town. Good stuff!