Couloir Crushing in Aspen, Colorado: The big mountain season in Colorado is well underway, and with Mayuary continuing across the western US, I figured it was time to make a trip out to my old stomping grounds in search of steep and deep powder. I was not disappointed. I landed in DIA at 9:30 Thursday morning and was picked up by my old skiing buddies Jordan and Marc. We beelined it straight to the Ashcroft trailhead near Aspen and, after a wet hike in, were We beelined it straight to the Ashcroft trailhead near Aspen and, after a wet hike in, were setting up camp before sunset. Our first night out there was […] Conditions Report Keegan Kliman | May 25, 2015 1 Comment
Come Fish Alaska With Us This Summer Every year 3-4 million salmon move up the Alagnak River and swim right past the Alaska Trophy Adventures lodge. The lodge sits in one of the best locations imaginable on the Alagnak River, deep inside Katmai National Park, and is only accessible by plane. We have openings starting the week of July 19th and running through September 15th at an unbeatable discounted rate. Keegan Kliman | May 8, 2015 0 Comments
Tahoe Backcountry Breakdown: Sierra Chuting Gallery The last couple weeks have not brought much snowfall to the Tahoe basin, however there are plenty of good turns to be had if you play your cards right. Most worthy objectives will come in the form of springtime corn shredding, but there is still some recycled powder out there on sheltered high elevation north-facing slopes. Over the last week we checked out some of the classic couloirs of the Eastern Sierras and rowdy terrain of […] Conditions Report Keegan Kliman | March 29, 2015 0 Comments
Tahoe Backcountry Breakdown: 2.5 Feet of Fresh to Heat Well, we haven’t gotten the big dump that we need yet this year, but the few small storms that have broken through the RRR (ridiculously resilient ridge) have made for some great powder skiing. Last week we finally got a cold storm that dropped up to 2.5 feet of snow in areas and made for awesome conditions in our local backcountry zones. We took advantage of the prime conditions and checked out some of Tahoe’s classic terrain north of the lake. After a patchy approach full of bush whacking, creek crossing, and boulder hopping we were rewarded with some of the best […] Conditions Report Keegan Kliman | March 8, 2015 0 Comments
Mt. Shasta, CA Report: When in Doubt, Head North It goes without saying that this season has been a rough one for Tahoe skiers and boarders. The extended forecasts have been showing big storms 2+ weeks out for close to 2 months now, but they never come through. We did get a wet pineapple express storm a couple weeks ago that provided some dense and fun pow turns, however. After a few awesome days of pow/slush skiing at Squaw and Alpine we decided it was time to head […] Conditions Report Keegan Kliman | February 24, 2015 1 Comment
Tahoe Backcountry Breakdown: Dust on Crust and The Heaviest Pow You’ll Ever Ski It’s no secret that the skiing conditions in the Tahoe area have been sub-par the past few weeks. That being said, however, if you have a strong sense of adventure and keep your expectations low, there is still fun to be had. Coming off a perfectly timed knee injury and with no end to the high pressure in sight, I figured what better time to get back on the skin track than in prime dust on crust conditions. Not the best decision I’ve ever made. We decided to ski a southeast facing aspect on the west shore last week after a small storm dropped a couple of inches up high and it sucked. We found […] Conditions Report Keegan Kliman | February 8, 2015 1 Comment
Tahoe Backcountry Breakdown: Powder and Ice and Corn, Oh My Only one word can describe how the skiing has been in the Tahoe backcountry the past few weeks: variable. Depending what aspects you decide to check out, you can expect to find recycled powder, corn, corny chowder, firm crusts, and wind blown chalk. Just because it’s variable doesn’t mean it’s bad, however. Given the fact that it’s been a few solid weeks since the last real storm, the skiing is damn fine if you know what you’re looking […] Conditions Report Keegan Kliman | January 11, 2015 1 Comment
Tahoe Backcountry Breakdown: Christmas Chowder The skiing in Tahoe has been pretty sweet lately, and more terrain has been opening up with each storm. Conditions have varied over the last few weeks, but if you know where to look the skiing can be quite good. Prior to the Christmas storm the conditions were pretty firm thanks to a bulletproof raincrust that reached upwards of 9000 feet in spots. Before the rain hit, however, the skiing was unreal. Every day was a powder day for two weeks or so, until the notorious Tahoe rains snuffed out the fun. The Christmas Eve storm, that was supposed to drop a foot of blower, ended up being a bust and only left the Tahoe area with […] Conditions Report Keegan Kliman | December 28, 2014 0 Comments
Tahoe Backcountry Breakdown: Early December Pow Winter has really turned herself on here in Tahoe over the last few weeks. The recent storm system dropped anywhere from 12-22 inches up high, and it has made for some awesome skiing conditions. Prior to this storm system, north aspects over 8,000 feet were still holding good, cold, wintery snow, and things have only gotten better since the last weather event. The skiing on the west shore has really opened up, but still a little thin down low due to the high snow levels that have accompanied the last few storms. The coverage in the Mt. Rose area has been sweet because of the […] Conditions Report Keegan Kliman | December 15, 2014 0 Comments
Decision Making in Avalanche Terrain: Dangerous Assumptions We’ve all had those bluebird days of touring when every turn you make is in deep blower pow; nothing beats it. Turn after turn throws cold smoke in your face, and your hand aches at the end of the day from the endless high-fives. Often, however, these days come with a less-than-stable snowpack. It is easy to let your adrenaline overcome your better judgment, which can often inhibit decision-making. More times than not, you will get away with that sick powder run on these sorts of days, but you shouldn’t let this influence your decision making process in the future. […] Avalanche Keegan Kliman | December 2, 2014 1 Comment
Tahoe Backcountry Conditions Report: West Shore Pow It’s nice to finally see some decent snow coverage on the mountains around the Tahoe Basin. We got out on the west shore this weekend to check out the goods that mother nature sent us, and it was sweet. At the higher elevations, the snowpack is approaching 24” deep in areas, and only looking to get deeper this week. We have 4-8” forecasted for the mountains through the rest of today (Sunday), and NOAA is calling for another 2+ feet on top of that by late Wednesday. We found powder up high (above 7700 feet) […] Conditions Report Keegan Kliman | November 30, 2014 0 Comments
Keegan Kliman
Keegan Kliman
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