backcountry ski

Bariloche, Argentina Backcountry Report: “Overexposed in Alaskita”

Snow spray on the lower fingers today.

Today was the first sunny day since Bariloche, Argentina’s 2-foot Monday storm. The storm was cold storm and things remained cold until today. I used the sunny weather to get out to my favorite backcountry zone in the area, Alaskita. I arrived on top of Alaskita at noon, exactly when things were heating up. I could feel it in the air and a bit in the snow. I could see the avalanche debris from a small avalache (likely caused by a small cornice collapse) near the bottom of the upper spines. It looked fresh. I felt that the upper spines of Alaskita […]
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Miles Clark |
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Mt. Shasta, CA Season Summary & Outlook:

mt. shasta 2014

Mt. Shasta is no stranger to setting new records. Our personal favorite, the February 1959 event which had the highest single snowstorm total of 189″/15+ feet sounds amazing right about now. 2014 was however the complete opposite. Severe drought has withered California and forest fires threaten much of the American west. The climbing season on Mt. Shasta started and is finishing earlier due to a snowpack that was approximately 30% […]
Guest Author |
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Portillo, Chile Conditions Report: From Bone Dry to Powder Fly

This video proves, once again, that Portillo has incredible terrain. Wow. Northern Chile has had a dry winter this year. Portillo is the furthest north ski resort in Chile that we know of. It sits at the same latitude as San Diego, CA. Just last week Portillo released this statement on their Facebook page and their website: “Most of our lifts are functioning and all of the major slopes have adequate snow […]
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SnowBrains |
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Bariloche, Argentina Conditions Report: Cliff-Hucking Good

Catedral ski resort in Bariloche, Argentina was closed yesterday due to high winds and a wet storm. Snow levels were high. It likely rained to the top yesterday. As the storm was ending, it got cold and dropped some good snow. This morning was bluebird. I ran straight up Nubes and found ok snow. It was very wind pressed and punchy and I nailed a rock on my first lap. As I was coming down Nubes they opened the chair. I stayed and got in 3 more runs before deciding to check out La Laguna. When I got to Laguna I realized that […]
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Miles Clark |
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Sonora Pass, CA Report: May 3rd & 4th Corn Harvest

Drove up from the Bay last Saturday, got a late start….clicked into our skis and started skinning @10am from 9,924-Foot Sonora Pass, CA (hwy 108). Original plan was to head up to No-Name and ski the bowl then head back to the saddle to the east to do more recon than anything as I’ve usually skied the couloirs off Leavitt and then either down Deadmans creek to the hairpin or back up to No-Name and down the main bowl. Quickly audibled as we saw a group of 10-15 heading up No-Name and went straight for the saddle to the east. First run was an extremely short/mellow tree lined pitch back down to the bench to get a better idea […]
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Guest Author |
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Lake Tahoe Backcountry Report: 3 Pow Laps on Echo Peak – April 3rd

With 3 feet of fresh pow accumulating in the past few days, followed by a day of clear skies and relatively cold temperatures, it seemed like prime time to venture out into the backcountry. The fact that avi danger was reported as ‘low’ for all elevations and aspects boosted our confidence. We chose Echo Peak as our playground for the day, with the intention to do multiple hikes around there. […]
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Sara K |
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