A few weekends back Rick, Brian and I decided to finally check out “Outpost Peak” (12,362′) on the west side of the Gores. Outpost is a bit of a local’s favorite, with access straight out of town and several ski routes including a generally winter-friendly option in the south ridge. The peak itself is the high point of a north-south ridge line that separates Pitkin and Booth Creek drainages. Keep reading…
Last Friday Steve and I packed into upper-Slate Lake hoping to find some stereotypical September colors and weather. But after a cold front rolled through and dropped a few inches of snow overnight, the area was transformed into a scene more reminiscent of early-winter than late-summer. Though we decided to dial back our original plans and only stay for one night, we were blessed with some spectacular views and managed to nab a classic Gore Range summit in “Peak L” (aka “Necklace Peak”). Read more…
Making an attempt to keep the streak of long, but iconic Gore slogs going, sights were set on the elusive Straight Arrow Couloir off Peak H. Sadly enough, the easiest way to approach and ski this line is from the Booth Falls TH in Central Vail, since Piney is snow covered late in to the summer and Black Creek is, well, no explanation really necessary there. Nonetheless, we were salivating for another Bone Tomahawking cause Peak N a few weekends earlier wasn’t painful enough. Keep reading…
This past Saturday Brian, Bloomy, and I made the short drive to Summit County with a pair of Gore Range ski lines in our crosshairs. We had a hunch that north and northeast aspects were going to deliver, so we decided to check out two inset couloirs with eastern access points – the Silver Sneak (aka “Elvis Crotch”) on 12er Buffalo Mountain, and a rarely skied line off 13er “Peak N” from Brush Creek. The Sneak wound up being a great warm up for the more challenging day on Sunday, which I’ll get into later. Keep reading…