First Time On The Haute Route, Part 2
Robert Suminsby
(Editor’s note: The concluding trip report for those of you who have never done a European hut trip. Part one is here.)
Day 4: Arolla to Bertol Hut
Sunrise above Arolla
In describing day 4 of our route back in Chamonix, a British guide had confessed, “Well, it’s rubbish, really….no skiing, just uphill all day long.” Uphill, indeed. With the town of Arolla nestled deep in the valley at 2000m, it would be a long climb to the Bertol Hut at 3311m. But despite the lack of turns, it proved to be an enjoyable day. Starting out in the shady glacial-carved valley at about 7:30am, it took an hour before the sun finally peaked over the horizon, a welcome sight. Read more backcountry skiing
TR — Independence Pass, Colorado, Yesterday
Local beta for those who asked: We did four laps in Mountain Boy basin, skied from about 7:00 am to around noon. We were amazed at how the snow surface and density held up. Not sure that’ll happen once things warm up more, but that’s the way it was May 15, 2012.
Bob Perlmutter in Mountain Boy today, Independence Pass, Colorado. Illustrating today's news of our local snow conditions. Click to enlarge.
First Time On The Haute Route, Part 1
Robert Suminsby
(Editor’s note: This trip report came in a few days ago and we liked the story for those of you who have never done a European hut trip — so here you go.)
Skinning up the Col des Roux
There I was: four days into a five-day ski tour of the famous Haute Route linking Chamonix and Zermatt. Relaxing in the octagon dining area of the spectacular Bertol Hut, I spent a few minutes thumbing through the Hüttenbuch (the hut’s visitor log), mystified that so few Americans had marked their passage through this amazing spot. Plenty of Swiss, of course, and ample numbers of French, German, and assorted other Euro-types, but the letters “USA” were in short supply. (Colorado, it must be said, had the lion’s share of the few American entries I found.)
With the explosion of interest in backcountry skiing, why had so few of my countrymen made the journey to one of the most famous huts in the Alps? Yes, we have plenty of terrain to explore in the US, and getting oneself and a big pile of gear to the other side of an ocean is a daunting prospect. Still, this is the Alps: the birthplace of alpinism, the ancestral home of ski touring. Surely, there must be lots of Americans dreaming of these distant mountains?
View of Chamonix and Mont Blanc from Les Grand Montets (click all images to enlarge)
Or maybe not. It occurred to me that perhaps the Haute Route isn’t as well known back home as it is here in Europe. Or worse, Americans may have heard of it but written it off as too much of a logistical hassle, a mysterious Holy Grail of ski touring that would remain forever out of reach.
If all that describes you, then don’t despair. Read on. Read more backcountry skiing
Bears, Huts and Glaciers at Rogers Pass
A while back, Friends of Revelstoke and Glacier emailed me about the nice guidebook and winter version map that’s available for this famous ski touring area. They sent along the items, and they’ve since sat on my desk tempting me like a large chocolate bar after a 24 hour fast (is that how long it’s been since I was skiing the last time?).
Rogers Pass map and book.
The book, “Ski Touring in Rogers Pass” by Eric Dafoe and John Kelly was revised in 2010, and packs quite a wallop in its small 5×7 inch footprint. The route graphics are photo based, so the companion map is essential. I gave the cartographic a good look see, and noticed Dawson glacier. Then I noticed nearby Glacier Circle hut. I thought, I wonder what the pastries are like up there? Should we go?
Then I read the website hut description: “… approach is via a 2 – 3 day hike up the Beaver Valley and into Glacier Circle. This approach is mostly forested and leads through excellent bear habitat.
Role reversal?
Book and map available at the Friends of Rogers Pass website.
Independence Pass Ski & Barbecue Report – May 12-13, 2012
Lou and his new Nomex Dynafit shell — high altitude burger flipping has never been this safe.
Backcountry skiing on Independence Pass, Colorado is better then we expected the severe drought winter to provide. A bit more walking on dirt than normal, but this in places that are only “access” trails anyway. Quite a few of the good skiing lines are in, only most are narrower and some not starting from normal high points. Some lines are not in. I’d predict it is not going to last much longer — a few more days unless we receive more cold weather and perhaps snowfall. Facet piles lurk everywhere so if temperatures warm be careful of your slope angles and sun exposures. Snowpack was quite supportive this weekend, not sure how much of that was “eggshell effect” from the cold night before. Perhaps we’ll find out over the next few days.
Lisa Dawson on East Geissler (1) this past Saturday, Independence Pass area, Colorado. Looking easterly, Blue (Twining) peak to right. DOT reports the snowpack up here is ‘zero percent of normal.’ Definitely thin, but not zed. Click to enlarge.
Yesterday, Wildsnow Girl on Geissler Zero (Continental Divide east of Lost Man Pass, Independence Pass area, Colorado. She’s testing Black Diamond Element skis for our upcoming Ultimate Quiver ski review.
We BBQ’d as well. As expected, not a whole lot of people ski touring. Saturday, we hung out at the trailhead with about a dozen worthy souls who were rewarded with burgers.
Well, the skiing was good Saturday and so was the trailhead barbecue, so we headed back up there yesterday (Sunday) and did a repeat since we had plenty of burger patties, buns and cooker fuel left over from Saturday. Much to our surprise, more people showed up and we had quite a soiree.
What struck me about everyone, is what a wonderful, friendly and interesting bunch of people our Colorado backcountry skiing devotees are, and how appreciative of what we’ve got.
We do have it good around here in central Colorado. Not too crowded, zillions of acres of legal Wilderness where we are the privileged ones allowed to go there with our chosen mode of transport, and a wonderful springtime corn snow season nearly every year due to our high altitudes. While winter access to non-resort high country is indeed limited, once our passes and highcountry become more accessible in spring we have an amazing window of opportunity, sometimes for up to 8 weeks, when the quality of our backcountry skiing experience rivals that of anywhere in the world.
The informal springtime barbecue on Independence Pass is becoming quite the tradition. Looking forward to next year!
BARBECUE PLAN CHANGE – TOMORROW Indy Pass
Roaring Fork, Carbondale, Aspen and beyond… let’s meet for barbecue on Independence Pass this coming Saturday (instead of Sunday, sounds like weather will be ok), at upper hairpin trailhead, western slope side of pass. We’ll get started around 11:00 am, bring your portable BBQ setups or just your lunch… we’ll bring some extra food to share… Read more backcountry skiing
