St Mary's, CO 8/4/03

Matt Duffy

New member
Five friends and a dog walked along a trail to some snow for skiing in August. Almost there, the dog went for a swim. <BR> <BR><A HREF="http://back-pack.org/ninja/PM/uploads/images/duphphy_-_smgw1.jpg" TARGET="_top">http://back-pack.org/ninja/PM/uploads/images/duphphy_-_smgw1.jpg</A> <BR> <BR>Water in any form is good stuff. <BR> <BR><A HREF="http://back-pack.org/ninja/PM/uploads/images/duphphy_-_smgw.jpg" TARGET="_top">http://back-pack.org/ninja/PM/uploads/images/duphphy_-_smgw.jpg</A> <BR> <BR>Felt good to break out the skins again and put them to good use. <BR> <BR><A HREF="http://back-pack.org/ninja/PM/uploads/images/duphphy_-_smgms.jpg" TARGET="_top">http://back-pack.org/ninja/PM/uploads/images/duphphy_-_smgms.jpg</A> <BR> <BR>The weather was perfect. Sunny and warm with a soft summer breeze cooling us on the way up. The run is big. I heard that a year ago it was only good for a few turns. This year it's a long low angle snowfield that goes on for 2-3,000 feet of distance over about 500' vertical. A nice long cruiser full of countless August turns. <BR> <BR>Denis, who came to Colorado on business, had the pleasure of his first turns since late May. <BR> <BR><A HREF="http://back-pack.org/ninja/PM/uploads/images/duphphy_-_smgdb1.jpg" TARGET="_top">http://back-pack.org/ninja/PM/uploads/images/duphphy_-_smgdb1.jpg</A> <BR> <BR><A HREF="http://back-pack.org/ninja/PM/uploads/images/duphphy_-_smgdb3.jpg" TARGET="_top">http://back-pack.org/ninja/PM/uploads/images/duphphy_-_smgdb3.jpg</A> <BR> <BR><A HREF="http://back-pack.org/ninja/PM/uploads/images/duphphy_-_smgdb4.jpg" TARGET="_top">http://back-pack.org/ninja/PM/uploads/images/duphphy_-_smgdb4.jpg</A> <BR> <BR>Others had the pleasure of their first run since late July. <BR> <BR><A HREF="http://back-pack.org/ninja/PM/uploads/images/duphphy_-_smgml.jpg" TARGET="_top">http://back-pack.org/ninja/PM/uploads/images/duphphy_-_smgml.jpg</A> <BR> <BR><A HREF="http://back-pack.org/ninja/PM/uploads/images/duphphy_-_smgmw.jpg" TARGET="_top">http://back-pack.org/ninja/PM/uploads/images/duphphy_-_smgmw.jpg</A> <BR> <BR>Below the long length of snow was a rocky resting place not unlike the Lunch Rocks at Tuckerman Ravine. Directly above this place was a steeper section of glacier; dirty white vertical ribbon connecting to the main body of snow down low. A rough estimate of its maximum pitch is 37.5628345 degrees. A narrow choke through some rocks spilling onto the edge of two pitches. On one side was the gentle pitch of the main glacier. Over the edge of a lip was a few turns of some more of that 30-odd degree slope. Just enough of a run to be worth hiking for, and just close enough to be worth repeating 3 or 4 times. @ 150' of vertical per little lap. <BR> <BR><A HREF="http://back-pack.org/ninja/PM/uploads/images/duphphy_-_smgd1.jpg" TARGET="_top">http://back-pack.org/ninja/PM/uploads/images/duphphy_-_smgd1.jpg</A> <BR> <BR><A HREF="http://back-pack.org/ninja/PM/uploads/images/duphphy_-_smgm.jpg" TARGET="_top">http://back-pack.org/ninja/PM/uploads/images/duphphy_-_smgm.jpg</A> <BR> <BR><A HREF="http://back-pack.org/ninja/PM/uploads/images/duphphy_-_smgd2.jpg" TARGET="_top">http://back-pack.org/ninja/PM/uploads/images/duphphy_-_smgd2.jpg</A> <BR> <BR>Lazy basking in the sun between laps, watching others take their turns, sitting at the bottom of the glacier, hiking, skiing, sitting again and taking it all in. Wasting away the hours of a sunny summer day. Skiing.
 
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