Day One Journal Entry:
“Today was a big day. We hiked 9 miles, 2,500′ of vert, all with 40ish pound packs and one extra sled. The sled added a whole new dynamic in my mountain climbing experience, we tied it off to the end of our packs and switch off every mile or so. Although I will probably be glad we brought it along, it sure was a pain to get up here. But now we have the camp all set up for the awesome week that is to come.”
Or at least that is what I would have wrote had I remembered to journal through the exhaustion that fogged my mind as I drifted off to sleep in my warm sleeping bag.
First you have to meet the crew that made this trip as awesome as it was.
- Jadon When he’s not hyping the group up you can find him getting inverted.
- Andrew The new guy just trying to survive the journey.
- Keegan The hype man
- Benjamin The quiet guy who pops out of no where and goes bigger than everyone.
- Isaac The video guy who can’t help himself and gets in on all the lines.
- Me The Photographer
Day 1: And It Begins
The day started at 4:30 am, started hiking at around 7, just a lot of trudging with the sled, nothing too eventful. We got to the camp site around 5 pm.
We set up camp right on the edge of Granite Lake. Lucky for us there was a layer of slushy water about 2 feet under the surface of the lake which provided easy access to water.
We were all exhausted and got to bed shortly after setting up camp.
Day 2: Sore, but ready to go
We wasted no time and got right to the skiing. I had the honors of the 1st line of the week.
We started off basic with the line you can see in the image above, mostly sticking to the right side to get the feel for things.
Right after we ate lunch we went over to some old slide paths and practiced our avalanche safety.
While Jadon and Keegan were waiting for their round at practice, they decided to build a kicker out of a drift which proved to be a nice pass time while watching the sun set.
<–(Jadon)
Jadon (Left), Keegan (Middle), Benjamin (Right)
After the sun set, we all sat around a campfire, drank hot coco, and dried our boots. We were waiting for it to get really dark to try out some night skiing.
Once we were happy with how dark it was we suited up, turned on our headlamps, and headed out. Isaac and I set up our cameras and waited with anticipation to watch the dot of light float down in the darkness.
Day 3: Pancakes!
After staying up till midnight night skiing the previous night, we woke up at 6:30 am on a mission to get a big line in with one thing motivating us, Pancakes!
After the 1 mile approach we peaked over the ridge that was blocking our view of the run and we began to see what we were in for.
We hiked up the left most couloir in the picture above. It was right at 800′ of vert, and around 45 degree slope, maxing out at 55 degrees.
Isaac hugging the slope to show just how steep this stuff is. You defiantly don’t want to loose a ski or fall on this stuff.
Once we all dug out or spots to clip in, I set out to find a spot to get some pictures. It was very steep and pretty intimidating, but I managed to sneak a handful of quality turns in there.
But then it happened, what we all feared…
As Isaac was making a nice turn his ski suddenly ejected which left him helpless to his instincts and the snow.
Lucky for him he fell in one of the less steep and softer parts and was able to stop his sliding and catch both his skis. But as smooth as it went, don’t be fooled, he defiantly got his fair share of adrenaline from the incident.
After we skied back we finally got to break out the pancake batter.
Jadon (Left), Isaac (Right)
Jadon was our cook who made all the delicious pancakes that everyone had been longing for.
As we devoured our pancakes, we slowly began to think, “Maybe the sled wasn’t so bad after all.”
We all drifted off to sleep in our slightly wet sleeping bags with uncertainty as to what the weather had to hold. Last we saw, (3 days ago) we were supposed to get rain the next day.
Day 4: Heading Out… Eventually
As I slept, I was rustled awake every once and a while by big gusts of wind and the sound of what I thought to be snow falling on our tent.
I finally felt rested and ready to go, as I opened the tent flap I was happy to see powder right at my doorstep.
I didn’t get much in video or picture of this day. But we really had a blast!
We finally got out and skied a gully we had been eyeing up all week and did it in prime conditions. The snow was soft, what a blessing!
Sadly we knew it was going to rain the next day and made the hard decision to pack up and get out of there. We didn’t end up leaving until around 5 pm.
Jadon eyeing up his line
Right after we crossed the lake we walked under a pillow line we couldn’t resist. Maybe a mile into our walk out and we already had to stop for a line.
After that detour, we managed to stay on track and ski/hike the rest of the way out. The first half was fun and filled with skiing, but after that was pretty flat and you know how that goes.
After a long walk in the dark on the road that had been snow covered only a few days ago, we finally saw the glint of the car in our headlamps. This was just before 10 pm.
And the rest is history. As we all got back to our homes I enjoyed the best cereal I have ever had, and enjoyed the soft and dry feeling of laying in my own bed.
I hope that you enjoyed this story and maybe even learned something from it or got inspired! If you want to hear more stories like this you can subscribe below
Until Next Time! Stay Crazy!
Meaningfully Lost 
Fun trip, great pictures expressive words
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I’m glad to hear it!
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