December saw a flurry of trip report activity from our loyal forum community, who posted epic stories of adventures embarked upon both last spring and during the early part of the current season. From the Tetons to the Alps and even Denali in Alaska, the following five trip reports are finalists for an awesome prize package from Marker Apparel, including their Pumphouse Pant and Jacket, Clark Helmet, Big Picture goggles, and a pair of Volkl One skis with Jester bindings to match 'em.
But who goes home with this gear is entirely up to YOU. Take a gander at the following five trip reports, and vote here in the TGR Forums to decide who takes the cake!
Powlicious: Spring In The Teets–Ellingwood Couloir, Middle Teton
Powlicious and friends–dissatisfied with a relatively powder-less spring trip to Alaska–doubled back to Jackson Hole last spring in hopes of tasting the storms that were still hammering the area late into April and May. They set up a snow camping base in Garnet Canyon and faced howling winds and freezing temps in their tents, but were ultimately able to summit the Ellingwood Couloir off of the Middle Teton after swimming through deep snow for the entirety of the ascent up the 50-degree couloir. Read all about it here.
Bean: Denali Ski Expedition
Mike Bean does not mess around on his vacations–how does skiing Denali in Alaska sound? After years of preparation, expert packing, and even hiring a specialized mountain weather forecaster to forecast the weather for their trip, Bean and friends headed up to Alaska to give a summit attempt, skis in hand no less, a try. Think skiing Denali, or climbing it, sounds like a good idea? Get in shape. In order to make the most of short weather windows to make a successful summit attempt, you're best off if you're in shape enough to run a marathon on a moment's notice. Read the full trip report here.
Peace_coast: A Little Skiing In The Big Tits
Peace_coast busted ass out of Salt Lake City to make the most of a break in his work schedule to shred the Tetons, his old stomping ground. After a four AM start, him and his partner make their way to the top of The Spoon couloir in Grand Teton National Park and find firm but edgeable snow on the way down despite the snow drought that was taking hold of the Tetons. And to finish it off? "Some windmills, asshole." Read all about it here.
Marius: Off The Track
Despite a low-tide start to the season in the Northeast part of the Alps, Marius stayed firm to his one rule: "There always is some snow somewhere. you just have to find it." In Off The Track, he puts together witty captions with beautiful photos of windbuff pow skiing in the alpine of Europe's high peaks. Check it out here.
Klar: The Real World
Infamous poster of stoke, Innsbruck-based Klar, posted another excellent trip report from her snowbound travels in and around the Alps with her friends and backcountry partners. As she writes in her trip report, The Real World, "Give me a lonely little hut high up in the mountains, with a roaring fire and two people I tolerate better than almost anyone else. I will worry about the wind picking up and the snow changing, I will be briefly annoyed because I managed to melt my socks by putting them too close to the oven, I will think about which flavour of instant noodles I prefer. I will have cold feet and I will squint at the sun. My glasses will fog up, I will get sunburned. When I get somewhere I will change out of a wet, clammy shirt into a dry one and for a moment it will be the best thing in the world. I will ski and maybe it will be just skiing, or maybe it will be another best thing the world." Check out her full trip report here.
Got a favorite now? Vote for it here.
From The Column: BettyDee Trip Report of the Month
About The Author
stash member Ryan Dunfee
Former Managing Editor at Teton Gravity Research, current Senior Contributor, current professional hippy at the Sierra Club, and avid weekend recreationalist.