quiet despair » outside

A Mountain of Slush

Maker — Mon, 10 Mar 2008 05:54:39 +0000

I went to Mountain High this weekend. Their snow report page says:

“Snowmaking took place last night and added a fresh layer of snow to some of your favorite runs so head up to Mountain High for excellent coverage and beautiful weather. Both East and West Resorts will be open today with nearly every lift and trail available along with free shuttles waiting to take you back and forth.

With the 116 inches of natural snow
from this season it will keep us open well into April. “

Allow me to translate into English:

“Granules of ice make for an amazing conditions. This slush is so thick, skiers won’t have any control. Head up to Mountain High if you want to barely make it down an easy run covered in slush and spotted with dirt and ice patches. “

Evidentially these conditions are good for snowboarders. I actually thought that it might be easier to just turn my skis and go down like a snowboarder would before I found out that these conditions are favorable for them. It was awful for me. Every cut I made had nothing in the way of resistance for me to push off of.

Unfortunately we had an injury on the first run. One of my friends fell onto a snowboard edge while getting off of the lift and required stitches. I was more than ready to leave after attempting to ski in a slushy.

Giant Mammoths

Maker — Wed, 13 Feb 2008 08:29:57 +0000

I’ve just returned from a weekend trip to Mammoth, CA. A bunch of slackers all headed up in a van with the intent of hurling ourselves down the face of a mountain on sticks strapped to our feet. Naturally, I got separated and lost thanks to the reliable Maker Effect. I ended up going around the backside of the mountain and falling face first down a run too hard for my skill level. I had a great time doing it though. A little from the ol’ pedia on the ski area:

The Mammoth Mountain Ski Area is a large ski resort located in eastern California on the east side of the Sierra Nevada mountain range in the Inyo National Forest. The ski area, commonly called simply Mammoth, has the best terrain park according to Transworld Snowboarding Magazine, and is consistently ranked in the top ten ski resorts by Ski Magazine.

Joshua Tree Adventuring

Maker — Mon, 28 Jan 2008 07:27:30 +0000

I’ve completed the Skills Camp 2008 at Joshua Tree National Park. It was extremely fun and I got a chance to use a lot of the new gear I bought including but not limited to:

Kelty Crestone 2 Tent

Barely a First Aid Kit

Rocket in my Pocket

Skills Camp 2008

Maker — Thu, 17 Jan 2008 20:42:45 +0000

I’m prepared and excited for Skills Camp 2008. I’ll be heading into the relative wilderness of Joshua Tree National Park for the weekend for some rock climbing and general fun. This time I have my own stove and tent. I’ve been thinking about backpacking lately, but I don’t own a frame backpack nor do I have the ability to walk for extended periods of time. By extended periods of time I mean I can’t walk more than 5 to 10 minutes on non-flat unpaved ground. Let alone hike for a day. I’m thinking of trying to build up to it though, because I’d really like to go visiting some of the local mountains here, and maybe retrace some of the places my dad visited.