Andy's Video: Late October Teton Psych

Andy made a video of our last Teton trip. It's been pretty popular at Teton Outerlocal. Here it is:

Late October Teton Psych from andy dorais on Vimeo.

Late October Teton Psych Movie!

Late October Teton Psych from andy dorais on Vimeo.


To quote Tom Evans, "Glory days!!  The best days of our lives!!"

Let it snow!

Late October Teton Psych!

Well, here goes the usual story...

I had a day off of work and was fiending for some excitement.  Luckily, I know a few other addicts who happened to be available for a rowdy ski trip into Garnet Canyon in GTNP.  I say rowdy because there really isn't a lot of snow up there, but we were going to find some skiing anyway, regardless of the conditions.

Jared and I left SLC Wed evening and made it to Jackson without getting pulled over. We tumbled into the Professor's house, where he had set up the hide-a-bed.  Jared was against sharing and inadvertent cuddling so he took the floor (this would change later).  First the Dutchman, and then the irrepressible Kim Young, showed up on Brian's door in the morning.  We were to be a crew of five searching for elusive October powder.

We started just after 8:00 down the Lupine Trail, half jogging to warm up.  In the parking lot, the temperature was in the 30s and we were all chilled, wearing our standard lycra.  An hour and a half later, we strolled through the Meadows and sat down to exchange running shoes for ski boots.  The lower angle fall light and the crisp autumn temperatures aided our gleeful mood as we sat in the snow dusted talus debating our next move.  All eyes were drawn upward by a swath of white coming out of the West Hourglass Couloir that looked skiable.    

The boys finding reasonable conditions in the West Hourglass Couloir, Nez Perce

Kim Young finding unreasonable conditions in the West Hourglass Couloir, Nez Perce

What we found was boiler plate through the lower section, which inspired us to don our crampons, then a brilliant slope of creamy powder, before the upper stretch of rock strewn, wind scoured, alpine ice/névé.  Curious, we pushed to the top since Jared and I had never been there before.  Looking over the South Fork of Garnet Canyon, the mountains felt large.

Cold

Waiting to regroup, we put on all available scraps of clothing in a futile attempt to stay warm.  With the wind chill hovering around zero, I was wearing two puffy coats over two smaller jackets.  Jared was a little worse off and now was more than willing to cuddle to stay warm.  Kim nearly threw up from the pain in her hands as she topped out the couloir.  I think Nate and Brian were unfazed as they looked at us with pity for being so weak. 

Motivated to get moving, the group down climb ensued until we were back on reasonable terrain to start skiing.

Alpine ice, dirt, rock, and a little snow kept the skis on our backs

The Professor's first turns of 2011/12

Once we finally put our skis on, we found what we were looking for...

...better than expected skiing with a bit of dry powder to sluff around.  Then we hit the lower slopes which, being less protected, were bullet. No matter.  Everyone was smiling and commenting about how enjoyable the skiing was. Carefree, and unfettered by thoughts of the world below, everyone was easy as we moved towards the Middle Teton.

The Middle Teton Glacier

Nate sneaks above the bergschrund

Jared sped away, skinning the glacier while the rest of us pursued "Teton Style", trudging upwards with skis on our backs.  It seems backcountry skiers in the Wasatch prefer to keep their skis on their feet and skin as much as possible.  I do.  Jared does.  We both feel it's more efficient and quite possibly faster.  Wasatch style or Teton style? Which do you prefer?  

Initially, we thought we might be satisfied with skiing the lower glacer, but the allure of steep powder plastered to the upper couloir proved too much.  The slope angle came in at 51 degrees, and no one could believe the mid winter conditions.  We were about to make turns in stable powder on a steep classic line in the Tetons, in October.  It was perfect.  As we topped out the couloir, we found ourselves standing at the notch between the Dike Pinnacle and the main summit of the Middle.  The air was calm and the autumnal sun was enhancing all the colors around us.  Even Jared seemed content to absorb the view as he shelved the idea of going to the summit.  

High on the Middle Teton having a perfect day

Psyched!

Kim Young hanging with the boys

The flying Dutchman

October powder?

End of the road...

Unfortunately, the facade of winter ended while still well above the Meadows as we eked out the last few meters of turns.  With the pyramidal shadows stretching past the Snake River, no one seemed bothered by the inconvenience of hiking as the mood remained elevated throughout the 4+ miles back to the trailhead.  For nearly 8000 feet of climbing, everyone looked pretty spry back at the cars. 

Back in town, we exchanged quick good byes with our Jackson buddies and  then made the well familiar drive back to SLC, only getting pulled over twice.  

When's my next day off...?

Brilliant home movie pending...

October in the Tetons: West Hourglass and Middle Teton Glacier

Late Wednesday night, Andy and I blasted up to Jackson for some skiing in the Tetons.  On Thursday we met and skied with our friends Brian Harder ("Brain"), Nate Brown ("Dutchman"), and Kim ("Crusher").  The skiing was surprisingly good.  It took some effort to get to it, but what we found made that effort worth it.We skied the West Hourglass Couloir on Nez Perce and then climbed and skied the Middle Teton Glacier.  The headwall of the glacier was the real treat.  There we found soft consolidated powder stuck to a 50 degree slope.  From the parking lot we had wondered if winter was up there.  As Nate promised, after awhile the "Winter Switch" turned on.

Quick Notes:
- It was cold.  Probably below zero cold.  To stay warm on Nez Perce, I robbed everyone of their packs, sat on one, put the others on top of me, mooched Nate's puffy, and (to no avail) tried to get people to cuddle with me.
- There were 4 Men in Tights, one Woman in Baggie pants
- Kim impressed us all by by logging the same 8k vertical we logged, but on "heavy" gear, Havocs and Divas, thus becoming "Crusher."
- Upper East Hourglass was not skiable, but the lower part definitely was.
- No. of times Andy got pulled over by the law, 2; no. of tickets, 0
- Another great day on 64 mm waisted skis.
- 8k vert, 10 hr tour.  30 hrs door-to-door (SLC to Jackson to SLC).

West Hourglass (angling upper right to lower left).  Photo taken Feb. 2011.

Middle Teton Glacier and the "Notch" (distinct "V") in top third, left edge of right third) in the background.
Photo taken Feb. 2011.

Hiking into Garnet Canyon

View of the Middle Teton and the Chouinard and Ellingwood Couloirs from Nez Perce.
The Middle Teton Glacier tops out at the top of the Ellingwood.

Andy and Nate in the cold cold shadow with El Grande and the Middle in the background. 

Middle Teton Glacier and the shrund.

Andy and Nate about to gain the "Notch."

Soft snow, steep slope, October.

Andy and Nate with the Dike Pinnacle in the background.

Nate skiing the Middle Teton Glacier.

Brain skiing the Middle Teton glacier.

Brian and Kim descending above the shrund.

10-21-2011 Rim to Rim Speed Attempt, The Grand Canyon

Exactly 18 days ago I said I would never go back to the Grand  Canyon.  If I would have stuck with it, I would have missed out on perhaps the most miserable few hours of my life.  Jared and I ran Rim to Rim to Rim on the 3rd.  I thought we did pretty well, especially making the half way point in 4:20 (9:45 total). I was content.  A few days later Andy went down after working all night and went 3:43 Rim to Rim and finished in 9:12.  He said his 3:43 was pretty casual.  This made me reconsider.

The Rim to Rim fastest known time is 3:06.10 by Jared Scott.  That seemed fast but within reason.  For the last 10 days or so I couldn't get that time out of my head.  I constantly thought of splits and how to make 3:06 happen.  The plan was to run hard through Phantom Ranch and then use poles and try to finish at about the same speed we did on the 3rd.  This what followed:

Splits
Cottonwood Campground 45 mins (6.8 miles)
Phantom Ranch 1:31 (13.7 miles)
3.5 Miles to go sign 2:20 (17.4 miles)
South Rim 3:19

North Kaibab as my sun disappeared

The first 15-16 miles were on pace, maybe a bit ahead.  I ran out of drink and felt the first tired twinges about 2 hours in and from there slowly fell off pace.  There's a fair amount of flat runnable trail up the South Kaibab.  Each time there was flat trail I would run but a few steps later would start cramping, not good.  I was stuck moving slow as the watch kept ticking. I repeatedly tried to speed up but the cramps in my legs just wouldn't let it happen.  3:19, not even close.

Thoughts
1.  In retrospect I went out too hard.  That was the plan though.  I figured it was better to set myself up to run fast with the risk of dying then play it conservative and never be close. I died.  A little pace specific training would have gone a long way.
2.  Walking behind a donkey train for 8 mins didn't help.  This probably only cost me 4 mins since I was walking the whole time but it's still a little annoying walking through fresh logs and puddles.
3.  1.5 liters of water just isn't enough in the desert when the high's 85.  I had electrolyte tabs and gu to spare but with no water they did me no good. I guess there's always next time...

Blisters?

After topping on the South Rim I realized I could barely walk.  I had some gnarly blisters on my feet, no food, no headlamp, no jacket, had to work the next day,  and for some reason had no ride back to the North Rim.  That left me with 21 miles back to my car.  Since I was cramping while sitting, I wasn't sure how the rest of the day would go.  Thinking I might end up spending most of the night out suffering while trying to get back, I took the shuttle to the Village to "prepare."  I ate, bought a jacket, and got excited.  As expected, it was horrible.  85 degree temps were nauseating, the sun gave me a headache, trying to run induced cramps, my blisters ached.  Knowing that if I couldn't run the misery would last a very long time was the  worst part. All I could do was laugh, walk, and enjoy the discomfort.  Mind numbing.  I had a phone with music but I kept it off, I figured I would need the battery life since it was my only light source.  I did. Too bad the cop who pulled me over didn't see me shuffling up the North Rim 45 minutes earlier, in the dark, with my phone light guding the way.  If he had, maybe he wouldn't have given me a ticket.

Mid October Psych

Over the weekend, four of us eschewed the perfect climbing and mountain biking and made an ill advised trip up Baldy for another look at the main chute.  The weather was warm and the snow line was hundreds of feet higher than just the day prior.  

No matter.  The leaves are turning and it was one of those Autumn days that make me never want to return to work again.  

The pics (all by JD):

Autumn from high in Little Cottonwood Canyon

Rock skinning

Psyched for some more October skiing!

Tanner picking his way through last year's ice... Never said it was good skiing.

And just for the fun of it, we made a video of the day filled with horrific skinning and skiing.  The music is by Cedar Wright and fits the carefree mood of the day.  

Although always worth it, I don't think I'll ski again until we get some more snow.  And unfortunately, the forecast is grim...sunny and 60 all week.  

Movie Madness: The Grand Canyon and Mountain B Sides

I have no future in cinematography.  But, making movies is fun and here are my two latest efforts.  The first is a nauseating 5 minute ensemble from my recent R2R2R run in the Grand Canyon and the second is a collection of "B sides" from my video library.  Most of the clips from the B Sides movie are from last winter but a couple are from this summer and our attempt at the WURL.  I also snuck in a few recycled favorites from prior posts.

Running the Grand Canyon:


Mountain B Sides:

Mountain B Sides from andy dorais on Vimeo.


Continuing the theme, it really has all started again with today being our third on skis.  The loose powder has settled nicely and what you see is what you get...  I still manage to hit plenty of rocks though.