adktyler
Active member
First, the details:
-12 of us, at camp Peggy O’Brian, for 3 days.
-Some of us came in via the regular route, others on skis and with a sled via the South Side Trail.
-Plan was some of us would hike Gothics, Armstrong, Upper Wolfjaw loop, my dad and I would do Basin Book Slide (Basin from the North), and others would have a relaxed ski around the JBL area.
-The second day we would all join Dan for his W46 finish!
-Fast forward to the camp, all of us arriving safely on Wednesday morning, and suiting up for our said hikes.
-We all head out, going our various ways, and so the fun begins.
My dad and I trudged towards Slant Rock, on a mostly broken trail, content and energetic. After an hour and a half, we arrived at Basin Brook, and began hiking on the southern side of the brook. The forest was quite open for the first 30 minutes or so, and the going was easy. Because of the rain and warmth the week before, there was a firm crust that for the most part held under our weight. The foot or so of powder on top of the crust was easy to plow though, and keep a good rhythm going for the first part of the hike. It didn’t take too long for the woods to become thick, however, and there was a lot of snow down the neck, snow in the face, snow down the back, snow stuck in-between the pack and the back, and snow in every other conceivable crevice of our personage. But the weather was perfect, there was very little wind, we had plenty of time, and I was having a blast. Even though the trail we chose was thick, it certainly wasn’t the nastiest I’ve seen!
Video of bushwhack to Basin Brook Slide: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EY0_4G7MMjY
After I forget how long, we arrived on the edge of the slide. We were a little high on the slide, but I was only about 100 feet off from where I predicted the slide to be. Plodding up the slide was quite straight forward, and we didn’t need our crampons or ice axe. I read a comment by Mavs that it was wise to exit the drainage on the left, and not continue over the nub, so that’s what we did. It actually didn’t work out too well. The incline level was quite steep, and the chest-deep snow made going quite slow. No matter, however, because we eventually made it to the col and were granted a clear view of the summit of Basin. Traversing across the col was like walking on thin glass, knowing that at any moment your support could shatter and send you careening into a bottomless abyss of shapeless snow and twisted spruce. Ok…so that’s a bit of a dramatization, but it was still a game of Russian roulette with the snow support.
Video of Basin Brook Slide: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jdLR4rqxNq8
The final challenge came in navigating the 3-4 small headwalls on Basin’s North Face. There ended up being clear paths around them, however, and it was simply a question of locating those passages. We finally arrived on the summit around 4:30, and were a little worried about how late it was, and the near-whiteout conditions on the peak. Descending off the apex was definitely of concern, and we did not tarry on the top enjoying the conditions. We opted to take the marked trail off the summit, instead re-tracing our footsteps. This, in this situation, ended up being a very wise decision, and we had no problems finding the actual trail. By dark we reached the intersection of the unbroken Shory Short Cut, and within 3 hours or so were back at Peggy O’Brian enjoying a hearty meal. The total time of the round trip hike was 9 hours, mostly owned to the extremely slow pace from the slide to the summit of Basin. Seriously, because of the depth of snow, steepness of incline, and thickness of trees, we crawled along at a pace that would hardly put a snail to shame.
Little Haystack: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UdEGuPAlIKo
The next day all of us hiked Haystack. The trek consisted of perfect weather, 70+ mile per hour winds above treeline, and a joy to watch Dan finish his Winter 46 after so many years of dedicated hiking. All of the men on this trip are excellent guys, and it was a pleasure and honor to hike, eat, drink, and laugh with them. Many happy winter hikes ahead of you Dan, and the rest of you guys!
Summit of Haystack: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YOebkQLJduI WIND!...
Summit of Haystack 2: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nQiYvLR7ImM WIND!!...
Descending Haystack: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MWQ-xjLSrSk WIND!!!...
-12 of us, at camp Peggy O’Brian, for 3 days.
-Some of us came in via the regular route, others on skis and with a sled via the South Side Trail.
-Plan was some of us would hike Gothics, Armstrong, Upper Wolfjaw loop, my dad and I would do Basin Book Slide (Basin from the North), and others would have a relaxed ski around the JBL area.
-The second day we would all join Dan for his W46 finish!
-Fast forward to the camp, all of us arriving safely on Wednesday morning, and suiting up for our said hikes.
-We all head out, going our various ways, and so the fun begins.
My dad and I trudged towards Slant Rock, on a mostly broken trail, content and energetic. After an hour and a half, we arrived at Basin Brook, and began hiking on the southern side of the brook. The forest was quite open for the first 30 minutes or so, and the going was easy. Because of the rain and warmth the week before, there was a firm crust that for the most part held under our weight. The foot or so of powder on top of the crust was easy to plow though, and keep a good rhythm going for the first part of the hike. It didn’t take too long for the woods to become thick, however, and there was a lot of snow down the neck, snow in the face, snow down the back, snow stuck in-between the pack and the back, and snow in every other conceivable crevice of our personage. But the weather was perfect, there was very little wind, we had plenty of time, and I was having a blast. Even though the trail we chose was thick, it certainly wasn’t the nastiest I’ve seen!
Video of bushwhack to Basin Brook Slide: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EY0_4G7MMjY
After I forget how long, we arrived on the edge of the slide. We were a little high on the slide, but I was only about 100 feet off from where I predicted the slide to be. Plodding up the slide was quite straight forward, and we didn’t need our crampons or ice axe. I read a comment by Mavs that it was wise to exit the drainage on the left, and not continue over the nub, so that’s what we did. It actually didn’t work out too well. The incline level was quite steep, and the chest-deep snow made going quite slow. No matter, however, because we eventually made it to the col and were granted a clear view of the summit of Basin. Traversing across the col was like walking on thin glass, knowing that at any moment your support could shatter and send you careening into a bottomless abyss of shapeless snow and twisted spruce. Ok…so that’s a bit of a dramatization, but it was still a game of Russian roulette with the snow support.
Video of Basin Brook Slide: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jdLR4rqxNq8
The final challenge came in navigating the 3-4 small headwalls on Basin’s North Face. There ended up being clear paths around them, however, and it was simply a question of locating those passages. We finally arrived on the summit around 4:30, and were a little worried about how late it was, and the near-whiteout conditions on the peak. Descending off the apex was definitely of concern, and we did not tarry on the top enjoying the conditions. We opted to take the marked trail off the summit, instead re-tracing our footsteps. This, in this situation, ended up being a very wise decision, and we had no problems finding the actual trail. By dark we reached the intersection of the unbroken Shory Short Cut, and within 3 hours or so were back at Peggy O’Brian enjoying a hearty meal. The total time of the round trip hike was 9 hours, mostly owned to the extremely slow pace from the slide to the summit of Basin. Seriously, because of the depth of snow, steepness of incline, and thickness of trees, we crawled along at a pace that would hardly put a snail to shame.
Little Haystack: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UdEGuPAlIKo
The next day all of us hiked Haystack. The trek consisted of perfect weather, 70+ mile per hour winds above treeline, and a joy to watch Dan finish his Winter 46 after so many years of dedicated hiking. All of the men on this trip are excellent guys, and it was a pleasure and honor to hike, eat, drink, and laugh with them. Many happy winter hikes ahead of you Dan, and the rest of you guys!
Summit of Haystack: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YOebkQLJduI WIND!...
Summit of Haystack 2: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nQiYvLR7ImM WIND!!...
Descending Haystack: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MWQ-xjLSrSk WIND!!!...
